Finally! Finally someone comparing them to the PX8s! I guess I’ll just stick with the PX8s. The really need to add full EQ support because reducing the bass also seems to take a little away from the lower mids.
Use them with the cable. The sound will get so much better. The trebles come to life and shine. They also get louder. Do that a few times and you won’t want to go back to wireless. 😂
It's all about settings, if you look on rtings the Sonos actually win on sound production. The Ace though, do have a neutral sound straight out the box, so yes you would defo need to play with the EQ to get it where yould like.
Nice to see you here, John. I remember you from the Bang & Olufsen videos and bought many B&O products thanks to you, but now I own the Bowers & Wilkins PX8, which is more modern than the current B&O products. Best regards
Thank you for an awesome review. I own the PX8 and use them for international flights. They're AMAZING! Currently, I have them on hold until I return to the US and listening to this review I might pass on them. I thoroughly enjoy my PX8, clarity, ANC and the classy look is worth every penny.
Can’t say much about the Px8 but my Px7S2 had very bad ANC. Sound wise it was really good, so are the Sonos in my opinion. Just having a different signature but otherwise on par. Built quality is superb. Love the understatement more than the B&W crying logos.
Excellent review - I have the B&W PX7 which are excellent. I was only really excited about the Sonos to pair with my Dolby Atmos Gen2 Beam. Think I'll wait...
Same here, not in a hurry to upgrade since they sound great. That is the industry, constant small upgrades to convince people to buy, just like cell phones.
Great review. However I own the Bang and Olufsen H9i headphones and think they are really good. Not heard the Bowers and Wilkins but imagine they are pretty damn good.
Let me start by saying, nice review. John is always polished, succinct and a little funny, now and then. I usually agree with his assessment of most audio gear and have followed his recommendation time and time again. In the case of this particular video, I agreed with much of his analysis, but not all of his conclusions. I have listened to both the B&W and B&O headgear but not the Sonos yet. I do own audio gear from all of these companies and respect their abilities and expertise in the high-end audio world. As to the headphones by both B&O and B&W, I have listened and lived with both headphone sets for weeks at a time, comparing both to each other over that period. For my ears, the B&O sound is superior. Don’t get me wrong, the B&Ws sound great! But we are splitting hairs here when comparing at this level of both price and quality. I think most people would be very satisfied with either pair. I certainly would live happily-ever-after with the B&W pair and would never look back, that is, if I had never heard the HX headphones. The HX, to my ears, sound more detailed and refined than the B&W set. Of course I love the B&O sound profile and have a Beosound Level too, which I believe to be better than anything B&W has in that space. Long story short, I agree with John’s assessment that the B&Ws have better ANC and reach a higher volume than the HX pair. However, the sound quality, balance, detail and sound stage are superior to my ears. Thanks, John for the review. I look forward,to your next video!
Great review, everything I need to know without any bias or Sonos marketing rubbish. IMO until Sonos opens up with compatibility to the other sound bar's, there's no urgency to buy them. To be honest I'm getting more and more into hi-res so maybe will look elsewhere. However switching over mode for some late night gaming is appealing.
If you look for the Bang Olufsen Portal, since they are being discontinued, it's possible to get them really cheaply. It's the same headphones as HX and uses the same driver. I have the Playstation edition (to use with my PS5) and the HX; I can't tell the difference. They almost look identical, but the controls are a bit different, and HX uses the touch functionality on the right ear much more. But they also have one of the worst touch systems ever made; I thought they were broken and went to the Bang & Olufsens store, but the pairs they had worked as badly as mine. Usually my experience with B&O is that what they do is close to perfection, so this was a big let down. I had the smaller H8i before, but B&O seems to discontinued them as well, and not released a new model.
I don't doubt the PX8 dominate here... because I just looked up the prices - the Sonos Ace are $799 NZD list price locally - the cheapest I can find the PX8 for locally is $1549! It's literally twice the price of the Ace! The Beoplay HX come in at $1320. So it appears you gets what you pays for I guess? Though I'd have to say B&W probably have to price their headsets through the roof due to paying for David Beckham to shill them. I generally run a mile from any brand that feels the need to use celebrities to hawk their products. Honestly though, this review does kinda seem like comparing a BMW M5 to a Bentley Continental GT - ostensibly they do the same things, but they aren't even remotely in the same price bracket.
@@Peter-Tyson Yeah I then looked at Amazon as one of the other commenters mentioned it was pretty close there - and it's only around $150 difference, comparing the retail price Ace with the cheapest new PX8s which makes it more of a comparison. I'd get a further $120 off the Ace as I have upgrade credits with Sonos, but even then it's not too much of a stretch for the PX8's. I think the issue is the only people who sell the PX8's locally in NZ seem to be hoity toity AV retailers with high overheads. Something to think about anyway - I'm currently using Technics A800's which are to be honest, good enough - but considering upgrading for my upcoming 50'th birthday gift to myself 😀
I think it depends on where you live. The Beoplay HX is the cheapest where I live, you can get them for less than €500. (If you look for the discontinued gaming model Portal that is almost identical to the HX, you can get them for less than €250.) Bowser & Wilkins PX8 costs €600, so they are a bit more expensive than Sonos, which costs €550.
@@Peter-Tyson I had Hx before and i returned it because of crack bass at high volumes and after i bought a portal and i realized beoplay portal is way better than hx, they are well balanced and there is no cracky voice at both high and low frequencies. But is the beoplay portal perfect? No of course they are not and im planning to buy Px8 or H95. But the thing is even if the px8 is better probably i still would buy h95. Because im using B&O products for 20 years and i grew up with that brand, my father had a Beosystem 7000 and Beovox Ms150.2 so i have a bond with B&O
