Sennheiser HD 490 PRO

Studio headphones built for the long haul

Sennheiser primarily designed the HD 490 PRO open-back headphones for mixing, mastering, and producing in the studio. I found that many of their performance traits translated well for listening to music as well. That includes the well-balanced "Sennheiser smooth" sound and their secure, well-cushioned fit and feel — these are among the most comfortable headphones I've ever worn.

That's certainly key in the studio, where you can spend hours wearing headphones to create and fine-tune a track. Sennheiser includes two sets of purpose-built ear pads, one covered in a soft velour that lends a warmer sound and one with a denim-like material designed for more technical work. You also get virtual mixing software from Dear Reality with a plug-in that can add different studio settings and presets to your DAW.

Wide soundstage with spot-on imaging

These headphones have a very open-air design, where sound travels in and out freely, so they aren't made for use around a live microphone. The outward-facing metal mesh grille is shaped to properly direct airflow and help prevent standing sound waves from muddying the mix. Performance-wise, my closest frame of reference is the classic Sennheiser audiophile headphones like the "HD 600" series — and these have some notable similarities and differences.

The HD 490 PRO headphones boast an outside-the-head soundstage that's in-between the intimate, immediate presentation of the HD 660 S2 and sprawling HD 800 S soundstage. True to Sennheiser form, they have precise imaging, so you can pick out and place individual instruments and vocals.

A tale of two ear pads

It's interesting how the two different sets of pads help shape the sound. With the denim pads, it sounded even and cohesive — with the highs standing out a bit more. With the velour pads, there was more bass presence and higher-pitched vocals sounded a little tamed compared to the other parts of the midrange. I thought it was worth the trade-off for listening to music, but it's nice to have a couple options if you're creating it.

Stays in place and accommodates eyeglasses

I also preferred the pleasant texture of the velour pads. I personally like the fit better than the HD 660 S2 — named one of our top 5 most comfortable headphones. The earcups are held snugly in place, but the pads offer such a light touch that I barely felt any pressure.

That includes where the pads met my glasses — a tricky spot for almost all over-ear headphones. If you run your finger around the parameter of each pad, you'll notice Sennheiser designed a little extra "give" to the cushioning to avoid pressing on the frames.

I listened to over half of a four-hour, 41-song James Brown Qobuz playlist created by Christian McBride. I was so caught up in the vibe, that I didn't realize I was 25 tracks deep — without a trace of listening fatigue.