Bowers & Wilkins Px8 vs Px8 S2

Bowers & Wilkins announced the original Px8 on 28 September 2022 and the Px8 S2 almost exactly three years later, on 24 September 2025. Both use the same materials, Nappa leather and aluminum arms, and the same two 40mm carbon drivers rather than the Px7’s bio-cellulose ones; HARMAN’s launch announcement calls the S2 slimmer.

aptX Lossless is the headline, if your phone can use it

The original Px8 runs Bluetooth 5.2 with aptX Adaptive, aptX HD, aptX, AAC and SBC. The Px8 S2 moves to Bluetooth 5.3 and adds aptX Lossless at the top of a list that also includes aptX Adaptive (at 24-bit and 96 kilohertz, HARMAN says), aptX HD, aptX Classic, AAC and SBC. Lossless only works from a source certified for it, so if your phone can’t send it, you won’t hear the biggest change on paper.

LE Audio and Auracast are a promised later update in HARMAN’s 24 September 2025 announcement, not something the S2 does out of the box.

Bowers & Wilkins names multipoint for the Px8 S2, as it does for the Px7 S3, but not for the original Px8. The S2 also lists Apple MFi and Google Fast Pair. The original’s Bluetooth profiles are A2DP, AVRCP, HFP, HSP and BLE GATT.

Microphones and noise cancelling

The original Px8 uses hybrid noise cancelling with 4 microphones, plus 2 more for calls. The Px8 S2 has eight: HARMAN says two measure each driver, four listen to the room, and two pick up your voice, with ADI Pure Voice processing for calls.

Both have Ambient Pass-Through and a wear sensor. On the S2, the Quick Action button switches between noise cancelling off, pass-through and on, and it can call up your phone’s voice assistant, as a button on the original can.

Same drivers, new parts around them

Both use two 40mm dynamic full-range carbon drivers, angled for stereo imaging. HARMAN says the S2 redesigns the chassis, voice coil, suspension and magnet, and adds a dedicated amplifier and digital-to-analog converter. For the original, Bowers & Wilkins quotes distortion under 0.1 percent at 1 kilohertz and 10 milliwatts, a figure it doesn’t repeat for the S2. It doesn’t give frequency response, impedance or sensitivity for either pair.

The Music app handles the equalizer, noise-cancelling modes and battery level on both, and the original’s launch named Deezer, Qobuz and TIDAL inside it. On the S2 the app adds a five-band equalizer, TrueSound, which bypasses the equalizer for Bowers & Wilkins’ own tuning, and a setting for how sensitive the wear sensor is.

Wired listening over USB-C

On both, USB-C is the charging port and a digital audio input. For the S2, Bowers & Wilkins describes true 24-bit USB-C audio, and its Japanese site gives USB audio up to 96 kilohertz and 24-bit. HARMAN also points to a 3.5 mm analog path and high-resolution USB-C listening from the latest iPhones.

The original comes with a 1.2-meter USB-C to 3.5 mm cable and a 1.2-meter USB-C cable. The S2 again has a 1.2-meter USB-C to 3.5 mm cable, plus a USB-C to USB-C cable.

Battery, case and weight

Bowers & Wilkins rates both for 30 hours. HARMAN ties the S2’s figure to full noise cancelling, and its manual says up to 30 hours of wireless streaming with noise cancelling on at average volume. Fifteen minutes on USB-C gives about 7 hours on either, and Bowers & Wilkins gives a full-charge time, 2 hours, only for the original.

The S2 travels lighter in two ways. It weighs 0.31 kg without its case against 320 grams for the original, and its carry case measures 177 × 60 × 234 mm against 189 × 63 × 233 mm. Neither has a water or sweat rating, and leather earcups aren’t sweat-proofing.

The original came in Black Leather, Tan and Grey Leather, Royal Burgundy Leather and Dark Forest in the US. The S2 launched in Onyx Black and Warm Stone, and the US site later added Midnight Blue and Pearl Blue.

Price

The original Px8 launched at $699, and on 19 September 2026 Bowers & Wilkins listed it at $749 in the US. The Px8 S2 launched at $799, £629 or €729, and the US site has also shown it at $749 on sale. With the two that close, check Bowers & Wilkins on the day, and note the date of any price you compare.