How We Research
We compare products from their published specs and features; the verdicts below are our independent editorial opinions.
If you want a wired, stage-ready in-ear monitor built to survive real performances, choose Sennheiser Professional IE 100; if you need a wireless, noise-cancelling over-ear headset for long Xbox and PC gaming sessions, choose Bang & Olufsen Beoplay.
• Sennheiser Professional IE 100 — biggest strength: a slim, ergonomic single dynamic-driver design with strong passive isolation and a stage-proof cable, made for monitoring in loud rooms.
• Sennheiser Professional IE 100 — biggest trade-off: it's wired only and focused on in-ear monitoring, so there's no active noise cancellation or wireless freedom.
• Bang & Olufsen Beoplay — biggest strength: adaptive active noise cancellation, Dolby Atmos virtual surround and a long-wear over-ear build aimed squarely at gaming.
• Bang & Olufsen Beoplay — biggest trade-off: it's an over-ear headset with more bulk and a gaming/Xbox-first identity, not a discreet in-ear monitor.
• Pick the Sennheiser if you're a musician, vocalist or engineer who wants a compact wired IEM that disappears in your ears and blocks the room.
• Pick the Bang & Olufsen if you're a gamer who wants wireless convenience, immersive surround and hours-long comfort on your head.
The IE 100 Pro is built around a single 10-mm dynamic broadband transducer, and that choice shapes everything about it. A single driver means a slim, ergonomic housing that sits deep and secure in the ear — the kind of fit you can forget about mid-set. Sennheiser pairs it with an optimized earpiece plus both silicone and foam tips, which is the practical recipe for good passive noise cancellation: the seal itself does the blocking, so stage volume and crowd noise get pushed back without any electronics involved.
The specs point to a monitoring-first tool. The frequency range runs 20 Hz to 18 kHz, sensitivity is rated at 115 dB, and it uses a wired 3.5 mm jack with a media remote on the cable. The cable is described as stage-proof with an internal cable duct — a small detail that matters if you've ever had a cable fail at the worst possible moment. In the box you get the headphones, a protective case, a cleaning tool, and the foam and silicone adapters, so it's a self-contained kit you can toss in a gig bag. There's a two-year manufacturer warranty.
Buy it if you perform, monitor, mix, or just want an isolating wired in-ear for critical listening where fit and durability beat bells and whistles. Skip it if you want wireless freedom, active noise cancellation, or a headset for chatting and gaming — those aren't what this is.
The Beoplay Portal is a different animal entirely: an over-ear wireless headset engineered for gaming. Its headline feature is adaptive active noise cancellation, which actively removes background noise rather than relying on a passive seal. It adds Dolby Atmos for Headphones for precise virtual surround, and a virtual boom-arm made of four microphones blended with Own Voice technology for clear in-game chat. For Xbox players, there's a lossless connection, and it also supports lossless 2.4GHz audio on Windows connections.
Comfort is clearly a design priority. It weighs 246 g, uses a uniquely padded headband to reduce pressure, and memory foam earcups with jaw support — the kind of thinking that lets you wear it for hours. The build mixes aluminum, leather and rubber, and it ships with a 3.5 mm stereo cable, a USB-A to USB-C cable and a user manual. Audio-wise, it runs a 40 mm dynamic driver, 24 ohm impedance, 95 dB sensitivity, and a 20 Hz to 20,000 Hz range. Battery life is rated around 19 hours with a two-hour charge time, over Bluetooth 5 with roughly 12 meters of range, and it carries a three-year manufacturer warranty.
Buy it if you game on Xbox or PC and want wireless ANC, immersive surround and a comfortable over-ear fit you can wear all evening. Skip it if you need a compact in-ear monitor for stage or studio, or you'd rather not deal with charging and a larger headset.
• Best for stage and studio monitoring → Sennheiser Professional IE 100. The wired, isolating in-ear design is purpose-built for it.
• Best for gaming and immersive surround → Bang & Olufsen Beoplay. Dolby Atmos and the virtual boom-arm are aimed at exactly that.
• Best for active noise cancellation → Bang & Olufsen Beoplay. Adaptive ANC is electronic; the Sennheiser relies on passive isolation from its seal.
• Best for a discreet, pocketable fit → Sennheiser Professional IE 100. In-ear and slim, with a protective case in the box.
• Best for long-wear comfort over hours → Bang & Olufsen Beoplay. The padded headband and memory foam earcups are designed for it.
• Best for clear voice chat → Bang & Olufsen Beoplay. Four mics and Own Voice technology handle conversation.
• Best for cable reliability under pressure → Sennheiser Professional IE 100. The internal cable duct and stage-proof cable target exactly that.
• Best for wireless freedom → Bang & Olufsen Beoplay. Bluetooth 5 plus Xbox and Windows wireless connections; the Sennheiser is wired.
In my opinion, the right pick comes down to one question: are you performing or playing? If you monitor music in loud rooms and want an isolating wired in-ear that's built to survive it, I'd buy the Sennheiser Professional IE 100 — the single-driver fit, foam tips and stage-proof cable are exactly what that job needs. If you game on Xbox or PC and want ANC, Dolby Atmos surround and all-evening comfort, I'd buy the Bang & Olufsen Beoplay. They're not competitors so much as two tools for two different jobs; match the tool to the job and you'll be happy.
For gaming, the Beoplay is the more natural fit — it's engineered for it, with Dolby Atmos surround, ANC, voice chat mics and wireless Xbox/PC connections. The Sennheiser is a monitoring in-ear, so it's better suited to music and stage use.
It has passive noise cancellation, not active. The seal from its optimized earpiece and silicone or foam tips blocks outside sound. The Beoplay uses adaptive active noise cancellation instead.
The Bang & Olufsen Beoplay is wireless over Bluetooth 5, with Xbox and Windows wireless connections and a rated 19-hour battery life. The Sennheiser Professional IE 100 is a wired 3.5 mm in-ear monitor with no battery to charge.
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See also: Bang & Olufsen Beoplay vs Amazon Renewed Focal AZURYS High-Fidelity, Mackie MP Series In-Ear vs Sennheiser HD 490, COMPLY 100 vs Hurdilen 20: Noise Isolating Sleep Earbuds