I was disappointed with the highs initially, mids OK. Got used tot eh sound signature over a couple of weeks, but switching to Shure olives opened up the top end.
The highs on the UM3Xs aren't as brilliant as on some IEMs (W3s, Triple.Fi 10s, Etymotic 4s). White noise doesn't sound quite as "white." But, compared to some others, the high frequency is more pronounced (IE8, Shure e500c). All in all, I've not had many complaints with the overall sound signature of the UM3X. Give it a few hours of continuous listening and see if you don't enjoy it.
I use the Shure black foam tips as I felt the Comply tips supplied with the UM3X gave them to much high frequency dampening. I had one of the Shure foam tips come off the UM3X sound nozzle in my ear once, so I ensure it is well seated each time before inserting it.
I voted yes - because a number of posts indicate that the crossover used to split the frequencies actually burns in, while the BA driver does not. I haven't heard the IEM so I don't have direct experience as to how this affects the sound though.
Definitely worth running it for a night or two before sending it back IMHO.
BAs simply don't burn in like dynamic drivers do. How it sounds after a few minutes is how it sounds.
However, I strongly feel the stock, short Comply tip is a horrible match with the UM3X. It sucks out a lot of the high end and some midrange even and adds an odd midbass thump. Shure Olive tips are the way to go. Feel free to try out some other options.
Amping helps too, but that's if the source player is really weak. With a really weak source, the bass is very muddy.
I agree with the many posts above about Comply tips being terrible.
I was disappointed with my UM3X when I first had it as well. The Comply tips were simply horrible to use. It makes songs sound too bassy for my liking, and using the Treble Booster EQ setting on my iPod simply makes things too sibilant.
All that changed when I used the Shure olives. You should really experiment with different tips, they do change the sound a lot. It's a shame that Westone includes a plethora of tips with the W3, but not with the UM3X.
I want to say no, but it's something I noticed playing out my laptop phone jack. If there's not enough, the bass can come across muddy and pretty incoherent. Add a small amp, and it snaps back to a coherent, clean bass. It's kind of goofy.
The main issue is with the tip though. It's just that the stock Comply is a bad choice, and I don't know why Westone insists upon pairing it with the earphone. The Shure tip is a big improvement. You will need a fresh pair of Shure tips so the nozzle isn't stretched. They should hold fine then, but yes, the Shure tip is loose, relatively speaking, on the Westone nozzle and you really need a fresh pair to have it stay.
Now the Shure tip may still not give you everything you want from the earphone. Some EQing can futher get you to where you want to be.
The UM3X is one of my favorite earphones in terms of stage, separation, and level of detail. I've bought and sold pairs twice though because of specific personal sound goals of mine, but each time I've owned a pair, it's impressed me. I do feel that they somewhat lack a life-like presentation though, and realism is something I've strive for. Very few pull off realism well.
Originally Posted by fraggerz /img/forum/go_quote.gif I tried fitting shures olives(The ones from my last image s4) but they kept slipping off the um3x
Are you reusing the old olives you took off another IEM? My old olives were quite loose and didn't stay on the UM3X until i ordered brand new olives and don't have that problem anymore.
The Shure Olives do change the way the UM3X sound.
I would like to say there is no burn in. But it did take me a couple listens before I really started loving these. I started by comparing the W3, W2, UM3X and IE8 (which I already had and loved). Didn't take me long to weed out W2. Eventually the IE8 lost ground to the W3 and UM3X... (Yup, the sound stage of the IE8 is amazing. But in comparison, it loses a lot on mids and the distance between instruments seems exaggerated at times.) At first, I could have sworn I was going to keep the W3. Brought a smile, fun to listen, too. Couldn't keep them out. I was satisfied. But that ear at the back of my head knew I was missing something in the UM3X. (Which I still had, but wasn't really interested in.) I started listening to them more, comparing tracks between the W3 and UM3X in all kinds of genres. And I have to say that the UM3X is the most satisfying in every genre. They consistently impress me. And when they don't, its low production quality or one of the rare low bit rate recordings I have. But on well produced, high bit rate stuff, they are amazing!
So burn-in? I really can't say... But with both the UM3X and W3, I found nothing really impressive on first listen (compared to IE8, triple.fi). Particularly the bass seemed out of control. But with more listening, I think both got better... Now, was that the crossover technology burning in? Was it my ears getting accustomed to the sound signature? I can't say. But Westone products seem to go from "meh" to "mmm...interesting" to "yes!yes!yes!" and finally "I'm satisfied" over a 20 hour period...
imho, of course
The UM3X is one of a couple IEMs I've used that is very sensitive to recording quality. The better the recording, the better the sound. The worse the recording, the more crap it will show you.
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