Reviews for Bowers & Wilkins C5 In-Ear Headphones

The pros:

The C5 offer excellent sound, especially mid- to low range. Deep bass is reproduced with convincing control and authority, so much so that I frequently find myself pulling out one of the plugs to check if I accidentally left the subwoofers on. Vocals are also treated with usual B&W signature excellence. That being said, expect the usual B&W coloration; i.e. not neutral sound, but warm and a bit woolly and with a slight lack of treble clarity and detail.

Aesthetically, the C5 are things of beauty. From the jet black cylindrical design to the silver "grille" at the back, they look very nice indeed. Some users are complaining that the buds are too heavy, but for me this hasn’t been a problem during workouts.

The cons:

There are a few points that potential buyers need to know about. The cable is very stiff and easy to break. I work at a Hi Fi dealership, and we’ve had unusually many C5s returned due to cable breakage. I’m on my second pair now after only two months, and despite being very careful I’m likely to move on to my third before summer.

The carrying case is a joke. Although very stylish, it’s far too small, especially considering the stiff cable. B&W have attempted to rectify this by removing the integrated plug holder in later versions, but this hasn’t helped much considering the case is still the same overall size.

The remote is also a bit of a blunder. It’s cylindrical and only works if pushed in a very specific way. It’s difficult to use without looking, and impossible if you ever wear gloves. There is also a lot of noise when using the hands free function.

Conclusion: Great sound, but troubled by some very poor design choices.

42 of 42 people found this useful

Probably got the cleanest bass sound but the design factor of the tips make it the most uncomfortable in-ear headphones to use.

26 of 28 people found this useful

I got these as a gift and I'm not very pleased with the product. Of course there are pros and cons which I will list, but if I had the option, I would seek another product in the same price range.

Pros:
-Great build quality. You can tell that it is made with the best quality materials. Very durable, and the cord is not prone to tangling. The main wires are insulated by a transparent hollow tube which adds to the design and feel.
-Decent audio quality. Everyone here who say the quality of the audio is bad probably don't have them fit right as I've experienced disappointing quality at first, but later figured out the optimal conformation to my ears.

Cons:
-The loop "one size fits all" concept is not a polished concept. It surely sounds cool and intuitive, but to this day I have either not worn them properly, or maybe my ears are just not normal.
-They are quite heavy and if you're thinking of using these while jogging, forget about it.
-If you don't have the patience to getting used to them, they will hurt your ears at first after prolonged use.

Overall, great look and quality, but just not worth the price tag...

9 of 9 people found this useful

After someone had stole my Bose Earbuds i decided that i loved to listen to music allot and that it was a good excuse to get an even better pair. I was wrong! I got home and tried the headphones out and rite away a realized a lack of base. The headphones fit wonderfully and hits the high note perfectly, but when it comes to the lows and base the earbuds don't perform. I even left the headphones on for around 40 hours, on a low volume, to try and somewhat break them in but still no luck. I am going to return them today and once again go back to the good old Bose!

8 of 11 people found this useful

I love how they look and I loved how they sounded, however I had the issue of after about 6 moths there was no sound coming from the left side.
I always took care of them and I treated them very carefully, and all of the sudden for no apparent reason ... no sound from one moment to the next.
I expected better quality for the price.

7 of 11 people found this useful

Great bass, decent treble, vocals were clear. But something in the sound was missing that just wasn't there. They also did not stay in my ears nearly as well as I thought and were very uncomfortable. Sound cancellation was pretty good. I think these headphones would only be good for planes and car rides with lack of movement. Also way to expensive for what they produce. Build quality was great, I didn't feel the worry for them breaking any time soon. Only had them for a few days until i returned them though.

3.5 stars to sound quality (because of price)
4 stars to looks
2 stars for comfort
4.5 stars for build quality

2 of 4 people found this useful

I choose this headset because of the reviews and wanted something different than my husband (Bose). So we were both excited when we received it, loved the fit in the ear and the cool design. Then we listened to the two side by side and BY FAR the Bose had the better sound quality. Sent it back the next day and ordered the Bose MIE2i

8 of 21 people found this useful