B&W P5 Headphones: An Unboxing of the Bowers & Wilkins P5 Headphones - Page 15

^^ I think they got the review right - "they have got a lot of things right, but if you're looking for the ultimate in audio quality, these aren't it"

I listened to these in the Apple store at Leicester on Thursday, and while they are better than all of the other Bose and Beats they have there, they are not £250 better. If they were £100, I'd buy some today, but at £250, it's too much of a stretch for me. HD650 are £229 ATM - no contest.

Tried P5 yesterday. Cheaply made (especially cord), uncomfortable, sounds just OK. Nice sound isolation, though.

The way i see it's a $100 headphones + $200 for shiny B&W badge.

I don't think you can equate the look of the cord necessarily with it being "cheap" , i.e. look at IEMs, although I haven't read anything which references it specifically and can't say one way or the other. It is a nice feature though to have a detachable cable, which is easily replaceable. Personally, I would have liked to see a longer cord come as standard, or a longer cord option.

I have had my P5s for less than a week, so I won't make comments on the sound at this point. I am using them with a HeadRoom Total BitHead amp/DAC and an iPod Touch connected to the headphone jack, although I have a line-out connector on order (Sendstation).

On fit, I agree that fit will be an issue for many people - either because of head size or comfort because of the way the P5s clamp over their ears. For comparison, (for those of you that have them), I wear my HD 650s with about an inch of extension, and my K701s with no extension (top to bottom). I have probably an inch on either side with the P5s and have extended them about an inch.

I've had mine for about a week as well but agree so far with the above video review. A Couple of things that may not be as obvious are that if you are using then as headphones while moving around, the isolation that these headphones provide compensates very well for any lack of midrange that may exist. i.e.: when walking around the city or riding the subway, the benefits arising from the increased passive noise isolation of these headphones has, for me, far outweighed additional detail that may be present in a more open set of headphones (which would be lost because of ambient noise). The second pleasing thing about these headphones is that when worn around your neck, the pads lay nice and flat against your collar bone and are very comfortable. They immediately lie flat and don't bump up against your chin the way some other headphones do when worn around the neck. Not the most significant feature of headphones but just something that I've found to be very useful.

these cans will cause other brands to step up their game on the mid end cans cause there is nothing else for this price that looks as good or sounds as good or built as well for the price!!! in car terms these are the BMW M3s of portable headphones

Really?

Yes really... they are the new kid on the block from a maker with no past headsets so of course the old heads are reluctant to admit what is before them..

These are mid end priced cans with high end looks build and sound.. so high end users will resent them in many cases and look for flaws... NO they are not equally to a $1500 pair of what ever but they are fantastic in their class and many will feel surprised when they do some blind tests with these vs the high end models..

http://www.head-fi.org/forums/f103/b...review-479660/

these phones have sound that has to be described in terms of :

low
low mid
mid
high mid
high

Role off is super silky smooth between those ranges creating very warm transparent sound... They are so spacial that individual instruments have sufficient isolation even in very complex recordings. They truly render what ever your out put is giving them with no exaggeration or compression or coloration at all...

Thats just my opinion though another guy may say they are total crap...LOL

I agree with that, but surely they can't compete with headphones in their price bracket - 325is or HD650, do they?

I know you said you're not ready to comment on the sound, but I would like to hear how they compare to the K701s.

Well the thing about these P5s is that they have higher build quality and better sophisticated design than 325is or HD650 by far and they are also smaller and are much more portable.. You wont look like a lost DJ walking around with these on in public... these are more sensitive and so easier for weak sources like the iPhone/Pod to drive well.. same cant be said for the 325is or HD650

So my opinion is that 325is or HD650 are better for home recording work with head phone amp available , but for on the go listening the P5s are better the best "portable" cans i have heard thus far.

not a fare comparison since K701s are full size studio grade monitors (I would never walk in public with those on) and P5s are portable mid size phones to be driven by smaller sources like iphones..... But P5s are that great that many will continue to compare them to cans way above their league..

I understand. I'm just looking for a reference as I've had K701s for three years and love them. I also have a couple of pairs B&W speakers that I've been listening to for ten years and I'm a fan of the company. What I really need to do is go listen to them. Thanks.

I agree with a lot of what gorgonmusic says as it relates to build quality / aesthetics. The problem with headphones in this price bracket and above is that not enough attention is paid to build quality and to aesthetics. Thus far, the only headphones that have catered to those that care about aesthetics have been in the $50-$100 range (i.e.: wesc, zumireed, urbanears, etc.) and I think everyone is in agreement that the P5 offer a huge step up in audio quality from these. While I do use headphones at home, the majority of use comes when I'm out and need the portability that headphones offers. It's nice to see a manufacturer produce a set of cans that recognizes this. Could there be improvements? Sure, but the P5 headphones offer something new and offer a welcome development.

Yup.. wen you go to the apple store make sure iPhone/ Pod EQ is on and set to acoustic that gives the most balanced out put from iPhone/ Pods i have found. ..