Sony WH-1000XM6 vs Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S3: Which Headphones Are Better?

Tested using Methodology v2.0

Updated Feb 04, 2026 08:41 PM

See Sony WH-1000XM6 Review

TypeOver-ear

Noise CancellingYes

EnclosureClosed-Back

Bass Amount Very Emphasized (5 dB)

WirelessYes

TransducerDynamic

Treble Amount Balanced (-1 dB)

MicYes

Sound Signature Warm

TypeOver-ear

Noise CancellingYes

EnclosureClosed-Back

Bass Amount Very Emphasized (7 dB)

WirelessYes

TransducerDynamic

Treble Amount Slightly Underemphasized (-3 dB)

MicYes

Sound Signature Boosted Bass

Recommended in 10 articles:
Headphones
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7

Our Verdict

Sony WH-1000XM6

Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S3

Depending on your priorities, you may choose either the Sony WH-1000XM6 or Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S3. The Sony have much better noise isolation performance, so if silence is your priority, they win out. They also fold down and are a bit lighter. Their app has more features, too. They use LDAC and LE Audio for high-quality streaming, while the Bowers & Wilkins include the aptX codec suite, which includes both aptX Lossless and aptX Low Latency, but compatibility is a bit more limited. They're comfortable to wear, even with glasses, but both headphones have variations in how they sound depending on the fit.

Variants

WH-1000XM6 (Black)
WH-1000XM6 (Midnight Blue)

Px7 S3 (Anthracite Black)
Px7 S3 (Canvas White)

Review

See Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S3 Review

Check Price

Black

WH-1000XM6

Anthracite Black

Px7 S3

Bowers & Wilkins

Midnight Blue

WH-1000XM6

Canvas White

Px7 S3

Platinum Silver

WH-1000XM6

Frost Blue

Px7 S3

Indigo Blue

Px7 S3

Main Differences for

Sports And Fitness

Threshold

0.10

Sports And Fitness

7.4

7.3

Stability

7.0

7.5

Bluetooth Connection

8.8

7.7

Full Comparison

Sports And Fitness

7.4

7.3

Travel

8.5

7.5

Office Work

8.5

7.4

Wireless Gaming (In Development)

6.3

5.9

Wired Gaming (In Development)

7.8

6.9

Audio Reproduction Accuracy

7.8

6.9

Noise Isolation

9.7

8.0

Microphone (In Development)

8.0

7.0

Frequency Response Consistency

6.0

Sound

Sound Profile

Preview Graph

Normalization Frequency

500 Hz

Bass Amount

Very Emphasized (5 dB)

Very Emphasized (7 dB)

Treble Amount

Balanced (-1 dB)

Slightly Underemphasized (-3 dB)

Sound Signature

Warm

Boosted Bass

Show Text

Frequency Response Consistency

6.0

Consistency L

Preview Graph

Consistency R

Preview Graph

Std. Deviation

1.30 dB

1.28 dB

Show Text

Raw Frequency Response

Raw FR L

Preview Graph

Raw FR R

Preview Graph

Bass Profile: Target Compliance

7.8

6.7

Bass Profile: Target Compliance

Preview Graph

RMS Deviation From Target

4.6 dB

7.3 dB

Low-Frequency Extension

20 Hz

Low Bass

4.83 dB

6.16 dB

Mid Bass

4.8 dB

9.36 dB

High Bass

3.95 dB

6.13 dB

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Mid-Range Profile: Target Compliance

8.7

9.1

Mid-Range Profile: Target Compliance

Preview Graph

RMS Deviation From Target

1.74 dB

1.36 dB

Low Mid

2.33 dB

1.54 dB

Mid-Mid

-0.8 dB

0.64 dB

High Mid

-0.11 dB

-0.56 dB

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Treble Profile: Target Compliance

8.6

6.5

Treble Profile: Target Compliance

Preview Graph

RMS Deviation From Target

2.82 dB

4.74 dB

Low Treble

0.03 dB

-4.16 dB

Mid Treble

-2.49 dB

-0.32 dB

High Treble

-1.17 dB

-3.65 dB

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Peaks/Dips

7.3

6.6

Peaks/Dips Graph

Preview Graph

Peaks

1.57 dB

2.02 dB

Dips

1.85 dB

2.77 dB

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Stereo Mismatch

7.0

6.6

Frequency Response Mismatch

Preview Graph

Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S3 Frequency Response Mismatch

Phase Response Mismatch

Preview Graph

Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S3 Phase Response Mismatch

Weighted Amplitude Mismatch

0.59 dB

0.76 dB

Weighted Frequency Response Mismatch

0.99 dB

1.47 dB

Weighted Phase Mismatch

1.6°

1.8°

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Group Delay

8.7

0.0

Group Delay

Preview Graph

Weighted Group Delay

0.6 ms

N/A

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Cumulative Spectral Decay

CSD

Compare High-Res

Compare High-Res

PRTF

6.2

4.5

PRTF

Preview Graph

PRTF Accuracy (RMS Deviation)

4.49 dB

6.1 dB

PRTF Size (Avg.)

6.56 dB

5.81 dB

PRTF Distance

11.62 dB

5.76 dB

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Harmonic Distortion

9.4

9.6

Harmonics Levels

Preview Graph

Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S3 Harmonics Levels

THD Ratio

Preview Graph

WHD @ 94 dB SPL

0.06%

0.03%

WHD @ 104 dB SPL

0.12%

0.08%

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Electrical Aspects

Impedance

Preview Graph

Sensitivity @1kHz-1V

119.5 dB SPL

N/A

Bluetooth Max SPL

104.9 dB

105.1 dB

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Virtual Soundstage

7.3

0.0

Virtual Soundstage

Compare High-Res

Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S3 Virtual Soundstage

Head Modeling

On/Off

Speaker Modeling

On/Off

Room Ambience

Presets

Head Tracking

On/Off

Virtual Surround

360 Reality Audio

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Test Settings

Firmware

2.0.2

1.2.0

Power

Connection

Bluetooth

Codec

SBC, 16-bit, 48kHz

aptX HD, 24-bit, 48kHz

Test Instrument

Audio Precision APx517B

EQ

Off

No EQ

ANC

Tip/Pad

Default

Microphone

Integrated

Show Text

Design

Style

Design Picture 2

Compare High-Res

Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S3 Design Picture 2

Type

Over-ear

Enclosure

Closed-Back

Wireless

Yes

Transducer

Dynamic

Show Text

Comfort

7.5

Comfort Picture

Compare High-Res

Weight

0.56 lbs

0.66 lbs

Clamping Force

0.8 lbs

1 lbs

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Controls

8.1

Controls Picture

Compare High-Res

Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S3 Controls Picture

OS Compatibility

Not OS specific

Ease Of Use

Good

Feedback

Good

Call/Music Control

Yes

Volume Control

Yes

Microphone Control

Mute/Unmute

Channel Mixing

Noise Cancelling Control

On/Off

Talk-Through

On/Off

Additional Controls

Voice Assistant

Bluetooth Sync

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Portability

6.2

Portability Picture

Compare High-Res

Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S3 Portability Picture

L

7.5" (19.0 cm)

8.3" (21.0 cm)

W

6.1" (15.4 cm)

6.4" (16.3 cm)

H

2.0" (5.0 cm)

1.6" (3.9 cm)

Volume

87.63 in³ (1,436.00 cm³)

82.06 in³ (1,344.70 cm³)

Transmitter Required

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Case

8.0

Case Picture

Compare High-Res

Type

Hard case

L

8.3" (21.0 cm)

9.1" (23.1 cm)

W

7.4" (18.9 cm)

6.9" (17.6 cm)

H

2.6" (6.5 cm)

2.2" (5.5 cm)

Volume

157.43 in³ (2,579.85 cm³)

136.44 in³ (2,235.88 cm³)

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Build Quality

8.0

8.5

Build Quality Picture

Compare High-Res

Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S3 Build Quality Picture

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Stability

7.0

7.5

Stability Picture

Compare High-Res

Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S3 Stability Picture

Show Text

Headshots 1

Angled Picture

Compare High-Res

Side Picture

Compare High-Res

Headshots 2

Front Picture

Compare High-Res

Rear Picture

Compare High-Res

Top

Top Picture

Compare High-Res

In The Box

In The Box Picture

Compare High-Res

Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S3 In The Box Picture

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Isolation

Noise Isolation - Full Range

9.7

8.2

Noise Isolation - Full Range Graph

Preview Graph

Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S3 Noise Isolation - Full Range Graph

Noise Cancelling

Yes

Overall Attenuation

-28.40 dB

-21.41 dB

Bass

-20.10 dB

-13.54 dB

Mid

-32.30 dB

-22.82 dB

Treble

-34.19 dB

-29.40 dB

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Noise Isolation - Common Scenarios

9.9

7.8

Noise Isolation - Common Scenarios Graph

Preview Graph

Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S3 Noise Isolation - Common Scenarios Graph

Airplane Noise Attenuation

-24.43 dB

-18.20 dB

Airplane Noise Isolation Audio

Office Noise Attenuation

-24.09 dB

-18.22 dB

Office Noise Isolation Audio

Street Noise Attenuation

-26.88 dB

-20.32 dB

Street Noise Isolation Audio

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Noise Isolation - Voice Handling

Female Voice 1

Male Voice 1

Female Voice 2

Male Voice 2

ANC Wind Handling

ANC Wind Handling Graph

Preview Graph

Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S3 ANC Wind Handling Graph

ANC Wind Noise

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Leakage

8.4

7.6

Leakage

Preview Graph

Leakage Audio

Overall Leakage @ 1ft

31.11 dB

36.28 dB

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Microphone

Microphone Style

Integrated

Yes

In-Line

Boom

Detachable Boom

Mic

Yes

Recording Quality

7.7

7.0

Microphone Frequency Response

Preview Graph

Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S3 Microphone Frequency Response

Recorded Speech

LFE

20 Hz

132.62 Hz

FR Std. Dev.

4.24 dB

3.32 dB

HFE

7,240.77 Hz

7,136.96 Hz

Weighted THD

N/A

Gain

20.34 dB

-6.62 dB

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Noise Handling

8.2

7.0

SpNR

Preview Graph

SpNR

58.59 dB

15.4 dB

Noise Gate

Always On

Speech + Pink Noise Handling

8.0

7.0

Speech + Pink Noise Audio Sample

Speech + Subway Noise Handling

8.5

7.0

Speech + Subway Noise Audio Sample

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Active Features

Battery

9.2

8.5

Battery Type

Rechargable

Continuous Battery Life

31.75 hrs

29.1 hrs

Additional Charges

0.0

Total Battery Life

31.75 hrs

29.1 hrs

Charge Time

1.75 hrs

1.9 hrs

Power-Saving Feature

Auto-Off Timer and Standby Mode

Standby mode

Audio While Charging

Yes

Passive Playback

Yes

Charging Port

USB-C

Show Text

App Support

8.0

7.5

App Picture

Compare High-Res

App Name

Sony Sound Connect

Bowers & Wilkins Music

iOS

Yes

Android

Yes

macOS

Windows

Equalizer

Graphic + Presets

ANC Control

On/Off

Mic Control

Room Effects

Yes

Playback Control

Yes

Button Mapping

Yes

Surround Support

Yes

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Connectivity

Wired Connection

9.8

7.1

Cable Picture

Compare High-Res

Analog Audio

Yes

USB Audio

USB-C

Detachable

Yes

Length

3.94 ft (1.20 m)

Connector

1/8" TRS

USB-C

Latency - Analog

0.4 ms

30.3 ms

Latency - USB

N/A

34.8 ms

Recorded Latency

Recorded Latency Connection

Analog

USB

Show Text

Bluetooth Connection

8.8

7.7

Bluetooth Version

5.3

Multi-Device Pairing

2 Devices

Quick Pair (Android)

Yes

Quick Pair (iOS)

Line Of Sight Range

334.65 ft (102.00 m)

310.04 ft (94.50 m)

Latency - SBC

212 ms

272 ms

Latency - aptX

N/A

263 ms

Latency - aptX Adaptive (High Quality)

N/A

350 ms

Latency - aptX Adaptive (Low Latency)

N/A

86 ms

Latency - LDAC

230 ms

N/A

Recorded Latency

Recorded Latency Codec

LDAC

aptX Adaptive (Low Latency)

AAC Support

Yes

Show Text

Wireless Connection (Dongle)

0.0

Line Of Sight Range

N/A

Latency - Dongle

N/A

Recorded Latency

N/A

PC Compatibility

Analog

Audio Only

Wired USB

Audio + Microphone

Non-BT Wireless

Show Text

PlayStation Compatibility

PS4 Analog

Audio Only

PS4 Wired USB

Audio + Microphone

PS4 Non-BT Wireless

PS5 Analog

Audio Only

PS5 Wired USB

Audio + Microphone

PS5 Non-BT Wireless

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Xbox Compatibility

Xbox One Analog

Audio Only

Xbox One Wired USB

Xbox One Non-BT Wireless

Xbox Series X|S Analog

Audio Only

Xbox Series X|S Wired USB

Xbox Series X|S Non-BT Wireless

Show Text

Base/Dock

0.0

Type

No Base/Dock

USB Input

Line In

Line Out

Optical Input

RCA Input

Dock Charging

Power Supply

No Base/Dock

Check Price

Black

WH-1000XM6

Anthracite Black

Px7 S3

Bowers & Wilkins

Midnight Blue

WH-1000XM6

Canvas White

Px7 S3

Platinum Silver

WH-1000XM6

Frost Blue

Px7 S3

Indigo Blue

Px7 S3