Bowers and Wilkins PI5 Wireless Headphones User Guide
- June 7, 2024
- Bowers and Wilkins
Table of Contents
Bowers and Wilkins PI5 Wireless Headphones
Welcome to Bowers & Wilkins and PI5
Thank you for choosing Bowers & Wilkins. When John Bowers first established
our company, he did so in the belief that imaginative design, innovative
engineering and advanced technology were keys that could unlock the enjoyment
of audio in the home.
PI5 is a high performance in-ear headphone designed to deliver the highest
quality mobile personal audio experience combined with the convenience of
wireless operation and the serenity of noise-cancellation. This manual will
tell you everything you need to know to get the most from your PI5 headphones.
Your PI5 can play music streamed wirelessly from your mobile phone, tablet or
computer via Bluetooth. PI5 can also be used for wireless telephony.
PI5 Real World Listening features include our latest innovations in Adaptive
Noise Cancellation, Ambient Pass-Through and enhanced Wear Sensing
technologies. Our latest generation noise cancellation feature was designed
from the ground up with intelligent environment sensing capabilities,
automatically selecting the appropriate type of noise cancellation best suited
to your surrounding environment, its only goal is to deliver an uncompromised
listening experience. Ambient Pass-Through enables external sounds, such as
conversation or safety announcements, to be heard clearly without any need to
remove the headphones. The Wear Sensing feature enables PI5 to respond
naturally, pausing and resuming the music simply by lifting either earpiece on
or off your ear. These features can be enabled and further customised via the
Bowers & Wilkins Headphone App available for free on iOS and Android devices.
PI5 incorporates a rechargeable battery case. When fully charged, depending on the degree of Bluetooth, Adaptive Noise Cancellation and Ambient Pass- Through use, the battery case can provide up to 20 hours of continuous wireless media streaming with noise cancellation enabled at average playback volume levels.
Getting to know your PI5
Switching Headphones On and Off
Switching On/Off
PI5 does not have a power control, instead the power management is automatic.
Your PI5 earbuds will automatically charge when placed into the charging case,
and will be ready to use when they are removed from the case.
When your earbuds are removed from the charging case, and not used for 5
minutes, they will enter a power saving mode. To exit power saving mode, start
using the earbuds again by connecting your paired device, streaming audio or
placing the earbuds into your ears.
Headphone Controls
Each earbud has a Multi-function button located on the top cap of the earbud,
see Diagram 1. The Multi-function button controls are as follows:
Media Playback:
Function Action
Play or pause Press the Multi-function button once.
Play to next track Press the Multi-function button twice in quick
succession.
Play previous track Press the Multi-function button three times in
quick succession.
Phone call functionality:
Function Action
Answer call Press the Multi-function button once
with incoming call.
End call When incoming call occurs, press the
Multi-function button twice in quick succession.
Decline an incoming call Press the Multi-function button twice in quick
succession with incoming call.
Intelligent Features
Adaptive Noise Cancellation
Noise cancellation is a series of advanced technologies that aids in removing undesired noise from the surrounding environment.
PI5 features our latest innovations in adaptive noise cancellation, this includes intelligent sensing that adapts noise cancellation and tuning best suited to your surrounding environment. As your surroundings change, noise cancellation will auto adapt to complement your new environment.
The noise cancellation features is activated by pressing the left (L) earbud Multi-function button for 1 second, additional 1 second presses cycle through the modes: On, Auto or Off. See Diagram 2 for button location.
Mode Application
On Removes undesired noise from the surrounding
environment.
Auto Intelligently adapts noise cancellation best
suited to your current environment.
Off Turns off the noise cancellation feature.
Voice Assistance
Voice Assistance is activated by pressing the right (R) earbud Multi-function
button for 1 second. See Digram 2 for button location.
Ambient Pass-Through
PI5 features ambient pass-through which lets some external noise from the
surrounding environment, such as safety announcements or conversations, to be
heard without taking the headphones off.
Ambient pass-through can be enabled or disabled through Bowers & Wilkins
headphone App. The level of ambient pass-through, High/Low/Off, can be
adjusted to suite your needs through the App.
Wear Sensors
PI5 incorporate our latest enhanced wear detection sensors in both earbuds. The sensors enable intelligent battery conservation by entering power saving mode when removed from the ears. When worn again, PI5 automatically wakes and connects to the last connected Bluetooth device.
The sensors will also pause audio when the earbuds are removed from your ears.
Playback will auto resume when the earbud is placed back in the ear. Auto
resume has been further optimised so it is ready only when you are.
Wear sensor can be turned off from the Bowers & Wilkins Headphone App.
Note : Take special care when wearing your earphones, hair or accessories trapped between your ears and the earbuds may interfere with proximity sensing.
Stowing the Earbuds
When not in use, the PI5 earbuds should be stored inside the charging case
where they will be recharged ready for future use.
Battery Charging
PI5 ships with the case and earbud batteries partially charged and may be used
immediately. For best practice we recommend fully charging the earbuds before
first use. Please allow up to 3 hours for full charge.
To charge the PI5 earbuds:
- Place the PI5 earbuds in the charging case.
- Close the charging case lid.
To charge the PI5 charging case:
- Use the supplied USB charging cable and connect the USB plug to a USB wall charger or a powered computer USB socket.
- Then connect the USB-C end to the charging case USB-C socket.
Note: During charging, the case indicator will blink green. When fully charged, the indicator will remain illuminated. The case can be charged with or without the earbuds being housed inside the case.
To charge the PI5 case with a wireless charging station:
- Place the charging case onto a wireless charging station.
- Ensure that the rear of the charging case is on the charging station (with the case indicator facing up).
Note : During charging, the case indicator will blink green. When fully charged, the indicator will remain illuminated.
Status Indicator
The status indicator is located on the front of the case. When the earbuds are placed in the case the LED provides information about the earbuds. When the earbuds are removed from the case the LED provides information on the charging case. See Diagram 3 for LED states.
With the earbuds in the charging case
Illumination Operational state
Green (case lid open) Earbud battery charge > 40%
Yellow (after power on) Earbud battery charge >20%, <40%
Red (after power on) Earbud battery charge <20%
Red (blinking) Earbud factory reset
Red (solid) Hardware reset / system crash
Blue (blinking) Pairing mode enabled
Blue (3 sec solid) Pairing successful
With the earbuds removed from the charging case
Illumination Operational state
Green (case lid open) Battery charging > 40%
Yellow (after power on) Battery charging >20%, <40%
Red (after power on) Battery charging <20%
Red (blinking) Factory reset
Red (solid) Hardware reset / system crash
Bluetooth Connectivity
Pairing
Your PI5 earphones are designed to stream music wirelessly from Bluetooth
audio devices, such as smartphones, tablets, or computers. To do so, the
earphones and device must first be pair ed.
When you receive your PI5 earphones they will be ready to pair to any
Bluetooth audio device.
iOS System / Android System without Google FastPair.
- Download the Bowers & Wilkins Headphone App.
- Open the case lid, the case indicator will flash blue.
- Go to the Bluetooth pairing menu of your device and select the “Bowers & Wilkins PI5” from the device list.
- The case indicator will change to solid blue to indicate pairing is successful.
- Open the Bowers & Wilkins app and add the headphones.
Note: Your earphones will automatically exit Bluetooth pairing mode if no device is paired within 5 minutes. If pairing fails, the indicator will rapid flash blue, please try pairing again.
To pair to a subsequent device. See Diagram 4:
- Open the case lid with the earbuds placed inside the case.
- Press and hold the button inside the case for between 1 and 5 seconds, the case indicator will flash blue.
- Go to the Bluetooth pairing menu of your new device and select the “Bowers & Wilkins PI5” from the device list.
- The case indicator will change to solid blue to indicate pairing is successful.
PI5 can remember up to 4 paired Bluetooth Devices.
Repeat the above steps to pair more devices.
Note: Your earbuds will automatically exit Bluetooth pairing mode if no device is paired within 5 minutes. If pairing fails, the indicator will rapid flash blue, please try pairing again.
Google FastPair (For Android System integrated with GFP Feature)
To add your headphones:
- Place the case no further than 10cm (4 inches) away from Android device (BT enabled) and open the PI5 case lid.
- A GFP (Google FastPair) notification window will pop up showing “Bowers & Wilkins PI5 detected” and request to start the pairing process.
- Press “Notification” button on the window to enable the pairing, successful connection will be shown in GFP window.
- Once paired:
- GFP window will direct you to the Google Play store to download and Install the Bowers & Wilkins App.
- L/R Earbud and case Battery Level can be seen on the GFP window.
Disconnect from a Device
You can quickly disconnect PI5 from a device by putting the earbuds back to the case. Alternatively, you can manage connection in further detail using the Bowers & Wilkins Headphones app under Connections.
App features
The Bowers & Wilkins Headphones app provides extended setup and adjustments to features such as Adaptive Noise Cancellation, Ambient Pass Through, and Wear Sensors. The app also provides further customisations such as voice prompt, level of ambient pass-through, connection management, and headphone software updates. The app is available as a free download on iOS and Android devices.
To add your headphones:
- From your mobile device, download and install the Bowers & Wilkins Headphones app.
- Launch the app, then read and follow the instructions pertaining app notification and permissions.
- After reaching the main screen, simply tap + and following the in-app instructions.
Headphone Software Update
Bowers & Wilkins will occasionally make available software updates that refine
and optimise the performance of your headphones or add new features.
The Bowers & Wilkins Headphones app will notify you when a software update is
available, tap on the notification and follow the in-app instructions.
Wearing Your Headphones
Wearing your headphones correctly will help ensure you get the best possible
experience, see Diagram 5. Like many in-ear earphones, PI5 earbuds are
designed to seal the ear canal in or der to perform optimally. Ear tips come
in three sizes (small,
medium and large). Finding the proper size for your ear is critical to
obtaining a good seal and ensure PI5, and the advanced features such as
Adaptive Noise Cancellation, perform optimally.
- Identify the left and right earbud by finding the L and R identification located on the inner side on each earbud.
- Place the earbuds in your ear and twist the ear bud backwards slightly so that the tips engages comfortably with the opening of the ear canal.
- If the earbud tip feels to large or small try another size ear tip to ensure the best possible fit.
Note: To optimise call quality, please ensure the microphone located underneath the earbud is facing outward, see Diagram 5.
Reset/Troubleshooting
Factory Reset
You can clear the paired devise history and restore all setting to their
defaults.
To factory reset the earbuds, open the charging case with the earbuds placed
inside. Press and hold the button on the inside of the case for 5 seconds and
release. The indicator on the case will tur n red to indicate the reset.
NOTE: In the case of earbuds are not functioning properly, please perform a factory reset to resolve the issue.
Hard Reset
To hard reset the earbuds, open the case with the earbuds placed inside.
Press and hold the button inside the case for 15 seconds until LED indicator
goes off and illuminates in green to indicate completion of hard reset
process.
NOTE: For a serious system crash (solid red LED light), please perform a hard reset.
Caring For Your Earphones
Your earbuds can be cleaned by a damp cloth and gently dabbing until clean. Do not use cleaning detergents, rubbing alcohol, or chemical cleaners/polish, doing so may damage your earbuds
Service / Support
If you need help troubleshooting a specific problem, or simply have a question you would like answer ed, please initially consult the Headphone support section of the Bowers & W ilkins website: www.bowerswilkins.com.
Specifications
Technical Features True Wireless technology
Bluetooth 5.0 with AptX technology
Auto ANC
Wireless and USB-C charging
Fast charging support
Bluetooth Codecs AptX AAC
SBC
Bluetooth Profiles A2DP v1.3.1
AVRCP v1.6.1
HFP v1.7.1
HSP v1.2
BLE GATT (Generic Attribute Profile)
Frequency Band Tx mode: 2402MHz to 2480MHZ, ISM Band,
Rx mode: 2402MHz to 2480MHz, ISM Band
RF output power <10.0 dBm
Drive Units 9.2mm Dynamic Drive
Frequency Range 10Hz to 20kHz
Distortion (THD) <0.3% (1kHz/10mW)
Battery Life Up to 4 hours Bluetooth
Charging 15 minute charging = 2 hrs Bluetooth
Inputs Bluetooth
Weight 7g for earbuds, 47g for charging case
References
Read User Manual Online (PDF format)
Read User Manual Online (PDF format) >>