Member Reviews: Bowers & Wilkins P5 Mobile Headphones

B&W (Bowers & Wilkins) P5 Headphones Being a B&W speaker owner, and fan, I was eager to test out a pair of P5’s. The look of the headphone also enticed me – they are very attractive: So I bought a pair. My reason for buying these was to use them as portables, on the road, with the iQube and an iPod Classic. I have been using the Senn PXC350, and still will have to for sure on airplane trips, but when I travel another way, or when I am gone a long time, I want to have another, non-noise cancelling headphone for that. I was hoping the P5 would fill the bill. I had bought the Ed 8's for that, but decided I liked them for home use too much to take them on the road. As they...

First of all these look and feel like an expensive headphone. They have a nice weight to them and the leather, fine brushed aluminum and memory foam earpads all breathe quality.    They are fairly comfortable thanks to the soft pads, but the moderate clamping force coupled with the leather heats up the ears within 5 minutes.  I expected a little more for the price. They aren't really hi-fi headphones, there just isn't the resolution on offer. The sound is smooth and warm, with an emphasized bass that goes deep but lacks refinement. The treble is very shy and gives a veil to the sound, hiding away much of the detail and sparkle in the music. The elevated, loose bass...

I can't add much to skylab's excellent review. I was so seduced by the idea of soft sheep's leather against my ears that I pulled the trigger on these only to regret the decision and have to sell them. The sound is muffled and dark and without body. They get uncomfortable against your ears after about half an hour. They look (and smell) nice, but that alone can't justify $300. The people giving them rave reviews on the consumer websites have either never heard good cans or are utterly hypnotized by the B&W brand aura and can't stand the cognitive dissonance of having spent $300 on subpar headphones. Back to the drawing board, B&W!