Bowers & Wilkins Px8 S2

Ed Selley is clearly impressed and mostly enthusiastic. He calls the Px8 S2 a sensational, flagship wireless headphone that bests the PX7 S3 in sound thanks to stiffer carbon drivers, with solid battery life, a useful app EQ, and smarter metal and leather finishes—while acknowledging Sony still leads in ANC, spatial audio support is pending, and the app’s login is annoying. Overall he frames the Px8 S2 as the best wireless headphone under £1,000 for day‑to‑day use, praising its musicality and build while flagging a few practical caveats and ethical concerns around real leather.

Picky Audio is positively impressed. He praises the Px8 S2’s premium build, improved comfort and slightly tighter, more open sound versus the PX7 S3, calling it a meaningful though not massive upgrade; ANC and call mics are very good, transparency is usable, and battery/controls behave predictably. He flags a high price, a basic five‑band EQ, minor transparency/loudness quirks that firmware could fix, and that the PX7 S3 may be the better value for most. Overall tone is favorable and measured—enthusiastic about sound and materials, cautious about cost and small software/feature tradeoffs.

Aaron X is lukewarm about the Bowers & Wilkins Px8 S2. He acknowledges the Px8 S2’s superior resolution and flatter, audiophile-friendly tuning versus the Px7 S3, but says it isn’t a clear upgrade in other areas and struggles to justify the much higher price. Overall his tone is measured: he respects the sound quality but questions value compared with cheaper models that offer more rounded performance.

InsideTech is clearly impressed and upbeat about the Px8 S2. He calls them Bowers & Wilkins’ flagship, praising the slimmer, more comfortable design, premium Nappa leather and die‑cast aluminum, improved ANC/mics, and noticeably better soundstage and clarity over the original PX8 (and even a step up from the PX7 S3). He flags a few practical notes—higher price, vegan‑leather preference might sway buyers, and wired passive listening requires power—but overall treats the PX8 S2 as a top‑tier, truly premium option for listeners who prioritize sonic fidelity and build quality.

Sando is clearly impressed and enthusiastic. He calls the PX8 S2 a new flagship—more refined, lighter, and markedly more premium-feeling than Sony or Sennheiser—praising top-tier comfort, metal-and-Nappa-leather build, improved ANC and call mics, and standout 40mm carbon-cone clarity (especially with aptX Lossless). He emphasizes exceptional detail, tight bass, and natural sound with ANC on, while noting higher price and the relatively new, not-yet-ubiquitous aptX Lossless ecosystem; minor trade-offs like battery-vs-comfort design choices are accepted. Overall he presents them as a high-end champion for listeners who prioritize fidelity and comfort.

RecordingNOW is clearly impressed: they call the Px8 S2 a sonically superb, beautifully built flagship that justifies its premium for discerning listeners. They praise the refined 40mm carbon‑driver soundstage, improved clarity and dynamics over the original Px8 and PX7 S3, and luxurious Nappa leather/aluminum construction, while noting slightly weaker ANC, firmer headband comfort, and limited sub‑bass for bass‑heads. Value is the biggest caveat at $799 (affiliate disclosure present), but the reviewer—an experienced pro‑audio tester—enthusiastically awards top marks for sound and craftsmanship despite reserving judgment on price and noise cancelling.

Mark Ellis is very positive about the Px8 S2s. He calls them a clear, generational upgrade—best-sounding B&W headphones he’s tried—with crisper highs, lovely mids, controlled bass, slimmer design, improved comfort, and better transparency mode; ANC is very good but intentionally balanced rather than market‑leading, and the £230 premium over the PX7 S3s is defensible for build and sonic gains. He discloses affiliate partnerships up front and frames the recommendations for three buyer types, stressing that if you want flagship sound and have the budget, these are worth buying.

DHRME is mostly positive about the Bowers & Wilkins Px8 S2. They praise its slimmer, luxurious build, strong sound character (bright bass and vivid treble), excellent transparency mode, useful multipoint/codec support including aptX Lossless, and comfortable lower clamping; they prefer its mic behavior and emotional appeal over Sony for some listeners. Criticisms include ANC that’s good but not Sony‑leading, overly bright treble for some genres, finicky wear sensor, fewer fine-grain EQ options than Sony, and occasional loudness differences between Bluetooth and USB‑C. Overall the tone is enthusiastic but measured, recommending Px8 S2 for buyers seeking premium sound and style.

Flossy Carter is genuinely blown away — enthusiastic and emphatic that the Bowers & Wilkins Px8 S2 are worth the $800. He raves about premium leather and aluminum build, superb clarity and soundstage (especially in True Sound), strong ANC and transparency, long battery and solid multipoint performance, and excellent call quality. He compares them favorably to his PX8 and to Sony/Bose for tonal purity rather than pure ANC dominance, praises the 5‑band EQ, and notes heaviness and price as trade-offs. Overall, an emotional, highly positive endorsement from a hands‑on, music‑obsessed perspective.

GadgetsBoy is positive and impressed overall. He praises the Px8 S2’s premium design, comfort, long battery life, aptX Lossless/24‑bit support, dedicated DSP/DAC and wide soundstage, calling the build and materials luxurious and the sound among the best he’s tried. He flags ANC as the main weakness—planes still let through noticeable engine noise—and notes the app is minimal and wear-sensing finicky. Bottom line: a high‑end, sonically focused flagship that feels worth its price if you prioritize audio fidelity and design, but don’t expect class‑leading noise cancellation.

Oasthar is positive but measured about the Px8 S2. He praises the luxury build, Nappa leather, carbon‑cone drivers and refined, audiophile-grade sound—calling them richer and clearer than the Sony—while noting they’re heavier and pricier. He acknowledges improved ANC and call mics but says Sony’s XM6 still lead in noise cancellation, features, and app polish. Overall Oasthar frames the Px8 S2 as a premium, sound-first choice for buyers who value sonic purity and materials over extra smart features or best-in-class ANC.

Jason Gor feels positively impressed but measured. He praises the Px8 S2’s premium build, richer soundstage and louder drive versus the cheaper sibling, and loves the materials and comfort for travel, yet he’s frustrated by intermittent ANC dropouts, fit-related sealing issues, and over‑sensitive wear-detection during a recent flight. He calls them excellent and worth hearing, but not an earth-shattering leap—better, not dramatically so—and hopes firmware fixes will address the ANC/behavior quirks before he declares them a clear upgrade.

Kianne Skinner is clearly impressed and calls the Px8 S2 nearly perfect. She praises the refined aluminum build, Nappa leather, expanded soundstage and revealing detail (thanks to the carbon transducer and 24‑bit approach), and effective eight‑mic ANC that immerses on a busy street while offering useful aware mode and convenient app controls. She notes she couldn’t test aptX Lossless and finds ANC just shy of Bose’s top tier; price (£629) is the main downside. Overall Kianne recommends them for buyers who prioritize luxury fit and top‑flight sound and can afford the premium.

Remy is clearly impressed and enthusiastic about the Px8 S2. He praises the premium build, comfortable fit, refined 40mm carbon‑cone sound with crisp resolution, balanced ANC that preserves transients, aptX Lossless/Adaptive support, solid battery and useful app EQ, and calls USB‑C lossless listening excellent—while warning the $799 price may be overkill for casual users. He gives practical use notes (travel, gaming, editing), likes physical controls, and flags future-proofing via spatial audio and LE Audio. Overall a warm, confident recommendation for listeners who prioritize sound and materials despite the flagship cost.

Roxy Red Reviews is generally positive but cautious about the Px8 S2. She praises the premium materials, neat details (die‑cast hardware, Nappa leather, tidy cabling), comfortable fit after adjustment, strong noise isolation and clear sound, calling them the best overall for everyday use; but repeatedly flags the high price, some comfort tradeoffs versus older Bose pads (rounder headband causing slip), slightly bulky profile, fiddly on‑head adjustment, and modest case stitching concerns. Overall enthusiastic about sound and build but practical about cost and a few ergonomic nitpicks.

Smart Home Sounds sounds cautiously optimistic about the Px8 S2. They like the sleeker, lighter build, two premium finishes, and the upgraded internals — 40mm carbon-cone drivers, Bluetooth 5.3 with aptX adaptive/lossless, and expanded mics and EQ — and call battery life and fast charging acceptable. Their tone is interested rather than ecstatic: they flag the £629 price and say "if they deliver on the promise" these could be the ultimate luxury headphones, implying curiosity and a need for real-world confirmation rather than an outright endorsement.

Nafis A is clearly impressed and leans enthusiastic about the PX8 S2. He calls it a luxury, well-built headphone that’s comfortable and a noticeable upgrade over the PX8, citing Bluetooth 5.3, aptX Lossless, an upcoming Spatial Audio/LE Audio firmware update, a 5-band EQ, and a bass-forward yet natural sound with wider soundstage and minimal sibilance. He tempers enthusiasm by noting ANC isn’t quite Sony/Bose level and admits the H100 may beat it in bass clarity—though at a much higher price—so his overall tone is excited but measured and practical.