British speaker brand Bowers & Wilkins has branched out in recent years with headphones, earbuds and wireless speakers. These new products have had a mixed reception at times, but any company, no matter how good, has a learning curve when developing technology for new products.
The latest pair of true wireless earbuds from B&W sees the company’s offerings come of age. This is partly due to B&W’s decision to adopt Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Sound Platform which now offers the highest quality wireless performance available thanks to the development of the aptX Lossless codec which means wireless earbuds can now offer the same kind of audio quality as a pair of wired earphones.
The Pi8 have been completely redesigned from the ground up. B&W has ditched the chunky design of its previous earbuds and this has resulted in improved comfort levels. These are the first earbuds from B&W that feel superbly comfortable and light to wear. As well as being certified for Hi-Res audio, the Pi8 offer high-end active noise cancelation. The support for aptX Lossless audio codec provides audio resolutions up to 24-bit/96kHz with devices compatible with Snapdragon Sound Technology.
These new earbuds have been developed by the same design and engineering teams behind B&W’s Px7 S2e and Px8 over-the-ear headphones. The earbuds feature a new industrial design and the mechanical, electronic and acoustic engineering have been completely redesigned. B&W says these are the most comfortable, full-featured and best-sounding earbuds the company has ever made. They aren’t wrong.
To test the Snapdragon Sound Technology quality, I borrowed an ASUS Zenphone Android smartphone, one of the few phones currently supporting the latest aptX Lossless Codec. The earbuds and phone talk to each other to negotiate the highest usable decoding level.
For those of us used to the limited AAC that Apple offers, the sound is a revelation. The amount of detail and space around the audio is stunning. Even if you haven’t got a phone that supports Snapdragon Sound, there’s a good chance you will in the future and in that case, you’ll be glad to have a pair of earbuds that can produce such high-quality wireless audio.
The B&W’s 12mm drivers are made with Carbon Cone technology. That’s the same material used in the brand’s award-winning Px8 over-ear headphones. With support for both aptX Adaptive and aptX Lossless audio codecs, the Pi8 are backed up with a dedicated digital signal processor, digital-to-analog converter and amplification from ADI. This audio path delivers Hi-Res certified audio over Bluetooth.
Thanks to the latest Bluetooth version 5.4, the Pi8 support multipoint connectivity so they can be connected to two devices at the same time so you can listen to music on one device and still be able to take a call from your work phone with a press of the touch-sensitive controls on the earpieces.
The Pi8 feel well made and are rated to IP54 for protection from water and dust. To get the perfect shape for the Pi8, B&W undertook extensive research on human ear shapes that vary with gender and ethnicity. The industrial design team developed a completely new shape of earbud that is superbly comfortable and a fit that’s secure and which promotes good levels of passive noise cancelations.
To please iPhone users, the Pi8 are certified for Apple’s Made for iPhone, which means they will work seamlessly with Apple iOS devices and they can also be used with the B&W’s Music app. The company also says the Pi8 will soon support Google’s Fast Pair on Android devices.
Once paired with the host phone, the Pi8 earbuds can access the five-band Advanced EQ function in the B&W Music app. This can be used to tweak the sound of the earbuds. And for purists who want direct sound that’s not been messed with, there is the option to bypass the EQ with the touch of a button.
Like most earbuds, the Pi8 have touch controls for controlling operations like play/pause, skipping tracks, accepting phone calls, rejecting phone calls, plus circling through the available ANC modes. The touch controls have been improved on the Pi8 and are now more responsive and reliable than the previous generation. Anyone who has ever used earbuds with hair-trigger touch controls will know how annoying they can be.
The antenna and microphones built into each of the Pi8’s earpieces have been repositioned to ensure there’s nothing to block the patch of the Bluetooth signal. A new infrared proximity sensor has been installed for automatically pausing and restarting the music whenever an earbud is removed or replaced. This feature can be turned off if you don’t like it.
The shape of the Pi8’s charging case has been redesigned to make it sleeker and slimmer. It’s now easier to pop in a shirt or jeans pocket. The overall finish and look of the case are a bit more luxurious and less industrial. It’s a neat-looking package.
The charging case has a wireless transmitter built in which means you can plug the case into almost any audio source that uses USB C or analog 3.5mm aux. Once connected to something like an inflight entertainment system, the Pi8’s case transmits audio to the earbuds.
The charging case transmits the audio using the aptX Adaptive codec at 24-bit/96kHz quality. This means the user gets to experience high-quality wireless audio even if they don’t have a compatible smartphone. For iPhone users, the feature provides a great way of upgrading the Bluetooth codec by connecting the case to an iPhone with a suitable cable.
The case transmitter feature was first introduced with B&W’s Pi7 and has also been used by JBL on its Tour PRO wireless earbuds. The Pi8 ships with two cables—a USB-C and a 3.5mm patch cable—so the user can connect the case to almost any source and enjoy high-quality wireless signal which means clearer music and lower latency.
Lots of people like to use their wireless earbuds for making and taking phone calls or joining video conferences. The Pi8 have carefully positioned microphones that reject unwanted sound when making voice calls. The Pi8 uses the same noise-canceling mic technology used in B&W’s flagship Px8 over-the-ear headphones.
The ANC technology employed in the Pi8 uses a proprietary algorithm developed by B&W instead of the off-the-shelf version that Qualcomm offers most of its OEM customers. The design of the Pi8 ANC filters as much unwanted noise but without impairing the music. You can probably find more aggressive ANC algorithms but you may also notice that the music is impacted so it’s a tradeoff between audio quality and blocking unwanted sound.
The Pi8 has quite a processor-intensive DSP/DAC which means the earbuds can play for up to 6.5 hours on a single charge. There are two extra full charges amounting to 13.5 hours contained in the Pi8’s charging case. That’s a total of 20 hours of playtime between full charges, which should be sufficient for a return transatlantic flight or a week of commuting. However, most of us tend to use our earbuds for a couple of hours at a time so battery life isn’t a big issue.
Now we come to the matter of sound, the most important metric of any pair of earbuds. I am happy to say that these are, without any doubt, the best pair of true wireless earbuds B&W has ever made. The openness of the soundstage is what sets them apart. The midrange is open and lets the music breathe, no matter what the genre. The music is delivered with a relaxed rhythm and has a very analog presentation.
The bass response is superb and understated but still with plenty of punch when needed. I listened to a spine-tingling track called “Willie Taylor” by Julie Murphy, taken from the album Every Bird That Flies. Call it up on Tidal or Apple Music and have a listen. Hear that acoustic bass played by Aidan Thorne and tell me that’s not the best and most haunting bass you’ve ever heard.
These earbuds process music with a light touch but offer more volume than most wireless earbuds I’ve tested. The response is neutral and there’s been no excessive treatment of the audio. Even when used wirelessly with an iPhone using AAC, the music is sublime. The open soundstage and roundness of the tone are spot on. What’s more, you can listen for long periods and your ears will never tire.
Verdict: The Bowers & Wilkins Pi8 true wireless earbuds are a genuine triumph. These are the best ANC earbuds B&W has made to date. The sound quality is sublime and the support for apt-X Lossless and Snapdragon Sound Technology future proofs them. The fit is superbly comfortable, battery life is acceptable. There’s plenty of volume and the transmission function of the charging case is very useful. If you’re looking for a premium pair of true wireless earbuds then the B&W Pi8 are up there with the very best on the market. Give them an audition… you won’t regret it. Highly recommended.
Pricing & Availability: The Bowers & Wilkins Pi8 are available in Anthracite Black, Dove White, Jade Green and Midnight Blue. The Pi8 are available now priced at $399 / £349 / €399 from the Bowers & Wilkins website as well as the usual online retailers like Amazon.
Tech Specs:
- Drivers: 12mm Carbon Core.
- Active Noise Cancelation: Yes.
- Bluetooth version: 5.4.
- EQ: Five-band Advanced.
- Bluetooth codecs: SBC, AAC, aptX Classic, aptX Adaptive, aptX Lossless.
- Microphones: 3 per earbud.
- Battery: Lithium-ion.
- Battery life: 6.5 hours (earbuds) / 13.5 hours (case).
- Wireless charging: Yes.
- Charging: USB-C.
- Water resistance: IP54
- Dimensions: 65 x 29 x 52mm (case).
- Weight: 46g (case) / 7g (earbuds).
- Finishes: Anthracite Black, Dove White, Jade Green, Midnight Blue.
