[bjornw]

Is there anyone here who owns a pair of the latest gen headphones with BT 5 and can tell if there’s any real difference in indoor wireless range compared to a 4.2 headphone?

In theory, according to the BT spec, version 5 should have four times the range of that of 4.2. But is that the case in reality? What happens when there’s a wall or a ceiling in between the transmitter and receiver?

I would love to be able to walk freely in my three floor house, without carrying the transmitting device, and I am thinking of replacing my current B&O h9i, but only if I can get a decent improvement in range. So, how’s the range with for example the PX7, Bose 700 or the XM4?

 

[dazzerfong]

Radio (and by extension, Bluetooth) range is a complicated question to address.

All things being equal, yes BT 5.0 will have a range 4x compared to 4.2. That's because it has a throughput that's 2x compared to 4.2: you can 'swap' that throughput into range (basically sacrificing SNR advantage of BT5.0 to have better range).

Buuut......

The limiting factor to range (or speed) isn't really the protocol. It's the antennas: devices are often constricted by wireless transmit power to avoid sapping power. This is broken down into Class I, II and III (class I high power, class III low power). Most devices are II and III.

Because of the range improvement from BT5.0, what some manufacturers have done is take advantage of the increased range and actually weaken the antennas such that they use less power for an equal range. In other words, the range advantage of BT5.0 is nullified in exchange for better battery life.

Then comes the extended range - in reality, it's much lower than 4x due to interference.

In conclusion, I don't think you should replace your B&O's with the expectation of a better wireless range.

 

[bjornw]

Radio (and by extension, Bluetooth) range is a complicated question to address.

All things being equal, yes BT 5.0 will have a range 4x compared to 4.2. That's because it has a throughput that's 2x compared to 4.2: you can 'swap' that throughput into range (basically sacrificing SNR advantage of BT5.0 to have better range).

Buuut......

The limiting factor to range (or speed) isn't really the protocol. It's the antennas: devices are often constricted by wireless transmit power to avoid sapping power. This is broken down into Class I, II and III (class I high power, class III low power). Most devices are II and III.

Because of the range improvement from BT5.0, what some manufacturers have done is take advantage of the increased range and actually weaken the antennas such that they use less power for an equal range. In other words, the range advantage of BT5.0 is nullified in exchange for better battery life.

Then comes the extended range - in reality, it's much lower than 4x due to interference.

In conclusion, I don't think you should replace your B&O's with the expectation of a better wireless range.

Thank you for that very informative and detailed answer. Much appreciated!