I think others have reported the same issue. Not sure about why this can happen with some but many others have also reported the opposite: that theirs have been tight and that they didn’t experience any wobbliness.

I have got two pairs and fortunately both seem fine.

Just got an H95 and also seems like I might have some issue with the volume dial. Are both the ANC & volume dials supposed to feel the same? Because my ANC dial feels quite smooth whereas the volume dial is quite stiff and I noticed my volume jumps at rather unpredictable intervals. Like it doesn’t take much movement to get the volume to go up by 1/3rd but going down requires more. And sometimes it makes sudden jumps in how much the volume changes. So I’m wondering if I should do an exchange… but I’m getting a little bored going down to my B&O showroom even though it’s only 30 minutes away (I’ve been down a fair bit in January to deal with issues with my Balance).

Also there’s a slight cosmetic defect on the headband (a tiny 1mm dark red dot on the leather part of the headband).

Thoughts? Should I just go for a 1-to-1 exchange since it’s new? I swear my dealer is going to start hating me lol and I really try not to be too difficult of a customer to deal with but B&O really needs to step up their QC. Even my new marble Balance came with a very slight chip on the marble but I’m just so done dealing with issues when I just want to listen to music.

Hi Anna, I think the dials on the H95 on both sides should be equally stiff/smooth at least when the headphone is new. Not sure if I have been too aware of volume jumps or how exactly mine compare to yours, but sometimes I wonder if there is a slight lag in the software reacting. Maybe it’s a Bluetooth thing? Maybe it is the fact that iPhone starts to be overloaded with apps etc. so that it needs a second or two to react, or if it really is a mechanical issue. Your dealer should be able to compare to what is expected. The leather headband is another thing. How big is the problem? How visible? While over time leather - as you know - is expected to wear, the headband is less rubbed against anything and at least it should be of an expected quality when new. Any picture you may have?

The same applies to the marble. I kind of think that a tiny chip could be a part of its natural charm. How much does it bother you, especially if you put aside what your dealer thinks of you? :) Don’t forget that it is not your fault if B&O hasn’t done their job, and your dealer is the one that chose to be in a customer-facing role. A part of his job is to deal with issues. You can always explain you don’t mean to be difficult. Picture of the marble too? :)

The software lag is normal yeah that’s just Bluetooth being Bluetooth lol. But like I said sometimes I can move the dial a tiny bit and the volume jumps from 50% to 90%… but the volume knob is definitely significantly stiffer than the ANC one and how much the volume goes up or down depends on the physical position of the knob itself. So there’s definitely some inconsistency here.

With regards to the spot on the headband, it’s just a 1mm wide dark red dot… which kinda stands out against my headband since my H95 is also the Gold Tone finish. It’s kinda weird. It could’ve been some ink finish that got left as part of the leather manufacturing or cutting? I don’t know.

I can deal with the marble on my Balance, it’s just annoying on a product this price.

I think the combination of the dial stiffness and the quality issue with the headband could be reason to drop by your dealer. Just ignore his gaze when he realizes «oh no, it’s you again…» ;).

Also take a picture of the marble and show him on your phone, just ask if that could be repaired since it came like that on arrival.

Of course the choice is up to you. At least with the H95 others have also complained about the dials, so it is not unique I suppose.

Yeah I think I’ll get them exchanged. Sigh. My Bose QC35 II’s came perfect — and I owned them twice — at 1/4 the price so B&O can damn well QC their crap properly. These are my first B&O headphones so I’m definitely a little miffed here. The volume dial is stiff to the point where it’s very hard for me to adjust the volume with just one finger, I need to grip it firmly with both my index finger and thumb to rotate it.

This plus all the price increases is making justifying this brand increasingly difficult moving forward. As it stands I doubt I’ll ever get a BeoLab ever again, the risk is just too high, and at that price I expect perfection and based on posts I’ve been seeing here many aren’t getting it.

Heck even with the average BeoSound price these days they too should be perfect.

I really hate to come across as someone who comes here just to “bash” B&O but the fact is I’ve never ever had issues with any other audio brand and I’ve owned some rather costly stuff from ELAC, Bel Canto, Musical Fidelity, and have never ever had a single problem from cosmetics to technical functionality. Even my two Bose headphones served me flawlessly from day one.

I’ll definitely take a picture of the marble just to go “I’m already giving you guys a chance on this one.” Joke.

I understand your point and agree that it is not good enough, especially considering the price point and what competitors have been able to deliver. This is where customer service is usually thrown into the discussion :). I think not only most would agree but I think B&O is also aware that they need to fix certain things. The trouble is that there is no quick solution to everything but I’m sure they are working on «it». Employing more software developers, making Mozart products updated with Beolink multiroom are good examples. I’m in IT and know therefore how time-consuming it can be to implement a new tool and a more efficient process, so their customer care is not changed overnight. From our perspective as customers we demand a cure to all our problems right now, for good reasons. But I try to be patient with B&O since I like the brand to the extent that I wouldn’t consider any other brand. I think they have a lot of talent in-house and under their new leadership I think things are going in the right direction. However, when I consider quality control, apparently their have lately been more issues with the dials on the H95 and the Halo more than they can afford or feel comfortable with. They could have earned that money instead of replacing an item with another one. I have been fortunate and everything I’ve owned so far have been incredibly well built, including the many headphones I’ve had and the two pairs of H95s. The only exception has been the E8 series of earphones that kept dying on me but later I found that I should charge them more often too. Since then I haven’t had the same issue with those or my EQ. But going back to the H95, I hope it is not the case that later batches have had a worse quality. I do hear many complain about the dials so the issue does exist. Not sure if this is the majority or a loud minority. I’m still considering a third pair of H95s, so I will find out.

Got my H95’s replaced, though it did take a bit of talking. Ultimately they replaced it because of the cosmetic defect and not because of the wacko volume rings (they were adamant that they’d loosen up over time but I kinda didn’t buy into it given that my ANC dial was fine).

The new ones also came with a pretty big stain on the mesh inside one of the ear cups, it was about 2cm high and 1cm wide. Mercifully I managed to wipe it off with some mild makeup remover mixed with water, heck knows what it was. Apart from this though the new dials are MUUUCH better, both the ANC and volume dials are butter smooth. I also noticed that this new pair is a lot comfier (they gave me the absolute newest stock they had and indeed the serial number is a fair bit higher on my new H95); the clamping force on my original H95 was barely tolerable.

B&O seriously needs to fix their bloody QC. Not only did both of my H95’s come stained (doesn’t matter that I managed to remove the one on the replacement) there’s a staggering difference in the comfort of the headphones and the feel of the dials.

This makes it three B&O products in a row for me with cosmetic issues. Where exactly are the yearly 10%-20% price increases going??? Not only are more of their products made in China, quality control is for all intents and purposes 100% out of the window. My original BeoSound 1 & 2 are both “Made In Czech Republic” but I’ve seen that the news one are now “Made In China,” as with my Balance and H95. At the end of the day I try not to care where stuff is made but in this instance it’s clear quality is being compromised and I’m paying the price.

I have also had and again have some issue with my H95. They sound great....but that's about the only positive thing I can say about them. I have given up trying to get things sorted.

Glad to read, that you got yours exchanged. The volume problem you had is definitely not acceptable.