Westone 3 impressions?

[MaloS]

For example, I think that the percussions, particularly snare drum and cymbals sound very muted on the W3 compared to most of the headphones I've heard and owned. What do you guys who own the Westone 3 think about that?

I don't think that they are so much muted, they are loud and present - there is not enough snap. I get this similar issue also with reproduction of electric guitars - at first look the instrument is all there, but there are high frequency characteristics of tube distortion that just didn't make it.

I am not sure if there really are any issues in the mid-band of this headphone, or things come down to it not having enough extension in the treble response.

[ZephyrSapphire]

No offense taken, sometimes I think about things that make sense in French, but the meaning is lost when I type it in English.

Also, I realize my opinion may come as overly negative in this whole Westone 3 debate, but I'm not trying to go against the grain, I'm just stating what I hear.

For example, I think that the percussions, particularly snare drum and cymbals sound very muted on the W3 compared to most of the headphones I've heard and owned. What do you guys who own the Westone 3 think about that?

Agreed but I would think there's less extension/decay/whateveritismissingattheend. That's one of the elements which makes the Westone 3's musical I suppose. But of course it's a double edged sword there. Musical but less detail or enjoyable and less fatiguing. Pick your poison/excuse. Lol.

[deepak]

What bugs me most about this place is that enthusiasm seems to be squashed like a bug before it can get out of hand. We should try to find a middle ground.

This is just my opinion- but when enthusiasm gets out of hand it breeds irrationality. Which is why myself (and I am guessing others?) prefer it over here.

[MaloS]

This is just my opinion- but when enthusiasm gets out of hand it breeds irrationality. Which is why myself (and I am guessing others?) prefer it over here.

Apathy has its own issues.

[Dusty Chalk]

well yeah, they're headphones.

[deepak]

Apathy has its own issues.

I didn't say anything about being apathetic.

[MaloS]

I didn't say anything about being apathetic.

Neither did you think about it.

[deepak]

Neither did you think about it.

How can you be so sure

[Fungi]

Apathy has its own issues.

Head-Case is apathetic?

[deepak]

Head-Case is apathetic?

Maybe apathetic to under performing gear. Not a bad thing to me.

[Dusty Chalk]

Head-Case is apathetic?

I guess. Who cares?

http://tinyurl.com/6ynwhc

[Torpedo]

This is just my opinion- but when enthusiasm gets out of hand it breeds irrationality. Which is why myself (and I am guessing others?) prefer it over here.

Yep, I always like reading comments which include a good deal of objectivity. It's not that I like the moronic newbie review dissecting sound in parts and trying to make statements of individual performance aspects, but clever observations of how objective pros and cons manage to produce a result, are the most informative.

I tend not to believe a word when a review is completely raving, nor when it declares as pure crap something that for its maker, building quality and design objectives (if any) should have some good points in the worst case.

[catscratch]

Ugh, OK. I'm not going to enjoy this. But, in the last two days or so, my opinion of the W3 has gone downhill in a big way.

This headphone messes up the mids. That's unforgivable for me, especially in a headphone that has a dedicated midrange driver. The UM2 has better mids than this, and it managed it with two drivers! The mids are recessed (I think GPH was right all along on this one and I was too lenient), there isn't enough clarity, and the tone is wrong. Also, while on the Kenwood the treble is in control, on the iAudio 7 the treble is spiky and sibilant, with a whistly quality. Really really not cool, considering that the vast majority of mp3 players out there are voiced like the IA7 and not like the Kenwood, which has a very atypical sound for an mp3 player, and is warm, forward in the midrange, with delicate highs and a linear bass. Most mp3 players boost midbass and lower treble - well guess what, the W3 boosts upper bass and lower treble, and together it's not a good combination. You get a very U-shaped EQ with mids that are basically AWOL and sound like they're coming out of a speaker with a blanket draped over it. Also, the sound is way too laid-back, and isn't engaging in the same way that both the UM2 and ES2 can be.

Good points - well HeadphoneAddict mentioned something about Blutarsky preferring the bass on the W3 over the ES2. Well, I wouldn't go that far, but the bass on the W3 is pretty damn good. Punchier and more full-bodied than the E500 and definitely more controlled than the UM2. The soundstage is pretty well done for an IEM, and while there isn't the same sense of imaging sharpness that you get with the ER-4S or ES2, it's still quite good.

Everything else though... isn't.

These will be for sale soon. Maybe a week or so. In the meanwhile, there will be a negative review on HF, which I won't enjoy writing at all.

Maybe I had my sights set too high, and was hoping that it would be a good headphone, but as it stands, it's just another IEM. Not bad compared to consumer crap, but still very far from the truth. I think on the whole I like the UM2 more because it doesn't mess up the mids. I won't even bring the ES2 into this, since the ES2 just plain sounds like a good high-end headphone. The biggest difference is in the mids, which are crystal clear on the ES2 (well, comparatively speaking) and are tonally natural, and everywhere else there are also subtle, but noticeable improvements which all add up into a very big difference in the overall listening experience. The bass is more linear, the treble is more refined, there is more detail, and everything is much more forward and engaging. At first listen after swapping you think "hey... the mids are back" but soon you're pulled into the music in a way that only good headphones can manage, while the W3's faults repel you from getting lost in the music - just like every other universal-fit IEM does.

We'll see how my opinion develops throughout the week.

[Torpedo]

Catscratch, have you tried the W3 from a good CD/DAC source and amp? Your comment leaves to me some questions about being the problem on the Cowon more than on the own phones. It could be that the phones are just too revealing to the source as to be used on a "regular portable rig" basis.

[HeadphoneAddict]

I think his Westone 3 might be broken because the description sounds so unlike mine. I hate recessed or muffled mids, causing me to sell two pair of standard Darths (muffled/recessed) and Proline 2500 (recessed). Maybe it is the fit or shape of his ear canals.

And source does make a difference With my 2g nano they are not so impressive, but 3G nano and iPhone 3G and iMod or Macbook with Pico are each progressively better, till they simply sound stunning.

[justin]

I think his Westone 3 might be broken because the description sounds so unlike mine.

I think that's the most likely explanation

[GPH]

I think his Westone 3 might be broken because the description sounds so unlike mine.

If catscratch's pair is broken, mine is too, because I hear pretty much the same things than he does. And I really doubt they are broken, because it would sound much more bad than this. As I said and from what I understand catscratch thinks the same thing, the overall sound is pleasant and enjoyable, but the midrange is just not on the same level as the best headphones, let alone speakers. Maybe his source is messed up, I don't know about that, but personally I've tried the W3 straight from the iPod Touch and out of the Cambridge 840A headphone out and the recessed midrange was apparent on both.

[NotoriousBIG_PJ]

I think that's the most likely explanation

HELLS YEAH!

Biggie.

[MaloS]

I think his Westone 3 might be broken because the description sounds so unlike mine. I hate recessed or muffled mids, causing me to sell two pair of standard Darths (muffled/recessed) and Proline 2500 (recessed). Maybe it is the fit or shape of his ear canals.

Dang, mine must be broken too (. Shocks.

[HeadphoneAddict]

Well it's either a high 10% failure rate of the phones or tip selection, or I and many others have super bat-hearing and can hear what you are missing.

[grawk]

or you have different ideas of what's good and what's not.

[GPH]

Well it's either a high 10% failure rate of the phones or tip selection, or I and many others have super bat-hearing and can hear what you are missing.

Most of the "many others" you are talking about are either excited noobs or people who only have experience with IEMs. On the other hand, catscratch and Malos are two guys with good experience with all types of headphones and that usually write rational and thoughtful reviews. Pick your team.

[HeadphoneAddict]

Most of the "many others" you are talking about are either excited noobs or people who only have experience with IEMs. On the other hand, catscratch and Malos are two guys with good experience with all types of headphones and that usually write rational and thoughtful reviews. Pick your team.

You have 3 criteria listed

1. excited noobs or people who only have experience with IEMs

2. good experience with all types of headphones

3. usually write rational and thoughtful reviews

You have implied previously that I don't meet criterium #3 which I don't agree with, since if you simply ignore the title of my big review (which I proved how it was meant as a joke) I feel have a very rational and thoughtful review on the Westone 3 and other IEM. I made my journey with IEM very clear.

Even though I meet criterium #2 with a good amount of experience with full size dynamics and electrostatics - by your tying #2 and #3 together you insinuate that I should be put in #1 which is all that remains.

So, you have pissed me off to no end. I have all these F words floating around at the tip of my tongue, and even though head-case members seem to encourage that kind of behavior it doesn't fly with me. So, I'm logging off before I say something that I will regret later.

[Fungi]

[Torpedo]

Common guys, I don't think you all need to make this that personal. I haven't listened to the W3 so far, so I don't have an opinion worth a s*** about them, but I can understand both points of view about their sound. This has happened before with many phones. For some what's balanced and mainly right, it's colored and unbearable for other/s and nobody is right or wrong, is just a matter of personal preference. To me the only truth to know what's balanced and what's not is a response graph properly made, then you can guess how you interpret what you're hearing and say if you like it or not.

I'm sure HA is honest and makes his reviews expressing his opinion as he feels it, and there's nothing wrong with that. Maybe he could be less assertive and could leave more room for doubt, but this could also be said of many other people including myself. Nevertheless I can be in disagreement with many of his opinions, but still I try to respect them, and above all the man writing them.

Call me naive if you want to, but I see no need to start a flame war, and getting too personal, just for how one perceives the sound of a pair of damn phones worth USD300.