So I've had the B&W P7W & PX, haven't listened to any other headphones in the last couple years. Just bought a silver PX7 and opened it up tonight. Assorted initial observations:
- Build quality: I haven't necessarily found them to feel "cheap." I happen to like that they're not leather. They do feel lighter. Mine, however, have a little perforation on the "pleather" in the headband area, not sure if that will open up and worsen over time. I'm considering exchanging it given the high price, but a replacement might have an imperfection elsewhere.
- Design/Aesthetics: On the other hand, I agree they look a little weird and bulky around the ears. The P7W was absolutely beautiful to me, and this is not in the same ballpark. My PX's were gold/navy, and those looked better.
- Comfort: I knew many people disliked the PX's comfort, but I felt it was a small price to pay for better sound. Now after a brief moment with the PX7, I better realize what I've put up with over the last 2 years. With the PX, I'd frequently have to fiddle with the earcups' orientation, squeeze them a bit to try to make them more pliable, and of course have to worry about a decent seal. The PX7, like the P7W, is easy so far.
- I'll confirm I immediately heard something that sounded like mild rattling from the right side (perhaps buttons) with movement. Could be problematic given that I like to walk with headphones but I haven't evaluated this closely yet. Wishful thinking is that this was actually some kind of digital artifact that a software update could fix, but that's a stretch. So far I haven't noticed the issue with music playing.
- I wasn't immediately amazed by the sound, for whatever that's worth. However, I'm cautiously optimistic. The PX's were notoriously bad out of the box, so I wanted to ask if those who have had the PX7 for a while now have noticed a sonic improvement with burn-in? I do hope, after the dust settles and in comparison to the PX, that this will have a bit more bass, more warmth, more clarity, and overall a more fun sound signature. I loved the P7W's lush and exciting sound, but I did find the bass somewhat clumsy and "pillowy" (a term I read in someone's review here or Amazon, and found apt). The PX's bass was more precise and well-defined, but the overall signature, while mostly detailed and specious, wasn't that fun.
- Appreciate that they decided to include a decent case this time around, given the cost.
- Hopeful about reports that ANC doesn't degrade the sound as much as with the PX. Have others had an issue with ANC being on by default upon powering on the headphone, even if ANC had been turned off with the prior use? This is highly annoying and needs to be fixed with the next software update.
Particularly eager to hear others' observations about any improvement with burn-in, and comparisons with the PX and/or P7W.