Sennheiser announces new HD 550 headphones with high-quality audio for gamers and audiophiles

(Image credit: Sennheiser)

Sennheiser has announced a new premium set of headphones called the HD 550
It's aimed squarely at audiophiles and gamers
You can pre-order it now for $299.95 / £249.99

Sennheiser has announced a brand new headphone model specifically geared toward gaming and audiophiles.

The Sennheiser HD 550 open-back headphones are pitched as bringing "a compelling new choice to audiophiles and gamers seeking next-level capability". Sennheiser is talking a big game for the HD 550 too saying that the headphones will boast "sprawling stereo imaging and an ultra-light build, the HD 550 is an open invitation to unpack the lush layers of today’s music and games for hours on end."

In terms of what's under the hood, the HD 550 headphones will feature a custom 38mm transducer, that will offer "exceptional clarity" from 6Hz to 39.5kHz.

You may like

And for gaming specifically, Sennheiser says that players will get "superb, lag-free spatial awareness and immersion" from the HD 550. Punchy bass, crystal-clear transients, and neutral mids without straying from the truthful voicing that audiophiles prefer, will also be at the core of the audio the HD 550 can give you in games.

Describing the HD 550s, Sennheiser Audiophile Product Manager Klas Hanselmann says in the official press release: "Audiophiles looking for featherlight headphones with honest voicing and deep bass extension are in for a treat."

Elsewhere, practically speaking, the HD 550 will share the 500 series characteristic of having a modular design, allowing users to swap out cables and earpads easily. It's a wired set of headphones, and comes with a 6ft/1.8m cable, with a 3.5mm jack connection, but also offers extra compatibility by coming with a 6.35mm adapter.

It also only weighs 8.36oz / 237g so comes in lighter than a DualSense Wireless controller, for example, and way lighter than my personal premium gaming headset pick, the SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro Wireless.

The HD 550 comes hot on the heels of the new Sennheiser HD 505 headphones too which we really rated in our full review.

Sennheiser HD 550 headphones being worn while playing games — (Image credit: Sennheiser)

It might be obvious, but it's worth noting that these are Sennheiser headphones through and through - not a dip back into full-fledged gaming headsets from the premium audio brand. There's no microphone here, for example, and they are geared toward folks who are after, simply, top-tier audio for their games - as well as the flexibility to choose their own microphone.

Nonetheless, I'm excited about the HD 550 set of headphones. I was a huge fan of some of the last gaming headset models the brand made in the GSP 670s, 370s, and 300s.

While the HD 550s are a very distant relation to such headsets, I'm enormously looking forward to trying something from the brand that is definitively geared towards gaming. Plus, with the HD 550 being wired, it could be an audiophile's dream PS5 headset, Xbox Series X headset, or Nintendo Switch headset.

The Sennheiser HD 550 headphones are available to pre-order at Sennheiser Hearing right now for $299.95 or £249.99.

You might also like...

Rob is the Managing Editor of TechRadar Gaming, a video games journalist, critic, editor, and writer, and has years of experience gained from multiple publications. Prior to being TechRadar Gaming's Managing Editor, he was TRG's Deputy Editor, and a longstanding member of GamesRadar+, being the Commissioning Editor for Hardware there for years, while also squeezing in a short stint as Gaming Editor at WePC just before joining TechRadar Gaming. He is also a writer on tech, gaming hardware, and video games but also gardens and landscapes, combining the two areas in an upcoming book on video game landscapes that you can back and pre-order now.