With an age of more than 7 decades and winning hundreds of different large and small awards, it is no exaggeration to say that Sennheiser is one of the world’s leading audio brands. Every year, Sennheiser disrupts the audio market by launching new products with super engaging sound quality, good finishing, compact design and extremely comfortable wearing experience. Introduced to the public for the first time at the CES 2023 exhibition, IE200 is the latest inear headphone model launched by Sennheiser this year. After only 1 month since its launch, Sennheiser IE200 is a hotly discussed topic by many audiophiles across audio forums. So what makes this headset so hot? Let’s find out the details in today’s review.

Packaging and accessories

Like other IE Series products, Sennheiser IE200 is packaged in a cardboard box with classic Sennheiser colors. As usual, the most general image of the headset will be on the front of the cover box. Along with that is the typical Sennheiser logo, brand name and product name. More detailed information about the IE200 headset and the Sennheiser brand will be on the remaining sides of the cover box.

Inside the cardboard box, in addition to the IE200 and the accompanying cable, users will receive an additional set of accessories including:

• 3 pairs of silicone eartips size S/M/L
• 3 pairs of Viscoelastic foam eartips size S/M/L
• 1 drawstring bag

Sennheiser Consumer Audio IE 200 In-Ear Audiophile Headphones – TrueResponse Transducers for Neutral Sound, Impactful Bass, Detachable Braided Cable with Flexible Ear Hooks – Black: Buy it now

Design and wearing experience

Sennheiser IE200 still wears the “signature” design language of the IE Series product line. Basically, the housing of IE200 still has similarities with its predecessors IE900, IE600 or IE300. The main difference comes from the constituent materials. Sennheiser used plastic to make the housing instead of aluminum alloy. Although impact resistance and scratch resistance will be slightly reduced, in return, the weight of the headset will be lighter and production costs will be reduced.

Besides the Sennheiser logo, the manufacturer also arranged a small vent port on the faceplate. Meanwhile, the product name IE200 is imprinted on the inside of the headset (left ear). To make it easier to distinguish the left/right ear, the connector will be painted red (for the right ear) and black (for the left ear).

Similar to its brothers, Sennheiser IE200 creates an extremely good fit with the listener’s ears. Besides being fit, comfortable and smooth, the IE200 also offers extremely good passive sound insulation. Although it does not have a sleek and sophisticated design like many other competitors, it must be admitted that the IE200’s ability to create ear fit is still at the top of its segment.

IE200 remains loyal to the traditional MMCX connector. Gold plating the connector on both the headset and cable will help maximize connection sensitivity. At the same time, it increases durability and limits oxidation over time. During use, the cable produces very little noise and no microphonics appear.

Driver configuration and sound quality

Sennheiser equips each ear of the IE200 with only one dynamic driver developed based on exclusive TrueResponse Transducer technology. This driver has a diameter of 7mm and is responsible for reproducing sound in an extremely wide frequency range with extremely low harmonic distortion. Diffuse field equalization allows the IE200 to deliver surprisingly balanced sound. Another very interesting point is that adjusting the eartips when wearing headphones will directly affect the bass range. Sennheiser calls this feature and names it Dual Tuning. This feature is currently in the patent pending process.

In terms of parameters, the Sennheiser IE200 operates at an impedance of 18 Ohm, has a sensitivity of 119dB and a frequency response range of 6Hz – 20kHz. So the IE200 is not a very demanding headset. But to improve sound quality as well as help IE200 maximize its performance, users can combine headphones with dongle models such as iBasso DC06, Luxury & Precision W2, Lotoo PAW S2 or iFi Go Blu.

In terms of timbre, the Sennheiser IE200 has a sound quality that is adjusted in a neutral direction. The bass range is quite deep, with relatively good rumble but the hitting power is not the strongest in the segment. The midbass part is more focused than the subbass part and has a warm feel but does not overwhelm the mid range too deeply.

The mid range has good thickness and is slightly backward. This is shown quite clearly in the instrumental part. The vocal part alone will move a bit forward, especially with the male vocal part. The mid range possesses natural, realistic and smooth timbre. The treble strip has good contrast, sounds sharp, tinkling and is not excessive in volume. The extension is handled well but still not great.

Although its technical characteristics are not as good as IE300 or IE600, compared to competitors in the same segment, IE200 is still a formidable opponent. The technical strength of the IE200 is that the sound image has good volume and creates an impressive balance between the left and right channels. The soundstage has moderate depth and openness, not too deep but not too narrow either. The resolution is quite detailed and the layering ability is highly clear.

With silicone eartips, the IE200 will have clearer sound, the bass range will lack a bit of weight and the treble range will be sharp and full of energy. The vocal part is pushed more forward, sounds sharper but slightly lacks smoothness. When switching to foam tips, the sound will become fuller, the vocals will sound softer and smoother, and the treble range will be clearer. Foam tips also provide a more comfortable wearing feeling.

Compare

Vs Sennheiser IE300

While the Sennheiser IE200 possesses neutral sound quality, the IE300 is tuned in the V-Shape direction. Compared with IE200, IE300 has better technical performance. Detail retrieval, sound accuracy is better, even the decay rate is a bit faster. Sound clarity and cleanliness are also improved. Not only the openness but the depth of the soundstage is also better. The bass range on the IE300 has better presence and is better controlled. Neutral sound quality allows the IE200 to express vocals better. Both male and female voices sound more delicate and prominent. In addition, the treble sound of the IE200 brings a more comfortable and relaxing feeling.

With sound quality adjusted in a neutral direction, good technical performance and reasonable price, it will not be difficult to understand that in the near future, Sennheiser IE200 will storm the audio market.