For what its worth, here are my thoughts:
Firstly it depends on what you want from the cans:
- SQ?
- Comfort?
- Noise isolation?
- Aesthetics?
In what order of preference would you place these? For me it was SQ first and foremost; anything else I could live with.
Secondly, there are THREE MAJOR factors that mean all the reviews posted here cannot be considered equal:
- Have the P5's been burned in?
- Which ear cushion design do they have?
- What is the tonal preference of the listener?
As with most durable high quality audio equipment, the P5's have a lengthy burn in period, so reviewing a well-worn pair in a store versus reviewing your brand new set will be 'night and day'.
The P5's have two different ear cushion designs: they sound COMPLETELY different.
The first looks like this:
The second looks like this:
If you have the first version, you can mod them like I did using a pair of scissors (if you dare!)
So this likely explains why some people love their P5's and some people hate them and now have sold them.
Finally then, to answer your initial question; I personally think that my modded P5's blow anything you will find in an Apple store out of the water. I know this because I took them in to an Apple store and A-B'd my P5's with all the Bose, Sennheiser, and Monster Beats sets they had in there.
It was very satisfying to know that my 2nd hand P5's that I paid £100 for sounded much better than the £350 Monster beats
HOWEVER
I should imagine that QC3's are more comfortable for extended periods and will isolate noise more effectively. These factors were not of particularly high importance to me personally. They may be for you though?
PJ
