Reviews for Bowers & Wilkins C5 In-Ear Headphones

I've owned the similar Bose in-ear headphones, and these blow them away. The secure loop is a very welcome innovation for keeping them actually *in* your ear. Sound quality is wonderful throughout the full range from low to highs. They do take a few hours listening to really start to sing, but that's normal for audio products.

I bought this at Apple store about a year ago. My most frequent issue with headphones has been failing jacks which in this case didn't happen so that was good. Sound quality is appropriate for the price and I like the fitting mechanism.

Recently though the mid-section where cables join seems to have issues. When I walk or move the cable, if the joint also moves, sound in one ear stops. It's been getting worse. There's no sign of external damage and I kept these very well protected. Honestly, expected better build quality given the price.

It's been 6 months since I bught this earphones and the cable already broke, very disappointing since they are not cheap.
To be fair , the fit and sound are great .

I'll start by saying that I have owned Dre Beats Tour in-ear and the Bose IE2 in-ear and they come nowhere near the B&W C5 in-ear headphones in any way... They boast incredible audio separation, clear highs, amazing midrange and solid bass. I am most impressed by the midrange reproduction - a feat the Bose and Dre Beats failed at miserably. The bass of the C5 is solid and clear with awesome range - the bass is not "boomy" or muffled either like Dre Beats - best bass hands down! Highs are clean and clear but not ear piercing. When it all comes together - no matter what you're listening to - the sound is incredible and fulfilling. I seriously smiled from ear to ear with a big cheesy grin as soon as I began listening to music with these... I knew my search for the perfect headphones was finally over!

These earbuds deliver great bass and dynamics. They aren't just like those other headphones/earbuds (like the Beats by Dr. Dre) that just only pump up the bass to make it "sound better." With the Bowers and Wilkins C5 In-Ear Headphones, you hear much more of your music.

This is my first Bowers and Wilkins product. By using the C5 for just a few hours, they have given me a very strong image of Bowers and Wilkins. Their C5 In-Ear Headphones are very well built and feel very stable in your ears. You really can feel them weighted toward the inside of your ears for a comfortable, secure fit.

Even though i was ranting on about how cranking up the bass doesn't make something sound better, the bass on these is truly amazing. They deliver deeper, better bass than my Noise Canceling Bose Quiet Comfort Headphones.

However, the secure loop does take some getting used to. I have very small ears but they still feel secure, nonetheless.

I like the cord because it's not really thick and rubbery feeling like most. It's soft, flexible and it's pretty hard to tangle them. Whenever i have a wired device such as a headphone cord, my mac charger, etc., i always seem to be able to get them pretty tangled up. These don't tangle easily. The wires inside seem pretty secure and they feel as if they aren't going to twist up inside.

The AUX jack where it connects to the device seems very sturdy as well. A lot of the headphones i buy end up having the AUX jack tearing around the rubber part, exposing wires. This cord feels robust and strong.

I also always tend to scold my little sister for having her music up so loud that i can hear her from the front of the car when she is sitting in the back. I don't want to be a hippocrate by making it possible for her to hear my music when i have my earbuds in. I turned these up loud and you can hear them quite clearly when they are not in your ears. The minute i put them in, i asked my mom if she could hear my music. She said she couldn't.

These are extremely noise canceling. So much so that it's hard to hear others talking to you. It's almost like they're mouthing it instead of actually speaking!

And sorry for this long review!

I've tried both and both products have its pros and cons.

Bass - B&W C5 will by far blow the Bose MEI out of the water. The bass is strong but not to the point where you feel like your ear drums are about to blow up. It's perfect enough to enjoy the music. As for the Bose, it has almost very little to no bass at all.

Sound - Depending on the type music you're listening to. The sound on B&W C5 is not as sharp or clear but rather soft compared to the Bose MEI. When comparing the two, I feel that the sound of music is closer to my ears when listening to the Bose.

Confort - Right of the box, the Bose MEI will sit perfectly in your ears. B&W C5 can be a little uncomfortable and will take sometime to get use to. BE VERY CAREFUL when you're switching out the ear pieces on the B&W. They rip very easily.

Result - I ended up sticking with the B&W because of the amazing bass. Very rare that I'd hear an inear headphones that would produce that kind of bass. I go to the gym quite often and listen to a lot of dance music so it's a breath of fresh air when using the B&W. Even though, I mentioned that the B&W's sound quality is not as sharp or clear as the Bose, it's still very impressive.

innovative; makes a product useful; aesthetic; makes a product understandable; unobtrusive; honest; long-lasting; thorough, down to the last detail; environmentally-friendly; little design as possible.
This product meets most the caveats mentioned. Out of all the in-ear headphones I've owned, this is by far the best. Using the wire as adjustable in-ear loop is very innovative indeed. Unlike some other products where there are many different sizes in which you have to replace, this one is like "one-size fits all" design, and uses minimal parts. I love it!! And by having that "loop" the earphones will not go into your ears any further that would create pressure and potentially hurt your ears.

The sound quality is superb! There is no "excessive" bass/mid/treble. Some headphones just pwns the bass and bad treble, but this one gives a nice balance. Which is good when the user listens to just about every genre of music. Dubstep to Classical music, brings the "umph" to every genre of music to your ears.

I'm one of the people who believes in the break-in/burn-in headphones when first bought. So I will have to re-evaluate my initial conclusion later, but if this already sounds superb initially right out of the box, it'll only get better and better as time progresses. $200-ish well spent!

Sonically these little cans will leave you breathless---IF you have them in correctly. They don't have to be deeply inserted but they do require a seal or the sound will be tinny. Once you find the sweet spot, you will not believe your ears. I'm a bit of a headphone nut and try to listen to everything plus I read up on every conceivable site. These are just fantastic in ear buds. Do they rival Grado's top of the line? Of course not. But they just blow away anything and beyond in this price range. I had a little trouble at first and got three different emails from London helping me. Now THAT is service. DO. NOT. HESITATE. Buy, buy buy.

As soon as I removed these from the (rather complicated) packaging, I was highly impressed. Bass is clear and smooth, something you do not see with under $100 earphones. What is mostly incredible is the C5's ability to give you the clear bass without any distortion of other instruments, something very rare in under $200 dollar earphones. Bowers & Wilkins will not disappoint in audio quality.

I own the Beats by Dr. Dre Pro's over ear headphones, and to be honest, it is almost as if you took the same audio quality from the large over ear headphones and put them in these little earphones. The only difference being that the Beats are much louder and are better at keeping noise out, but that is obviously an advantage of them being over ear. The Secure Loop technology is fantastic. I have heard reviews on other websites of people complaining they are uncomfortable, and I can tell that that is absolutely not the case for me. Maybe they are making the loop too big for their ear? Anyways, these are great for someone who runs, or just bops their head up and down. Thanks to the Secure Loop, they will not fall out.

My only real complaint is the pouch they come with. I can't for the life of me figure out how to put them in the pouch properly. I realize I am meant to put the actual buds in the holes of the pouch, but when you wrap wire around, it bends the secure loop, making it difficult to return it to a normal state. Hopefully I can try and figure something out. I also think they are probably overpriced, but that is with every quality audio product on the market. So I can't really complain about that when the same can be said about nearly every other product available.

Highly recommended.