When it comes to Bowers & Wilkins, images of impeccable sound, premium materials, and, alas, rather high prices immediately come to mind. Their technology often seems unattainable for the average listener. But with the advent of the PI5 completely wireless headphones, the company has taken a clear step towards a wider audience.
The PI5 model is an attempt to bring B&W's famous signature sound to everyday TWS headphones. It features active noise cancellation, convenient touch gesture controls, and long battery life. Everything we expect from modern gadgets, but with a focus on music quality.
In this review, we will examine whether the British brand has managed to preserve its audiophile soul while making the product more affordable. We will discuss not only the sound quality, but also how comfortable these headphones are in real life: on the subway, while jogging, or in the office. Have they really become more accessible to the masses, or are they still the same unattainable benchmark, just in a new form?
It's all in the details
The finish is slightly different. The PI5 case is matte, but with a glossy lid; the PI7 case is made of plastic with a “metal” finish. Everything feels very pleasant to the touch: the case is soft and neat under the fingers, the lid does not wobble, and closes with a neat and pleasant click.
There is a narrow slot with a status LED on the front panel of the case. It glows green when the headphones are on, flashes blue in pairing mode, and red when the model is running out of power. Compared to the PI7, there is no button under the LED.
Inside, everything is familiar: the same matte plastic and the same neat round button that launches pairing mode if the headphones don't enter it automatically. If you hold the button down for a long time, all connection settings will be reset.
The headphones themselves do not differ in shape from the PI7 — they are small, combine chopped edges with soft curves, and are vaguely reminiscent of a Bauhaus teapot. But compared to the white and bronze PI7, the black PI5 looks much calmer.
There is no extra shine or other shades here: the headphones themselves are black, as are the mesh covers, the disc on the outside of the body, and the touch panel. The monochrome is only broken up by the golden contact pads near the sound tube and the thin letters of the brand logo on the side of the disc. The white version of the PI5 shines with silver accents instead of bronze.
Microphones are hidden under small grilles — both for conversation and noise cancellation. The inside of the earbuds — the cone that transitions into the sound tube — is made of glossy plastic, while all other elements are matte. The sound tube itself, protected by a fine textile mesh, is short, but due to the shape of the body, this is not particularly noticeable: the headphones can be placed quite deep in the ears without any problems.
The ear pads are the same as on the PI7 — with a bridge and foam inside. They are easy to put on and are a fairly standard size, so if the three pairs included in the set don't fit, you can easily find replacements from other manufacturers.
The case is the same size as the PI7, and the battery is the same as in the headphones themselves. It charges via Type-C — from zero to maximum in just over three hours. The headphones will last 4.5 hours on a single charge, and after 15 minutes in the case, they will work for another couple of hours. I criticized the small battery in my review of the PI7, but I have to admit that the fast charging helps make up for it.
You can check the charge level of each earbud in the Bowers & Wilkins Headphones app. In the settings, you can disable the feature that automatically pauses playback when the earbuds are removed from your ears, enable noise cancellation or transparency mode. And yes, you can play meditation tracks in the app. I still have questions about their availability, but I can't help but note that the crackling fire is mesmerizing.
Bowers & Wilkins is a brand that is usually associated with expensive speakers for true music lovers, but with the PI5 wireless headphones, they seem to have come down from the clouds and landed closer to real life. These TWS headphones aren't perfect, but they have a genuine approach to sound: clear, balanced, without excessive bass. Plus, they have a stylish design, high-quality materials, and decent noise isolation. Yes, the price is still steep, but compared to other B&W products, this is perhaps the first step towards those who want good sound without having to sell a kidney.
More consistency
In terms of ergonomics, the situation is the same as with the PI7: Bowers & Wilkins engineers have very successfully (for me) designed the part of the earbud where the main body transitions into the sound tube, so the earbuds fit easily into the ears and sit there securely and comfortably. After three hours of use, there is no discomfort, and they don't fall out of your ears during workouts. And yes, you can train and walk in the rain and snow with them, thanks to their IP54 water resistance rating.
Controls are simple: one tap on either earbud pauses playback, two taps skip to the next track, and three taps skip back to the previous track. A long press on the left earbud turns noise cancellation on or off, while a long press on the right earbud activates the voice assistant. The sensors respond to even the lightest touch, so there's no need to press the earbud into your ear to switch tracks.
A good fit also means good passive noise isolation. The headphones do a good job of blocking out high frequencies, voices, and sharp sounds. And the noise cancellation remains one of the best in its class. The microphones are virtually unaffected by gusts of wind and filter out the rumble of an overpass under construction and the squelching of slush under the wheels of cars.
Voices become significantly muffled, though they do not disappear completely. These headphones will not save you from boisterous children, but they will certainly save you from quiet conversations in a cafe or office.
Unlike the PI7, the PI5's noise cancellation doesn't have an adaptive mode — the noise canceller works at maximum by default. That's okay: the adaptive mode worked rather strangely in the PI7, and the PI5 shows more consistency without it. Noise cancellation can be enabled either in the app or by long-pressing the touch panel on the left earpiece. This touch only affects noise cancellation; noise transparency mode is enabled separately.
The funny thing is that you can turn on both modes at the same time in the app, and the effect is unusual. Apparently, the noise cancellation mode is set to amplify sounds in the mid and high frequency ranges first, while the noise canceller is most effective at muffling monotonous low-frequency noise. And when these effects are mixed together, you get a strange effect of a world devoid of bass. Buses rush by with a whistle, as if they have no mass, excavators click their buckets as if they were tweezers. Everything that happens around you immediately becomes light and airy.
I don't know in what situation such an effect might be needed, but the fact that the noise reduction and noise transmission functions work independently and do not exclude each other is convenient.
The big picture
The main differences between the PI5 and PI7 are in the sound. The first concerns connectivity: the PI5 supports the aptX codec, not aptX Adaptive, like the older model. TWS+ is used to synchronize the signal in the right and left earbuds, and the earbuds themselves support a maximum of 16-bit sound.
The second difference is the drivers. The PI5 has one: a 9.2 mm dynamic driver. The PI7 adds an armature driver for high frequencies. The difference in sound, taking these features into account, is quite logical.
The character is still recognizable: it is a detailed sound that combines audiophile precision with comfort and warmth. But at the same time, it has less detail and air in the high frequencies and more substance in the midrange — where the guitars and vocals come alive.
The noise canceller still helps to create a clean background for compositions, allowing them to unfold as brightly and vividly as possible. The bass is precise, slightly elevated, but this elevation only adds zest to the compositions without shifting the entire focus to the low end. There is plenty of control: the headphones are ready to drone mournfully, as required by Mogwai's saddest tracks, and to tap briskly on the barrel in metal.
Due to the fact that the high-frequency range is slightly less detailed than in the PI7, the headphones sound friendlier. Bad mastering, of course, and they won't forgive it, but at least you can listen to Spotify without disgust, which the older model did not allow. Japanese hip-hop, which is not available on other streaming services, sounded voluminous and lively, with voices perfectly distinguishable and slightly coming to the fore over the dense, Spotify-style loose beat.
The transition to streaming services with higher bitrate support has resulted in a noticeable improvement in quality: the bass has been enhanced, the vocals blend more smoothly into the overall mix, and the detail has increased. So, with these headphones, it makes sense to use streaming services that broadcast in FLAC — but they don't have the slight analytical snobbery that you get with the PI7.
The soundstage is large and expansive, not as deep as one would like, but the stereo effects in “Summon The Fire” by The Comet Is Coming do not clash with each other, swirling around the saxophone and bubbling percussion quite freely. Symphonic soundtracks sound impressive and dense — in the introductory “Zeta Halo” from Halo: Infinite, the choir emerges from the noise reduction-scorched void and spreads across the large hall without any obstacles, fading neatly into carefully calculated reverberations. The drums in “The Road,” “Tower,” and “Heavy Artillery” from the same soundtrack are ethnically rounded, while the strings and cymbals do not lose their brightness against their background and remain clear and crisp.
In the PI5, sound comfort and integrity are paramount. Compositions are perceived as complete, finished works, rather than a set of elements. Every nuance, every detail is exactly where it should be and fits perfectly into the surrounding sounds, clinging to them and forming a unified picture. This is more about music appreciation than audiophilia.
So, what's the verdict? The Bowers & Wilkins PI5 is a great way to get the British company's signature sound without overpaying for their flagship models. The sound here is really worth it: detailed, balanced, and with a pleasant bass density. For those who appreciate nuance and quality in music, rather than just volume, these headphones are an excellent choice.
At the same time, they honestly show their age. The design is no longer the freshest, and competitors have long surpassed them in terms of battery life and some conveniences such as wireless charging of the case. Active noise cancellation works here, but more for background noise than for complete silence on the subway.
Therefore, the PI5 today is not a top contender, but rather a successful compromise. If you find them at a good discount, you'll get solid headphones with excellent sound and a recognizable name. They have become more affordable, but still offer that same “Bower” character that true music lovers appreciate.
