[Dave_h34]

Sounds like the first person to make some nice soft replacement ear pads will make a killing!

 

[UoKTeN]

Hi All,

I got the PXs on the 11th of October, I thought - after reading this thread through - it would be useful for others to read my mini-review. Most of the things are written down already in this thread, but there are a few untouched areas I would like to cover.

I am coming from the MDR-1000Xs, that I returned after 11 months of usage (and surprisingly got a full refund). I really liked the sound of them, main reason for returning was that my own voice was cancelled together with background noise during phone calls. I always had to take them off when someone was calling me. I am using headphones for commuting (trains and downtown walk), and flying about once a week. I am using them in the office as well, but there I am using a cable connection instead, driven by a dragonfly 1.2. Listening to Spotify when travelling, but mostly hi-res flac files in the office, usually jazz.

How I made my choice:
Wanted to make a step up after the MDRs, in terms of sound quality. Also, read articles that even the 1000XM2s have got issues with phone calls, so wanted to try other brands.

First I got interested in the Audio-Technica ATH-DSR9BTs. Unfortunately I could not try them anywhere, and £500 was slightly over my budget, that I did not want to spend without trying them (and was lazy to start the "send it back game" with Amazon if I don't like them). After getting the PXs, I had a chance to compare them side-by-side, let me talk about that later.

After that I got interested in the Master & Dynamic MW60s, however again, I could not try them anywhere. I asked a few questions from Master & Dynamic customer service, but they still haven't got back to me after 6 days. I was wondering if they would be the same if I had any issues with my pair of cans, so I decided to search elsewhere.

I had a flight a few days later from Luton airport, and had a few hours before departure. Dixon's travel had quite a few pairs of headphones on stock, and sales guys were very helpful with me wanting to try all of them. I was kinda well informed, I went through the negative PCMag review, but on the same day I also read PXs got the "Best wireless headphones over £300" from What Hi-Fi. Also went through tons of other reviews and youtube tests. I have to say thank you to the guys at Dixon's travel, they were really patient with me. After listening to (and making phone calls with) WH-1000XM2s, H9s, Momentum 2.0s, PXC550s and the PXs, I knew it's gonna be a question of comfort. The PXs sounded by far the best for me, but they were the least comfortable as well. I decided to go for them, and see if the comfort is really distracting me. I have a 30 day money-back opportunity.

Briefly:
- Very detailed and natural midrange, lively instruments, wide stage when comparing to other wireless pairs. They sounded a bit thin after the MDRs, but after a few days I find the MDRs bass-heavy instead. Becoming a bit messy when lots of things happening in the music at the same time. Loves quartets, trios and duos though. Low quality recordings will be shown with all their issues, the PXs don't try to make them sound any better. I think they are very good for jazz and classical music, not the best for classic rock though, where the sound becomes messy quite a lot, and cymbals can become dirty easily. Surprisingly they were quite happy with electronic and other types of pop music.

- OMG how nice they sound when connected to the dragonfly. They sound MUCH better than using the built-in dac with the USB-C cable.

- Phone calls are very good. People I call say I sound exactly the same as using my iPhone, no difference at all.

- I hear much less cracking and other deep noises when walking on the street. The MDRs were not the best at those, it was quite noisy to walk when wearing them. PXs are still not perfect, but much better. (this is not about noise cancelling, this is about mechanical noise made by the headphones themselves).

- Noise cancelling does affect the sound (becomes flat), but I have to turn it on only on an airplane, passive isolation is enough otherwise. ANC does its job during flying, doing cancellation in a less aggressive way compared to Sonys. With the Sonys, I did not really like the cabin effect, there's nothing like that with the PXs. I wouldn't say the PXs are any worse or better than the MDRs, I would say they are different. Engine noise is put off completely, flight attendant speech is slightly audible. It is very similar to the Sonys, but without the cabin effect, which is a big advantage for me.

- Motion sensors are overall working good, but it happened once that it turned itself off on my head, and also once it kept on playing after taking them off. I guess it will improve by time with firmware updates. Overall I find this feature really useful, as I always left the MDRs on my desk turned on.

- I was surprised on the zero amount of sound leak the PXs have. The Sonys were leaking a bit, but nothing was coming out from the PXs. Somebody sitting next to me in a silent room could not hear anything from my music.

- I quite like the possibility to connect to two devices in parallel. I have a secondary Android phone, that I can use for listening to music while saving battery on my primary phone, but still not missing any calls. This feature was completely missing from the MDRs. Well, at the same time this is a problem as well. When iPhone is connected, I connect my Android to listen to music. Headphones go standby, they come back, and connect back to the Android only. I press play on my iphone, and I don't understand why I cannot hear anything, and why everybody on the train laughs at me.

- Somebody has written about noise cancellation changes on head moves. I think it is not the noise cancellation itself causing the issue, but the isolation foam moves away from the head in special positions, letting outside noise in. Happened to me once, could fix it by changing can position. I was sleeping on an airplane while this happened, so I could not pay too much attention to it.

- Comfort is still a big issue. I wear glasses, and I can see their shape in the ear pads. Mostly my left, but sometimes both of my ears hurt at the same area after about an hour of usage. I can change the cans positions, but it is way too difficult to find the optimal fit. I am just about to contact B&W if they (planning to) have any replacement foams to be used, as I feel that could help a lot. Just to compare: MDRs were much more comfortable, and the best one of the pairs I tried was the Sennheiser PCX-550s. With those I simply did not feel I am wearing headphones.

After 3 days of usage I found a shop with ATH-DSR9BTs on stock, so I decided to give these a side-by-side comparison. Yes, the DSRs are more detailed with a wider soundstage. However I felt them having a bit of a "laboratory" sound. Too perfect and a bit too bright if that makes sense. I found the PXs being less digital, and a bit more enjoyable. In terms of phone calls (you know, it is important for me) the person I called told me I am talking from the end of a long tube, while picking up all surrounding ambient noise as well. Overall sound input seems to be much worse than the PXs. It's so weird, that wireless headphones in the £300-£500 range are not necessarily good at this feature. Anyway, the DSRs are waaaaay more comfortable to wear, compared to the PXs. Passive isolation is similar, which means they probably would not be the best choice for my weekly flights either. I found them really interesting, but at the end of the day I did not want to spend the extra £200 on top to get them.

Summary:
Do I miss the MDRs? Not really. Now I feel they were quite coloured, and giving you what you love to hear instead of the truth. For the kind of music I listen to I feel the PXs do have a better sound signature.
Will I send the PXs back? I don't know. The comfort worries me quite a lot, but I have cca 20 more days to make a decision. I honestly don't know what I would get instead, if I choose not to keep these. Probably the DSR9BTs, but would not be entirely happy with those either...

Hi, I heard you mentioned Luton airport in your post. If you live in London, you can try the Master & Dynamic MW60s at Selfridges on Oxford Street.

 

[Tamas Bonis]

Hi, I heard you mentioned Luton airport in your post. If you live in London, you can try the Master & Dynamic MW60s at Selfridges on Oxford Street.

I will try to get there tomorrow

 

[bedlamite]

Hi All,

I got the PXs on the 11th of October, I thought - after reading this thread through - it would be useful for others to read my mini-review. Most of the things are written down already in this thread, but there are a few untouched areas I would like to cover.

I am coming from the MDR-1000Xs, that I returned after 11 months of usage (and surprisingly got a full refund). I really liked the sound of them, main reason for returning was that my own voice was cancelled together with background noise during phone calls. I always had to take them off when someone was calling me. I am using headphones for commuting (trains and downtown walk), and flying about once a week. I am using them in the office as well, but there I am using a cable connection instead, driven by a dragonfly 1.2. Listening to Spotify when travelling, but mostly hi-res flac files in the office, usually jazz.

How I made my choice:
Wanted to make a step up after the MDRs, in terms of sound quality. Also, read articles that even the 1000XM2s have got issues with phone calls, so wanted to try other brands.

First I got interested in the Audio-Technica ATH-DSR9BTs. Unfortunately I could not try them anywhere, and £500 was slightly over my budget, that I did not want to spend without trying them (and was lazy to start the "send it back game" with Amazon if I don't like them). After getting the PXs, I had a chance to compare them side-by-side, let me talk about that later.

After that I got interested in the Master & Dynamic MW60s, however again, I could not try them anywhere. I asked a few questions from Master & Dynamic customer service, but they still haven't got back to me after 6 days. I was wondering if they would be the same if I had any issues with my pair of cans, so I decided to search elsewhere.

I had a flight a few days later from Luton airport, and had a few hours before departure. Dixon's travel had quite a few pairs of headphones on stock, and sales guys were very helpful with me wanting to try all of them. I was kinda well informed, I went through the negative PCMag review, but on the same day I also read PXs got the "Best wireless headphones over £300" from What Hi-Fi. Also went through tons of other reviews and youtube tests. I have to say thank you to the guys at Dixon's travel, they were really patient with me. After listening to (and making phone calls with) WH-1000XM2s, H9s, Momentum 2.0s, PXC550s and the PXs, I knew it's gonna be a question of comfort. The PXs sounded by far the best for me, but they were the least comfortable as well. I decided to go for them, and see if the comfort is really distracting me. I have a 30 day money-back opportunity.

Briefly:
- Very detailed and natural midrange, lively instruments, wide stage when comparing to other wireless pairs. They sounded a bit thin after the MDRs, but after a few days I find the MDRs bass-heavy instead. Becoming a bit messy when lots of things happening in the music at the same time. Loves quartets, trios and duos though. Low quality recordings will be shown with all their issues, the PXs don't try to make them sound any better. I think they are very good for jazz and classical music, not the best for classic rock though, where the sound becomes messy quite a lot, and cymbals can become dirty easily. Surprisingly they were quite happy with electronic and other types of pop music.

- OMG how nice they sound when connected to the dragonfly. They sound MUCH better than using the built-in dac with the USB-C cable.

- Phone calls are very good. People I call say I sound exactly the same as using my iPhone, no difference at all.

- I hear much less cracking and other deep noises when walking on the street. The MDRs were not the best at those, it was quite noisy to walk when wearing them. PXs are still not perfect, but much better. (this is not about noise cancelling, this is about mechanical noise made by the headphones themselves).

- Noise cancelling does affect the sound (becomes flat), but I have to turn it on only on an airplane, passive isolation is enough otherwise. ANC does its job during flying, doing cancellation in a less aggressive way compared to Sonys. With the Sonys, I did not really like the cabin effect, there's nothing like that with the PXs. I wouldn't say the PXs are any worse or better than the MDRs, I would say they are different. Engine noise is put off completely, flight attendant speech is slightly audible. It is very similar to the Sonys, but without the cabin effect, which is a big advantage for me.

- Motion sensors are overall working good, but it happened once that it turned itself off on my head, and also once it kept on playing after taking them off. I guess it will improve by time with firmware updates. Overall I find this feature really useful, as I always left the MDRs on my desk turned on.

- I was surprised on the zero amount of sound leak the PXs have. The Sonys were leaking a bit, but nothing was coming out from the PXs. Somebody sitting next to me in a silent room could not hear anything from my music.

- I quite like the possibility to connect to two devices in parallel. I have a secondary Android phone, that I can use for listening to music while saving battery on my primary phone, but still not missing any calls. This feature was completely missing from the MDRs. Well, at the same time this is a problem as well. When iPhone is connected, I connect my Android to listen to music. Headphones go standby, they come back, and connect back to the Android only. I press play on my iphone, and I don't understand why I cannot hear anything, and why everybody on the train laughs at me.

- Somebody has written about noise cancellation changes on head moves. I think it is not the noise cancellation itself causing the issue, but the isolation foam moves away from the head in special positions, letting outside noise in. Happened to me once, could fix it by changing can position. I was sleeping on an airplane while this happened, so I could not pay too much attention to it.

- Comfort is still a big issue. I wear glasses, and I can see their shape in the ear pads. Mostly my left, but sometimes both of my ears hurt at the same area after about an hour of usage. I can change the cans positions, but it is way too difficult to find the optimal fit. I am just about to contact B&W if they (planning to) have any replacement foams to be used, as I feel that could help a lot. Just to compare: MDRs were much more comfortable, and the best one of the pairs I tried was the Sennheiser PCX-550s. With those I simply did not feel I am wearing headphones.

After 3 days of usage I found a shop with ATH-DSR9BTs on stock, so I decided to give these a side-by-side comparison. Yes, the DSRs are more detailed with a wider soundstage. However I felt them having a bit of a "laboratory" sound. Too perfect and a bit too bright if that makes sense. I found the PXs being less digital, and a bit more enjoyable. In terms of phone calls (you know, it is important for me) the person I called told me I am talking from the end of a long tube, while picking up all surrounding ambient noise as well. Overall sound input seems to be much worse than the PXs. It's so weird, that wireless headphones in the £300-£500 range are not necessarily good at this feature. Anyway, the DSRs are waaaaay more comfortable to wear, compared to the PXs. Passive isolation is similar, which means they probably would not be the best choice for my weekly flights either. I found them really interesting, but at the end of the day I did not want to spend the extra £200 on top to get them.

Summary:
Do I miss the MDRs? Not really. Now I feel they were quite coloured, and giving you what you love to hear instead of the truth. For the kind of music I listen to I feel the PXs do have a better sound signature.
Will I send the PXs back? I don't know. The comfort worries me quite a lot, but I have cca 20 more days to make a decision. I honestly don't know what I would get instead, if I choose not to keep these. Probably the DSR9BTs, but would not be entirely happy with those either...

Audio Technica really went all in with the audiophile treatment on the ATH-DSR9BTs and I think the headphone is a little worse off for it. As I've mentioned a couple of times in this thread, outdoor-use cans absolutely need a bass bump, otherwise the strident sound signature will ultimately be too fatiguing for prolonged periods of usage. Audiophile-level headphones are fantastic for controlled bouts of listening on a proper desktop rig, but when you're outside all that detail is going to get lost anyway. Audiophile cans and portable cans are used in very different environments, thus you can't use the same judging criteria for both kinds of headphones.

How did you find the H9s? These are my daily driver mainly because they're so damn comfy on the head. Sound is eh...a touch too bassy and not something I'd listen to metal on, but once I adjusted to the SQ everything was gravy. With the PX it seems like B&W's gear needs a few weeks of hard use for the cushions to break in, which was also something the P7Ws needed. Unfortunate, but probably worth the effort, as the P7W is a very highly regarded wireless headphone.

 

[Tamas Bonis]

Audio Technica really went all in with the audiophile treatment on the ATH-DSR9BTs and I think the headphone is a little worse off for it. As I've mentioned a couple of times in this thread, outdoor-use cans absolutely need a bass bump, otherwise the strident sound signature will ultimately be too fatiguing for prolonged periods of usage. Audiophile-level headphones are fantastic for controlled bouts of listening on a proper desktop rig, but when you're outside all that detail is going to get lost anyway. Audiophile cans and portable cans are used in very different environments, thus you can't use the same judging criteria for both kinds of headphones.

How did you find the H9s? These are my daily driver mainly because they're so damn comfy on the head. Sound is eh...a touch too bassy and not something I'd listen to metal on, but once I adjusted to the SQ everything was gravy. With the PX it seems like B&W's gear needs a few weeks of hard use for the cushions to break in, which was also something the P7Ws needed. Unfortunate, but probably worth the effort, as the P7W is a very highly regarded wireless headphone.

Probably my main problem is, that I want an all rounder pair of headphones, that knows where I am, what I am doing, reads from my brain, and always does absolutely the best based on my current need. I know this is impossible.

The H9s were the second most comfortable pair to wear after the pxc-550s, and I think the main reason for putting them aside was a bit of a biased brain on my end. I spent a few hours with a pair of H6s, and found them a bit less musical even driven by the dragonfly 1.2. Then had another time with H7s, and I heard them being a bit flat. This experience caused probably a brain preset, that made me enjoying the H9s a bit less, and - as you say - everything sounded a bit bass heavy after the PXs.

I really hope the PXs will become a bit more comfy after some days, as I cannot see a much better option on the market at the moment.

 

[wildpanda86]

All these reviews sound great.

Should I wait till B&W gets them back in stock? Or pull the trigger and buy one from Amazon's inventory and just return them if there are any QC issues I notice.

Is B&W supposed to have them back in stock by November? Or sooner?

 

[AlwaysForward]

Hi All,

- Very detailed and natural midrange, lively instruments, wide stage when comparing to other wireless pairs. They sounded a bit thin after the MDRs, but after a few days I find the MDRs bass-heavy instead. Becoming a bit messy when lots of things happening in the music at the same time. Loves quartets, trios and duos though. Low quality recordings will be shown with all their issues, the PXs don't try to make them sound any better. I think they are very good for jazz and classical music, not the best for classic rock though, where the sound becomes messy quite a lot, and cymbals can become dirty easily. Surprisingly they were quite happy with electronic and other types of pop music.

- OMG how nice they sound when connected to the dragonfly. They sound MUCH better than using the built-in dac with the USB-C cable.

Yes! I just got a Dragonfly-like DAC (ADV-Sound Accessport) and OMG indeed does that make them sound incredible. I love how the use can scale depending on if you're wired, wireless or want ANC. Very much agree on your sound assessment above. Something I'd like to note and see if you're experiencing the same thing:

-When connected to the DAC/Amp with a cable, I notice the sound to change into a much more linear presentation with greatly increased highs and very neutral bass. The bass is much less pronounced through the DAC. I tried listening to Rock in both modes and while it's OK in wireless, Rock is AWESOME with the wired DAC. Also, I kind of prefer EDM in wireless mode because of the warmer bass emphasis.

All in all, the more I live with these, the more I appreciate their completeness as a product.

 

[starpause]

Probably my main problem is, that I want an all rounder pair of headphones, that knows where I am, what I am doing, reads from my brain, and always does absolutely the best based on my current need. I know this is impossible.

Ha! Would be amazing, maybe once we have AI in our headphones. Until then all we can do is get frustrated with the "smart" features from headphone manufacturers and turn them off

But the ability to bake EQ presets into the headphone and switch between them would help a great deal here. As I found, equalizing the PX provides a more transparent sound that works for me. Most of my listening is in the office, not dealing with outside street noise. So I'm happy to be able to enjoy a bit more detailed/flat presentation on the go. Not going to replace an at-home-desktop-dream-setup, but at least aligned with what I consider an enjoyable listening experience. And all in all, running EQ on my device and listening to a BLE HP is so convenient compared to carrying a dac/amp, wires, etc.

Should I wait till B&W gets them back in stock? Or pull the trigger and buy one from Amazon's inventory and just return them if there are any QC issues I notice.

I would snag from Amazon. Within the first 30 days I'd rather return to amazon than manufacturer... no questions asked and you can get a replacement in days vs weeks. You'll have the same manufacturer warranty either way.

When connected to the DAC/Amp with a cable, I notice the sound to change into a much more linear presentation with greatly increased highs and very neutral bass. The bass is much less pronounced through the DAC. I tried listening to Rock in both modes and while it's OK in wireless, Rock is AWESOME with the wired DAC. Also, I kind of prefer EDM in wireless mode because of the warmer bass emphasis.

All in all, the more I live with these, the more I appreciate their completeness as a product.

Ok, I've got to re-examine BLE vs wired. When I was listening to wired mode I remember thinking to myself "Hmm, maybe the bass emphasis isn't so bad after all..." Hadn't occurred to me the SQ may actually be different in Bluetooth vs wired modes, but makes sense given it changes between ANC modes. If it does change... that's actually closer to Tamas' dream of a headphone that knows where it is and what it's being used for, without needing anything too smart

Completeness of the product front... Previous to picking these up I'd always had something against B&W style, looked off to me. But sound is #1 for me and I can live with the looks. Even appreciate them them a bit... they're weird, like me The flat stamped metal that swivels around the ear cups isn't to my liking, but at least it's not as sharp and annoying as the VMODA stamped metal.

One thing I really question about the industrial design: Why is the headband curved in at the top? Makes the hot spot narrower, but also means more pressure coming down all in one spot. PM-3 looks clunkier but is more functional on the headband. But we've already established PM-3 is more comfortable over all so I won't keep beating that horse. The padding on the headband is better than on the H9, which actually gave me a sore spot on the top of my head with extended use.

Pads getting softer with use... I hope so! Right now they are so stiff that moving my head around a little bit I'm able to break the seal around my ear. I don't mind the clamping force, makes me less nervous about leaning my head back (with the H9 they would always slip off if I did).

GF started pouting when I said the PM-3 was going back, but I'd rather have an every day carry that meets my listening needs and save up for an even more powerful tool for production, mixing, etc (eyes on AEON). But damn, yeah PM-3 is a pretty good tool in that regard... almost good enough for me to not be lusting up past that $400 price point... but their benefit in being portable is a lot less important if I have PX as an EDC so I swing back to wanting the full monty for an at home production HP.

 

[rkw]

These leak like CRAZY... I was only at %80 volume with these and one of my colleagues already told me that he could hear what I was listening to.

I was surprised on the zero amount of sound leak the PXs have... Somebody sitting next to me in a silent room could not hear anything from my music.

Hmm...

 

[starpause]

Hmm...

Yeah, I found them surprisingly leaky for an ANC HP... Could hear sound coming out when they were on my GF head. Guess they're good for keeping sound out but not sound in? Or we were listening too loud...

 

[UoKTeN]

Hmm...

I actually did a test using my iphone. It was a medium-level noisy office environment, I asked the guy sitting next to me to wear the headphones and I slowly increased the volume.

after %75 (12/16 sound levels on the iPhone) volume, it was clearly audible. When I did the same test with P7W, It wasn't audible even at max volume.

 

[Ryland Johnson]

All these reviews sound great.

Should I wait till B&W gets them back in stock? Or pull the trigger and buy one from Amazon's inventory and just return them if there are any QC issues I notice.

Is B&W supposed to have them back in stock by November? Or sooner?

There is not an Amazon in Europe that has stock.

I want to purchase these and trying to do so is like looking for hens teeth!

Ryland

 

[AlwaysForward]

Sounds like the first person to make some nice soft replacement ear pads will make a killing!

I'm sure someone will come up with a 3d print adaptor. The magnets might take some extra work and parts sourcing.

In the meantime, mine have gotten slightly softer with wear.

 

[Brava27]

Yikes, with these mixed reviews about SQ, NC and stiff earpads, I might be better off keeping my P7W instead of trading up lol

 

[Tamas Bonis]

Hmm...

Okay, so I did a test this morning. Listening to Eric Clapton Unplugged (iPhone, Spotify, Wireless connection) in a silent office. I did a recording with my Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 built-in mic (mp3, 192kHz) being held cca 50-80cm away from my head. (shot a photo while recording, if anyone is interested that much.) In extreme silence the guitars were audible, but as soon as someone walks in, the noise puts it off. Compared to my hearing the recording shows ambient noise quite amplified (please note that you can hear the person coming in breathing).

Please download the mp3 file from dropbox.