[ultraman]

Do you mean that the lowest volume setting is too loud (on wireless)? I have the same problem and have been in contact with B&W. They said that they were investigating a firmware fix, but I wouldn't count on it.

Jupp, that was what i meant. I hope they do fw update soon.

 

[aut0maticdan]

ultraman, have you tried adjusting the volume on your device rather than on the headphones?
 
for example, you can swiped down on your iPhone or android and get a more precise "stepless" volume control.  This should allow you to lower it even more.  On apple TV you are SOL.
 
edit:  iOS, I think is  a swipe up and then a swipe over to the player controls

 

[jmills8]

I've found these can be a bit painful on the skull after time. I have zero issues with clamping pressure and the earpads feel great, but the top section of the headband is simply too narrow where it makes full contact with your cranium. Despite the adequate padding they do tend to give me what I can only compare to a mild (but annoying) "noogie" after a period of time. If B&W widened the top of the headband I think that issue would disappear entirely.

That said, I don't think I can return these due to the sublime sound. If/when they start to get uncomfortable I simply throw a baseball cap on and the problem is resolved.

Alas, there is nothing perfect in this world.

so true

 

[aut0maticdan]

   
I think there is something to this.  I use these for meditation and sometimes I do 20 minute sessions with headspace where it is basically 1 minute of talking followed by 19 minutes of silence followed by another minute of talking.  When operating in BT mode, the part of talking following the 19 minutes of silence often gets clipped in the beginning as if things are turning back on--meaning I miss the first half of the first word he says (or maybe even 1.5 words).  I don't know for sure if this is caused by the headphones or the phone, but I generally just consider this part of the current bluetooth reality.  It is feasible it is a power-saving mechanism on either side.  I think it may be more noticeable on P7s because they are high quality and sensitive.
 
It is weird because I'm pretty sure that this 20 minute session is one long audio file with silence in the middle, so whatever it is, it seems to actually be detecting whether or not there is audio vs whether or not a file is playing.  Remember boomboxes back in the day that could detect the gap between songs and fast forward until the end of a song?  Like that.  The headphones don't shut off, which was my original concern with the 5-minute timeout.
 
I have some cheap-o BT headphones from urban ears, I'll test out and see if they do the same during today's session.
 

 
The $50 Urban Ears headphones do not cut off the audio when it comes back like the B&Ws do.  Other than that they have more or less similar noise with track switching and all around BT noise floor hiss.  I must assume B&W employ very aggressive battery management.  You will probably only notice this bug on something like a hidden track, if you let it play for 5+ minutes of silence (or if you use it for notifications during meditation like I do)

 

[edsjo]

 
ultraman, have you tried adjusting the volume on your device rather than on the headphones?
 
for example, you can swiped down on your iPhone or android and get a more precise "stepless" volume control.  This should allow you to lower it even more.  On apple TV you are SOL.
 
edit:  iOS, I think is  a swipe up and then a swipe over to the player controls

Maybe I can answer, as I have the same problem. If you adjust the volume on the headphone or the phone does to a first approximation not matter. They talk to each other and change the volume in the same way. However, you are right that on iOS devices you can to the swipe up and get a slider. You can set the slider more precisely, but at least to me it sounds like the volume is still in essentially the same discrete steps. At the lower end, I can adjust the slider to a lower setting, but I either get no sound or the same sound as the first step (if not using the slider), i.e. the problem remains. If I do the same with a wired connection, I do access to more steps when using the slider, but it does not seem this is the case when running wireless (at least not with this headphone).

 

[KarimLeVallois]

O. M. G. ! Just unboxed these and testing them out with some bass heavy Eric Prydz and Daft Punk, I am in love!!!!!

 

[wilanow56]

What a great disappointment with these headphones and a painful experience with the Best Buy store service. As I indicated in previous postings I had an intermittent loud pop or knock noise while listening in a wireless mode. I did confirm it on few different sources so the problem is in the headphones. Also, recently when adjusting the headphones on my head the sound started cutting out indicating a loose connection on the inside. Returned it to BB and attempted to order a new pair. Their system didn't allow to order a replacement(?). Instead they return a small part of my money to the credit card and because for the original purchase I used their "reward" certificates for $345 I have to wait a minimum two weeks for the certificates to be re-issued back to my BB account. So, If I decide to try a second pair I'll have to wait two weeks and additional week for shipment. I did love the way the headphones sounded, unfortunately because they were made in China there are potentials for a quality issues with materials and workmanship. As I stated; so disappointing experience with the quality and an upsetting experience with the Best Buy service.

 

[329161]

What a great disappointment with these headphones and a painful experience with the Best Buy store service. As I indicated in previous postings I had an intermittent loud pop or knock noise while listening in a wireless mode. I did confirm it on few different sources so the problem is in the headphones. Also, recently when adjusting the headphones on my head the sound started cutting out indicating a loose connection on the inside. Returned it to BB and attempted to order a new pair. Their system didn't allow to order a replacement(?). Instead they return a small part of my money to the credit card and because for the original purchase I used their "reward" certificates for $345 I have to wait a minimum two weeks for the certificates to be re-issued back to my BB account. So, If I decide to try a second pair I'll have to wait two weeks and additional week for shipment. I did love the way the headphones sounded, unfortunately because they were made in China there are potentials for a quality issues with materials and workmanship. As I stated; so disappointing experience with the quality and an upsetting experience with the Best Buy service.

Pretty much everything is made in China including Apple products. However, I have had more than my fair share of quality issues with products from Chinese owned companies such as Fiio, ibasso, and Questyle.

 

[RedHotFuzz]

unfortunately because they were made in China there are potentials for a quality issues with materials and workmanship

Well, to be fair, manufacturing defects happen in all countries. High-quality brands with quality design/engineering and stringent QC manage to do well with Chinese manufacturing. Nevertheless, no system is foolproof.

 

[wilanow56]

A rate of failed brand new products is alarming to me. I do not care where the product is made, however more than a half of items purchased I have return due to the quality issues. There is one common denominator, they were all manufactured in China, just as majority or products offered by retailers in this country. It's unfortunate that an average customer has a very little choice. 

  

 

[Burma Jones]

A rate of failed brand new products is alarming to me. I do not care where the product is made, however more than a half of items purchased I have return due to the quality issues. There is one common denominator, they were all manufactured in China, just as majority or products offered by retailers in this country. It's unfortunate that an average customer has a very little choice. 

  

I personally have had the misfortune of dealing with defective products from Audeze and Noble Audio, both are American companies and the products are made in the USA. The consumer always has a choice, they can choose products that are not manufacture in China, but that doesn't mean they will be free from defect due to quality control.

 

[kelly200269]

A rate of failed brand new products is alarming to me. I do not care where the product is made, however more than a half of items purchased I have return due to the quality issues. There is one common denominator, they were all manufactured in China, just as majority or products offered by retailers in this country. It's unfortunate that an average customer has a very little choice. .



  

I DID have the choice, between a Scottish-built Linn DS, and a Chinese-built Lumin. I bought the Chinese Lumin because it was simply the BETTER product IMO. We all have choices. I would suggest to you that you do EXERCISE that choice in future, just as I have done, rather than just complain and make baseless accusations.

 

[buzzlulu]

I DID have the choice, between a Scottish-built Linn DS, and a Chinese-built Lumin. I bought the Chinese Lumin because it was simply the BETTER product IMO. We all have choices. I would suggest to you that you do EXERCISE that choice in future, just as I have done, rather than just complain and make baseless accusations.

Better is in the eye of the beholder (and many do not agree). Outright unbashingly unapologetic COPYING is another.

They blatantly copied everything about the Linn DS even down to the design of the casework.
They even had one of their employees join the Linn forum as a mole pretending to be an end user who was interested in developing a software control package.

If they were that good they should be able to design things themselves instead simply copying and knocking off.


The one thing the Chinese ARE good at is the stealing of intellectual property

 

[kelly200269]

Better is in the eye of the beholder (and many do not agree). Outright unbashingly unapologetic COPYING is another.

They blatantly copied everything about the Linn DS even down to the design of the casework.
They even had one of their employees join the Linn forum as a mole pretending to be an end user who was interested in developing a software control package.

If they were that good they should be able to design things themselves instead simply copying and knocking off.

Notwithstanding the similarities between the products, the issue here is product quality. And in my experience, most Chinese-made products now are produced to the same standard as products made elsewhere in the world. To say that the P7W are 'poorer quality' because they are made in China is codswallop IMO.

 

[kurochin]

Hah. By that logic, using Audeze build quality and reliability as a benchmark, I could say everything made in the USA is of poor quality.