Superlux HD 681 vs Sennheiser PXC 550

The HD681 will not put a lot of strain to your neck and head, even for long periods. Coming in at around 220 g, they are relatively light. This is due to the use of plastic as the primary build material, along with small metal tubes on the headband frame instead of large plastic or metal parts.

These headphones have what is called a V-shaped sound signature where the bass and treble is boosted while the mids take a backseat. The bass is powerful, deep and satisfying. Listening to bass heavy music will certainly be a good experience. The boosted treble makes audio detail up front, so nuances in the music can be clearly heard.

Due to the semi-open design, the sound is not completely trapped inside the ear cup housing. This gives the sound a wider, more natural feel.

The feature works really well in preventing outside noise from intruding into your music listening experience. Also, there are very little to no reports of a feeling of pressure in the ears when the feature is active.

The sound tuning of these headphones is focused on the lower frequencies. The bass is quite powerful with good sub-bass extension. Users who listen to a lot of hip-hop, dance and bass-heavy music will certainly enjoy the oomph that these headphones can give. The mids sound natural and smooth, yet the lower regions of these frequencies can be overwhelmed by the powerful bass. The highs are crisp and clear though, which prevents the sound from getting too muddy.

Soft foam and leather are used in the interior and exterior of the ear pads respectively which makes them feel really soft and smooth on the head. The same material choices can be found in the headband.

The Smart Pause feature detects if you are removing or putting on your headphones. These gestures will trigger the music to pause or play automatically.

When in wireless mode, you do not need to use buttons in order to control the functions of the headphones. The right ear cup lets you control the headphones through touch gestures. You can swipe left or right for next or previous track, swipe up or down to increase or decrease the volume or tap on the ear cup to pause or play track as well as answer or end calls.

You can set just how much noise is cancelled by the headphones, from maximum active noise cancelling, to an ambient mode which allows some sound into the headphones. You can also turn the feature off entirely.

These headphones are quite effective at preventing sound leakage, and also passively block out noise really well. This is achieved by the closed ear cup design along with the effective seal from the leather-surfaced ear pads.

You can twist the ear cups and then fold them into the headband for a smaller, more travel friendly size. In this state, it should take up a lot less space inside your bag for less hassle when used on the go.

Sennheiser offers the CapTune smartphone app which allows users to see the battery level of the headphones, adjust the headphones' EQ, and control other functions.

The case is made from a tough fabric material which should protect the headphones from minor bumps and scratches.