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Showing 1 of 5 conversations about:
Westone B50 IEM
koolpep
929
Mar 26, 2021
I am listening just now with my Westone UmPro50 and assume they are pretty similar in tonality. These are meant to be worn for hours on end, so they have a warm tone, no harsh treble, they can sound a bit muffled at first but give your ears 10 minutes and voila, you find all the detail and toe tapping goodness in them. Also, they are still the most comfortable in ears I have ever owned, they simply disappear in your ears. I paid nearly double the current price for them. Are they worth it? For me absolutely, however since I got them time did not stand still and there is tough competition out there....
jgosroc
8
Mar 27, 2021
koolpepWestone Pro 50s are slightly brighter and punchier in a good way. But honestly, with their mmxs connectors stupid highly breakable stems and the pointless decorative plates that at least now are metal (after breaking on EVERY BUYER) - they should come with a warning. Great sound but Westone haven’t really spent a dime on iem R&D for many, many years and the other smaller manufacturers are killing them in terms of value. (I’ve had several U50 pros (which are excellent - except for the above issues), 2 x W60s and on my 2nd W80s - purely for audiophile Westone relevant context).
(Edited)
koolpep
929
Mar 27, 2021
jgosrocWowza. I still have my first sets of UmPro50 and W60. Had no issues so far. Sorry to hear you had issues.
jgosroc
8
Mar 27, 2021
koolpepi am probably rougher on them. I admit they do disappear in your ears. To be honest I just wish Westone would spend money to make a more robust design. They seem to put every $ into marketing. And now given as manufactured in China, their pricing is just not rational.
zerokdegree
5
Mar 27, 2021
jgosrocCould you elaborate a bit more on other smaller manufacturers that are killing Westones in terms of value? I'm interested in checking them out. Thanks!
Brickcity77
22
Mar 27, 2021
zerokdegreeMost Chi Fi is apparently much better I was just told by someone in one of my FB groups. Even when they are clearing these out like now. $169 on Adorama for the W30 right now...
koolpep
929
Mar 27, 2021
Brickcity77I agree this is technology from a couple of years ago. I would be very careful with chifi comparisons. I have a few in this price range some are amazing some are so so most are tough to deal with in regards to customer support. Anyhow. These will sound nice and enjoyable but might not be the top of the heap anymore.
jgosroc
8
May 21, 2022
zerokdegreeI know it has been months, sorry about that. I would say that, from first principles, you begin by asking what are Westone iems? Plastic encased iems, with thin plastic stems, and packed with generic, BA drivers from Knowles. Are they “tuned for specifically Westone”? Sure, yes, but the larger players can ask that. They do fit into a small shells, and sure the plastic is comfortable, and the sound is nicely tuned. For UMPro50s are legit good iems. Provided the stems don’t come off. The Mangrid Tea and the Moon KXXXs here are better, they have better tech, better made,
based around research & user feedback from the last decade… these are each good things. The Triton is a better sounding iem, (at 1/3 of the price) than even the UMPro50, it is a trade-off, the latter is a bit faster, cleaner, and sharper
sub-bass from memory, but doesn’t have the fullness and depth or
fankly scale of the bass of the former. And they don’t break as easily - important for an iem, because iems are small (which is convenient), but correspondingly delicate. I personally enjoy the slightly rolled off signature of their so-called “consumer” W items also. The W60 is a good sound, I dislike sibilence, which put me off the drivers that first appeared for a high end iem
in that first $999 silver Campfire that
made waves. They did it really
well first, as really BAs were the only driver convig in town for quite a while. Now there are so many Berillium drivere good, and now packed with BAs also in many, now it is just a case of take your pick.
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