Bowers & Wilkins Px8

Measured

Three rigs agree on the shape. oratory1990's GRAS measurement sits 4–6 dB above the Harman target from 20 to 300 Hz (peak near 90 Hz) and 2.5–3 dB below it from 1.5 to 3.5 kHz; RTINGS' B&K 5128 bench (ANC on) shows the lift peaking higher, around 160 Hz, and the 1–2.5 kHz region about 5 dB under target; GadgetryTech's KB006x rig puts the 1.5–2.5 kHz band almost 8 dB below its own HD 6XX. RTINGS sums it up as Bass Amount “Very Emphasized (5 dB),” Treble Amount “Slightly Underemphasized (-2 dB)” and Sound Signature “Warm.” SoundGuys measures “a rather notable over-emphasis by about 5-7dB all the way up past middle-C” and scores MDAQS Timbre 4.0 against Immersiveness 4.8.

vs. listeners — The graph supports the warm camps, so the balanced camp needs explaining, and two explanations are on record. First, seating: Resolve found “two common results depending on the positioning of the headphone on the rig” and warned that “this is likely to be received differently by different people,” and RTINGS lists “Prone to inconsistencies in audio delivery.” as its headline con. Second, firmware: B&W re-voiced the Px8 by update — Trusted Reviews' re-review notes “the acoustic team at Bowers & Wilkins optimising the sound for all Px8 models through a firmware update” — and owners still argue about the next step: one warns “Do not update to version 3.1!” while another found “The 3.1 firmware sounded way better, more mid forward.” RTINGS measured 3.0 against 3.1 in the same seating and saw no change. Most of the balanced-camp reviews date from the 2022 launch firmware.

Measured

RTINGS measures Bass Amount “Very Emphasized (5 dB).” Where the lift sits depends on the rig: on oratory1990's GRAS it is broad, +5 dB already at 20–30 Hz and peaking near 90 Hz; on RTINGS' 5128 it is only about +2 dB in the deep bass and peaks around 160 Hz — the upper-bass shape the minority describes. RecordingNOW, who owns it, hears exactly that: “the Px8 is missing out on the sub-bass slam and treble detail, in favor of a somewhat unnaturally forward upper-bass and lower mid bump,” and a Head-Fi owner reports “my only real issue with the PX8 is the lack of sub- bass (even when eq’ed).”

vs. listeners — The bass level also moves with the noise-cancelling mode, by most listening accounts. PCMag found that “Activating noise cancellation or Pass Through mode, however, is the equivalent of toggling a bass boost button,” Sound & Vision lists “Increased bass boost in noise-cancellation mode,” and an owner reported it “pretty much unanimous that everyone hears some bass boost with ANC on vs with it off.” The rigs are less sure: Resolve measured the two active modes as identical, SoundGuys found the shelf only slightly smaller with ANC off, and kopfhoerer.de heard no change at all. Owners also report that firmware 3.0 trimmed the mid-bass.

Measured

The presence region is where all three rigs sit furthest below target (2.5 to 8 dB between 1.5 and 3.5 kHz, depending on rig), which is why the mids read as rich and unforced to most and as recessed against a heavy upper bass to a few. Resolve hears “a bit of shout in there to my ear” and found that passive mode “has the same bass level but stronger upper mids, so it tilts the relative balance away from the bass a bit.” SoundGuys' MDAQS Timbre score, 4.0, is its lowest of three.

Measured

RTINGS reads Treble Amount “Slightly Underemphasized (-2 dB).” Inside that average the rigs agree on a dip at 5–7 kHz (−2.7 to −5.4 dB) and, on the GRAS and KB006x rigs, a rebound at 7–9 kHz (+1.5 to +3.6 dB against their HD 600s) that the 5128 does not show. A long-term owner on the headphones.com forum names both halves: “There is big dip on 6kHz but for many people this is not bad thing. Anyway this is then really anti sibilant headphone,” and, separately, “Px8 have some nasty tremple resonances.” ON-mag hears “quelques pics et oscillations” (a few peaks and oscillations) but no brightness, and a Head-Fi showcase reviewer found “the sharpness with almost every “S” word sung” on one track and none on another.

vs. listeners — The camps read different parts of one curve: the low average reads as smooth or dark, the 7–9 kHz rebound on some rigs reads as sparkle or as resonance depending on the ear. Above 8 kHz rigs and seatings disagree by several dB, and this is the region Resolve found moves with cup position.

Measured

SoundGuys' MDAQS Immersiveness is 4.8 out of 5, its highest sub-score. Trusted Reviews finds “the Px8’s soundstage is bigger, wider, and more expansive than the Px7 S2.” The comparisons outward run the other way: RecordingNOW finds the Bose QuietComfort Ultra “a better choice for movies and gaming than the narrow soundstage of Px8,” Loud and Wireless hears it “quite a bit more compact and intimate compared to the more spacious and open sound signature of Sony headphones,” and ON-mag calls the stage deep and coherent “à défaut de posséder une ampleur magistrale” (without masterly scale).

Measured

RTINGS also notes against the Px8 S2 that “the older Px8 Wireless last longer on a charge and had better stereo matching on our unit,” while recording that “there's some frequency and phase mismatch that can slightly shift vocals and lead instruments to the right.” GadgetryTech's left and right channels sit within about 1.5 dB of each other up to 6 kHz. SoundGuys is the outlier, reporting that “sounds above 1kHz tend to come in louder through one channel or the other and in very narrow ranges.”

Measured

RTINGS finds “Harmonic distortion levels are very low, though, resulting in no unwanted timbral coloration,” and SoundGuys' MDAQS Distortion score is 4.4, against the B&W spec of under 0.1% THD at 1 kHz/10 mW. RecordingNOW, whose tonal verdict is among the harshest, still places its technical sound quality “in that upper tier belonging with the Bathys and H95.”

Measured

No bench test isolates it. What Hi-Fi lists “Limp sound at lower volume levels” as a headline con — “Drop the volume level down and some of the music’s sparkle and energy fade” — and Sound & Vision notes that “At softer listening levels, the bass isn't nearly as impressive, but it still has a taut, punchy feel.”

vs. listeners — PCMag tested level changes directly and credits the DSP with keeping the balance consistent. The two readings may both be right: the processing can hold the response steady while the ear still loses top and bottom at low level, and a warm-tilted headphone starts closer to that edge.

Measured

320 g by B&W's spec and 320.1 g on RecordingNOW's scale — heavier than the Sony WH-1000XM5 (245.9 g) and Bose QC Ultra (254.4 g) on the same scale, lighter than the Focal Bathys (350 g) and AirPods Max (387.8 g). kopfhoerer.de measures a clamp of 600 g averaged over a large and a small head. Resolve found the clamp “too strong for my head, making it somewhat uncomfortable,” and Stiftung Warentest's comfort-and-handling grade (2.2) is its weakest sub-score. On Amazon, 92 of 108 owners who mention comfort are positive.

Measured

The owner record is large and consistent. On Reddit about 25 distinct owners describe the headband leather coming loose — “The most common issue reported for the Px8s is the headband leather coming loose,” as one owner of two pairs put it — and one who works for a hi-fi chain calls it “a VERY common issue”; on Head-Fi about 15 more report the same, some on second and third units. Amazon's durability topic runs 13 positive to 39 negative, and one critical review describes “Three headbands, same failure mode, on a product in this price class.” A separate battery-reporting fault hit early units: B&W told owners it was “aware of a minor software-related issue currently affecting a limited number of Px8 wireless headphones,” and a March 2023 firmware fixed it for most. SoundGuys scores Durability 6.9 and notes no ingress rating.

vs. listeners — Stiftung Warentest's lab rated durability (Haltbarkeit) “sehr gut” — very good — in 2023, which is compatible with the owner record: a lab stress test does not reproduce months of skin heat on an adhesive. How common the failure is remains unknown; a long-time Head-Fi member called it “a handful reports in this thread,” and owners relay, unconfirmed, that B&W changed the headband glue around April 2024. Owners also report that B&W has replaced failed headbands under warranty.

Measured

SoundGuys measures about 83% average reduction and scores ANC 8.4. Loud and Wireless's recorded comparison finds it better than Sony against chatter — “In that area, it's actually quieter than the Sonys, but in terms of cancelling low frequency noise, I still think that the Sonys do a bit better in that area.” ON-mag measures it short of the WH-1000XM5 but ahead of the Focal Bathys and B&O H95, and Stiftung Warentest grades ANC 1.8 (“gut”). RTINGS finds it “effective at attenuating higher-pitched sounds” but struggling “with lower frequency sounds, like engine airplane rumble.” Amazon's noise-cancellation topic splits 33 positive to 27 negative.

vs. listeners — Which band leaks depends on who measured: SoundGuys and RTINGS find low rumble gets through, PCMag found the opposite. Fit is the likely variable — Sound & Vision notes that “there was a bit more ambient noise allowed in while wearing them with glasses,” and RecordingNOW blames rectangular-ish cups that “create less of a complete seal towards the rear of the ears.”

Measured

Launched at $699 / £599 / €699 / AU$1,150; B&W's US store now lists $479 against a $749 MSRP, In Stock, and Amazon sells it new at $479; used pairs start around $450, and German retail starts near €320. SoundGuys scores Value 5.5/10, its lowest sub-score, and advises “Definitely look for these cans on sale.” RecordingNOW, writing at $500–550, calls that price “actually completely fair, but certainly not a bargain by any stretch.” Amazon's value-for-money topic is a dead heat — 61 positive, 64 negative.