Bowers and Wilkins Px7 S3 vs S2e: What’s new?

Bowers and Wilkins surprised us this April when it launched its Bowers and Wilkins Px7 S3 headphones less than two years after the 5-star Px7 S2e hit the scene. 

The B&W Px7 S2e were a solid improvement over the original Px7 S2, delivering more expansive, clear and detailed audio and the ability to cancel noise more consistently than their predecessor. The fit was comfortable, the wireless performance strong and the call quality excellent – but can the Px7 S3 improve on any of these areas enough to justify an upgrade? 

Keep reading to discover how the new Bowers and Wilkins Px7 S3 compare to the existing Px7 S2e headphones.

Price 

The Bowers and Wilkins Px7 S3 were announced on April 24th 2025 at a price of $429/£399.

The Bowers and Wilkins Px7 S2e, meanwhile, are $49.60/£150 cheaper, having launched in September 2023 at a price of $399/£379 and currently reduced to $379.40/£249 on Amazon in the US and UK, respectively.  

The Bowers and Wilkins Px7 S3 boast a slimmer design 

Bowers and Wilkins say that a Px7 S3 have an all-new design, though the headphones still look very similar to the Px7 S2e that came before them. 

However, the company says that the headphones are notably slimmer than previous models, with a new headband and redesigned arm mechanism to fit closer to the head. The earpads are built from better memory foam and the headphones should feel more comfortable when listening for extended periods of time. 

The carry case is also smaller and easier to slip into a bag, while both the ear cushions and headband are replaceable by service engineers, which should improve the longevity of the headphones. 

The Bowers and Wilkins Px7 S3 should sound better

The internal components of the Px7 S3 have undergone a redesign, too. 

The headphones are equipped with new 40mm biocellulose drive units with improved chassis, voice coils, suspensions and magnets. In fact, only the cone material is the same as that in the Px7 S2e. According to B&W, this means listeners can expect to experience higher resolution audio with superior dynamics and lower coloration and distortion. 

There’s also a new dedicated headphone amplifier powering these drive units to deliver more scale and energy for a more dynamic and realistic listen. 

Both aptX Adaptive 24/96 and aptX Lossless are also available to optimise wireless transmissions from compatible devices, enabling higher-resolution streaming from supported streaming services. 

The Bowers and Wilkins Px7 S3 bring improved noise cancellation 

Noise cancellation was one area in which the Px7 S2e failed to live up to the competition. While the ANC was very good and an improvement over the Px7 S2, it simply wasn’t up to Bose or Sony’s levels. 

The Px7 S3, meanwhile, feature the most powerful and effective noise cancelling technology Bowers and Wilkins has developed. The headphones feature eight high-performance mics positioned to provide the best possible coverage and improve noise cancelling in loud environments. 

Of course, this is something we’ll need to test ourselves to hear how the headphones compare to both the competition and their predecessor. However, it’s great to hear that they’ve worked to improve Px7 S2e’s biggest weakness. 

The Bowers and Wilkins Px7 S3 will support spatial audio

One feature coming to the Px7 S3 later down the line is spatial audio. According to Bowers and Wilkins, spatial audio and LE Audio will arrive on the headphones later this year, meaning we won’t be able to test these features at launch. 

As these features are rolling out as software updates, it’s possible that they could come to the Px7 S2e. However, Bowers and Wilkins has made no indication that this is the case 

Early verdict

Though visually strikingly similar to the Px7 S2e, the Bowers and Wilkins Px7 S3 have been redesigned from the inside out to improve upon their predecessor. This means they should fit more comfortably, sound better and deliver improved noise cancelling. 

However, you’ll have to wait for our review of the headphones to learn how the two compare in our real-world experience. 

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