Bowers and Wilkins PX8 Wireless Discussion
Mar 5, 2024 at 5:20 PM Post #5,087 of 5,095
I wonder if it’s a “lack” of adhesive or just bad quality adhesive? Who knows lol

I can now see clearly what is there because I have 3 inches length of exposed foam in all it's "glory" 😅 The adhesive trace looks more like a heated-sticking-process / vulcanization or something like that. Don't know exactly how it's called. Not much adhesive just more shiny.

20240306_000844.jpg
 
Mar 5, 2024 at 5:21 PM Post #5,088 of 5,095
I can now see clearly what is there because I have 3 inches length of exposed foam in all it's "glory" 😅 The adhesive trace looks more like a heated-sticking-process / vulcanization or something like that. Don't know exactly how it's called. Not much adhesive just more shiny.

20240306_000844.jpg
See that makes me think they took a risk with a new method, ostensibly to save money I’m guessing, and it just didn’t work out. Probably intended for it to have longer staying power
 
Mar 6, 2024 at 3:47 AM Post #5,089 of 5,095
See that makes me think they took a risk with a new method, ostensibly to save money I’m guessing, and it just didn’t work out. Probably intended for it to have longer staying power
I have some experience of working with vulcanized rubber and it is pretty high strength generally, this also doesn't look like that to me. I had similar issues to the picture attached, I would say its an adhesive/hot glue joint but not entirely sure. Thing is my two pairs never left the sitting room and literally slid on and of my head half a dozen times a week. I would have expected some kind of rigorous testing in the R&D stage of developing the PX8. I would also expect the issues to have been addressed in the two years or so they have been manufacturing. There is just too much of this being reported though B&W play it down. I'm sure for every bad pair there are two or three good pairs but it still seems a pretty high failure rate, and I would guess most folks are being super careful when handling if they know of the issue. I pushed mine back in several times with a spudger tool but a couple of weeks later they were as bad, eventually were I kept pushing them back the leather wore thin and looked worse. You know at the end of the day some are just not fit for purpose, it's like buying a hat and being told not to wear it on your head!
 
Mar 6, 2024 at 7:32 AM Post #5,091 of 5,095
I don't think a bit of stitching on a £6/700 premium product would put much of a dent in the profit margin.
Coming from the legal department of an American fortune 500 company you would be shocked at how willing these companies are to save five dollars a pair even though the failure rate is higher… These companies love stepping over dollar bills to get to quarters. It’s counterintuitive but it happens
 
Mar 6, 2024 at 10:48 AM Post #5,092 of 5,095
Saw my firsy ever Bathys in the wild today. And Ive gotta say it looked a bit silly, bit cups potruding from the side like a spaceman helmet.

I really enjoy how sleek the px8 look, especially the black/navy, they dont draw attention and just blend in. Big contrast to when I had Bathys and felt a tad odd out and about, and had my suspicions validated when I saw this chap at the train station today with them on. I must say he looked a little worried about the situation too.
 
Mar 13, 2024 at 9:01 PM Post #5,093 of 5,095
Well, I decided I would try (at a very steep discount) a pair of B&W PX5 headphones, brand new in the box old stock, since I couldn't enjoy the PX8. I wrote of my experiences earlier this year...

I realize the PX5 is a few years old now, and is on-ear vs. over-ear compared to the PX8. The app doesn't allow for any EQ, which is fine by me. These do include AptX Adaptive and HD. The noise canceling is not quite as effective as the PX8 given technology advancement as well as on-ear vs. over-ear. The mics (I'm told by my brother, who has to endure my headphone and earbud addiction and reports back to me on how well or poorly the mics work for phone calls in the countless cans I own) are awful for phone calls...distant and muffled with no to poor noise reduction. But I'll be darned if these don't sound better to my ear than the PX8. The dreaded bass hump of the PX8 is minimal in these. It's there but doesn't get in the way of the rest of the music. The highs are a bit rolled off but are good and otherwise airy and accurate. The mids sound fine....there isn't any of that weird upper mid / lower high frequency dip that I heard in the PX8.

Given that I paid $95 for these I'd much rather listen to these than the PX8. They are well built, stylish (blue) and lighter and more compact than the PX8. I have the original B&W P5 v1 headphones as well....these sound somewhat like those do. In any event, quite pleased with these at this price, might not have been at full boat original retail. And definitely happier listening to these than the PX8.

Just thought I'd share....as I really do like B&W design,aesthetics and build quality. These hit those marks quite well.
 
Mar 14, 2024 at 12:34 PM Post #5,094 of 5,095
Saw my firsy ever Bathys in the wild today. And Ive gotta say it looked a bit silly, bit cups potruding from the side like a spaceman helmet.

I really enjoy how sleek the px8 look, especially the black/navy, they dont draw attention and just blend in. Big contrast to when I had Bathys and felt a tad odd out and about, and had my suspicions validated when I saw this chap at the train station today with them on. I must say he looked a little worried about the situation too.
I have covered the shiny Bowers & Wilkins engraving on the cups with strips of gaffer tape. When outside, I don't want to show off, or tempt some bad actor.
 
Mar 15, 2024 at 1:33 PM Post #5,095 of 5,095
Just finished putting them back together. Just as tight as before. We will see if it holds up or if I need to open it again.

A quick write-up for what I did to fix it:

- Took a plastic pry tool and gently pushed it into the middle of the headband and twisted to pop the plastic tabs out. Worked my way towards the edge on each side.
- Pulled the offending leather away and dropped a decent amount of leather glue on the inside edge that rolls into the headband, one side at a time. I also put some where the leather meets the headband cushion so it would bond and not pull further out if it were to break free from the top.
- Held the leather in place while it bonded, did this one side at a time.
- Reinstalled the headband cover. Was a little harder to install than it was to take off but it flexes quite well, it doesnt break. I was pushing decently hard on the cushion while trying to install the headband cover and the leather didnt pull away from where I glued it.

If I can get the pictures to upload I'll add them, but for now problem *potentially* solved! Audio quality and sound is the same as before, bass is punchy and I dont hear anything different/loose connections or rattles, fortunately.

If you sit down and do this all at once it would take 10-15 minutes at most. Good luck to those who try it themselves, be gentle!
Can you post some picture of the procedure. We all here have the same problem and i think that DIY with pictures would be top 1 upvote post. Also what glue for leather did you use ? Thank you in advance
 
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