Pi8 True Wireless Earbuds, Noise Cancelling Earphones with 24-Bit Audio, aptX™ Lossless Bluetooth Ear buds, 6-Mic ANC, Smart Charging Case with Audio Retransmission - Anthracite Black

So this might be a long review. The tl;dr is these are unbelievable sounding headphones. Every few years I become obsessed with buying some form of high-end audio equipment. My last headphone mania was a few years ago with the original P5 and P7, then the wireless version of those headphones. And I have long been a fan of the Bowers and Wilkins sound having come from the DM601 s2s. I wasn’t even in the market for earbuds. I have a pair of AirPods Pro and have never found the sound particularly good, nor have I ever felt entirely comfortable with the feel of the earbuds experience. I was fully looking for a great pair of over ear headphones. After a lot of research, visually dismissing the Sony’s as too plasticky, and the AirPods Max as too showy, I knew B&W would be the brand again to deliver the looks, but more importantly the sound. Sound is incredibly important to me. I have studio monitors as my HiFi system in my lounge. I can be prone to relentlessly A/B testing new equipment until my brain can’t take it any more. I originally was set on the Px7 s3, but then noticed I could get the s2 for less than half the price on sale and so thought I’d get both to test. The s2 absolutely fit like a glove, so comfortable. But the sound, whilst decent, just didn’t have the detail and separation I was after. The s3 initially sounded phenomenal, so detailed, spacious, and confidently tuned. Definitely V-shaped tuning, different to the usual house sound. But there was something a bit fatiguing to the highs, certain cymbals and hi hats felt over-hyped to the point of being uncomfortable. Plus the clamping of the headband itself I felt was so tight it became unpleasant after not too long. And my ears were a sweaty mess. I was stuck with the s2 it seemed, and sent the s3 back. But damn, once you’ve heard that kind of sound, and you know there’s detail that you’re missing, I ended up not even listening to the s2. I started researching the Px8, could its carbon cone offer s3 sound but with more comfort? The more I looked into that model though, the more I started seeing issues with the headband peeling apart and didn’t want to take my chances with something of such high value. But in this search I noticed Pi8. I looked into it and saw they were earbuds. The reviews were glowing (from review sites, I have no idea how these aren’t rated higher here) and so I ordered a pair just to try out. MY. GOD. I had no idea that earbuds could sound like this. The detail, soundstage, instrument separation and accuracy across all the frequencies was just jaw dropping. I literally could not believe I didn’t have over-ear headphones on. For a week I was in utter bliss, listening to all my old albums, hunting for new music, revelling in the exquisiteness of these earbuds. Then my brain kicked in. These can’t possibly be this good. There must be something they are missing… On the Max Cooper track ‘Order from Chaos’, I became convinced that in the intro there was a sub-bass extension that just wasn’t being reproduced by the Pi8. There it is I thought. I can’t be happy with headphones if I know they are missing something. In order to prove it to myself I reordered the s3. (I can’t listen to my monitors in my new flat due to neighbours, hence needing headphones). The s3s arrived and eagerly I put them on, put the track on, and waited for that sub-bass extension… Except it didn’t exist. My brain had made it up. But then came the truly astounding part…I A/B tested the Px7 s3 to the Pi8, and to my ears, the Pi8 actually sound BETTER. All that glorious detail and separation and soundstage is there. But where the s3 hypes the treble somewhat, the Pi8 delivers it perfectly. And also delivers the most gorgeous bass. Everything is there. So yes. If you’ve made it this far you’re probably as crazy as me. And in that case you are going to absolutely love these headphones. Extremely comfortable, app is decent, connectivity is great, ANC is easily good enough…but that sound… Truly astonishing.

After looking through various top 10 lists, the b&w pi8’s seemed to appear frequently in the top 5 for TWS buds. As such I gave them a shot and was not disappointed! They are very much premium in every way other than price and have blown me away from day 1. From the high quality materials used in constructing these buds to the top tier sound quality, they are everything the reviews promised and more. The accompanying app helps with perfecting the sound to your preference (if EQ is your thing) however the sound is as close to audiophile grade as you could imagine from a pair of earphones let alone TWS. Battery life is average for what they deliver, lasting approximately 5 hours with ANC enabled and 7 without. That said, the buds are so loud that you could likely manage without ANC enabled anyway! Controls are simple and can be adjusted in the app for personal preference. Connectivity is seamless with both iPhone and Android however the ability to play lossless audio is more straightforward in the latter. However, the case doubles as a transmitter with its own hi res codecs installed so can be used to connect to iPhone via USB C to transmit lossless audio if that’s your cup of tea. As such I cannot fault the functionality of these little buds. Sound signature is slightly warm, with deep powerful bass and highs that sparkle. Midrange is very much present, with vocals feeling very natural (if not slightly recessed) but can be tweaked in the app for preference. Sound stage is as wide as a pair of open backed headphones and has genuinely blown me away on some live recordings. All in all, if you’re even considering picking these up, just do it… you won’t regret the decision and considering their price point, you’ll be forgiven for thinking they’re worth at least twice the amount paid.

I was actually looking for overear headphones when these became available on offer at a price that was hard to refuse. I have always had reasonably good quality headphones and as these were my first ever earbuds, so I wasn't sure exactly what to expect. First impressions were good, they felt substantial and of good quality as you would expect, the fit is very good, I never feel like I'm going to "lose" one, even while being very active. Sounds, if you are used to high end headphones you might be forgiven for initially wondering what all the fuss is about. BUT, the more you listen to them, the more you realise you are hearing sounds you didn't realise were there !!! It separates instruments and offers a clarity not heard before. I keep having to remind myself that these are ear buds, they have no right sounding as good as they do lol. These make it worth upgrading your streaming service to premium for even better listening. Noise cancelling, these are earbuds, so by definition they are perhaps not going to be as good as over ear, that said, it is still pretty impressive. The app, probably my only gripe, it's good, but, can on occasion drop connection. Conclusion: I listen to different genres of music and these earbuds bring to life what ever your listening to in a way I didn't think possible. It's not an in your face wow, more a realisation that this is what music should sound like.

There’s a mix of good and bad with these earbuds. As you’d expect from Bowers & Wilkins, the sound quality is genuinely incredible. The pass through feature, where you can connect the case to a headphone jack, works seamlessly. It is a genuinely impressive addition and one of the standout features. Where these fall short is as wireless earbuds. Inside the house they work fine, but the moment you step outside things start to break down. On a walk or on the bus they cut out constantly. One earbud will drop for half a second, then the other, and this repeats every few seconds with frustrating consistency. Theyve done this consistently with 3 different phones I've tried. For comparison, my Samsung earbuds cost half the price and never have this issue. Sure they don't sound as good, but they at least manage to play music reliably when you are out and about. If you only plan to use these at home, they may be fine. But these are wireless earbuds, and the main advantage over headphones is convenience when you are outside. That incredible sound quality becomes irrelevant if they cannot perform their basic function. At this price point, you expect reliability as a given, and unfortunately these do not deliver.

Simply incredible sound. It’s so rich and deep. I had B&O Beoplay EX and thought they were great, but returned them due to the terrible noise when wearing outside - even a gentle breeze caused considerable interference even with the wind guard feature activated. These, on the other hand and despite not having a ‘wind guard’ feature, have little to no interference in comparative external environmental conditions. I’m really impressed with the depth of sound and immersive acoustics - pricy but defo worth the money. They are lightweight and really comfortable even if worn for extensive periods of time. The ANC is also pretty good in my view (and better than B&O). The ability for the case to tether them to devices is a cool feature, e.g. TVs and other audio devices or laptops. Downside: one earbud seems to lose Bluetooth link every now and again and needs to be re-paired. Whilst annoying, I can live with it because the immersive sound quality is so outrageously good. [Update: a later software update cleared this issue]. I’m not sure the McLaren edition ones are worth the large additional cost just for the superficial difference - unless you are a massive McLaren fan with deep pockets. However, it’s worth bearing in mind that you’re getting the Bowers and Wilkins research and development (R&D) packed into these little nuggets. Other iconic products include their Zeppelin, and Nautilus, of which a pair of the latter will set you back £90k! So, there is a rich history of sound engineering, R&D, and expertise getting squeezed into the Pi8. Expensive but worth the investment. If you’re not an audiophile you soon will be!

I spent quite some time researching what Bluetooth earbuds to buy, and having listened to the over-ear offerings from B&W these were near the top of my list. I couldn’t find anywhere to try these in store, but I felt confident going in to purchase these knowing the brand and the quality of other products. I was disappointed to find that even after trying the different tips, the comfort of the fit wasn’t fantastic. They felt quite heavy for something supported by such thin silicone eartips. I found hat after just a few minutes, I found myself reaching up to readjust because they were getting itchy. In terms of sound quality, they were fairly good. I compared them to the offerings from B&O, Sony, Apple and Bose. I found these to be comparable to the Sony in terms of sound quality, but these are £100 more expensive. Also, of the 4 brands, these and the B&O were the quietest. Where I would be at around 80% on the others for the same perceived volume on these at full, meaning I would run them at full volume all the time. When it came to noise cancellation, again this was in the bottom two. The transparency mode sounded quite artificial and the quiet mode didn’t do a fantastic job. They paired up very easily and reconnected quickly every time I got them out the case.

Fit = Perfect, even after a few hours no discomfort at all. Battery Life = Average, I play my music loud and you will notice its limitations if you listen like me. Charging = Wired no problem, nice and quick. Wireless, unreliable, lit up to say its charging, worked most of time but I did not completely trust as it failed to charge on several occasions. Sound = Great for volume at up to 80%, the last 20% the quality drop of was significant and even with kind EQ settings, you are going to get rattle. Bluetooth = Shocking. Range is poor, Left side would connect after replacing back in case for 2nd time. Faffing to much for a premium and on sub £100 does not happen. Firmware updates = Shocking, say no more. App = Very poor, as most manufacturers apps are, but this one finds a new level of poor. Device switching = After the latest firmware update, much better. Bowers and Wilkins support = Slow, emails cannot be read on mobile phone as you can only enlarge the image (that's right - image) to a certain size. Telephone support - Disappointing. Smoke signals would be a quicker way of communicating. Amazon support - Pretty good with this product. Touch controls - Poor and very limited. If you do a slightly heavy walk, guess what, you gonna be reaching for your mobile to press play over and over and wondering why its sounds like your ears are popping. Don't blow your nose with them on - the bud sensors are far to sensitive. Noise cancelling = Average I purchased these after owning a pair of Bose quiet comfort, now if the Bose were as comfortable to wear as these, I would never have switched. If this is audiophile quality, keep it. I will now be getting the Technics buds, I'm really hoping I do not have this experience with them.

My Bowers & Wilkins Pi8’s are in the anthracite black; and B&W have spent some time making them look good. Some of their design decisions I’m not sure about; like the charging case doesn’t stand up on a table and lies flat. The charging case does charge by usb-c or wireless qi charging which is convenient; and retains the wireless resending of audio when connected to an audio device – and B&W include a usb-c to 3.5mm jack for connecting to audio outputs. You can setup the headphones using the B&W Music app, which is easy to use, though does require registration to use. In a first for a while the headphones arrived and didn’t need a software update on first connection. The app offers a 5 band EQ settings; as well as a pure flat mode toggle. To test the earbuds, I used the pure flat mode. The app lets you set the ANC mode from noise cancelling, transparent and off. You can’t tune the ANC; but you can assign transparent mode to one of the touch buttons on the side of the headphones. The touch buttons are a little slow to respond for me; when they do the headphones make a low click sound so you know it’s been done. It doesn’t have movement touch, but you can setup multi-clicks to cause actions. Ear fit I have struggled with a lot of in ear headphones that they fall out as I walk around. You can mitigate some of that with a good cleaning of them; but B&W’s headphones have always done well in my ears; and the Pi8 stuck inside my ears even walking around on a hot day. You get 3 sets of tips to swap out; but the medium size tips worked best for me. Sound quality support in the Pi8 is headlined by offering lossless aptx playback. Most of us won’t be able to use it; very few phones or tablets support it. B&W missed a trick with the case; it supports the aptx adaptive standard rather than lossless; adding lossless support would have given a route to higher quality music. That said to my ears plugging in the dock to my iPhone over the usb-c socket does sound better than the apple native audio. It’s a bit weird carrying the case docked to my phone but it’s what I’m doing now on a 10cm usb-c cable. In both connection modes the Pi8’s has the B&Ws traditionally attacking punchy sound. These are in ear headphones; they don’t sound as good as over the ear headphones; and testing them with my iPhone or using the charging case as a transmitter isn’t going to get them the highest quality music they deserve. They sound excellent; far battery than their sister Pi7’s there is must more detail in the mid and treble which is great for vocal tracks; and they have made the bass punchier. They can handle the very delicate harps mixed with bass pads in my favourite test headphone track The Girl in Byakkoya. The Pi8’s kept the brittle sounding harps whilst delivering the pumping bass at the same time. The electronic voice sounded crystal clear over the instruments. Choirs delivered what sounded like huge air moving around you, along with clear breathing sounds. In Electronic music all the textures come through. They are a huge step up from the Pi7’s I have been using and very happy with for a few years. They don’t sound like over the ear headphones. If you want them to these headphones go very loud, I have been listening to them at my desk on 30% volume; and when I went out along busy roads bumped it up to 40%. If you want to go deaf or mimic your favourite concert you can get a lot of volume. Noise cancellation is good for in ear headphones though it’s not as good as the very best in ear headphones at removing the outside world. It retains the excellent music quality whilst it is in use though which is a big advantage. It’s not going to beat the best over the ear headphones as they have a mass advantage, but it quietens traffic as you walk around; and does a reasonable job stopping the clanking and diesel engine roar of British trains. The microphones are great; I could make calls in noisy rooms and the noise cancellation on the microphones didn’t dim my voice to silence in taking out fans or washing machine sounds. Battery life was about 6 hours on my first two recharges which could be longer; the case will give you 3 more charges. 15 minutes in the case adds about 2 hours of playtime.

I have bought and sold numerous earbuds ranging from the Google Pixel Buds 2, Sony WF-1000XM5, and many more. I am no audiophile, I just want earbuds that fit well and don't fall and have decent sound. After watching many good reviews about these earbuds, I decided to give them a try although the price is REALLY expensive for a pair of earbuds. I was surprised by how well they fit, part of that is because they fit deep into the ear canal so they sit in your ear tight and snug. The medium sized eartips that came fitted was good for my left ear but were not so tight on the right ear so I swapped the right one for the large sized eartips and it was perfect! The Bowers&Wilkens app is very easy to use. I had them setup in about 1 minute literally then did a firmware update which took about 5 minutes and I was ready to go. Another positive thing is how you control actions with the earbuds. With other earbuds, it is not as easy to tap the part which activates them but with these earbuds, they have a flat surface so you never miss any tap/double tap to activate any action (which are all customizable). The sound quality is insane, you feel like you are in a club with very rich and deep bass.

This one is the best as it gets, clear and rich sound,great punchy bass. Combined with Qobus it literally makes the hair on my arms stand up

Son incómodos al oído, no son ergonómicos

geweldig geluid en kwaliteit

I don’t leave reviews. But I had to for these. I am embedded in the Apple ecosystem and wanted something new and better. I researched a lot of earbuds. Bought the Apple air pods pro 2 and gave them to my kids twice. Bought the Sony 1000XM5 and did not feel happy. Tried the Bose QC ultra and returned them. Then tried the b&o ex and did not like them. Did a lot of research. Wanted something with warmth in the base and also able to handle the high frequencies. Bought these as I was fed up of looking at the reviews and just wanted something to enjoy the music while at work as I work in a quiet environment. These have actually blown my mind. My heads melted as to how amazing music can sound when you have the right earbuds. Gorgeous sound and so much louder than the others. The soundstage is completely open and can hear every instrument. It’s like I have Dolores alive again and singing to me personally. Thank you B&W and thank you Cranberries!!! Thank you Dolores.