Westone 4 Appreciation Thread and Reviews (a.k.a. Westone 4 ?) - Page 221

Quote:

Originally Posted by Doc-holliday 

I am about to pick up a pair of w4 for $250.00 (not the 4r) at a local shop on sale (new) With tax itll be 275.

Is there something i should know? Is there a price drop coming due to the 4r being out or is this as insane of a deal as i think it is?

That's a really nice price. I'd be all over them at that price!

I've recently come back to the W4 in the past couple days with the Shure olive tips, and I must say, they're awesome IEM's. Coming back from the Ultimate Ears UE11 Pro, it's nice to be rid of the crazy amounts of bass it produces. It's nice to just listen to what's really in the recording without exaggerating anything. 

Quote:

Originally Posted by Doc-holliday 

Clearly this isn't some majorly active thread but I just had to post how much I am loving these W4s. Sorry to admit it to any TF10 lovers, they don't hold a candle to the W4. Nearly perfect in every way for my taste. Of course the better balance but the separation is better than expected. Heard things today in songs I never heard before in my TF10s.
Just thought I'd throw that out there. Was a plus that I got a deal but I would gladly pay top dollar if I had to do it again.

Congrats! I managed to get the W4s at nearly the same price as you (~300), but I would pay full price all over again. What tips are you using? With the W4s, because of their short nozzles and sensitivity to tube materials, the sound can be altered quite a bit with tip rolling.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Doc-holliday 


Believe it or not I am using some unused old foam yellow shure tips left over from the e4c's that I had many moons ago. I have found some of the longer comply tips deaden different freq's so tried these and I like the sound right now a lot. They have a solid core tube all the way to the tip of the foam.
I'll prolly be switching different tips over the next few days.

The tubes for the yellow foamies should be similar to those of the Shure Olives. So sound should be comparable as well. For other tips, I highly recommend the Olives, along with the Earsonic biflanges, Sensorcomms, and the Sony Hybrids fitted over the Comply/Olive tubing (My favourites). 

Any thoughts or impressions on sound or how they compare?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Doc-holliday 

Wow. Sounds like there is a whole science in experimenting with the exact right tip for your taste. Looking forward to trying the different options.
I will get around to A/Bing them tonight or tomorrow but I just haven't been able to take them out of my ears to do a real comparison but like I said above the differences in things like separation, balance of sound, bass quality, less harshness, even soundstage just all hit you right away without having to compare. I'll do a fair comparison later.
Some of the criticism that I read before purchase on other threads I am really surprised about at this point. Especially in relation to bass and people saying inferior iems outperform.
Anyway I'll get to that a/b later on. Thanks.

Yes please, I'm keen to know if buying or getting this comply foam Tx-100 (with ear wax guard) http://www.amazon.com/Comply-TX-100-Series-Black-Pairs/dp/B003B337V2/ref=sr_1_7

can be any good or recommended for Westone W4.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Doc-holliday 

Wow. Sounds like there is a whole science in experimenting with the exact right tip for your taste. Looking forward to trying the different options.

I will get around to A/Bing them tonight or tomorrow but I just haven't been able to take them out of my ears to do a real comparison but like I said above the differences in things like separation, balance of sound, bass quality, less harshness, even soundstage just all hit you right away without having to compare. I'll do a fair comparison later.

Some of the criticism that I read before purchase on other threads I am really surprised about at this point. Especially in relation to bass and people saying inferior iems outperform.

Anyway I'll get to that a/b later on. Thanks.

If you can get your hands on some, try the W4's with the Shure olive tips. I've tried a variety of tips and these are my favorite. It's like $15 for a pack of 5 (?), but they last a really long time.

I always seem to flip between either the Olives or the Hybrids. The Olives have a nice, balanced sound, and they isolate the most without being intruding like the tri-flanges. However, they take waaaaay too long to insert, which kind of mitigates the convience factor of IEMs, and they get covered with earwax almost every week, and it's a real bother to wash them. The Hybrids give a little more punch and clarity, and they have easy insertion and can be cleaned with just a wipe. However, they don't isolate enough. So this is what I did this morning (I found out later that someone else had already thought of this, but I came up with it on my own, I swear! ):

This is what I had: 

A pair of Sony Hybrids

A pair of Shure Olives de-cored.

First off, insert the cores into the Hybrids (this is important, the harder material of the tubes make a difference in sound)

Push the Olives through the Hybrid's core

Once you get them through, tuck the silicone sleeves of the Hybrids over the Olives

Once you've done that, it might look a little misshapen. Just wait until the foam expands back into shape.

PROFIT!!!?!!

Another tip (haha, puns), make sure that the tips are spaced slightly away from the base. Gives a deeper insertion, less microphonics/bone conduction, and of course, better sound.

So how do they sound like? Everything is fleshed out and balanced like the Olives, but this time, sub-bass is much more present. The bass in general is also more tactile, has great impact and sounds cleaner and clearer as well. Foams in general can subdue the treble a bit, but the silicone Hybrid covering brings the treble out nicely. But rather than the sound improving, what was most impressive was how well they isolated, and how easy they were to insert. The regular noise-isolating foam Hybrids have much less denser foam than those on the Olives, so not only do they isolate less, they make the bass flabby as well. I have to stress that how PUNCHY and TIGHT the bass is, really surprised me that the W4s could make this sound. The slight veil in the lower mids are lessened to the same amount as with the regular Hybrids, but better than the Olives. 

Quote:

Originally Posted by TwinQY 

I always seem to flip between either the Olives or the Hybrids. The Olives have a nice, balanced sound, and they isolate the most without being intruding like the tri-flanges. However, they take waaaaay too long to insert, which kind of mitigates the convience factor of IEMs, and they get covered with earwax almost every week, and it's a real bother to wash them. The Hybrids give a little more punch and clarity, and they have easy insertion and can be cleaned with just a wipe. However, they don't isolate enough. So this is what I did this morning (I found out later that someone else had already thought of this, but I came up with it on my own, I swear! ):

 

This is what I had: 

           

A pair of Sony Hybrids

 

A pair of Shure Olives de-cored.

 

First off, insert the cores into the Hybrids (this is important, the harder material of the tubes make a difference in sound)

 

     

Push the Olives through the Hybrid's core

 

Once you get them through, tuck the silicone sleeves of the Hybrids over the Olives

 

  

Once you've done that, it might look a little misshapen. Just wait until the foam expands back into shape.

 

PROFIT!!!?!!

 

  

Another tip (haha, puns), make sure that the tips are spaced slightly away from the base. Gives a deeper insertion, less microphonics/bone conduction, and of course, better sound.

 

 

So how do they sound like? Everything is fleshed out and balanced like the Olives, but this time, sub-bass is much more present. The bass in general is also more tactile, has great impact and sounds cleaner and clearer as well. Foams in general can subdue the treble a bit, but the silicone Hybrid covering brings the treble out nicely. But rather than the sound improving, what was most impressive was how well they isolated, and how easy they were to insert. The regular noise-isolating foam Hybrids have much less denser foam than those on the Olives, so not only do they isolate less, they make the bass flabby as well. I have to stress that how PUNCHY and TIGHT the bass is, really surprised me that the W4s could make this sound. The slight veil in the lower mids are lessened to the same amount as with the regular Hybrids, but better than the Olives. 

Hi man, are those earbuds comes as default in Westone packaging ? or which one that you need to buy ?

I'm keen to try it :-)

Quote:

Originally Posted by JohnSantana 

 

Hi man, are those earbuds comes as default in Westone packaging ? or which one that you need to buy ?

I'm keen to try it :-)

I got them default from other IEMs (XBA-3, SE215). You can buy them in packages here: http://www.amazon.com/Shure-PA910M-Replacement-SE530PTH-Earphones/dp/B000NDHIKY/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1349754255&sr=8-1&keywords=shure+olives

 http://www.amazon.com/Sony-EPEX10A-BLK-Replacement-Earbuds/dp/B001RB24UA/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1349754255&sr=8-5&keywords=shure+olives

Or try to get them from a local head-fier individually.

Quote:

Originally Posted by TwinQY 

I got them default from other IEMs (XBA-3, SE215). You can buy them in packages here: http://www.amazon.com/Shure-PA910M-Replacement-SE530PTH-Earphones/dp/B000NDHIKY/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1349754255&sr=8-1&keywords=shure+olives

 http://www.amazon.com/Sony-EPEX10A-BLK-Replacement-Earbuds/dp/B001RB24UA/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1349754255&sr=8-5&keywords=shure+olives

Or try to get them from a local head-fier individually.

Many thanks for the suggestion Twinqy,

I couldn't find the Shure Olive in my earphone bud collections from Westone W4 packaging  :-\ 

I guess I must buy those two from Amazon.

I have JH13, westone es5 and FS MG6PRO, the 3 big flagship custom now and I sold my old W4, but guess what, I bought a brand new W4R. That's how good it is and how much I love it. Yes yes, JH13 has much brighter highs and well-textured bass, yes yes W4 is veiled compare to ES5. But it all doesn't matter, I love how they sound, I love the unaggrassive sound signature that is so hard to find these days. Only W4 (and mg6pro, which is dynamic) can get me fully involved in my music. Not JH13, too clinical, not W5, too energetic. W4r is my favorite IEM now and forever.