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Member Reviews: Bowers & Wilkins P5 Mobile Headphones

productred

B&W P5 - Good SQ (OK not the best), Excellent in all other factors.

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By productred
Well, I just had a rather special experience with the P5 which results in me selling my T50p and ESW10jpns while retaining the much battered P5. Here it goes -   I haven't thought of getting the P5 after Skylab's comprehensive write-up, and other concurring views from other members. I was rather happy with my ESW10s, and later the T50p. I mostly use ER4S and Monster MDs these days, but there are times when I'd like to reach for a headphone. I just grew curious about the P5 after someone, who is a known Bose hater, asked me to try them. He himself got a little surprise with them. I didn't asked him in details and thought I'd come up with my own conclusion. Luckily the...
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Farnsworth

Fantastic strait out of iPhone

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By Farnsworth

Pros: Build quality, Comfort, Design, Sound

Cons: flimsy Cord

OK, firstly these headphones aren't for everyone. They have a very warm, lush, upfront and colored sound which i personally love. They have strong crisp bass with smooth mids and clear highs. I find that this sound signature nicely compensates for my iPhones slightly anemic line out. They have strong crisp bass with smooth mids and clear highs. These headphones particularly thrive is portable use. they are some of the best unamped portable sound for the money. Using them with my iPhone has been a great experience. They fold flat and nicely fit in the included pouch in my backpack.   In addition to this, these are some fantastically built and beautiful headphones. The combination of...
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DocJeff

A Quick Hitter in Defense of Bowers and Wilkins P5

Posted
By DocJeff

Pros: Comfortable, good noise rejection, unique tonal palette

Cons: Expensive

I have heard that some design mods have been implemented recently on the P5's, but I can't verify it at the moment. I will say this, however, in defense of a very nice set of cans. They feel great, look amazing and have a punchy yet non-fatiguing sound. There is a definite bump in the upper bass register that makes Getty Lee's bass sound like he's playing in your living room--yes I'm listening to R30 on my P5's as I'm writing this. There's plenty of bass extension on the synths and kick drums below 100 hz, and Neil Peart's cymbals have just the right amount of sizzle without being overbearing. Mids are very well balanced with plenty of detail. I own a set of Grado RS 325i's, Senn Hd...
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Bossatiger

Epitome of Consumer-Targeted Design

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By Bossatiger

Pros: overall design (pads, comfort, looks), build quality

Cons: non-audiophile sound, mediocre (detachable) cable

Intro: From what I understand about the P5 headphones, they were not designed with the audiophile in mind. There are two "versions" of the P5: the first with the untrimmed foam earpads and the second with the trimmed foam earpads. The second had improved clarity across the range by removing the foam that blocked part of the earpad canal.  I purchased this headphone as a durable, stylish, portable, and isolating headphone to use across the streets and such. The design and durability is what caught my attention. I have enough audiophile-oriented headphones and few are portable. The "portable" closed backs are not of durable build quality, are very uncomfortable, do not isolate...
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gibbo76

VERY PLEASED OVERALL

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By gibbo76

Pros: Beautiful design, comfortable, good all-rounder

Cons: Price, finding sonic sweet spot

Firstly I'd like to begin by saying that I've owned many many pairs of high quality headphones over the years, and indeed speakers. I'll not reel them all off here, but suffice it to say I've owned (and still do in many cases) Grado, AKG, Beyer, Senheiser and Shure are just a few of the companies I've bought from over the last 35 years. I'd also like to say that obviously everybody's ears are different. What seems blatantly obvious to some will be missed by others, and also everybody's taste is different. Just look through all these reviews. Many decry the rolled-off treble whilst others say the p5's have a crisp, defined top end. How can this be? Well because as stated, everybody likes...
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NO CARRIER

Depends on what you're looking for

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By NO CARRIER

Pros: comfort, design, sound

Cons: cord, price

I've had these cans for a few weeks to give them a fair trial.  To keep this short and sweet.  These are one of the best sounding portable headphones you can purchase, perhaps not the very best, but one of them.  Make sure you're comparing apples to apples.  These won't compete with Grado's or similar open headphones, but for portables, they are VERY impressive.   A few things to note: These do have a very lengthly break-in period before they really warm up, especially the treble. These are very sensitive to placement on the ear.  I find putting them a little further back on the ear sounds best. It will take around two weeks...
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Thraex

B&W P5: Love at second sight...

Posted
By Thraex

Pros: Overall sound, look, easy to drive, good noise isolation

Cons: difficult sweet spot for best sound, needs lot of break in, cable quality, maybe a little bit more detailed on top?

FIRST: don't believe any reviewer who listen to the P5 only few hours or a couple of days, they need minimum 60 hours of break in to start sounding decent, at 100h they sound ok. At first they're so closed in like listenin' with a big and heavy curtain in front of your head, no detail in any frequency, no dynamic, just ugly sound with boomy bass and not even punchy. I was shocked the first time I hear them, "who could ever buy this crap?" was my first impression.   SECOND: pjoliver182 mod http://www.head-fi.org/t/576341/b-w-p5-modifications is essential and the cheapest and easiest upgrade to gain bass detail, dynamic and better definition in any freq. Just add a little...
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DevilGin

More relaxing than audiophile

Posted
By DevilGin

Pros: comfort, can be used for long periods of time, warm sounding, isolation

Cons: price depenable

If you are a serious audiophile then these arent for you. Goods :   very very comfortable a very relaxing sound very well presented looks (iphone cable/detachable cable)    6.  very good for travel, easy to drive. ISOLATION   Cons:   expensive (but varies) can get hot on your ears case a bit large (but is very nice) can get scratched. THAT GOD **** TREBLE ( improved .... look at the edit.)     When i first listened to these cans i thought they were not worth it. But after long periods of time and travel then i find these to shine in a place of their own. Their sound is subtle and not...
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bengewarmer

Excellent Headphones

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By bengewarmer

Pros: Very comfortable, seems durable, sounds very good

Cons: Expensive

I think the best way I can describe myself is an aspiring audiophile. I haven't the money, or the time to audition high end gear. That being said, I do scour the internet for information and save up my pennies for things I really want, and that's where the B&W P5s come in. I was able to experiment with them several times in an Apple store before finally exchanging two previous pairs of headphones I had bought there; one being the Skullcandy Aviators (which sounded surprisingly good despite their track record) and the other being the Klipsch Image One headphones. While purchasing these at their 150 dollar price points, I still knew I was making a mistake in not saving up and just...
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fella

The best ipod solution

Posted
By fella

Pros: Beautiful design, beautiful sound

Cons: Same price might get you higher SQ if portability is not a concern

First of all shouldn't these be classified as on-ear headphones?   Second, I defy the previous reviewer to say where the "cheap plastic" was located on these headphones.  These are great sounding headphones.  Their competition in terms of portability and sound basically comes down to the Sen HD25s, which are slightly ridiculous looking DJ headphones.  Perhaps when beyer releases their portable, there will be competition in the market, until then, B&W owns their segment.    Edit: I've heard that phiaton have some offerings in this segment as well, so perhaps try both and see what you prefer.   You will not find a bad review of these outside of head fi.  There's either...
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Where to Buy It

Amazon.comBowers & Wilkins P5 Mobile HiFi Stereo Headphones at Amazon.com$250.00See It »
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