RS 175 RF Wireless Headphones for TV System with Bass Boost and Surround Sound Modes, Compact and Ergonomic, Wireless TV Listening, Black

After reading the reviews on these I was cautiously optimistic thinking that the bad reviews were by more likely user error. The optical connection is the way to go. I was looking for a way to listen to the TV without bothering the family. I have insomnia and I listen to something on headphones most of the night. I have been using Sony M3’s and M4’s for the last 10 years and was content that I had the best sound in the price point. Comfort is a big factor for me. The Sonys are comfortable for the long haul no doubt. The first time I put the 175’s on I thought this is not going to be a comfortable fit. They seemed clunky and ‘plastic y’. Then I realized that the large ear pieces were designed to go over the entire ear and seal against the skull. I’m 62 years old and have been through the audiophile generation. I appreciate good to great sound and demand it in my equipment without going broke. After I figured out the comfort issue I could turn to sound quality and user experience. I’m pleasantly surprised by the 175’s. They have range and depth sound quality. If I’m being completely honest they seem almost better than the M4’s. After the initial setup and charging time (a serious 12 hours) I began to put them through the paces. The 175’s passed all my quality checks. Bass boost definitely fills in the lows without muddying the sound. Surround setting gives some feeling of spatial fidelity. As far as watching TV you won’t be disappointed. I had forgotten about listening to soundtracks but these brought it back. I was pleasantly surprised by how easy it was to listen to my Pandora account on the TV. This is where these things really shine. With the optical connection sound is first quality. Have a Samsung 65” TV with a Samsung sound bar, it’s a newer model. Connections were a breeze Don’t not try these because of bad reviews. If you know your way around audio equipment and are not interested in spending too much I say give them a try If you’re looking for a good quality audio answer to watching TV privately and listening to music on your cable get these. If you want to spend more Sennheiser can also accommodate you. For me and my insomnia the 175’s are the answer

Strengths Sound quality really good for wireless, the best i have heard in fact for wireless. Better than a lot of wired too, to my ears these sound wonderful. I have a lot of headphones and am into audio as well. I think the sound would suit the tastes of 90% of people. For movies these kill, got me though when my daughter was in infant :) They extremely conformable with easily replaceable pads. i upgraded to the felt pads you can buy the 185 pads and they work fine. They are better than the stock ones that come with these for those of us that like the feel of felt. Simply fun to listen to. Close as you will get to a 2k home theater on a budget. Really just want to cut to the chase these are fun to listen to, and i feel they sound wonderful for movies. I can honestly say i don't think they could be any better for this usage. Also love having replaceable batteries. I have had this for a couple years now, and a buddy has has his a previous model for more than 10 years old (180) so i know they hold up fairly well. Weaknesses They don't leak sound, but the sound isolation isn't the best as compared to some other over year phones i have tried. It isn't bad, just don't expect super isolation. The head band pad is not the best. Fake leather feels a little thin there too. The build is also not the most robust. I haven't had any issues but i am also really careful with my things. I wouldn't drop it. I'd be surprised if it could sustain a fall from 4-5 feet on a hard surface with out breaking. The price i paid for the full unit with the base station was 171. It is a buy at that price, no regrets, in fact i like the sound so much if i could find it for that price or lower i'd consider picking up a second done for work since i like it better than Bluetooth. while it isn't quite as flexible as bluetooth since you need this station, it performs better, and there are no hiccups with either lag, or bluetooth issues like jitter etc. In fact in all the years of owning this i have never had any issue audio or otherwise. I think 270 which i see from time to time is asking way too much though they are good but let's not be crazy. The mark up on head phones is absurd. I'd wait for a sale. For what these do they are wonderful. If you want a pair of cans for your home theater system or computer, and don't need as much flexibility as bluetooth provides and have a scenario where audio performance is paramount, you'll totally love these.It really is significant in terms of quality it is a rich sound, with a nice sound stage and imaging which helps for movies and games. While not perfect if I am being picky, after years of owning this i am giving it 5 starts because i still use it, and it has served me really well, and i have been totally satisfied with my purchase. In fact i used this and my Bluetooth cans more than any of the corded ones i have these days, and i have some nice ones. This sound just about as good as some of my high end cabled head phones especially for things like movies. They are particularly tuned for that. My main gripes are I would love to see 1.) more isolation, 2.) more robust build quality 3.) this quality of sound on Bluetooth if it is possible. I mean i feel like i have to treat these things like fine china which they are :) I can honestly say these'd would by far be my go to head phones in all scenarios if i could get this sound quality on Bluetooth and not paying 500 dollars.Here is hoping. These have great imaging and are almost as good as open back headphones in sound stage. there is almost a surround sound nature to them, but they just sound great. If you want uncompromising high end sounds for your movies in a head phones these are the ones to get.

First let me say that I suffer a serious hearing loss which makes it difficult to watch television with my wife because I have to have the volume up so loud and even then I can't hear everything. I have had two sets of sennheiser RS 120's for a few years now and loved them. My wife wanted to get me these for Christmas this year because they were apparently capable of surround sound. Now I'm not an audiophile but I will try to point out some pro's and con's here. The 175's are an over the ear fit as opposed to the 120's being an on the ear fit. The 175's fit much tighter which is very nice when up and moving about yet the tight fit makes it difficult to hear when my wife is speaking to me during a show which she does quite often. I'll let you decide if that's is a pro or a con. The 120's were loose enough that I could hear her speak even though I still had to remove the headset to understand her. The looseness had a downside though in that if I went to the fridge for a drink or snack and bent down the headset fell off. Not so with the 175's. Both sets have excellent sound reproduction even though the 120's are analog. The 175's can be digital or analog which can be decided by a switch on the back of the transmitter. You have the option of connecting to the sound source by optical cable or 3.5 jack which in my case required a y adapter converting to RCA jacks. I was amazed to find that there is a very noticeable difference between digital and analog, digital being the best by far. With the digital you don't hear any static or interference noises in non-dialog or silent spots. At least I couldn't hear any and my wife said in her words "this is fantastic". sound with the 175's: You can switch between regular stereo, low SRS, and High SRS by clicking a button on the side of the headset. This can also be controlled at the transmitter. There is a very noticeable difference between each setting. I have noticed that on low SRS the background recordings seem to be moved back and reduced in volume while the main dialog remains at regular volume. Ever had one of those instances where the main character is talking in a whisper voice, which seems to be in vogue these days, and is suddenly overrun by the background noise, which also seems to be a problem these days. Well, low SRS helps to overcome that problem for me. I can hear the dialog very clearly and if you've lived for a while having to constantly asked "what did he/she say?" then you can really appreciate that fact. In High SRS there is a distinct surround sound quality. I've never been able to experience this before due to my hearing loss so to me it is awesome. I love Paul Simons music, especially "Graceland", "father and daughter" and "late in the evening". I just thought I liked them before but after listening to them through the 175's I have heard notes and instruments that I didn't realize were there. Now I love the songs. Having discovered that I went back and watched a couple of my favorite movies and discovered background sounds that I had been missing and they add so much more to the entertainment value. Keep in mind that I have experienced all this with the 120's also and there is a large difference. continued pros sound aside: I like that the controls are on the side of the 175 headset because I often recline when watching television and this keeps the controls from contacting anything and changing the settings unintentionally. This was a problem with the 120 sets because the controls were behind the headset. The 175 set, to me, is much more comfortable because of the padding and because possibly of the tighter fit which keeps them in place verses the loose fit of the 120 set. cons (maybe): The 175 set is only capable of employing two headsets. The 120 can employ several at one time. I'm not sure how many but certainly more than four because I have that many headsets. The 120 has an option of three channels selectable on the transmitter and the headset which means you can use more than one in a household without interfering with each other. This is the situation at my house. I have one set in the bedroom and one in the living room and we can use them separately on separate channels at the same time. My grandkids love the headsets so this settles a problem when they come to visit and want cartoons while I want news. The 175 has only one channel so this setup would probably not be possible. The 175 power button has to be held down for about three seconds to activate while the 120 has a slide switch. The 175 has a very slight delay between activation and transmitter connection. The 120 is instant. This caused a rather humorous incident early on. My wife was watching a movie on Netflix and I picked up the headset, turned it on, placed it on my head and thought I was waiting on a connection when in reality I was in a very quite point in the movie just before an explosion and massive gunfire. I was on my way to my recliner when all hell broke loose and it was so realistic I almost wet my pants and overran the recliner. It was apparently the highlight of my wife's day. She still laughs about it. Her lack of concern about my bruised shins and ego aside...after the fact it was funny. I know this was lengthy but I hope it helps someone in my situation to make an informed decision. In short I would never had purchased the 175's for myself due to the cost because I wouldn't have believed they would make this much difference. Now that I've experienced them I would buy them in a heartbeat. Now a word about sennheiser's customer service. I had a situation early on where I lost the optical connection with my TV. I was quick to blame the new headset simply because they were new. I sent an email to sennheiser in hopes they could find a solution before I had to send the set back. I had a return mail in about 45 minutes telling me what to do. Turns out the problem was with the television and not the sennheiser transmitter. Quick response, great customer service.

After much research, I finally pulled the trigger on 11/22/15 and ordered the top rated Sennheiser RS 175 Headphones over the ear phones with Amazon Prime for $245, with no added tax or shipping costs. These were essential for domestic tranquility with others in the house because my new SAMSUNG 4K UHDTV and Soundbar system speaker bass which you could hear all over the house even with a low volume setting of 10. These got as low as $199 for Black Friday, but I still got a good price on them. General Comments: As far as the hookup to my Samsung UN65JS8500 (see my Amazon review)......a couple of things your should know that took me about an hour to figure out which might save you some time and pain. First, I already had a Samsung Soundbar on the 4K UHDTV which ran off the single optical out from the one-connect mini box. These headphones are not Bluetooth but have their own wireless frequency transmitter direct to your headphones up to 100 meters away depending on your walls. You don't have to pair them up with the UHDTV and you can get a second pair of them for a viewing companion. They are great phones but you need to set them up special on this Samsung: 1. Split the Optical out into 2 cables if you have a soundbar. Get the Toslink Digital Optical Audio Splitter 1x3...1 input to 3 possible output devices. The VHD-TS1X3 will cost you around $25 on Prime or at stores like Fry's. Also purchase a 1 meter optical cable from your one-connect mini box to the splitter input port for about $10, Then you will have A, B, or C output ports and supplied cables from the splitter to your soundbar, headphones, and one additional device if you need it. 2. On the Samsung Menu Sound Option. Very important, as it took me an hour to figure out what settings to use as my first hookup with the headphones was dead silent and there was nobody to help me at Samsung or Sennheiser: a. Sound Mode: Up to you, but I like "Movie" for the better base in most movies and 4K series on Prime or Netflix. b. TV Speaker: Stay with SoundBar (if you have one) or TV speakers....not Bluetooth, or Optical Out options. c. Additional Settings: HDMI Out:.....set to PCM and Audio Format: also set to PCM. Headphones require PCM format on UHDTV. Once you do this, the headphones and the soundbar will both send out fantastic audio simultaneously......so you must mute the soundbar (or regular TV speakers) to eliminate any echo effect time delays....but fiber optic is so fast you should not hear any. My Audio delay is set to 100 ms with my HD Audio: OFF. You may need to play with these depending on your speaker/Soundbar setup. PROS: 1. Great sound fidelity and reproduction. No noise once you put them on. You hear voices and stereo sound effects you can't hear from standard UHDTV speakers or soundbars which adds to your viewing experience. 2. I can take them to any room in the house within 30 feet upstairs or downstairs and not miss a sound. No sound dropouts anywhere, even the garage, bathroom, or outside. 3. Fairly easy to setup once you have your optical cable or stereo audio cable setup and your sound source menu options setup properly for the Sennheiser. 4. Nice to have the transmitter post nearby to charge the headphones when not in use and red/green charging indicator status. 5. Good reference CD. I suggest you print out the entire 32 page instruction manual before you start the setup or view the PDF. You can still read every page if you double up to print 2 pages per sheet for 16 pages with landscape format. It will take you 10 minutes to read it. 6. Nice to confirm your current BASS BOOST or SURROUND SOUND setting lights on the transmitter post if within view. 7. I am still experimenting with BASS and Surround Sound settings Hi and Low for movies, normal shows, and music channels. So far, I like the just the extra BASS BOOST setting for movies. You need to experiment for yourself. CONS: 1. Headphone batteries: Swap out the supplied AAA batteries with the Energizer AAA rechargeable batteries, which charge up much faster and last a lot longer than the German supplied "ReCyko" batteries. You need 1 battery in for the left and right side headphone. Volume controls, + or -, base high/low, and surround sound buttons are on the right side headphone, which take a while to get use to. Don't use your remote or you will unmute your soundbar or TV speakers and alert others in your house and defeat your headphone privacy. 2. All controls on the right earphone. Very nice if you are right-handed or ok with your right hand if left-handed. The other problem is that the 4 main quadrants of the control circle: BASS, SURROUND SOUND, VOL -, and VOL +, are basically on a flat surface, and unless you have a mutant eye or good tactile feel on your right thumb, you really can't feel which control is which. The first few days, I had to take off my headphones multiple times to see which control I was touching. Problem solved: I got some 3/8" round soft felt tabs with a stick-on side on each control. The BASS and SURROUND tabs are a little thicker than the sound control tabs, so I could feel, where I was on the control circle. All I had to remember was the BASS was to the left of the SURROUND control and that VOL - was to the left of VOL +. Sennheiser should improve this ergonomic problem with future models. 3. Break-in pain. I have only had these headphones about 2 weeks, and even with the padding around the ears and on the top of my head, there is definitely a dull throbbing pain around my ears once I remove the headphones after about an hour of viewing. There is no way to adjust the tightness of these phones on the sides of your head. However, as others have suggested, it might take a month or so of normal use to loosen them up...or maybe you can stretch them out over a large wooden block when not in use. I may change my 4* rating to 5* in a future review update if the pain issue resolves itself or my head shrinks. We'll see.

I bought these to replace a pair of Sony MDR RF-6000s and use them mostly for TV/Movies. The Sonys cut out and picked up lots of interference from wifi and other 2.4ghz traffic (I live in a city environment with easily 25 wifi networks in range). Overall, they've been great and are well worth the money. Signal: So far, the Sennheisers have been flawless with no dropouts or signal loss. As above, I live in a pretty interference-heavy environment. Haven't really range tested them, but they'll easily go into the next room with no problem. Sound Quality: I played around with the bass boost and surround, but find things sound best with all that off. There's no shortage of bass and sound quality is full and on par with any high-end headphone from Bose, Sennheiser, or Sony. There's a slight signal delay, though that's only perceptible when the audio is also playing through speakers, and I'd expect that from any RF headphones. Batteries: I haven't tested the battery life yet (had them on a couple hours and no issues). They use rechargeable AAA batteries, which allows for the use of standard AAAs if the rechargeable ones die. Each earcup has a battery, accessible by twisting/unlocking the pad. That evens out the weight, but adds a step to change batteries. Cradle/Transponder: It's a pretty sleek looking stand, both with the phones on and off. Takes a little bit of practice to get them on and off just right, but nothing too difficult. Comfort: They're a pretty tight fit, which is good for keeping them on while moving around, though maybe not the best for all-day listening. All considered, no complaints about comfort. My only long-term concern would be the foam pads on the headband - foam tends to wear and these don't look replaceable. The headband is a standard adjustable model, though a bit thicker than some others due to the larger size and weight of the electronics/batteries. The Sonys had a band that turned them on automatically when you put them on (and then beeped annoyingly if there was no signal). These use a button for on/off, which is slightly less convenient but more durable and reliable long term. You have to hold the button for a few secs, so they aren't prone to accidentally being turned off. In all, these are a good buy and decent balance between price and quality with no significant flaws. My main driver is signal quality in a high-interference environment, and these have certainly solved that so far. Also, the packaging and instructions were easy and clearly well thought out. That's often an afterthought, but a bad experience there can set the tone for the product long term. Nice work, Sennheiser. UPDATE: 10 Months in, and these are still going strong. Battery life is still excellent - I've had a few "marathon" sessions (use these for TV) and they've yet to run out. Often, I get lazy and don't throw them back on the charger after an evening of TV and they're still good to go the next time. In our old place, I finally found where the signal would cut out - in the basement three floors down. Our new house is lath and plaster, which is murder on all kinds of wireless signals, and they're good for about one floor in either direction and probably 70-80 ft from the base station. Unless you live with lath & plaster (and you'll know if you do) or in a stone castle, I can't imagine a scenario where you wouldn't have whole-house roaming. Still never had even a blip of interference, despite a neighborhood of wireless routers screaming at high volume in 2.4ghz. UPDATE 2: Almost 4 years on and these are still performing as they did when new. I did wear through the earcups (every headphone I've ever had does this) and easily replaced them with no tools - it's a twist-lock change. Original batteries still going strong with almost-daily usage. UPDATE 3: 5 years in. Just replaced the headband pads (peel off old ones and stick on new ones). Replacements available for ~$19 on Amazon. Battery life and sound quality still as it was in the beginning. UPDATE 4: I have owned these for almost 9 years and still use them almost daily for evening TV. Just changed the earcup pads again. A couple years ago the original batteries failed to hold charge, so I swapped with AAA rechargeables from Amazon - no discernable difference in use or charge time. So few technology things fit the "buy it for life" model, but these might be the ones.

April 19, 2022: Dropped rating from 4 star to 1! I bought a pair of what I thought were HDR 175 headphones. Looking at the site today, Amazon labels these as RS 175 RF Wireless Headphones, yet the photos show HDR 175. Why is this a problem? Because the product designation matters when pursuing a warranty or troubleshooting issue. I've purchased what I thought were HDR 175s several times at Amazon, and have loved the headphones. (See former reviews below). Having only the day before yesterday (April 17, 2023) unboxed and plugged in the headphones I purchased in September 2022, I noticed that after two full days of charging that the charging light is still red. I tested the batteries in the headphones, and they seem fully charged. It could be something amok with the status function of the charger, but I won't know until I get a response from a Sennheiser Support provider. Good luck navigating the internet and Sennheiser site for getting ANY information on HDR 175s. SInce Amazon calls these RS 175s, at least I was able to submit a support request once I finally found out where to do that. The Sennheiser Support site is a nightmare to navigate. The only hit I found anywhere regarding this issue was a review for the HDR 175s here at Amazon from a purchaser who had the same problem but reported that it magically solved itself a few days after he/she contacted Sennheiser and they responded. I love the headphones (with the exception of the flimsy padding on the ear and head pads.) and am dismayed that Support is so difficult to get. I wish I'd opened the box in September, so I could have returned the problematic headphones to Amazon. September 8, 2022 update. I still love these headphones. They are comfortable and provide exactly what I need by way of providing audio while watching TV. I prefer this version's method of powering on and off the headphones, vs the HDR 170, where I need to remember to turn the unit on at the base station before ALSO turning on the headphone. One problem with both models is the flimsy material that is used to cover the pads. I realize that replacement pads can be gotten for as little as $15, but that they need to be replaced every year or so, when used often, is ridiculous. The soft film covering the pads begins to disintegrate almost immediately. Can't SOMEONE come up with a better covering? Before ordering yet another pair of replacement pads for both units (HDR 175 and older HDR 170), I'm going to read reviews for later models to see if a better design exists. Still great unit. I dropped a point from my original review because of the need to constantly replace the pads. (by the way, it's not just the ear pads that disintegrate, but also the small rectangular pads that cushion the unit at the top of your head... Original review from 2017: I use these primarily because the family room TV is located in a very near the kitchen - center of activity in the house. My hearing isn't what it used to be and I need to have the option to basically shut out extraneous chatter. With these headphones on, I can watch TV while the family goes about their noisy routine in the kitchen. Later, when the kids are focusing on homework, I can turn the speakers on the TV off and still watch without disturbing them. I also own an older Sennheiser headphone system (the RS 170) as well as an even older Sony MDR RF970R. These are attached to TVs elsewhere in the house. In terms of sound quality in general, both Sennheiser systems clearly outperform the Sony. The Sony system just sounds tinny and can't compete on the bass side of the equation. While the sound quality between the Sennheiser systems is (to my ear) the same, the later system (the 175) fits more snugly and has a better system for turning the system on and for adjusting volume and other settings. The buttons on the 170's are really difficult to find when wearing them and the headphones don't hug your head very well. That's both a plus and a minus. You can wear them longer, but if you tilt your head, the headphones don't really stay put very well. If I cared to part with the cash, I'd have the 175's attached to all three TVs. Highly recommended.

Best Headphone for me in 20+ years of Sennheiser use. Remarkable sound and options. I've used the Sennheiser 120s for over 20 years and they worked really well for me but, now a bit hard of hearing, left more than right. I was hopping to find a headset with Left/Right individual sound controls but found them to be out of my price range, i.e. Sennheiser 195s but, one day the 175s went on sale for $175 so I decided to bite the bullet and give them a try. I figured I could always return them if they didn't work for me, turns out I'm very, very happy I bought these. They come with three (3) options, one very easy to use, button to select two levels of surround sound and, or just regular sound. They work flawlessly and with ease. And there is a BASS boost button that helps me hear music much clearer than the 120s. It turns out that if I select 1 of the surround options I don't need separate volume controls, the balance is excellent. Sure they are probably the most robust design but I'll have to be gentle with them. The range seems to be a bit funky in that depending where I am outside the house the sound cuts out, the 120s were better for this. Now if I want to wear headphone when mowing the grass just outside sunning myself I bring both the 175s and 120s with me and switch to the best reception. I'm 78 years old and I truly love these things, especially when listening soothing music. 5 Stars.. Going to buy a pair for my older brother who also suffers from hearing loss. I;m sure his wife will appreciate them even more than he.

First, let me say that I find reviews about service or non-product-related issues in product reviews very annoying. However, in this case I'm going to give myself license to list the good, the bad, and the perhaps slightly irrelevant all in one review. This is my second pair of Sennheiser headphones. I bought a pair for my hard-of-hearing mother a few years ago and they've been excellent. I purchased this second pair (different model) because these have an optical cable option and because I can pair a second set of headphones -- one each for me and my husband. Issue #1: The box had clearly been opened by someone prior to me receiving delivery. I don't mean the shipping box; I mean the product box. One of the accessory boxes had been torn open, the plastic bag containing the instructions had been opened, and ties on the optical cable had clearly been removed and carelessly replaced. However, it appeared that all parts were included and several parts were still in unopened plastic bags. The batteries were still in their original packaging. I did not order, nor did I pay for, an "open" package but that's clearly what I received. Issue #2: The optical cable is defective and clearly of inferior quality. If you purchase a set of these headphones do yourself a favor and just add a quality optical cable to your order. It took quite a bit of troubleshooting to figure out why the headphones weren't working (no sound). Luckily I had an optical cable for my sound bar. I was able to use that, reconfigure things, and determine that the provided optical cable was faulty. Issue #3: The rechargeable batteries provided are defective. Again, it took some troubleshooting to figure out why the headphones weren't working. Following the instructions, I installed the provided batteries and placed the headphones on the recharging stand for ~16 hours until the light turned green. Then I removed the headphones and started the process of testing for sound, etc. My first attempt didn't work (see cable issue above), so I turned off the TV, jiggled wires, etc. After less than 10 minutes of playing with the wires and buttons, etc (making sure I had the volume turned up and not muted), the power button turned off. I replaced the headphones on the charger and the light was red again. After 10 minutes?! I waited another 30 minutes but the headphones still had not charged to green again. At this point I dug out a set of non-rechargable AAA batteries, popped those in, and, with the new cable and the new batteries everything finally worked. In sum, Meh. They're headphones. They work (for now but I still have to get a new optical cable so I can wire my sound bar back up again). But they sure aren't anything special and they do not at all live up to what I expected based on the price and my previous Sennheiser experience. They do what they were supposed to do -- allow one (and hopefully, two) people to be able to watch TV while not disturbing the other people in the house trying to sleep or study. The Bass and Surround sound buttons do weird things to the sound that, to my ears, did nothing to enhance the experience. Maybe those are good for action movies? I tested them on a news program; the headphones certainly did not improve quality of the sound nor the quality of the news. As for comfort, I found them a bit heavy and I think they'll hurt my head after an hour or so but I think that's mostly an individual thing. I don't like wearing headphones in general and they all start to hurt after a while. The padding is nice and they fit around the ear and not over the ear so they do a pretty good job of buffering outside noise which allows one to keep the headphone volume to a minimum and avoid eardrum damage. But in terms of quality of sound or feel or buffering of outside noise I don't find these of any higher quality or any more comfortable than less expensive headphones I've owned over the years. The one thing these have over those others -- they're wireless. If I had to do all over again I'd probably avoid these and try a different model or maybe even a different brand. If you do buy these or similar headphones, either buy a better quality cable and a spare set of batteries or be prepared to acquire some in order to finish installation. I haven't received the companion headphones so I can't speak yet to how well they work or how it works to have two headphones working at the same time.