Reviews for Bowers & Wilkins C5 In-Ear Headphones

I love these in ears! They lasted me much longer then my beats and have a better range! I used them so much i think i blew out the left driver and right wire got fried but the sound is still freekily astounding.

I bought these at the airport about 2 weeks ago, after owning a pair of beats tour. The C5's are not as stylish as the beats although there very high quality-made, sound is great! Great base response and very high detailed sound. What bothered me though is the case, the cable and fit. Case overall is good but the zipper kept getting stuck in the crack and eventually bent, the cable is not tangle free and the fit in the ear is not that great. Overall great sound and stylish look... Buy Beats, thats my opinion.

People associate B&W with ultra-expensive bespoke hifi speakers but I think there's an important point missed in looking at the price alone. This is a company that offers great value. At whatever price point you get a product at the top of its game and everything from the cheapest C5s to the 802N's I used to own (to even pricier Nautilus diamond gear) has outstanding sound. I don't believe B&W ever stick a premium price tag on something just because they can get away with it, they offer incredible value and their high end speakers are works of art. Audiophiles love them because they are THAT GOOD. So what can you expect from the cheapest in the family. The C5s are a bit more bassy than the P5s (I own both) but less so than Dre/Diddy Beats. They're very stable in your ears, extremely comfortable and the microporous filter seems to provide a detailed sound stage for an in-ear phone. On the bad side, they should offer more options for the ear plugs and I'd appreciate a bigger case than the one supplied which is a bit too snug in my opinion. Small upsets for a great set of IEMs that get better with repeated listening. If you buy these make sure they're sitting snuggly in your ear and use a bit of grease to take off the ear plugs as they're very tight fitting against the tungten head of the phones. Happy listening.

I love B&W products, and when I saw the C5's I knew I was going to have to try them, despite loving my current headphones (Etymotic Research HF3's).

Pros-
Comfortable fit.
Clear sound with an authoritative punch.
Classy aesthetics.
Solid cables.
In-line remote and mic.

Cons-
The travel case is awkward at best.
The in-line remote buttons are difficult to find while running and have poor tactile feedback. Also, they hang from the left ear, which works well for lefties, but most people are right handed. I find it difficult to pause the music quickly if someone starts talking to me. There are no physical features of the remote that let you blindly orient yourself with it.
There is a black piece of plastic that wraps around the cord where the headphones connect, that slides off easily, and seems like it shouldn't. Maybe I got a bad pair.
Putting these on with the ear loop takes a bit of practice and takes a bit longer.

Other than that, the headphones sound great and feel really solid. My Etymotics are still going to be my go-to pair of headphones because of the remote and how much easier they are to put on, but I can be finicky. I'm sure you'll love them.

Let's be realistic here, these are mid-high end ear buds, not high-end. They cost $100-200 less than some of the others I tried in non-Apple store. For me they have better bass than most, not overwhelming but not boomy either. The highs are a bit tinny or sibilant but either I am getting used to sound or they are "breaking-in" and highs are becoming more subdued.

The case is small but the earphones fit and it fits in my front pocket, I wouldn't want a case any more than slightly bigger.

Fit is individualistic and as such you need to try for yourselves and ignore the more strident reviews. They fit me better than most and stay in my ears way, way better than most non-canal buds. For me the wire loops work and are very clever.

Downsides include mildly rough highs (though getting better and no longer noticed by me with higher bit rates), I wish the kit still included the adapters, particularly the right angle adapter. I bought some foam Comply tips that for me work much better than the included tips - they are more comfortable and sound much better. In fact I think B&W is making a mistake by not including this sort of tip with the earphones - their tips don't do their product complete justice. As someone else here mentioned, you may need bigger tips than you realize because these are not canal buds, you do not insert them so deeply into your ear.

All-in-all I really like these and if they are durable (I've only had for 2 weeks) I'd recommend that everyone not wanting to spend more than $200 give them a try.

These headphones provide very good clear and clean sound, and have an excellent build quality. They are very comfortable, and secure in the ear once you figure out the correct in ear piece to use. If you are looking for a pair of headphones with good sound but that are easy on the bass tones, these are for you, however if you expect a boomin beat look elsewhere, these won't do the trick.

I love this headset. Great quality.

The two drawbacks of buying this are 1) if you're moving while talking, there is a crackling sound. I tested this. If you're sitting still, there is no crackling. The sound is great.

The second drawback is the ugly case they provide for your headset. It's a half-moon shaped, granny-like felt-covered fabric case with an oversized zipper. In short, hideous and off-brand.

For $180, at least this could come with a better case.

I got ones, and I was very happy not for the price, cuz price were a little bit hight, but sound was great,,, Right now I went to apple store and I bought CX 680i soprts and the sound was like Bowers or better, just the price 60% cheaper,, that I can say is, we can find great hearphones for cheaper..like Sennheiser,..