Bowers & Wilkins Px8 S2 headphones review

I’ll start with a confession – ever since I tested the original Px8 model back in December ’23 they’ve been my go to cans. But all that changed when I got my mitts on the Px7 S3 at the start of the summer, and the Px8 have been gathering dust ever since.

Why? Because although cheaper, Px7 S3 are just that bit easier to live with, thanks to their slimmer profile and more compact case. Sonically the older Px8 is marginally better, but not enough to warrant me hauling them around on my commute and elsewhere over the Px7 S3.

So when I got wind of an updated Px8, I was hopeful. As this could mean the Px7 S3’s improved form factor being blended with a higher spec/quality package in a new over ear flagship.

And when the Px8 S2 arrived in the flesh (or soft nappa leather, to be more precise) my headphone expectations looked to have been realised. Because what you get is exactly this, all the improvements of the Px7 S3 model but in a much more upmarket feeling product.

Like the Px7 S3, the Px8 S2’s profile has been slimlined because in comparison to the older Px8 it replaces, it’s largely a re-designed model from the ground up. And this redesign means moving each ear cup’s external ANC (active noise cancelling) mics closer to the ear cup, while also being better spaced within a slotted periphery ring (versus the perforated outer ear cup on the out going model). This allows around 10mm to be shaved off each ear cup’s overall depth, making for a much neater looking headphone when sat on your bonce.

Elsewhere the luxury materials continue, with a gorgeously finished brushed alloy caseback and matching alloy arms, with cutouts revealing the premium quality cable within. Being alloy over plastic means they’re stiffer too, ensuring a more consistent over ear fit, even when moving your head.

But it’s not just the external aesthetics that have been overhauled for this S2 variant, as inside there’s been an equally large clear out to make way for new tech. On the hardware side, while both the new and older models sport 40mm carbon cone woofers, for the Px8 S2 these get an improved chassis, voice coil, suspension and magnet – all of which I’m told are easier to service than the last generation’s. The Px8 S2’s chipset and DSP have also gone up a gear, with a QCC3084 in place of the older model’s QCC5127 chip. This ups the audio ante by some way, as while the original Px8 catered for 24-bit/48kHz audio via Bluetooth 5.2 aptX Adaptive, this newer model goes all the way up to true 24-bit/96kHz via Bluetooth 5.3 Lossless (and Adaptive) with Spatial Audio to follow, making them future proof for some time to come.

The Px8 S2’s mics have increased too over the older model, from six in total to eight (with six monitoring externally and two internally). All of which are also feeding the Px8 S2’s Active Noise Cancelling tech, with options for on, off and passthrough. And as per the Px7 S3, these have now been more intelligently positioned to ensure a more accurate presentation in passthrough mode, thanks to how they capture sounds from all angles.

Physical controls are the same as the Px7 S3, which offer a better balance of buttons per cup than the previous gen Px cans, with the power/bluetooth and ANC buttons on the left ear cup and play/pause and volume +/- on the right. The play/pause button also gets a textured surface and being smaller than than the two buttons flanking it, makes it much easier to distinguish by feel. Added to this are sensitivity features, meaning music/video is auto paused when removing the cans from your noggin.

Personally, aside from the on/off button I rarely use the physical controls, deferring to Bowers’ excellent Music app instead. This also has the added benefit of a five-band EQ which can be customised, with ‘True Sound’ bypass. I say benefit, but for my tastes, the earlier generation’s simple bass/treble was more than enough, although I expect that those prone to app faffery will welcome this.

If I have one gripe it’s the nappa leather zip fob on he case. Sure it sets it apart from the fabric one of the Px7 S3’s packaging but the cheaper one is also tougher (on my older Px8 case, the leather fob tore off in weeks).

Performance

Putting these to the test has meant them not leaving my neck for the last fortnight, either hooked up to my iPhone, Macbook Pro or Rotel Michi X5 amp, hard-wired and over Bluetooth (with Creative’s excellent BT-W6 for the latter, to ensure the audio being beamed hasn’t been downgraded).

Across all sources the performance of the Px8 S2 is notably excellent. And moving from the Px7 S3 highlights that while the benefits aren’t night and day different, this newer model is a solid step up.

On Sohn’s atmospherically loaded Tremors album for example at 24-bit/96kHz, the sense of space and scale about the notes is that bit vaster, that bit more spacious sounding than what the Px7 S3 musters. I heard this album’s title track as part of the Px8 S2 product launch some weeks ago, and wanting to make sure my first impressions weren’t just giddy excitement, I’ve been enjoying repeat listens at home ever since, revealing that my early opinion was bang on. Having not heard the Px8 S2 I’d have been perfectly happy with the Px7 S3 on this album – it’s such a great recording – but A-B testing across the two models highlights the extra distance that the Px8 S2 is able to stretch too.

And dial in Laura Marling’s gorgeous Child Of Mine at 24-bit/44.1 kHz lets me experience how the Px8 S2 can take you that bit closer to the intimacy of a recording. Marling’s sincere and direct vocals come across like a hi-res dagger to the heart, with those backing vocals sounding more ethereal on these cans than any others I can think of shy of a grand (especially of the closed back variety). Oh and when those strings come in, the air and space they’re afforded is pure class.

But it’s not just in the soundstage scale and imaging where the Px8 S2 excel over their peer’s performance, as bass depth, clarity and detail are also on their hit list. I’m told that the Px8 S2’s carbon cone, being stiffer than the Bower’s cheaper cans is able to reach lower before DSP is needed to compensate for any distortion creeping in. And while I can’t vouch for this scientifically, sonically it makes perfect sense. The 24-bit low punch of Pearl Jam’s Nothing As It Seems at 192kHz has a really natural feel via the Px8 S2, as though those 40mm drivers are barely stretching their legs when they dig deeper than what seems comfortable.

In summary

Bowers could have settled and indeed dined out upon the previous Px8 for some time yet without needing to upgrade to a new model, but it didn’t. And that constant drive as a brand to challenge itself is what makes these headphones go from great to exceptional at the price – in striving for that extra degree of performance.

I’ve heard and tested almost every generation of Bowers over ear cans to date, and with each new model comes improvements, some major, and some less so. But Px8 S2 is the full package that’s better than previous examples by some way. Better made, better looking, better fitting, better future-proofed and most importantly of all, better sounding.

The brand claims the Px8 S2 is the best headphone its ever made. And while the reviewer in me hates to agree with marketing hyperbole, you know what? This time, the folks at Bowers just might be right. Highly recommended.