[CluelessAudio]

I love the P7s. They make my music come alive. Listening to them really allows you to climb inside the music. Very easy to relax and enjoy when you listen to them. The P7 wireless brings out things in most songs that I had not heard before. Bass and treble stand alone and are blended together to create sweet music. I throughly enjoy listening to my music and hate that I might have to give them up, because paying $400 and not getting a totally comfortible fit does not make sense to me....I hate that I am probably going to have to return them.

Buy the P9s, they're a step up! (in sound quality and price....)

 

[Sonic Defender]

I love the P7s. They make my music come alive. Listening to them really allows you to climb inside the music. Very easy to relax and enjoy when you listen to them. The P7 wireless brings out things in most songs that I had not heard before. Bass and treble stand alone and are blended together to create sweet music. I throughly enjoy listening to my music and hate that I might have to give them up, because paying $400 and not getting a totally comfortible fit does not make sense to me....I hate that I am probably going to have to return them.

Are you going to try the H500BT? Despite the on-ear design I find them more comfortable than the P7.

 

[aut0maticdan]

I love the P7s. They make my music come alive. Listening to them really allows you to climb inside the music. Very easy to relax and enjoy when you listen to them. The P7 wireless brings out things in most songs that I had not heard before. Bass and treble stand alone and are blended together to create sweet music. I throughly enjoy listening to my music and hate that I might have to give them up, because paying $400 and not getting a totally comfortible fit does not make sense to me....I hate that I am probably going to have to return them.

I agree, man!  Give the Audioquests a look.  I overlooked them, but they have some similar design choices and probably some overlap in sound signature.  They are supposed to be one of the most comfortable sets available with a smooth musical sound that you can listen to for long sessions.  They now have a closed-back version (NightOwl) but no bluetooth.  If you are "open" to open headphones, you can find the first-gen Nighthawks at a pretty big discount ($500 new) and the designer says they sound basically the same.  They are all sensitive cans so should sound great plugged into about anything.
 
I may pick up a first-gen pair myself after I audition them in a few weeks, if they sound great and aren't redundant with the p7s.  I won't be able to provide a comparison until then.  I'm skeptical of any company that makes a $500 USB cable, so I'd like to listen first.

 

[zviratko]

Hi!
I just bought the P7 yesterday. I had Momentum Wireless (AE) before and I wanted something better, different, and more bespoke
 
If I can offer my humble opinion and comparison
 
Positives:
 
1) Extremely well made, love the look, love the feel
2) Great sound, love the crisp highs (especially compared to Sennheisers). Bass is a bit overpowering at times but it doesn't compromise the rest of the sound at all. They feel much flatter compared to the Momentums except for the bass.
3) Phenomenal bluetooth reception. Momentums were already great, but the P7 have maybe twice the range. Audio dropouts don't happen until the very end of range while Momentum were cutting out ocassionaly when I was walking around my appartment.
4) Much more comfortable. They sit on the head more confidently and the earcups are actually able to go around my ears. Momentums made my ears hurt when I wore them for longer periods of time because my ears were rubbing the inside. I also listened to them until I fell asleep yesterday and when I woke up it was not because it felt uncomfortable.
5) (For me) a bit better bluetooth control. Momentums are probably a bit more sophisticated (voice feedback is great). but I like how P7s only connect to the primary device automatically and I can connect whatever second device I want. Since I use headphones with one computer, 2 iPhones and an iPad, it's usually a real PITA to connect what I am actually using - it means disconnecting whatever was connected and manually connecting the right device (since only 2 can be connected at the same time). I think the way P7 do this makes a lot of sense, although someone with only 2 devices might find the Momentum way more convenient.
 
Negatives:
 
1) (Is this normal??) Hiss/noise when the bluetooth stream si active but nothing is playing. I think it's even worse than ANC noise on the Momentums and it's extremely distracting. You can forgive the Momentums because "it's the price you pay for ANC", and you get used to it after a while. But on the P7 it's intermittent since the stream goes idle after a while, then something kicks the audio stream in and it starts hissing only to stop a few seconds later. Annoying as hell. I just tried it with a cable from my old Macbook, and there's no audible hissing (I can hear the click after ~10 after audio is finished when it puts the output to sleep, but no hiss!). DAC in the headphones should blow the one in my Macbook out of the water.
Is this normal or is my piece faulty? This is my absolutely biggest problem with the headphones and something I'm not sure I can live with.
2) Wired connection. What's wrong with an external connector? How is this more convenient? I used to switch from wireless to wire from time to time. But on the P7 it's just too inconvenient, and if I were to do that daily I recon it would mechanically break in a year. I don't suspect them wanting to sell us cables, but it's just stupid.
3) The case. It's great quality and all, but just a bit too small even for the heaphones alone. Don't even think about putting anything else in here - like cables.
4) Automatic power off after 10 minutes. What the... Who thought that was a good idea? At least it doesn't take long to turn the headphones back on, but why should I have to do that 10 times a day? What's wrong with just staying on? Luckily, one can cheat by having some audio paused in the background, but then it comes back to 1) - constant hissing.
5) Some audio problems on my Mac, related to AAC. For example when playing a movie with VLC and then playing a song in iTunes, the audio from VLC switches off when iTunes isn't playing anymore. Reconnecting fixes this. A second problem with VLC - if headphones disconnect (like... after having something paused for 10 minutes!) the audio desyncs.
But I guess both of these problems have more to do with something on MacOS+AAC than the headphones themselves (never had there problems with Momentums though, but those use aptX)
 
I can't comment on battery life yet. My iPhone claims "100%" after ~8 hours, so that's a clear lie, but guesstimating from how long I charged them after use I don't think 17 hours is unrealistic. I actually play something only about 70% of the time when wearing them at work, though.
 
In the end: Yes. these headphones are somewhat superior to the Momentums, but some of the annoyances might be too much. I still have 13 days to return them if I want, and I'm actually considering that, which is sad because they are great in so many things. Some of these problems could be fixed with a firmware update (like the auto power off nonsense) or possibly controlled from (supposedly coming?) iOS app. But the background noise...! I don't know whether I can endure that. This was one of the reasons I wanted something without ANC or where it can be disabled.
Can someone please confirm whether this happens on all of them? Or is my piece faulty?

 

[aut0maticdan]

Great comparison.  I'm glad to hear as Momentums were the another wireless I considered but went with the newer tech in the B&Ws.
 
I think what you are experiencing is normal.  I hear the internal dac/amp RF noise as well.  I don't think everyone hears it that well or at least isn't bothered by it.  I've been able to get past it by bringing my attention back to the music.  I really enjoy them wirelessly at this point.
 
I also think the power management is heavy-handed in this set.  It even can cause audio problems when there is a long gap in sound.
 
I get what they are doing with the cable.  I like the seamless design, but yeah, not the most convenient for those of us that like to wire these up on the regular.  Once you get the muscle memory down, it stops being a nuisance. 

 

[WILLDQ]

I picked up a pair of the Onkyo H500BT. GREAT sound and could work in place of the P7. The sound and overall presentation of the H500 while good is not on par with the P7. If you never heard the P7 you would jump all over the H500. I have big concerns about the longevity of the H500. I might have to wait until spring and try again when the new HP from Blue and Audio-technica hit the market before finally choose a good wireless set of headphones. I don't know what to do....looks like I will stay teathered for a while..

 

[WILLDQ]

Thanks for your feed back. I am looking for a wireless pair as I have many wired pair. I did try Audioquest...to big for me. Also did not like sound signature. Do you or anyone have information or feelings about Parrot Zik 2.0?

 

[zviratko]

I know some hiss is normal. But why should it be _worse_ than the integrated DAC in my laptop? This makes no sense. My laptop is not a dedicated audio equipment, the headphones are!
 
I have had no problems with audio while actually playing (actually much better than the Momentums that crackle when seeking on youtube or starting playback of something)
 
Seamless design? Take a look at the Momentums, the audio cable is recessed a bit, so it's pretty snug and inconspicuous. And it can be disconnected in a few seconds. True, they also need a specialty cable that's much more costly than the B&W one, but at least it's actually usable

 

[zviratko]

Thanks for your feed back. I am looking for a wireless pair as I have many wired pair. I did try Audioquest...to big for me. Also did not like sound signature. Do you or anyone have information or feelings about Parrot Zik 2.0?

I went through several wireless headphones in the past year, two of those were Parrot Zik 2.0.
The first ones were clearly faulty, sounded really bad wired, much better but still bad when powered on. I returned them and bought Sennheiser MM550-X.
Those were uncomfortable, so I returned them for a "store credit" and tried another pair of Zik 2.0 they had. Those sounded much better so I got them.
I used them for 2 days(?) and then returned them
 
1) Battery life was really bad. Not even one day of use.
2) Sound quality was way below the MM550-X (and I'm no audiophile)
3) The smartphone application is a gimmick. Enabling any sort of EQ or effect means instant mutilation of the sound, it's that bad. The only good thing was ANC control, but let's be honest - a simple on/off would suffice.
4) ANC worked well, about as well as on Momentums
5) The touch controls drove me crazy. Wearing them in bed is impossible as any touch of a pillow would trigger them. Actually operating them is a pain and I hated every bit of it. This is not specific to Ziks and might be subjective, but this was the main reason why I didn't even consider Beoplay H9
6) They look nice, but the build quality wasn't stellar. I wonder how fast the paint would peel. I think some major parts of the headband are actually plastic and will break, or at least I remember reading that people broke them quite easily

 

[randy98mtu]

Great comparison.  I have P7, Denon MM400, Sony Z7 and Momentum 2.0 Wireless (around ear)  I caved and bought the P9 and now I'm looking to dump the other 3 wired cans and I'm wondering if I should dump the M2's for the P7w and just have the 2 sets.  I almost never use any of the others (though I did put the MM400's on the other day and enjoyed them.)  Not really unhappy with the M2 wireless.  I need to do some A/B with the P9's and then I'll be unhappy with them like everything else. lol

 

[CavemanSponge]

Wireless sound for B&W should be just as good as wired, from my experience with the P5 Wireless. The issue that I personally wud be concerned with is connectivity tho. It gets choppy when u put ur phone/player deep in ur pocket

 

[zviratko]

  Great comparison.  I have P7, Denon MM400, Sony Z7 and Momentum 2.0 Wireless (around ear)  I caved and bought the P9 and now I'm looking to dump the other 3 wired cans and I'm wondering if I should dump the M2's for the P7w and just have the 2 sets.  I almost never use any of the others (though I did put the MM400's on the other day and enjoyed them.)  Not really unhappy with the M2 wireless.  I need to do some A/B with the P9's and then I'll be unhappy with them like everything else. lol

 
 
P7s are much better than the Momentums in sound quality. I toyed with both of them today and I just can't listen to the Momentums anymore (it would take some getting used to again) - they just sound muffled compared to the P7.
On the other hand I was also testing the sound isolation of the P7 compared to the isolation+ANC of the Momentums, and P7 is nowhere near what they can do. There's an ongoing reconstruction in the flat next door (heavy drilling, banging) and the Momentums are able to filter it perfectly even when nothing is playing, while the P7s need something loud to make it "disappear".
Another thing - the Momentums don't bleed sound to the outside, not on any volume level (maybe a tiiiny bit on max), but the P7 can be heard easily. Momentums are just much better for use in bed when someone's sleeping next to you, also because the minimal volume on them is really quiet while on the P7s the minimal level is still pretty loud and it distorts a bit.
 

  Wireless sound for B&W should be just as good as wired, from my experience with the P5 Wireless. The issue that I personally wud be concerned with is connectivity tho. It gets choppy when u put ur phone/player deep in ur pocket

All the more modern bluetooth headphones I tried had pretty good connectivity (Parrots, Momentum, MM550-X, MM-450X, some Panasonics, Sony MDR-something...). The only time I had a problem was on a train with WiFi that everyone around was using - I had to put the phone to my front pocket in places like tunnels (no idea why) or it would cut out momentarily.
It's more common to hit an issue with the sender - for example if you use 2.4GHz WiFi and are downloading something then drivers must have bt-coexistence implemented well not to cause an issue. But it's been a long time since I had to look into that as well...

 

[randy98mtu]

   
 
P7s are much better than the Momentums in sound quality. I toyed with both of them today and I just can't listen to the Momentums anymore (it would take some getting used to again) - they just sound muffled compared to the P7.
On the other hand I was also testing the sound isolation of the P7 compared to the isolation+ANC of the Momentums, and P7 is nowhere near what they can do. There's an ongoing reconstruction in the flat next door (heavy drilling, banging) and the Momentums are able to filter it perfectly even when nothing is playing, while the P7s need something loud to make it "disappear".
Another thing - the Momentums don't bleed sound to the outside, not on any volume level (maybe a tiiiny bit on max), but the P7 can be heard easily. Momentums are just much better for use in bed when someone's sleeping next to you, also because the minimal volume on them is really quiet while on the P7s the minimal level is still pretty loud and it distorts a bit.

 
That is a bit concerning about leaking sound.  Though I read the same about the P9's and I have asked a few people at work and they all say they don't hear anything until I pull them off my head.
 
I need to dedicate some time to do some good A/B (C/D/E lol) testing between all the cans I currently have.  I want to get down to 1 pair of closed wired and 1 pair of closed wireless.  In honesty I never use the HD650's, but I can't bring myself to sell them for what they sell for.

 

[RedHotFuzz]

  4) Automatic power off after 10 minutes. What the... Who thought that was a good idea? At least it doesn't take long to turn the headphones back on, but why should I have to do that 10 times a day? What's wrong with just staying on?

 
Well, in another thread about the B&O H9 (or H8 or H7? I forget which...), people were griping there was no auto-off and they'd wake up in the morning to find their headphones dead. So, pick your poison?
 
I personally am glad for the 10-minute shutoff time. If I'm not listening to anything, why have the battery draining? If it were just a couple of minutes I'd be annoyed, but I think the amount of time they've programmed them for is just right.
 
It would be nice if B&W would come up with an app to allow you some control over this if desired. I mean, this is 2017 already.

 

[zviratko]

There's no ANC so the drain will be absolutely minimal.
Momentums are able to play for 22 hours and have always-on ANC.
 
I can't imagine P7 dying overnight just because it was on, even if some device is connected.
 
I don't know what the battery life would be without power off, but I have been using them since yesterday without charging once (now about ~12 hours) and they haven't died. I keep waking them up everytime they power off. And my iPhone still claims they are 100% charged - I'll try how long they really last...