Bowers & Wilkins - Pi6 True Wireless Noise Cancelling In-Ear Earbuds - Glacier Blue

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• Rated 5 out of 5 stars

  Quality that wont disappoint

  • Tech Insider Network Member
  • Top 50 Contributor

  The Bowers & Wilkins pi6 offers a powerful punch in a bit size easy to carry set up. If your looking for fullness in your audio quality without the cumbersome over the ear style then look no further as Bowers & Wilkins is no stranger to the audiophile alike. Bowers & Wilkins has always been known to put an emphasis on style and quality to offer a true luxurious style piece with the price tag to back it up. At times it can be hard to decipher if the extra cost is really worth it and what you can expect to get with your money. Let's start with the basics, out of the box you expect to get your docking pod, usb-c charging cable and four different earpiece cups to help fit whatever your ear size may be. Case charge is completed in less than an hour and bud charging time is about 30 mins. The Pi6 comes with a free downloadable app however don't get too excited over this as the app as it still feels like its in it's beta phase. There is very little to do within the app given basic features such as battery life, button assignment , anc on/off and a very very basic EQ. The lack of a proper EQ is what really has me hating the app as proper sound needs to be dialed in via whatever playback method you are using. They do offer curated music via supplied listening platforms such as Pandora to help dial in your listening quality but you are limited to some very off brand apps. Don't expect to find Spotify, Google Music or Youtube in there. The charging case is another thing I hated about the Pi6 as the case is shaped oval like an egg meaning you can never stand the case up. Why does this bother me? Simply put, every time the case is set down it tends to roll over to its side, which leads to it falling of edges or counter tops and night stands. But let's be honest, your not considering these earbuds for the app or case but rather for the sound quality, which is where it truly shines. Once the drivers are broken in and EQ is dailed in that's when the quality of your beats will start to sound different. Im noticing back ground sounds that I normally don't notice such as the high hats hitting on some of my rock songs. Bass has a good punch, but don't expect it to knock you off your feet for all you hip hop fans. The quality of sound is well done, so much so that no sound over powers the other but rather everything comes in at equal quality to help compliment the song as a whole. The bass is very rich with clear midtones and very crisp highs. One thing I did notice is it seems the unit would try to adjust my EQ settings based on listening position or rather ear canal design to help give a more full and rich experience. In the ear designs have always been hit or miss with designs either becoming uncomfortable after hours of listening or bring comfort to the point of forgetting you have them in. The Pi6 offers hours upon hours of comfort with proper heat displacement. These buds are water resistance, and while I'm not exactly inclined to test out how resistant they are just know that basic sweat and splash back wont hurt them. Overall this is a true master piece when it comes to desecrate design with phenomenal sound quality. This piece is geared towards the true audiophile that is looking to get every bit of sound out of their music without sacrificing a single beat. While the price tag is set on the higher point, their quality, performance, comfort and long battery life make it a worth while investment. If your looking for that immersive sound that wont let you down, then look no further.

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  This review is from Bowers & Wilkins - Pi6 True Wireless Noise Cancelling In-Ear Earbuds - Cloud Grey

  Posted 1 year ago by Crasher

• Rated 5 out of 5 stars

  One Word: Excellent

  • Tech Insider Network Member
  • Top 1000 Contributor

  Anyone who is familiar with audiophile name brands will recognize Bowers and Wilkins. Several of their floorstanding and bookshelf speakers have graced the listening rooms of various homes I’ve owned, and their combination of detail mixed with balanced (if occasionally bright) sound has made them one of my favorite speakers. B&W’s foray into wireless in-ear headphones was welcome for me, and I have owned several previous incarnations of the Pi models, most recently the Pi4, which I have used for the last couple of years. They are still going strong, and have been handed down to one of my daughters after receiving a pair of Pi6 headphones this week. My wife has a pair of Pi5s that she loves and I have used on occasion. The Pi6 come in a charcoal-gray-color, compact, lightweight case that doubles as a charger. Codecs include SBC, AAC, AptX, and AptX Adaptive, which is pretty much par for the course for headphones in this price range. Although, admittedly, the Pi6 headphones will set you back quite a bit. Missing is the AptX Lossless codec that you can get in the more expensive Pi8 in-ears, which is too bad. Battery life is excellent, even with auto noise canceling on. In use, I generally got 8 hours out of the Pi6 without having to charge. Bowers and Wilkins states that with the charged case, a user can get up to 24 hours of audio playback. A quick, 15-minute charge in the case will result in 2-hours of playback time. Not bad at all. Setup: Setup was extremely easy. I removed the Pi6 from the packaging, plugged them in using the supplied USB-C cord, and let them charge overnight. I opened the case, searched for new devices on my iOS phone, and found them immediately. After syncing via Bluetooth, I was encouraged to download the Bowers and Wilkins app, which I did. After creating an account, I tested the ear buds in my ears. Bowers and Wilkins supplies a variety of rubber ear pieces to be able to find the perfect one to fit the ears, but the ones that came installed on the Pi6 felt great so I left those on. The Bowers and Wilkins app allows you to access settings such as firmware updates, a graphic EQ, and auto noise canceling. Auto Noise Canceling ANC was okay. Not bad, not good, just average. I wore the ear buds in several different locations, at the gym, riding a transit bus, inside a relatively busy mall, while running, etc. External noises were muted to an extent, but not as well as I am accustomed to. My previous Pi4s did a better job of limiting the intrusion of external noise, so this is one aspect I was kind of bummed about. There is also a pass through setting, where the Pi6 ear buds allow you to hear external noise, which is effective when running or riding a bike on a busy street (can hear traffic). This function performed perfectly. Sound Quality Let’s face it, when it comes to headphones, we all want to know how they sound. In this instance, I can attest that the Pi6 sound absolutely fantastic. They are a huge improvement over the Pi4s I had, and both my wife and I feel they sound better than my her Pi5s. They are about as balanced as a set of headphones can get, with just the right amount of bass, including mid-bass impact that really makes kicks and toms shine. Treble is crystal clear, perhaps slightly rolled off, but not in a negative way. No harshness at all to the sound. First up in my review listening session was Fleetwood Mac’s Tusk, off of their album Tusk. I love using Fleetwood Mac’s Rumors and Tusk for listening auditions, the mastering is impressive and there are many intricacies to their music that good headphones will bring out and that is often missed by floorstanding speakers. The song has a lot of tom work, as well as little voices speaking in different spots throughout the song. The Pi6 picked up each of these voices, made the toms sound like they were live in the room with you, and really provided an excellent soundstage. Around the 1:14 mark with the Pi6, the bass comes into the mix with a little slide and growl, and sounds amazing. The Pi6 handle the addition of the bass in stride with the toms and addition of the bass drum without any issues, allowing the listener to just enjoy layers of music. Even when the instruments all come in, the Pi6 never break a sweat, allowing the listener to hear everything in its place, not just noise. Never harsh. They sounded amazing with this song. Next up was Loreena McKennitt’s Marco Polo, off of her Book of Secrets album. I believe I read somewhere that there were over 40 instruments in this song, and on weaker headphones it can sound like a mishmash of sound. Not with the Pi6. Bass impact was amazing, and as more and more layers of instruments were introduced into the mix, the soundstage became wider and wider. At no point did I feel like the music lost definition. All the pieces and components were there. I’ve listened to this song on a lot of in-ears, and the Pi6 sounded just as good as some much more expensive in-ears that have resided in my ear canals. And Loreena McKennitt’s voice was delightful, floating above the mix in an ethereal air. It’s one thing to play well-mastered music through in-ears, but the question is often how will they handle not-so-well-mastered music? I dug into Neil Diamond, listening to a song called Soolaimon which is mixed a little ‘hot’ and can be fatiguing depending on the headphones/speakers it is being listened on. The stereo mix puts a set of toms/congos in the left ear, and the right ear has percussion and guitar. Meanwhile, Neil sings with a choir in the background, and the choir’s voices can lead to some serious ear-bleeding when the volume is turned up. Not so with the Pi6. Not only did the make the toms/congos and percussion section sound impactful and vibrant, they also calmed the harshness of the choir and made it an extremely enjoyable listen. Volume For most of my listening, I had the volume to max. Granted, I have older ears, and can’t hear things as well as I used to, but I didn’t feel at any point that I didn’t have enough volume. Sometimes max was what it took, sometimes I was just a couple clicks down from full. So I feel like the Pi6 have good power and volume. Comfort I wore the Pi6 for at least 8 hours a day for 3 straight days to see if I got some sore ears like I do with other in-ears. Impressively enough, I only started to feel some discomfort towards the end of the day, as my ears got tired of having ear buds in them. This is better than the other in-ears I have, as often I am lucky to get a few hours with something stuck in my ears before having to take a break. Exercising, running, walking, chewing, and talking; there were no issues with the Pi6 staying put in my ears. In conclusion, I feel like the Pi6 are an incredible value. They sound great. I don’t really use my in-ears to make phone calls, but the couple of test calls I did were crystal clear. Music, which is what Bowers and Wilkins focuses on, as well as battery life and comfort was absolutely excellent. A great update to prior versions of the Pis, and a great all around in-ear. Highly recommended.

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  This review is from Bowers & Wilkins - Pi6 True Wireless Noise Cancelling In-Ear Earbuds - Cloud Grey

  Posted 1 year ago by Derek

• Rated 4 out of 5 stars

  Great sound, good ANC, okay app

  • Tech Insider Network Member

  The Pi6 wireless earbuds from Bowers & Wilkins are premium headphones offering high quality sound along with active noise canceling. There’s a lot to like about them overall, but there are a few flaws that keep them from being perfect. The headphones are stylish and made of hard plastic. They wear pretty well, and I found it easy to get a good fit (using the default tips; there are multiple other sizes included), which is key for the noise canceling to work. The case holds additional charge and uses USB Type C for charging. Sadly, there is no wireless charging option, which is actually something I miss. The headphones support high-quality streaming options like Bluetooth 5.4/aptX along with 24-bit audio. Setup is relatively easy with the Bowers & Wilkins Music app. (Oddly, in my Android app tray, it labels itself as Music Bowers & Wilkins, which makes it a little less obvious to find!) The app both serves as a place to control the settings for the device as well as a storefront for various music services that offer audiophile quality streaming options. I found the app curiously underbaked, with the EQ settings customizable but limited solely to treble and bass. The app also allows you to configure the active noise canceling as on/off or, conveniently, a passthrough option that I found worked well for balancing ANC and not being utterly cut off from one’s surroundings. If I found the app a little underdone, the touch controls were the opposite. I found them clunky and even difficult to remember, though volume control worked pretty well but frustratingly seemed slow to adjust. I generally just used my phone or the app for settings changes as it was quicker. On the other hand, ergonomics were otherwise really good, as I found it easy to get a good fit, and they were comfortable to wear for extended periods. They also support automatically pausing when you pull an earbud out, and this worked well in my experience. With that said, these do excel at their core task: sounding great. While I don’t have accounts that have lossless audio, I do have the premium tier audio on Spotify. Everything I listened to, from AC/DC to Beethoven to Glenn Miller, sounded bright and vibrant to my ears, but still very natural. These will take over as my everyday earbuds. Beyond music, audio quality on calls was acceptable—I don’t take calls very often regardless, let alone with earbuds—but I could both hear and be heard easily with them. So ultimately if you prize stylish and excellent earbuds, these are a very good choice. I’m not a big fan of the touch controls or the app, but they both will do. However, the sound quality is excellent, the battery life good, and the ANC is decent for earbuds, especially with the nice passthrough feature. These are good for anybody but especially a good choice for Android users like me.

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  This review is from Bowers & Wilkins - Pi6 True Wireless Noise Cancelling In-Ear Earbuds - Cloud Grey

  Posted 1 year ago by DFN80