Westone 4 = Disappointment - Page 4

I actually thought the W4 midrange was almost too forward for my ears.

I didn't find this problem but on the whole, I found that the sound was just unexceptional.

 

 

You can only get that in the UM Mage.

I heard the Westone 4 at a head-fi meet and was impressed by the resolution and detail, but not by the presentation or musicality of the IEM. I feel like the Westone 4 is that transition between really good universals and mid-to-high-end customs. I actually enjoyed the sound of the SM3 much more than the Westone 4, which I felt was an attempt at a "jack of all trades" type of IEM.

 

I was still impressed by the Westone 4, but it was not my cup of tea. Surprisingly enough I thought the most lacking part of the Westone 4 was its bass output, which I thought was pale in comparison to the detail, speed, and dynamics of my JH16. I also thought the SM3 had a better bass response and midrange than the Westone 4, but was technically not as superior in accuracy, soundstage, and airiness. The Westone 4 was just not emitting a visceral bass response, it was polite and polished and lacked energy in my opinion (I tried it straight out of several DAP's as well as amped with several amps including the Pico Slim, RSA Hornet, RSA Protector, and Stepdance).

Edited by SolidVictory - 9/10/11 at 6:07pm

Well, to my surprise I dig the W4's sound signature and I don't find it boring at all, but I do enjoy the sound signature of the GR07 more. To me (except for the nice deep bass) the TF10 can't touch the W4 overall. And I hear more and better bass in the W4 than I did in the SE535.

Was disappointed with the W4 as well compared with my UM3x when I tested it. The vocals just werent up to par for an IEM of that price. The treble was very good though. The bass was more detailed as well but lacked the impact I was accustomed to on the UM3x. The instrument separation wasnt there as well but the soundstage was great.

you need to amp the w4s otherwise they sound like ****. i remember comparing them to my um1s unamped and they lost, however, they were nearly as great as my es5s when it came to it being amped by my headsix. iems have deeper bass than headphones, just not as realistic as there is no air involved since the isolation has to be there. i probably would not have gotten the es5s if i knew of the w4s. sm3s sound good for rock but tend to falter for all other genres i feel. the vsonics are good iems unamped, dont get significantly better from amping, maybe thats what youd like

cant edit on my phone, forgot to mention that ive heard the er4, triple fi and the jh range as well. thoroughly unimpressed with all except for the er4, tho er4 can only handle stuff thats mainly vocals or classicals, rock makes it sounds utterly rubbish. the triple fis are totally muddy and are not worth buying in my opinion, and the jh 16s are by far the most overrated things ever. jh 13 is good but a bit sensitive and as such wouldn't be feasible for my portable setup. remember all these opinions are just mine, and mine only. if the w4s really sucked so bad for you then maybe you just are looking for another kind of sound i guess

Hmmmm? I must have gotten a defective W4 in a good way. I hear tons of instrument separation and some nice deep weighty bass (not bass monsters but definitely not bass shy). I'm glad I don't hear the W4 like you critics do...

Don't worry, a lot of people think that monster beats are much better than HD800 too.

 

Just got my W4. Have to admit I feel mostly the same about the W4 so far. Having heard the W3, it's clear they are nothing alike, aside from how they look. I was expecting them to sound similar to how people have described them, so not like the W3. They are very "polite" as you put it. I don't currently own much to compare it with, just experience from top tier IEMS going on memory. I think one of the problems with it, if you can call it that, is that it's too good. It's lacking a special charm that makes you fall in love with a pair of IEMS, or even go "wow." When I first put them in I thought, well, this detail is really really good, but it feels like something is missing. They probably have the best detail/claity out of anything I have owned. Maybe they just don't sound very "musical." I'm going to give them some more time, try some different sources, more tips, etc. The IE8's are probably my favorite IEMS I have owned, and obviously they are very far from neutral or perfect. I thought the vocals on the IE8 were seductively smooth, and the sound/headstage was spectacular. They make music sound bigger. I don't get that impression from the W4s.
 

 

 

If you bought from Amazon, chances are damn near 100% that you purchased from an unauthorized dealer (probably crawfords superstore.) I've talked to Westone about their items sold on Amazon, and they could only give me one seller that was in fact authorized. It's very possible you have a b-stock/damaged/defective item. Westone said that's the reason many of their products are so much lower in price than authorized sellers. I purchased some W3's from crawfords superstore (fulfilled by amazon), and they sounded awful. 
 

 

This thread has singlehandedly turned me off of the W4.