[buzzlulu]

very good Question..own both. The upper frequency on the p9s is sublime with a wider soundstage in my opinion.Even switching cable to a balanced high quality pure silver still sounds veil compared to the stock cable on the p9s..
People comment favorably on the cosmetic beauty of the p9s...
Guess what I grew up in the 70s..can relate to the retro look of the p9s..must say I'm not blown away by it.
I think black on silver is much more attractive to me..purely subjective though.

Thanks. Any more comparison between the two based strictly on sound?

Pace, Rhythm and Timing - does one groove more than the other?

Prefer one over the other?

 

[randy98mtu]

The more I listen to these, the more impressed I am.  The comfort has gotten better (or I've just grown accustomed to it.)  Last night I used them through Dragonfly Red for the first time, just streaming Spotify (extreme) and I found myself just smiling at all the details in the music and truly enjoying every moment.  Of course, then I fell asleep with them on for almost 3 hours.
 
Off topic - Spotify Discover Weekly is uncanny...  Now I'm enjoying one of my latest discoveries; Stop Light Observations.

 

[CluelessAudio]

The more I listen to these, the more impressed I am.  The comfort has gotten better (or I've just grown accustomed to it.)  Last night I used them through Dragonfly Red for the first time, just streaming Spotify (extreme) and I found myself just smiling at all the details in the music and truly enjoying every moment.  Of course, then I fell asleep with them on for almost 3 hours.

Off topic - Spotify Discover Weekly is uncanny...  Now I'm enjoying one of my latest discoveries; Stop Light Observations.

What device are you using the DF red with? Macs supposedly have a decent dac/amp so I'm not sure if the difference will be worth the money.

 

[randy98mtu]

What device are you using the DF red with? Macs supposedly have a decent dac/amp so I'm not sure if the difference will be worth the money.

I was hooked to an iPad Pro last night. Usually that or my iPhone 7 Plus.

B&W should be embarrassed with the cable they supple with these. Trying to post a picture side by side with the Z7 cable. It's laughable.

 

[CluelessAudio]

I was hooked to an iPad Pro last night. Usually that or my iPhone 7 Plus.

B&W should be embarrassed with the cable they supple with these. Trying to post a picture side by side with the Z7 cable. It's laughable.

how is the dragonfly red vs the modi/magni stack?

 

[Tom-s]

Anyone tried these with the Fiio E17K DAC/amp? 
I use these with my P7's (Canare cable) and thinking about upgrading to P9.
Used for commuting and when studying outside the house. 

 

[Kukua]

Anyone tried these with the Fiio E17K DAC/amp? 

I use these with my P7's (Canare cable) and thinking about upgrading to P9.
Used for commuting and when studying outside the house. 

oppo ha2 se is much better with a better dac for $300 paired with the p9s

 

[zeloutre]

  Anyone tried these with the Fiio E17K DAC/amp? 
I use these with my P7's (Canare cable) and thinking about upgrading to P9.
Used for commuting and when studying outside the house. 

I have the regular E17 and it drives the P9...in an average fashion. The sound is fine, a bit better than on my Xiaomi phone (which is itself much better than the ****ty iPhone DAC), but not by much. My Burson Conductor is much better. The P9 has a lot of headroom and scales really well with amplification, which shows the headphone's potential.

 

[randy98mtu]

I never use the Magni/Modi.  Too much hassle as I can't just leave it out anywhere.  We are setting up a desktop computer, so perhaps I will put them on that desk.

 

[DoctaCosmos]

I was hooked to an iPad Pro last night. Usually that or my iPhone 7 Plus.

B&W should be embarrassed with the cable they supple with these. Trying to post a picture side by side with the Z7 cable. It's laughable.

Anyone who has ever taken apart a headphone cable and or attempted to make their their own wil know that all that bulk is just for looks. The insides of the cables and their connections is so small in scale to what companies make them look like. I'd rather have that little end connected to my phone in my pocket than that big Sony end.

 

[randy98mtu]

The one from the P9 just does not fill me with confidence that it is going to last.  Not much strain relief there.  I agree the Sony is at the other extreme.  But the P9 is weaker looking than the P7 or MM400 even.  I get what you are saying and I know they are small connections and small wires, but like I said, I just feel like this thing is going to wear out fast where the Sony looks like it will last forever.

 

[GREQ]

Having been so shocked at how bad this headphone sounded the first time I auditioned it,  I decided to give the P9 another few chances, give it another few rounds to do battle and try to prove itself.
I had with me a worthy contender, a headphone I own, am familiar with and a headphone that seems to do similar things to the P9: the Sony MDR-V900.
 
Just to compare the specs:

B+W P9 (2016)	Sony MDR-V900 (1992)
2Hz - 30Khz	5Hz - 30Khz
22 Ohms	24 Ohms
111dB/v sensitivity	107dB/v
413g weight	300g
50mW input	3000mW

 
 (left - V900, Right - P9)
Test Info:
Source is an 80GB Apple iPod Video 6th Gen (2007) with AUX into a FiiO E17.
Gain set to 6dB and EQ set to zero/unmodified.
My primary test track for this test was Daft Punk - Get Lucky - 320mbps MP3.
I chose this track because it is not a complex piece of music and it is masterfully mastered. It takes effort to make this track sound bad.
 
First big difference I noticed was the sensitivity. The Sony pounded out plenty of volume at vol.15, but the P9, despite having more sensitive specs, needed to be cranked up to 23 to get to similar levels.
Not a major point, but I found that a bit strange.
 
Second major difference was the clarity.
The P9 somehow makes this simple music sound congested. Boomy mid-bass overwhelms everything else. 
P9 bass texture is really great, but the boominess overshadows it, and makes the music ugly. This is quite amazing, as even for a piece of electronic music, this track isn't particularly bass emphasized, it's more balanced and musical. 
 
Switching back and forth every now and then, it becomes clear that the P9 lacks in the upper midrange too. I didn't notice this before since it's not a major flaw, but it's there and gives vocals and much of the main bulk of the music some distance, maybe too much distance.
 
Sounstage on both of these is fairly similar, with the V900 winning because of the lack of boominess it was easier to feel the spaciousness, I suspect the V900's 50mm drivers are responsible for the edge here.
 
In conclusion, I feel that B+W have produced a headphone that sounds like what you would hear if you put tall floor-standing speakers in a shoebox of a livingroom with zero space to breath and poor treatment of acoustic in the room.
The V900 is what the P9 should have sounded like, as it does the 'speaker like' sound with ease and flair, with plenty of breathing space and exquisite details across the entire audible spectrum.
Sony released these 15 years ago, so I don't know what is more amazing; that Sony was able to achieve this, or that big companies like B+W still can't. 
 
(I know shop-floor models aren't usually a benchmark for longevity, but this P9's headband leather was peeling out of the seem - really disappointing build quality here)

 

[Beagle]

  The more I listen to these, the more impressed I am.  The comfort has gotten better (or I've just grown accustomed to it.)  Last night I used them through Dragonfly Red for the first time, just streaming Spotify (extreme) and I found myself just smiling at all the details in the music and truly enjoying every moment.  Of course, then I fell asleep with them on for almost 3 hours.
 

 
Yes, as you become accustomed to them, you appreciate the solid confident sound, and the power behind the music. Other headphones sound a bit wimpy.

 

[CluelessAudio]

Yes, as you become accustomed to them, you appreciate the solid confident sound, and the power behind the music. Other headphones sound a bit wimpy.

I can vouch for that, loving the clean sound and the attack with these.

 

[RedHotFuzz]

Sony released these 15 years ago, so I don't know what is more amazing; that Sony was able to achieve this, or that big companies like B+W still can't.

Sony is a big company. B&W is a small company.