Pros
✅ Good Price
✅ ANC Support
✅ Low Sound Leakage
Cons
❌ Bad Buttons Design
❌ No Fast Charging
❌ Bad Microphone Quality
Overview
Sennheiser HD 450BT is a budget-friendly headphone produced by Sennheiser. Some of its standout features include decent sound quality, particularly in the low frequencies and midrange, active noise cancellation (ANC), and app support, which are impressive features for an affordable headphone.
Additionally, this model earned the “Best Budget” title on our list of the best headphones for bass. At Technowant, we tested and evaluated this headphone for seven days, and we’ve compiled the test results into the following review for you.
Why is Techowant Trustworthy? At Technowant, we scientifically test headphones in our dedicated headphone testing studio to ensure accurate and reliable evaluations. For more details, you can read about our headphones Testing Method.
Design
The Sennheiser HD 450BT doesn’t have any particularly eye-catching elements in its overall design. The ear cups are made of synthetic leather, while the body is constructed from hard plastic that lacks a premium feel, unlike high-end headphones. Additionally, this material reduces the headphone’s durability against drops and impacts, so extra care is needed.
The ear cups are foldable, allowing them to be folded inward to save space. For easier portability, you can also store them in the zippered fabric case that comes with the product.
Sennheiser HD 450BT Comfort
The Sennheiser HD 450BT didn’t score high in our comfort tests due to two main factors: the headband and the ear cups.
Sennheiser did not account for variations in ear sizes when designing the ear cups. During testing, one of our female colleagues found them very comfortable, as the ear cups fully covered her ears. However, when I tried them, the ear cups were too small for my ears, making it feel as if I was wearing on-ear headphones rather than over-ear ones. While you can replace the ear pads with larger and higher-quality ones, this means an extra cost for the buyer, which is a significant downside for Sennheiser.
Another issue affecting comfort is the stiff headband. When worn for the first time, the pressure on the head is quite noticeable. This tightness is intentional, designed to improve stability, as the headphones are very lightweight (only 240g). Without a firm headband and strong clamping force, the headphones might lack stability and shift during use.
Sennheiser HD 450BT Controls
This headphone features physical buttons on the right ear cup for controls. However, the design and placement of these buttons are not well thought out, and it takes some time to get used to their locations and functions. Additionally, none of the buttons are labeled or marked with their respective functions, making it even more challenging to navigate them intuitively.
To make things easier for you, we have provided a detailed control guide for the Sennheiser HD 450BT in the table below.
| Action | Instruction |
|---|---|
| Power On/Off | Tap and hold the power button for two seconds. |
| Toggle Noise Canceling | Press the power button once. |
| Activate Voice Assistant | Press the voice assistant button (closest to the headphone yoke). |
| Skip Back a Track | Slide the switch back (located just below the voice assistant button). |
| Skip Forward a Track | Slide the switch forward. |
| Pause/Resume Playback | Press the switch like a button. |
| Adjust Volume | Press the volume rocker up or down. |
| Answer/End a Call | Press the switch button once. |
| Place a Call on Hold | Press and hold the switch button for two seconds. |
Connection
You can use this headphone both in wired and Bluetooth mode. Inside the box, you’ll find a 180 cm cable with a 2.5mm to 3.5mm jack, allowing you to connect it to your device for wired use. However, if your phone doesn’t have a 3.5mm jack input, you’ll need to use a 3.5mm to USB-C or Lightning cable for connect to the headphone.
This headphone features Bluetooth 5.0 and supports multipoint connectivity, which is a great advantage. Additionally, it is compatible with most Bluetooth codecs for wireless connection—except for LDAC.
Sound Quality
The sound of the Sennheiser HD 450BT is relatively well-balanced, with an added touch of bass, making it appealing to bass lovers and fans of hip-hop, EDM, and pop dance genres. However, it’s important to note that its bass levels are not on par with high-end headphones like the Sony WH-1000XM5, Sony ULT Wear, or Bose QuietComfort Ultra.
Sennheiser HD 450BT Frequency Response
If you look at the frequency response chart of this headphone, you’ll notice that it performs well in the bass and midrange regions, aligning closely with Technowant’s preferred curve in these areas. However, from 1,600 Hz to 20,000 Hz—which covers the high mid-range and high frequencies—its performance is far from ideal. Even without listening to the headphone, you can easily guess that its sound is somewhat dull and dark.
Listening Test
The first track was “Cruel Summer” by Taylor Swift. The bass was rich, enjoyable, and pleasant to the ears, and the arpeggios blended harmoniously with the bass. In the midrange, the keyboard and electronic instruments were clearly audible, and the main vocal sounded full and well-defined. However, in the higher frequencies, where elements like sweepers, cymbals, backing vocals, and hi-hats are present, the sound was so muffled that these elements were almost lost in the mix. Overall, the dark and veiled nature of this headphone’s sound was very noticeable.
The second track was “HIM ALL ALONG” by Gunna, a hip-hop song. In our team we have members who prefer hip-hop and rap listen to it with this headphone. Interestingly, the dark sound signature of the Sennheiser HD 450BT did not make these listeners dissatisfied—in fact, it seemed to enhance the appeal of this genre. However, some high-frequency elements, such as hi-hats and cymbals, which are important in hip-hop production, were not clearly heard.
To understand the opinions of different social groups about this headphone, we provided it to representatives from nine user groups that make the most use of headphones. We then asked them to rate the headphone on a scale of 1 to 10 based on their experience.
The image below shows the survey results in the form of a graph.
Isolation & ANC
The Sennheiser HD 450BT offers moderate isolation and active noise cancellation (ANC)—but only if you position it correctly on your ears and head. However, the poor design of the ear cups often prevents the isolation and ANC from working effectively in many situations.
Looking at the isolation and ANC graph, you can see that with ANC activated, the headphone can reduce low-frequency noises (such as airplane engines and truck or bus motors) by up to 10 dB. It also manages to reduce mid-frequency sounds (such as human conversations) by up to 18 dB, which is reasonable for a headphone at this price point—so you shouldn’t expect too much.
One notable issue with its ANC performance is its slow response to sudden noises. Instead of immediately detecting and reducing abrupt sounds, the headphone’s ANC typically reacts with a one-second delay.
Sennheiser HD 450BT Sound Leakage
One area where this headphone excels is sound leakage. If you often use headphones in public places like libraries or the metro and are concerned about sound leakage, this model is an excellent choice. In terms of leakage control, this headphone outperforms even some high-end models, allowing minimal sound to escape while listening to music.
Battery Life
Considering its price, this headphone offers good battery life. In our battery life test, it lasted up to 31 hours with ANC turned off, and with ANC enabled, this time was reduced to 27 hours and 30 minutes which an excellent battery performance for an affordable headphone.
However, one of its biggest drawbacks is the lack of fast charging support. You will need to wait 2 to 2.5 hours for a full charge.
App
The Sennheiser HD 450BT supports the Sennheiser Smart Control app, available for both Android and iOS. However, the app offers limited control over the headphone. Aside from displaying the battery percentage and providing equalizer settings, it does not allow you to toggle ANC on or off, customize button functions, or access other advanced features. Still, we highly recommend installing it, as it allows for firmware updates to keep your headphones up to date.
Sennheiser HD 450BT Equalizer Settings
If you’re not satisfied with the headphone’s default sound profile, you can customize it using the equalizer in the app.
- We recommend not changing the midrange frequencies.
- To improve clarity, increase the high frequencies by 3 to 7 dB.
- If you want more bass, boost the bass frequencies by 2 to 5 dB.
Microphone
The microphone quality of this headphone is not good at all. If you’re someone who relies on a headphone microphone for voice calls, this model is definitely not suitable for you.
Even in a studio environment with no background noise, the recorded audio sounds muffled and overly bass-heavy. When street noise was played in the studio and the audio was recorded again, the words became completely unintelligible, getting lost in the background noise.
Below, you can listen to two samples of audio recorded with this headphone’s microphone:
In Studio:
In Street:
Final Verdict
The Sennheiser HD 450BT, priced under $200, falls into the category of affordable bass-heavy headphones. If you’re a bass lover, value active noise cancellation and good battery life, and want a budget-friendly option, this headphone could be a great choice for you. That’s why, at Technowant, we’ve given it the title of “Best Budget”.
However, it’s important to manage your expectations the sound quality and additional features of this headphone are not high-end, and it should be viewed purely as a budget-friendly option.
FAQs
Yes, you can consider alternatives like Sennheiser HD 4.50BTNC Wireless, Jabra Elite 45h and Sennheiser Accentum Wireless as replacements for this headphone.
No, unfortunately, you cannot use this headphone while it is charging.
Yes, the equalizer in the app includes several preset options for genres like classical, rock, pop, etc. However, we do not highly recommend using them.
Yes, if you don’t find the ear cushions comfortable, you can easily replace them and install larger ones.
