Bowers & Wilkins PX7: Big sound for small heads
28.11.2019
Translation: machine translated
The PX7 is Bowers & Wilkins' new flagship wireless over-ear headphones. They fit best on small heads - and have a lot more to offer.
The PX7 from Bowers & Wilkins is big. My colleague laughs at me when she sees me wearing the headphones for the first time. The bulky ear cups and headband make my already small head seem even smaller.
The PX7 is not only big, but also expensive - which is why I have high expectations of the British manufacturer's flagship headphones. This much in advance: the PX7 fulfils almost everything I want from a pair of headphones.
Sound: Great, but...
First of all, the sound: I generally like the sound of the PX7, it sounds warm, clear and full. However, Bowers & Wilkins has gone with the trend: Bass and treble are heavily emphasised. This sound model is also known as V-Shaped Sound, or rather, shaping. Beats headphones also work according to this model. Although the music sounds very clear and defined as a result, the mids are lost. Piano, guitar and vocals, for example, are at home in the mids.
In songs with a lot of bass, such as most hip-hop songs, the bass is clearly too strong and the mids are not pronounced enough. I particularly notice this with Somebody to Die For by Hurts. The PX7 does a great job at the beginning of the track and I really like the mids. But as soon as the low sounds kick in from the first chorus onwards, Theo Hutchcraft's vocals and the synthesiser are drowned out by the bass and go under in my ears.
But: The bass can be removed well with an equaliser. The mids also come out well. It's a shame the PX7s don't sound like this by default. There's nothing to hide in the mids. Unfortunately, the Bowers & Wilkins Headphones app lacks an equaliser. Adjustments in the sound profile cannot be saved on the headphones themselves.
I really like the treble on the PX7 ex works. They sound clear and bright, but not overdone.
The PX7 has one major weakness: when I'm on the phone, the person I'm talking to sometimes can't understand me and they usually have to turn the volume up to full. My colleague Kevin Hofer gave himself the PX7 as an early Christmas present. When he calls me on his PX7, I notice how much background noise comes through. I can hear the people having a coffee next to Kevin better than Kevin himself.
Wearing comfort: the small headphones
Whenever I have a pair of headphones to test in the digitec editorial team, all my colleagues always want to try them out too. Although the headphone stealing is annoying, it also has an advantage: I can quickly find out which headphones are suitable for which head type. With the PX 7, only people with small heads find them comfortable.
People with a larger head - that would be our colleagues Simon Balissat and Luca Fontana in particular - find the PX7 uncomfortable. The ear pads are too hard for them and the headphones sit too close to the head, they complain about pressure points.
I have a small head - if I adjust the headband as small as possible, the PX7 just about fits me. For me, the PX7 is more comfortable than the Sony WH-1000XM3. The Sony headphones press too hard on the top of my head. This is not the case with the PX7. The headband is very softly padded and doesn't pinch anywhere, even after hours of listening. I'm sensitive to over-ear models; I can't wear the Sennheiser Momentum models for more than ten minutes without wanting to throw them in the corner because they're pressing on the top of my head.
The Headphones 700 from Bose are just as comfortable as the PX7, but with Bose's model I always get my long hair caught between the headband and the ear cup.
The headband of the PX7 can be infinitely adjusted above the auricle. The excess part of the headband does not hang out from under the ear cup - as is the case with Sennheiser models. The PX7 weighs 310 grams. That is relatively heavy. Most headphones are lighter, only the Sennheiser Momentum 3 also weighs over 300 grams. The Bose QuietComfort 35 II, for example, weighs only 240 grams. However, the additional weight of the PX7 didn't bother me.
Noise cancelling: can do something
The noise cancelling can be adjusted in three levels: low, high and automatic. I rarely used the low mode as it was consistently too weak for me. In the highest mode, the PX7 filters out noise quite well. I can no longer hear the roar of the train or the background noise on the bus. I also don't usually hear the mechanical rattling keyboards of my office colleagues.
The PX7 has adaptive noise cancelling. This means that the noise cancellation is constantly adapted to the environment. The noise is constantly analysed and filtered. In practice, you won't notice any of this - a certain amount of noise is simply suppressed.
I rarely used the automatic mode, as it usually cancelled too weakly for me. Noise cancelling can also be switched off completely. The PX7 also has an ambient pass-through like the AirPods Pro. You can use this if you're planning to eavesdrop on someone, as it allows you to hear noises and voices louder than they actually are.
When it comes to noise cancelling, the PX7 doesn't quite match the Sony WH-1000XM3 and the Bose Headphones 700. With the PX7, high-pitched noises and voices come through particularly well at the highest level. If someone is standing right in front of you, you can understand what they are saying with the music turned up halfway.
Operation and handling
Like the Bose QC 35 II, the PX7 has buttons on the side of the ear cups. The PX7 has no touch-sensitive surfaces like the Bose Headphones 700. Bowers & Wilkins has placed the buttons in such a way that you intuitively reach for the right place. On the right earpiece, you can skip to the next song by pressing the button in the centre twice. Because the button sticks out a little, you always know where the button is. Press three times to go back one song, to pause press the button only once. Use the button below to turn the volume down and the top button to turn it up - it's all logical and simple.
The noise cancelling button is located on the left earbud. A friendly female voice tells you which noise cancelling mode you are currently in. The voice announcements can also be switched off - very pleasant in contrast to the Bose 700 headphones, which have a creepy computer voice.
If you take off the headphones, the music pauses automatically. When you put them back on, the music continues. This works very precisely - but only as long as you are not moving. If you take the headphones off while running, they sometimes don't pause at all or only after a long delay. However, the pause function even works if you only lift one ear cup briefly.
There is also an app for the headphones, but unlike the Bose and Sony headphones, I only needed the app at the beginning to set everything up. A lot can be set in the app: The standby time, the pause sensor, or you can give the headphones a name. You can also see which devices are connected to the headphones. Two devices can be connected to the PX7 at the same time. You won't find an equaliser in the app. In the beginning, the app had connection problems for me or crashed suddenly, but the problems later disappeared.
The PX7's battery feels like it lasts forever: Bowers & Wilkins claims a battery life of 30 hours. With noise cancelling activated at all times, they gave up after just over 20 hours. Unfortunately, the PX7 cannot be used via cable when the battery is empty. If the headphones are switched off, they remain dead even with the supplied jack cable.
Bluetooth connection: Super
The PX5 - the on-ear version of the PX7 - and the PX7 are the first headphones to incorporate Qualcomm's latest AptX Adaptive Bluetooth standard. This Bluetooth codec continuously adapts the audio bit rate compared to AptX Classic, Low Latency and AptX HD. The bit rates are in the range of 279kbps and 420kbps for CD and Hi-Res music. Compared to AptX HD, however, the bit rate is always lower - AptX HD is 576kbps.
I was able to use Aptx Adaptive with my Xiaomi Mi 9t Pro mobile. I never had any connection interruptions or latency when watching videos - Netflix and YouTube work as they should. The headphones memorise up to eight connections and always pair them very quickly. The PX7 has the AAC codec built in for iOS devices.
The new codec works with Android 9 and higher, but is backwards compatible. If you have an older Android version, you will hear AptX or AptX HD. So the best possible codec is always active.
Sony's WH-1000XM3 has a slightly better codec, LDAC, but as soon as you use the equaliser in the Sony app, you can only listen with AptX. The QuietComfort 35 II and the Headphone 700 from Bose don't have AptX at all, which is a disadvantage for Android users.
The PX7 comes with a grey, sturdy fabric case. This is practical to prevent the headphones from being crushed. Because the ear cups cannot be folded in, the case is quite large and takes up a lot of space in your rucksack due to its bulky shape. I therefore always had the PX7 with me without the case. They are robust enough with their carbon fibre earpieces. The headphones got under a thick book and my laptop in my bag, but that didn't bother them. There is a metal plate on each side of the ear cups, which looks good and protects the drivers from the outside.
In contrast to the headphones from Bose and Sony, the PX7 does not have a cold plastic panelling, but a pleasant fabric surface. The fabric is dirt-repellent: I was able to easily remove the traces of a broken, smeared banana.
Conclusion: Almost perfect Mickey Mouse headphones
I like the PX7. Even if the price is steep and the headphones are huge. I had high expectations of the PX7 and they met them: The comfortable fit, ease of use and technical details win me over. I like the sound - with subtle adjustments to the bass - very much. The noise cancelling could be a little stronger, but it does its job.
It would have been nice if the ear cups could be folded in. This would save space when transporting the PX7. On the other hand, the earpieces are very robust, don't look like they're going to fall apart and give the PX7 a cool look.
For me, the PX7 fulfils almost every requirement I have for headphones: Good fit, good sound, good noise cancelling. They are comfortable, have a good Bluetooth connection and a good battery life. Only the microphone for phone calls could be better.
The PX7 may look like Mickey Mouse ears on people with small heads, but they are more comfortable than most over-ear headphones. I can recommend the PX7 to people with a small head with a clear conscience - if you have a larger head, you should definitely try them on first. <p
Testing devices and gadgets is my thing. Some experiments lead to interesting insights, others to demolished phones. I’m hooked on series and can’t imagine life without Netflix. In summer, you’ll find me soaking up the sun by the lake or at a music festival.
