The B&W PI7 include a price ticket to match their ambition. They’re the primary true audiophile wi-fi earbuds, and in that sense their audio efficiency requires higher-quality tracks to benefit from the potential on provide. Noise cancelling is powerful and the audio re-transmission characteristic is a genuinely progressive characteristic. The PI7 are costly, however they’re additionally one of many best-sounding true wi-fi choices but.
Professionals
- Expressive sound with high-quality tracks
- Nice appears to be like
- Robust noise cancellation
- Audio re-transmission characteristic is spectacular
Cons
- Higher performing ANC earbuds can be found
- Not probably the most comfy over lengthy intervals
- Brief battery life
- A couple of connectivity points
Availability
- UKRRP: £349
- USARRP: $399
- EuropeRRP: €399
Key Options
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Charging caseAudio re-transmission by way of charging case
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Hello-res audio support24-bit/48kHz decision playback
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BatteryFour-hour battery life (20 hours whole)
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IP ratingIP54 water-resistance towards splashes and dirt safety
Introduction
It’s been a very long time coming, however Bowers & Wilkins has entered the true wi-fi headphone market – and the model is taking few prisoners with the flagship B&W PI7.
Every little thing about these earbuds is premium: from the end and options, to the deal with high-fidelity audio. The value will make you wince – they value much more than their rivals. Bowers & Wilkins’s status guarantees a lot, however the model nonetheless has a lot to show with the PI7.
Bowers & Wilkins has mastered hi-fi audio system and full-sized headphones, however can we are saying the identical concerning the firm’s first wi-fi earbuds?
Design
- Not probably the most comfy for extended use
- Nice appears to be like
- Good, tactile really feel to operation
B&W enters a market not in its infancy, so the corporate has had a couple of years to watch what others have executed. Whereas the B&W PI7 are pretty conventional when it comes to type, they exude the model and magnificence you’d count on from a Bowers & Wilkins product. The earbuds’ design follows a tripartite construction with the contact management on the prime, essential housing and ear-tip.
Accessible in charcoal and white color choices, the charcoal model with gold accents provided for overview are stunning and effectively made. The standard of the matte end and round/metallic sample on the contact controls are virtually well worth the worth of admission. The PI7 really feel crafted, and within the appears to be like division they lord above the competitors.
The PI7 are additionally fairly petite, weighing 8g per earbud and smaller than rivals from Bose, Sennheiser and Sony – which is (ahem) no small feat. The matching case retains the compact dimensions, so it ought to match into the slimmest trouser pocket.
By way of consolation the B&W PI7 initially sit effectively, however over longer intervals they brought about a uninteresting ache. A good quantity of experimentation didn’t actually change issues, both. They’re not at all times probably the most comfy, then – no less than not over extended intervals of wear and tear.
The primary concern I had was with the seal they created. With the default ear-tip, I didn’t get the sense they had been as safe as I needed – maybe my ears are simply large – and a weaker seal impacts noise isolation and noise cancellation efficiency.
Two extra ear-tip sizes are included (S, M, L in whole), and the most important choice suited my ears simply high quality, so there’s room to dabble. The match was extra comfortable and the seal extra constant, though these uninteresting aches had been nonetheless a characteristic.
Contact controls have proved responsive and have required little stress to function for individuals who don’t just like the ‘push in’ nature of earbuds. Working the B&W PI7 has been a pleasant and tactile expertise.
Options
- Battery life on the low facet
- Efficient noise cancellation/Ambient pass-through
- Excessive-res audio assist
The B&W PI7 characteristic all the things you’d count on – plus a novel characteristic you may not (extra on this later). Nonetheless, it’s the PI7’s stamina that disappoints probably the most.
At the very least it’s should you’re going to make use of these earbuds steadily, which you possible will. 4 hours per cost with 4 extra top-ups within the case (20 hours in whole) is on the decrease finish of the size. It’s greater than the QuietComfort Earbuds’ 18 hours, however the Bose gives six hours per cost.
I feel the 20 hours whole is ok, and listening to the PI7 a couple of hours day-after-day the earbuds lasted every week. The problem is that if these are more likely to be your essential pair for listening, then 4 hours could have you involved about battery life greater than it ought to.
The inclusion of only a USB-C-to-USB-C charging cable is an odd inconvenience until you’ve received a spare adaptor (almost definitely an Apple one). The entrance of the case incorporates a LED standing strip (inexperienced is sweet, pink is an issue), and situated inside is a button for Bluetooth pairing. Quick-charging is feasible (quarter-hour for 2 hours), and the case additionally consists of Qi wi-fi assist.
Different options embrace a really well-implemented wear-detection characteristic that’s super-prompt with its stops and begins. Water-resistance is IP54, sufficient to guard towards splashes and restricted ingress of mud. That’s higher than the competitors, a few of whom don’t even hassle with IP certification. Voice help for Siri, Google and others is out there by way of a quick maintain of the precise earbud.
Wi-fi connectivity is Bluetooth 5.0, though I’ve skilled a couple of points with my OnePlus 7T. From time to time the PI7 would join however no sound would play, requiring a re-connection. The wi-fi distance doesn’t at all times really feel as far, both, and in busy areas (practice stations) it appears vulnerable to interference.
Connection to the Headphones app causes a quick stutter, and if no music is performed for a few minutes, the PI7 disconnect earlier than one earbud re-connects. I’m undecided whether or not that is deliberate.
Wi-fi assist is formidable in SBC, AAC, aptX, aptX-HD, aptX-LL and aptX-Adaptive. The latter elements in 24-bit/48kHz resolutions, in addition to adjusting the bit-rate to keep up the wi-fi connection. The B&W PI7 are additionally able to 24-bit/48kHz transmission between every earbud, so from the supply to ears it ought to be an unfiltered hi-res expertise – so long as you could have entry to tracks in that high quality, after all.
Noise cancellation is out there in one-size-fits-all and adaptive kinds – the latter I’ve by no means been too certain about. The adaptive model adjusts the PI7’s noise cancelling to its environment. In concept, the extra noise there’s the stronger the impact. It’s exhausting to decipher how successfully it really works, I really feel.
As soon as the precise match and seal have been achieved, I’d say the PI7 cancel noise successfully, though not in addition to the Bose QuietComfort Earbuds or Sony WF-1000XM3.
Engines of autos are nullified, the bumps and clangs of practice journeys are smoothed out, and the final hustle and bustle of the surface world is decreased. Nonetheless, the WF-1000XM3 cope with autos higher, and the QuietComfort Earbuds transport the wearer to some type of alien panorama.
The PI7 don’t fairly cope with voices as robustly; I may nonetheless hear individuals each close to and much. I ought to emphasise the B&W PI7’s ANC is kind of robust, however the Bose and Sony are higher and cheaper.
There may be the companion Headphones app that’s simple to make use of and gives a couple of customisations (though an EQ mode is missing). You possibly can regulate the extent of noise filtered by the Ambient Move-through slider, and that gives good consciousness of environment with no noise or sense of artificiality. It tends to say ‘Can’t Join’, however restarting the app resolves this.
The PI7’s charging case has a really distinctive characteristic in audio re-transmission. It’s the primary purpose the B&W PI7 are as costly as they’re. Plug the USB-C-to-3.5mm cable into the charging case and connect with a 3.5mm jack – I’m not occurring a aircraft anytime quickly, so a PlayStation Vita will do – and audio is channelled by the case and transmitted to your ears.
It’s an ingenious concept, and genuinely spectacular in execution. My expertise was somewhat uneven and stuttery at first, having switched from a Bluetooth connection. Nonetheless, restarting and utilizing the Vita from the off, there was no perceptible lag, drop in sound or stutter. It’s actually spectacular in motion and extends the PI7’s use away from simply smartphone use.
Sound high quality
- Sound greatest with higher-quality audio
- A lush, musical but dynamic presentation
- ANC gives larger presence to audio playback
Armed with a bespoke 9.2mm dynamic driver, a high-frequency balanced armature driver, and a quoted 10Hz – 20kHz frequency vary, the PI7 aspire to be an audiophile true wi-fi. ‘Uncompromising’ is the byword for the PI7.
Whereas they sound superb with noise cancelling turned off, music is best served by having it on – except for the slight quantity bump, music has a larger presence and firmer definition.
So the place to begin is, after all, a 320kbps Spotify stream. It’s with lower-quality streams that the B&W PI7 maybe play their weakest hand. That’s to not say that they sound unhealthy – they do sound superb – however there’s little to distinguish the earbuds from the competitors.
With lower-quality streams the soundstage isn’t described with an entire lot of width. The Sennheiser Momentum TW2, which I really feel are a detailed rival, really feel extra spacious. Tracks are afforded loads of element and are articulated effectively, and with a bit extra heat than I anticipated. Vocals, comparable to these of Invoice Withers in I Want You Effectively, are conveyed with a smoothness comparable in character to the PX7 over-ears.
The B&W PI7 are simple on the ear and mellow, but additionally balanced so no a part of the frequency vary stands out like a sore thumb. I’d label them barely laid-back – you’d by no means mistake the PI7 for being explosive – with the Sennheisers having edge when it comes to readability and definition with lower-quality streams.
A Tidal Grasp monitor of David Bowie’s Fashionable Love sees a step up in readability, though there’s nonetheless a component of heat. On Tidal, it takes on a extra lush and musical tone. Bass is weighty, with the PI7 expressing low frequencies with extra influence than the Sennheisers.
It’s by Qobuz that the B&W PI7’s abilities come into focus. There’s extra dynamism, the soundstage is wider and larger in scope, and it summons extra power. Christophe Beck’s Prologue from the Ant-Man and the Wasp takes on a grandiose really feel, the PI7 conveying the size and dimension of the orchestra earlier than easing right down to one thing extra intimate. They’re an important communicator of highs and lows, and there’s a way of being swept away as soon as the PI7’s are in movement.
Alexandre Desplat’s Snow within the Backyard is delicately and lushly dealt with, the taking part in of the piano dynamic in tone. Though word that the larger ear-tip sacrifices somewhat element and readability to the default choice, with the shifts in tempo – even small ones – come throughout as measured and exact.
Jorja Smith’s voice on Addicted by way of Qobuz is offered with extra readability, element and intimacy than the identical monitor on Spotify, and that’s the PI7 (and high-res audio’s) promoting level in a nutshell – it brings the listener nearer to the music. It’s extra expressive and the result’s a extra emotive pay attention.
When all of the items fall in place, the B&W PI7 sound unbelievable. Are they well worth the asking worth? If you happen to can afford them, and the streaming providers to reap the benefits of their abilities, then the reply could be very a lot within the affirmative.
