[Jazz1]

Been trying these with the Audioquest Cobalt. Not all that impressed, the Mojo seems to deliver a much more interesting performance with these. Actually I don't think the Cobalt does much at all for them personally! They work so well driven from a phone anyhow.

This is kind of weird, but I like mine more fed by my MacMini to DragonFly Red, than I did driven by my Schiit Asgard 3. The match with the Asgard 3 was just too, too much bass. Not the Asgard's fault I'm sure, as it works well with my other headphones. Sigh, the only other use for the expensive P9 is via my iPhone, or iPad. So I guess, for me, it is go mobile with them most of the time.

Edit:

I changed out the cable to the shorter B&W supplied cable. The bass got less "bloomy" on the Asgard. This combo is finally working for me.

Does anyone make "high end" cables for the P9's? I checked Moon Audio and could not find anything that would work with the P9. I've got a cable from them for my HD-650's and love the sound.

 

[mainguy]

I wish manufacturers would go back to making headphones like the P9. Portable wired closed backs in a premium, or even mid rangers like the P7.

Comparing the P9 to my Airpods Max/PX7 I genuinely feel sorry for the bluetooth generation. They sound so feeble and lacklustre in comparison, its one of those rare monumental differences. Yet I feel like the P9 was the last of a dying breed sadly

 

[Jazz1]

I wish manufacturers would go back to making headphones like the P9. Portable wired closed backs in a premium, or even mid rangers like the P7.

Comparing the P9 to my Airpods Max/PX7 I genuinely feel sorry for the bluetooth generation. They sound so feeble and lacklustre in comparison, its one of those rare monumental differences. Yet I feel like it was the last of a dying breed sadly

I do own the P9! I‘ve used it mobile via an iPad, and Audioquest Dragonfly Red. Thank for reminding me!!!

 

[Sonic Defender]

I wish manufacturers would go back to making headphones like the P9. Portable wired closed backs in a premium, or even mid rangers like the P7.

Comparing the P9 to my Airpods Max/PX7 I genuinely feel sorry for the bluetooth generation. They sound so feeble and lacklustre in comparison, its one of those rare monumental differences. Yet I feel like the P9 was the last of a dying breed sadly

You may want to consider that in some ways, actually, very deliberately, signatures like the P9 are re-wiring your brain. It isn't a matter of opinion, the P9s have quite a pronounced sound signature, intentional and focused on a very prominent bass emphasis. They are very engaging, but extremely coloured. That doesn't mean they aren't a valid sound signature, they are, but it is a crafted and very deliberately coloured signature. The feebleness you are alluding to is by way of comparison to the P9.

Keep in mind, I have owned the P7 wireless, widely regarded as sounding better than the wired P7, and I had they P9 on hand for about 2 months so I have heard them. Driven by a speaker tap from a legendary NAD integrated, the M3, as well as with an amazing tube amp (La Figaroo 339) with stunning tubes. So I have some first hand experience to use as a reference point. Not to mention, I have very, very extensive experience with Bluetooth headphones. Not to be argumentative at all, but in my opinion your characterization of Bluetooth headphones being feeble, that couldn't be further from my experience. The P9s are lovely, but they are tuned and very cooked. Your brain is quite possibly clocked into them so anything else will sound thin unless it is also equally tuned and cooked similar to the P9. The P9 is so far from neutral that it isn't funny. I loved it, but I loved it for what it was, a very, very coloured signature.

And for the record, I am not a fan of neutral signatures, I like meat on the bones. There is a reason I owned the MDR Z7, TH900, TH600, D7000, Z7 and LCD 2.

 

[mainguy]

You may want to consider that in some ways, actually, very deliberately, signatures like the P9 are re-wiring your brain. It isn't a matter of opinion, the P9s have quite a pronounced sound signature, intentional and focused on a very prominent bass emphasis. They are very engaging, but extremely coloured. That doesn't mean they aren't a valid sound signature, they are, but it is a crafted and very deliberately coloured signature. The feebleness you are alluding to is by way of comparison to the P9.

Keep in mind, I have owned the P7 wireless, widely regarded as sounding better than the wired P7, and I had they P9 on hand for about 2 months so I have heard them. Driven by a speaker tap from a legendary NAD integrated, the M3, as well as with an amazing tube amp (La Figaroo 339) with stunning tubes. So I have some first hand experience to use as a reference point. Not to mention, I have very, very extensive experience with Bluetooth headphones. Not to be argumentative at all, but in my opinion your characterization of Bluetooth headphones being feeble, that couldn't be further from my experience. The P9s are lovely, but they are tuned and very cooked. Your brain is quite possibly clocked into them so anything else will sound thin unless it is also equally tuned and cooked similar to the P9. The P9 is so far from neutral that it isn't funny. I loved it, but I loved it for what it was, a very, very coloured signature.

And for the record, I am not a fan of neutral signatures, I like meat on the bones. There is a reason I owned the MDR Z7, TH900, TH600, D7000, Z7 and LCD 2.

I agree on the brain- re wiring thing. I see a lot of posts on head-fi without mention of that fact, I actually think it's probably the decisive aspect of whether gear sounds better or worse in a lot of cases. What we listen to frequently gets baked in, and it takes some time to adjust to a new source, at least for me.

That said, I haven't used my P9 in around 7 weeks. I haven't had a desktop PC, and all of my P9 listening is at my desktop (my lightning cable is packed up somewhere, i tried the Cobalt DAC for a few days but didnt like it). So for the past 2 months my listening has been exclusively bluetooth, Airpods Max mostly, but also Airpods Pro, PI7, mw65 & PX7. Even before that actually P9 usage was at a bit of a low, it's more of my friday evening headphone, that I clock a few hours on a week.

Anyway during this phase I really did think to myself several times, do I really need the P9? Looking at it gathering dust, and being unable to use it without a headphone jack. The convenience of the Airpods, and the fact the PX7 have that warm sound signature I enjoy, the coloured sound you mention, made me seriously think about selling them. My memory for sound isn't all that good.

Then I got a new desktop 4 days ago, and popped the P9s back on my head to see if they could earn their keep. Instantly realised why I'm keeping them. It may not be bluetooth, it may just be the fact theyre a more expensive set, but they really are a world ahead of all the other headphones I've listed there. It's astonishingly obvious if I go from my Airpods Max to the P9, and I think at this point my brain is very dialed in on the Airpods as we're talking 30+ hours of listening with them a week.

Believe me i dont want it to be this way. I really did like the idea of selling the P9 and having the Airpods & PX7 fulfil everything. If anything I think I'm biased against them, but they just sound that much better.

 

[Sonic Defender]

I agree on the brain- re wiring thing. I see a lot of posts on head-fi without mention of that fact, I actually think it's probably the decisive aspect of whether gear sounds better or worse in a lot of cases. What we listen to frequently gets baked in, and it takes some time to adjust to a new source, at least for me.

That said, I haven't used my P9 in around 7 weeks. I haven't had a desktop PC, and all of my P9 listening is at my desktop (my lightning cable is packed up somewhere, i tried the Cobalt DAC for a few days but didnt like it). So for the past 2 months my listening has been exclusively bluetooth, Airpods Max mostly, but also Airpods Pro, PI7, mw65 & PX7. Even before that actually P9 usage was at a bit of a low, it's more of my friday evening headphone, that I clock a few hours on a week.

Anyway during this phase I really did think to myself several times, do I really need the P9? Looking at it gathering dust, and being unable to use it without a headphone jack. The convenience of the Airpods, and the fact the PX7 have that warm sound signature I enjoy, the coloured sound you mention, made me seriously think about selling them. My memory for sound isn't all that good.

Then I got a new desktop 4 days ago, and popped the P9s back on my head to see if they could earn their keep. Instantly realised why I'm keeping them. It may not be bluetooth, it may just be the fact theyre a more expensive set, but they really are a world ahead of all the other headphones I've listed there. It's astonishingly obvious if I go from my Airpods Max to the P9, and I think at this point my brain is very dialed in on the Airpods as we're talking 30+ hours of listening with them a week.

Believe me i dont want it to be this way. I really did like the idea of selling the P9 and having the Airpods & PX7 fulfil everything. If anything I think I'm biased against them, but they just sound that much better.

Thanks for the thoughtful response. It sounds like you really like the P9. As I said, so did I. There was music that when played through the P9 that sounded so unbelievably good. There was also, conversely, some material that was almost unlistenable unless I brought the bass down via equalization. B&W know what they are doing for sure. Yes they deliberately tuned the P9 to have an unmistakable signature, and yes it won't be for everybody or all music, but when it is on, it can make you smile ear to ear. I can see why you keep your P9.

 

[Beagle]

I find the P9 invokes the power that one feels when attending a live performance (or of big speakers in a living room). If those performances are colored, in that they don't provide a thin evenly balanced frequency response, then so be it. If you think of the P9 in those terms, then it is quite enjoyable.

 

[Sonic Defender]

I find the P9 invokes the power that one feels when attending a live performance (or of big speakers in a living room). If those performances are colored, in that they don't provide a thin evenly balanced frequency response, then so be it. If you think of the P9 in those terms, then it is quite enjoyable.

Absolutely. That is the thing with such a deliberate signature, you need to know it and either accept it for the valid design that it is, or, if you don't gel with it, move on. The P9 is also quite visually attractive, at least for my sense of aesthetics.

 

[Jazz1]

Absolutely. That is the thing with such a deliberate signature, you need to know it and either accept it for the valid design that it is, or, if you don't gel with it, move on. The P9 is also quite visually attractive, at least for my sense of aesthetics.

I total agree! Frankly, depending upon the choice of my music of the moment, and my mood I choose one from my several wired and BT headphones. I don't just drink one style wine or craft beer

 

[Sonic Defender]

I total agree! Frankly, depending upon the choice of my music of the moment, and my mood I choose one from my several wired and BT headphones. I don't just drink one style wine or craft beer

Well cheers to that for sure!

 

[Jazz1]

I've been looking to upgrade the cable on my P9's for use with my Schiit Asgard 3 with True Multibit DAC card. I actually found one on Amazon, and was surprised it looked well built. Unfortunately, even though it said it was P9 compatible it did not has the curve in the headphone jack mount that would be required to connect.

Can anyone recommend a cable upgrade that would work with the P9 headphones?

I know others are not fond of the P9's. But I like them enough to continue to use them in my music listening rotation. Please no "lipstick on a pig" jokes

Heck, I even popped for spare leather ear pads, so I will be ready to replace the originals. I was worried that their discontinued status might make replacement ear pads unavailable in the the future.

True to the brand, they were expensive suckers, priced per ear cup, not a pair

 

[Sonic Defender]

The P9 is not a pig, it is a very valid and deliberately tuned headphone. If you like it that is what matters. Clearly B&W were proud enough to put their name on it so don't focus on what the people who don't like it say. I am not at all a believer in anything cables related to sound so you'll have to hope others chime in on that front. Good luck and enjoy your P9.

 

[Jazz1]

The P9 is not a pig, it is a very valid and deliberately tuned headphone. If you like it that is what matters. Clearly B&W were proud enough to put their name on it so don't focus on what the people who don't like it say. I am not at all a believer in anything cables related to sound so you'll have to hope others chime in on that front. Good luck and enjoy your P9.

I listened to them for many hours today. I only found one song where I thought the bass reproduction made me skip the rest of the song. Thanks for the encouraging words!

 

[Sonic Defender]

I listened to them for many hours today. I only found one song where I thought the bass reproduction made me skip the rest of the song. Thanks for the encouraging words!

That was my experience with the P9 as well. Most of the time they worked well, with some material they were brilliant and the odd song the bass was just too much for. If I owned the P9 I would find a well done frequency response chart and develop an equalization cut that tamed the bass. I would find a few tracks where I knew the bass overwhelmed the P9 and develop my EQ adjustment from there. In players such as JRiver or Okyo HF Player you can defeat or enable to EQ with ease so knowing that you can simply trim the bass bloat when needed means that you don't even need to skip any songs.

It was the same thing with the Sony XM3, the stock bass tuning was way overcooked, but in this case it pretty much messed everything up. I had bought them new from Amazon and the first few hours of use I was pretty darn sure that I would send them back. I had of course picked them up for portable use with my phone as the source so I decided to try and equalize them.

Really glad that I did, and I have the XM3 to this day. After I trimmed away the bass bloat I found a really competent headphone that had been hidden by the bass bloat. It just needed the mess trimmed away to reveal what the headphone could really do, and I was able to still leave plenty of bass. I like bass. I have owned the TH900/600, Z7/Z1R,D7000, LCD2 and a few other bass renowned headphones so when I say there was still adequate bass left I do have a frame of reference to say that from.

Anyway, I would think the P9 would be well worth the work and time. Once you find the equalization that works for it, and there most certainly will be, you will be very happy. The P9 is well built, I remember them being comfortable and I also liked their looks very much so a solid headphone no matter what the naysayers go on about. IMO.

 

[Death_Block]

these sound like something the missus would appreciate to get into the hifi scene. At the moment all she does is roll her eyes