[HD800NL]

Yes it’s streaming aptX HD and a reassuring logo pops up each time it connects. Sound quality is in another league to my Galaxy S7 edge phone and even the flight NR sounds better. Annoying how ropey the connection is though - not such an issue for me as I’m usually sitting stationary, but it will be for others. I have found that if the player is on my left and I try to make any adjustments on the headphones, it causes a dropout. Doesn’t happen so much if the player is on my right!

Thanks, I've ordered an AK70 because of the aptX HD. I guess the bluetooth sensor is on the right

 

[phillevy]

Thanks, I've ordered an AK70 because of the aptX HD. I guess the bluetooth sensor is on the right

Are you aware they have just released a mark 2 version - this may have an improved bluetooth transmitter?

 

[WDitters]

The downside is that they don't scale up any sound improvements with an external DAC/ AMP like my P7's do. I'll probably just have to order them to compare which I like better.

Not sure if I agree here. If you connect the PX in the exact same manner it will improve over the P7W without altering the incoming signal. Improving the source signal will offer the same improvement to the PX as it does to the P7W.. I bet that a combination of external dac and PX will sound better than with the P7W...

What will be interesting on the other hand is to see how the internal DAC of the PX will compare with the likes of Dragonfly etc when connected to a PC or cellphone in USB-out mode... I assume that a dedicated DAC will still sound better, albeit with a smaller margin.

 

[wildpanda86]

Not sure if I agree here. If you connect the PX in the exact same manner it will improve over the P7W without altering the incoming signal. Improving the source signal will offer the same improvement to the PX as it does to the P7W.. I bet that a combination of external dac and PX will sound better than with the P7W...

What will be interesting on the other hand is to see how the internal DAC of the PX will compare with the likes of Dragonfly etc when connected to a PC or cellphone in USB-out mode... I assume that a dedicated DAC will still sound better, albeit with a smaller margin.

There's been reviews that have said they have to be powered/ charged to work weather or not ANC is on or off. Also it takes whatever signal is fed and upconverting that sample rate as well according to the product info page. That means its like running two DAC/ AMPS together. I would think that introduces too many variables unless the sound signature of the DAC's will compliment each other. Too many pages to search but I think someone posted that they ran it off an external amp/dac with poor results... maybe I'm wrong.

 

[HD800NL]

Are you aware they have just released a mark 2 version - this may have an improved bluetooth transmitter?

Yes but the AK70 costs 480 euro and the MKII costs 750 euro...

 

[WDitters]

There's been reviews that have said they have to be powered/ charged to work weather or not ANC is on or off. Also it takes whatever signal is fed and upconverting that sample rate as well according to the product info page. That means its like running two DAC/ AMPS together. I would think that introduces too many variables unless the sound signature of the DAC's will compliment each other. Too many pages to search but I think someone posted that they ran it off an external amp/dac with poor results... maybe I'm wrong.

Correct and incorrect.. No they cannot run in passive mode without power. That power however is not necessarily meant for the on-board DAC. You can still choose between connecting the PX in pure analogue fashion via a 3.5mm jack. That will bypass the DAC. If you also ignore ANC the PX will run in a similar way to the P7W, even though it is 'switched on'.. That of course does not apply to running the PX in USB-C DAC mode...

 

[Munchkinham]

Just got my aptx HD adapter, great improvement over my previous aptx bluetooth dongle. Not sure if the HD actually makes that much of a difference or if my BT dongle is crappy to begin with... ;D

Also I start to like them more with ANC on as that gives them a warmer tone.

 

[Nattage]

Promises promises. Pointed the app at my headphones and there's no firmware upgrade offered. I'm on 1.052.

I'm in email dialogue with B&W since asking for a return authorisation. They're asking in depth questions about my experience.
fWIW I concur with that PC mag review. I hope it can be fixed through updates.

 

[HD800NL]

Just got my aptx HD adapter, great improvement over my previous aptx bluetooth dongle. Not sure if the HD actually makes that much of a difference or if my BT dongle is crappy to begin with... ;D

Also I start to like them more with ANC on as that gives them a warmer tone.

Which aptx HD adapter? USB of 3.5mm?

 

[neil74]

Anybody else getting a mild knocking noise when using them whilst moving? Hard to explain as it's quite subtle almost as if the driver is moving slightly in the ear p and?

It is bugging me though!

 

[Munchkinham]

Which aptx HD adapter? USB of 3.5mm?

I got the Inateck BR1006. Audio via 3.5mm, Power via USB.

Works fine so far but got some quirks I don't quite like. For one it's another thing that needs to be charged, thought it was a simple USB device that doesn't require extra Power.

The other thing is that you have to plug it into a good power source (as stated in the manual) if you want to listen to music while charging. Otherwise you get audible interference noise. If anyone has a better solution, let me know.

 

[wildpanda86]

Promises promises. Pointed the app at my headphones and there's no firmware upgrade offered. I'm on 1.052.

I'm in email dialogue with B&W since asking for a return authorisation. They're asking in depth questions about my experience.
fWIW I concur with that PC mag review. I hope it can be fixed through updates.

Makes me want to wait until B&W has them in stock on their website again. Cause then likely those are updated whereas the ones on Amazon are the first batch. Maybe they are selling them like Tesla sells model 3's... the first buyers are like their beta testers.

 

[wildpanda86]

Correct and incorrect.. No they cannot run in passive mode without power. That power however is not necessarily meant for the on-board DAC. You can still choose between connecting the PX in pure analogue fashion via a 3.5mm jack. That will bypass the DAC. If you also ignore ANC the PX will run in a similar way to the P7W, even though it is 'switched on'.. That of course does not apply to running the PX in USB-C DAC mode...

Wonder if Bowers can confirm that on their Twitter page. Anyhow I'll probably order them as soon as Bowers & Wilkins has them in stock on their website again.

I would think that new stock on Bowers website would be the most updated and be least likely to have production issues. Whereas places like Amazon just has first batch ones in stock which is probably why their reviews have been bad.

 

[GrussGott]

I got the Inateck BR1006. Audio via 3.5mm, Power via USB.

Wow, this is interesting ... basically you can turn any source into AptX HD compatible! Assuming you get clean power (Anker power block?), you could turn a macbook or an airplane movie into AptX HD ... this could be genius for $45.

I've got the P7W and am considering the PX.

SIDE NOTE: I use the P7W for flights and got them over the Sonys MDR1000x and Bose QC35 because I don't get the "sound booth" effect others mention ... even on full ANC the sonys and QC35s don't help much for me and I found with the P7W that the SQ is so much better that if I just turn them up I forget all about whatever background noise ANC is supposed to be blocking. It's really made question whether ANC is a solution looking for a problem, because maybe the solution is just having great SQ. In short, I've been using my P7Ws daily for home and travel without even missing ANC.

Where I DEFINITELY notice a difference is between bluetooth SBC vs AptX. My phones/tablets are all "standard" bluetooth, but my macbook connects to my P7Ws with AptX and there's a HUGE difference. The SBC sounds "grainy" whereas the AptX sounds much fuller. Given that experience, I'm wondering if the PX would be a nice addition ... and if I can get AptX HD from any source including phones ... wow, that'd be a nice benefit. Especially if I could put a Dragonfly as a source for the Inateck ...

Anyway, I'm just a novice with all this stuff, but I know what I like to listen to and if this Inateck device, in combo with a dragonfly could give killer resolution wirelessly to any device ... GENIUS!

 

[Munchkinham]

Wow, this is interesting ... basically you can turn any source into AptX HD compatible! Assuming you get clean power (Anker power block?), you could turn a macbook or an airplane movie into AptX HD ... this could be genius for

The power source is only required to charge the adapter. It has it's own battery. No idea how long it takes to deplete though.. It's also a receiver which means you can use it to convert any headphone to bluetooth.

Edit: Just checked a youtube review, says it's good for ~13 hours.