Edit: Even months later these headphones are by far my favorite audio product ever. Nowadays I use these headphones with 12" retina Macbook, iPhone 6S Plus, and Apple Watch, and the wireless audio performance is absolutely fantastic on any of the devices above. Although I am pretty careful with my stuff anyway, it is also good to note that the pair still looks like new, thus the build quality is just about as durable as it can be. I would recommend all Mac users to download Bluetooth Explorer app made by Apple. The app can be used to force Mac's Bluetooth audio output to go through with AptX codec, which is a slight improvement over SBC codec that is being used by default.
All the listening I have done with P5 Wireless has been in wireless mode and thus I’m not going to compare how do they sound wireless versus wired. After all, why would one buy wireless to listen with a wire when wired can be had for $100 less. Music I listen to is streamed from Apple Music (presumably 256kbps AAC) through either iTunes on 13” Macbook Pro (Early 2015, OS X 10.11 Beta) or Music app on iPhone 6 (iOS 9.0 Beta). My choice of wireless headphones and listening equipment probably confirms that I’m not very hardcore audiophile.
Connectivity:
P5 Wireless was easy to pair to both of my devices. On the bottom of the right side of the headphones there is a power switch / bluetooth button. Sliding the switch turns headphones on and off and pressing the button for 2 seconds brings P5 Wireless to pairing mode. First thing you pair P5 Wireless to becomes a “master device” and short press of the bluetooth button will connect to this device. With other paired devices it is required to go to bluetooth settings and reconnect whenever you want to use headphones, but going through pairing process is not necessary. According to B&W, P5 Wireless can remember 8 devices at once, but I do not have more than 2 so I can’t confirm this.
After connection is established in between of device and P5 Wireless the connection is very solid. Connection does not stutter or anything until I go to the opposite corner from an iPhone or Macbook Pro in small/mid-size Floridian home with pretty open floor plan. I doubt there will be any issues with the connection in any normal situations. While connected it is also possible to control music playback with volume up, down, and play/pause buttons. They work well, but I prefer to control through the device I’m using instead.
Design:
Aesthetics are very subjective thing, but I personally like the way P5 Wireless looks and feels. They’re mostly made out of leather and metals, but rather than having chrome ring familiar from P5 and P5 S2 in between of ear pad and ear cup there’s a black plastic ring, which accommodates all the buttons. I’m not too big fan of plastic, but this strip seems sturdy enough and is probably a necessity to achieve stable bluetooth connection.
These are also pretty comfortable headphones for me to use–more comfortable than P5 or P5 S2. However, since I’d rank P5 to be the least comfortable and P5 Wireless to be most comfortable, I suspect that my head is just getting more used to the feel of these headphones over time and they’re in fact just about equally comfortable when compared to each other. Regardless, although I don’t have much experience with my P5 Wireless I bet I can wear them for long hours without significant discomfort.
Sound:
Unfortunately sound is the hardest thing for me to really review since I have nothing really to compare these to. Of course I have had some other headphones too outside of B&W offerings, but it has been so long ago that I can’t possibly remember their sound. Additionally, I have nothing to do direct comparison with since I always sell, dispose, recycle, or give away my previous stuff before buying new. In fact, besides some furniture, all of my stuff fits in the cargo area of Mustang, so I really don’t have too much stuff…
Regardless of lack of comparison I can still say though that P5 Wireless sounds very good. Judging by the sound I couldn’t really tell they are in fact a wireless pair of headphones. Mid frequencies are probably their strongest point and vocals sound fantastic. Highs are pretty good too, but sometimes a bit too bright to me. I personally set EQ to bring highs slightly down. Bass in these headphones is something I like very much too. To me it feels like that the bass would be “under” or “behind” the vocals, while still having quite good presence. Out of my memory P5 Wireless bass seems to be less powerful than it was on P5 S2, but I can still very much enjoy EDM and other bass heavy music I tend to listen to.
EDIT:
Sound has changed quite a bit after using more of these headphones. It might be due to mysterious burn-in, which I do not really believe in that much, or ear pads have now had more time to form a shape better to my ears. It may also be just me getting used to the sound, but again, I used to own P5 S2, which sounded almost the same to what P5 Wireless has now become.
Anyway, bass has now got off of the background and instead is very present in the listening experience. I love the bass of these headphones now as I did with P5 S2 too. In the beginning treble was too sparkly or sibilant, but now it's no longer an issue. Mid frequencies are still fantastic and the vocal reproduction of these headphones is hard to beat. Soundstage is not too big, but it's sufficient or even great for an on-ear headphone.
All in all, I'd recommend these headphones to just about anyone looking to drop $399.99 for their listening experience. While many wired options might be more accurate sounding, P5 Wireless is joy to listen to with wireless convenience. Finally, these also sound great from any modern bluetooth capable source, so buyer doesn't have to worry about impedances or other technical stuff–they just work! I bet that simplicity and convenience with this great sound cannot be beaten by anything on the market today.
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This Item  Bowers & Wilkins P5 Wireless Bluetooth On-Ear Headphones, Black |  |  |  |  |  | |
| Price | — | $275.00 | -36% $254.94 New Price: $398.00 | -17% $149.95 List: $179.95 | $399.00 | $429.00 |
| Delivery | — | Get it as soon as Wednesday, May 1 | Get it as soon as Wednesday, May 1 | Get it as soon as Wednesday, May 1 | Get it as soon as Wednesday, May 1 | Get it as soon as Wednesday, May 1 |
| Customer Ratings | ||||||
| Battery life | ||||||
| Sound quality | ||||||
| Noise cancellation | ||||||
| Comfort | ||||||
| Bass quality | ||||||
| Sold By | — | 4OurEars - The Official Grado Store | AAAPPLE | BrandsWalk | Amazon.com | Amazon.com |
| connectivity tech | Bluetooth | Wireless | Wireless | Wireless | Wireless, Wired | Wireless, Wired |
| headphones form factor | On Ear | On Ear | Over Ear | Over Ear | Over Ear | Over Ear |
| connector type | usb,wireless | wireless | Stereo Mini Jack | — | — | 2.5mm Jack |
| noise control | — | — | active noise cancellation | hybrid noise cancellation | — | active noise cancellation |
| headphones jack | usb | 3.5 mm Jack | 3.5 mm Jack | — | — | — |
| cable feature | Without Cable | Without Cable | Without Cable | Without Cable | Without Cable | Without Cable, Retractable |
Reviews with images
Gorgeous design, compact and fairly accurate sound reproduction but a bit idiosyncratic.
I have owned B&W speakers before and have a good understanding of their speaker design (enough to create my own hand carved clone speakers). Based on this experience I bough these P5s and despite my reservations, find myself using them whenever I travel.I should also point out my listening preferences - I do NOT listen to boomy bass. I listen to Indian classical (with a lot of vocals and mid-low bass), Bollywood/Fusion, Jazz quartets, solo vocals (almost acapella), Blues and some amount of western classical.I also compared these to my Audeze LCD2-C headphones that are in a different category (in price and performance). My impressions about these headphones are as follows -** PROS **DESIGN- Lay-flat, compact design that fits nicely into its cloth pouch with magnetic closures makes it easy to transport.- Beautiful modern-retro cool design.- The leather used everywhere is real supple that can stay in skin contact for hours without being uncomfortable.- The overall look is not flashy.- The buttons are discreet and easy to use.SOUND- Isolation is wonderful due to the on-ear design.- The entire bass range was very tight and sounded accurate. Not boomy at all (unlike a certain "B" brand).- Sound imaging was fantastic for a headphone in this category. I could pinpoint sound moment pretty well.- Soundstage was there, but barely so. It felt as if most sounds were typical (L, R and center) but a few did manage to come from somewhere in-between. Nothing at all like the LCDs.TECHNOLOGY- aptX BT technology is just amazing. While I am not prepared to give up my wired connections yet, streaming high res audio from my device on-the-go to these headphones was amazing.At home, I did try using the wired connection, but since I have better cans, I never really used them for long to see much of a difference. I keep the headphone cable as a backup, just in case I run out of juice.- Speaking of juice, I used these all day at an amusement park to isolate sound and have good music streaming into my ears and this thing was at 20% battery by the end of the day. Not bad at all.** CONS **DESIGN- The headband is a bit tight and despite having a normal sized head, I find myself readjusting the cans every few hours or so.SOUND- Maybe my listening style is different, but the mid-low frequency sounded a bit muddy. Using a good EQ can fix this I suppose.TECHNOLOGY- Dropped BT connections on my Macbook pro (never on my Google Pixel) almost each time I connect.SUMMARY:If you like good, accurate sound, small form-factor and prefer to have something that looks like a piece of art (rather than a plastic headband!), buy them. They are totally worth the money.If on the other hand, you like a lot of bass, you might find the sound tinny.
Top reviews from other countries
Chris Nguyen
Best wireless headphones under $400
Reviewed in Canada on December 14, 2017
mattia
L'eleganza fatta cuffia
Reviewed in Italy on January 22, 2019
mattia
Reviewed in Italy on January 22, 2019
1-Qualità del materiale davvero unica, paragonabile secondo me alle B&O h8i, forse le migliori per materiali, la pelle è di qualità e le rifiniture cromate fanno il resto.
2-Qualità del suono- ovviamente è stato il parametro più importante. Le altre cuffie avevo avuto la possibilità di provarle, questa no, ma appena accese è stato amore a primo ascolto, ogni cuffia riproduce un proprio sound che la rende unica e personalmente le ho trovate superiori di gran lunga alle bose e leggermente superiori alle sennheiser e alle B&O. Logicamente la
3-Comodità- qui le B&O secondo me la fanno da padrone, i materiali aiutano molto.... anche le Senn e le Bose sono molto comode, forse le B&W tendono a stringere leggermente se si indossano occhiali come nel mio caso ma i cuscinetti sono davvero molto morbidi e aiutano in questo.
4-Design - qui a mio parere non c'è storia... le sennheiser e le bose sono un mezzo per un fine, punto. Mentre le B&W e le B&O con stili completamente differenti sono davvero due pezzi da museo. La B&O con linee più moderne, le B&W con una linea vintage, ma davvero bellissime entrambe.
Concludo con il dire che non ho trovato moltissima differenza tra l'ascolto in Bluet.. e con cavo se la sorgente è di basso/medio livello... (spotify), mentre con flac la differenza si sente, come è normale che sia.
Il modello in questione p5wireless è del 2015 ma il suo design è senza tempo. L'eleganza fatta cuffia....e perchè no anche un modo per distinguersi....
Images in this review
Amazon Kunde
Praktische Alltagserfahrungen
Reviewed in Germany on December 11, 2017