Bowers & Wilkins - Pi5 S2

I just returned my pro 3s… after a day of having them. Pre ordered them, got them on the 19th, super excited. Never had AirPods before. Have been with Sony, and latest Bowers and Wilkins Pi5. Sound quality is atrocious, no bass, too bright. Hate Apple Music, won’t convert. YouTube music for the win. Anyway, i really tried to like them…. ButI ordered the Bowers and Wilkins Pi7 S2 and they are on the way. Couldn’t be more excited knowing how great my Pi5s sound. I don’t need the features of the AirPods, I just wanted to give it a shot because people were saying how great the Pro 2s sounded and Apple claiming the Pro 3s are even better. What matters to me is the sound, the depth, the bass. Very disappointing that these are the apples flagship earbuds…

My experience with b&w earbuds is there bluetooth connection always falls off after using it for a while, a staffmember from hifi klubben said they fixed it with the pi8 Ps i had pi7 and pi7 s2 and pi5. Very good sound and the pi8 is rather loud compared to older models but not bad tbh

Bass on MTW4 is the best. B&W PI5 S2 was stronger but MTW4 is better controlled within the overall sound stage.

They have great balanced sound and strong bass. I was surprised how much improved they are over the MTW3s. Also the B&W PI 5 S2 had amazing bass but I can’t speak for the newer models

That’s one pair I haven’t tried! I’ve had Denon PerL Pro, Technics AZ80, B&W PI5 S2 and overall I love the MTW4

I'm using the Bowers & Wilkins Pi5 S2 (purchased early 2025) and they are pretty awesome. I bought them to replace my Klipsch T5 ANC McLaren edition, which were really great sounding, good bass, but became unreliable in terms of charging. I would charge them every night, but some days I would get to the gym and they would be like 10% charged, or one bud would be fully charged and the other would be dead. I got tired of having to work out without music or having only one bud working, so I went with the B&W. The B&W don't get quite as loud as the Klipsch, but I am not having charging issues, at least not yet.

Nobody knows what is good for you. You have to listen to them. Also it's useful to look into their measurements curve. I didn't listen to the Denon,Jabras and Nothing Ear. Sony are linear but will not amaze you with details and clarity. Same to Technics. Sennheisers sounds just wrong for me with no lows. Bose are ok but initial tuning is too bassy for me. It's like one just increased the bass with eq. I personally have Devialet Gemini 2. Very linear with slight increase of lows and trebles which is easily compensated. Amazing resolution, imaging, separations you name it. But again, just listen to them. I listened to Nobles, B&W, Bang and Olufsen and they did not suite my needs. But maybe they are for you.

I own Bowers & Wilkins noise canceling earbuds, and they are good 8/10. The sound quality isn't as good as Bose and sometimes they are a bit PITA to connect but it keeps all the noise away. I've had them for a couple of years now. Once these are dead, I'll get back to Bose. I'm sure it does well with noise canceling and the sound quality is amazing. If you buy directly from Bose, you can try them out and return them if you don't like them. Look into other brands you can do the same. There's more to that than just the noise canceling feature. There's comfort fit, sound quality and how user friendly they are. All of these will be unique to you.

Hey! Just to clarify. I rated them 8/10, not 2/10 😊 They’re great overall, but not quite perfect. Sometimes when I take them out of the case, they’re a bit slow to connect, and occasionally I have to put them back in and take them out again to get them to sync properly. Sound-wise, I'm used to Bose, which has really crisp, clear audio with just the right amount of bass. The Bowers & Wilkins are close, but not quite at that level for me. That said, I’ve kept them because the noise canceling is excellent... you can even adjust how much ambient sound you want to let in, and they’re really comfortable. I can wear them for long stretches and move around a lot without them falling out or hurting my ears.

I have the B & Ws as well as the Bose and the AZ100, and of those at least, I would go AZ100s over the others. The B & Ws sound really nice, but noise cancelling and transparency leave a lot to be desired. They do have the equalizer but it’s only minimal improvements (for me). Bose will be Bose, and you already know what to expect. The AZ100s have been my go-tos for the last year. Transparency is just ok (I have the APP3s and the noise cancelling/transparency is awesome) and sound metallic and forced. NC is good but the seal in your ear makes the difference. The EQ gives a lot of options, which I particularly like.

I’ve got the Pi8’s and had a bit of buyer’s remorse when I got them. Until I put my Sony XM4’s back in and realised just how much better the B&W’s are. They are absolutely incredible, different class to anything I’ve ever heard

I replaced mine 3 times, shit quality really. I gave up and went with Bower and Wilkins

Without a doubt the pro x. Followed by the B&W if you can afford, and personally I prefer the Denons over the momentum 4s - use mostly for the gym, the M4s had wonderful sound, just weren’t loud enough. The pro x gives you everything you can ask, just get the foam tips separately. The galaxys were straight trash and the technics are both ok, not really sure why everyone’s d-riding them, to each their own i suppose.

I would suggest Technics and Bowers and Wilkins on top of QC ultra. Galaxy Buds 3 pro is not even close to competition. Airpods are more consistent and we have to wait till the end of the year to see if Sony spats something out. Found a thread that might help others to find the "[best earbuds](https://www.reddit.com/r/soundnation/comments/1in69fm/best_wireless_earbuds_2025_reddit_recommendations/)" Yeah the 'top sources' are not good.