[dan2112]

Well my Westone 3's have finally bit the dust with a cracked shell. I have had them re-cabled thinking about a reshell, but might be time to move to something else. I like good old metal, but love good recordings like YES, Floyd, Roger Waters, etc. I don't like speed metal or thrash or hip-hop.

Musical tastes:

• Classic Heavy Metal (Priest, Maiden, etc)
• Some Jazz
• Newer Metal (Whatever I find)
• Classic Rock - Pink Floyd, Beck, YES, etc. The good recordings.

What I liked about the Westone:

• Good isolation for work
• Musical
• Good first "high-end" IEM.

What I didn't like:

• Little harsh in the upper end
• Imaging was a bit lacking
• Bass was a little bloated
• Meh midrange

What I would like to see in replacement:

• Cleaner bottom end with more weight without bloat.
• Imaging and Soundstage - I want to see the instruments.
• Non fatiguing - I need to be able to listen for hours at a time
• Midrange and treble that is clean and not smeared.

Source: HDTracks - Mac, Streaming.
Amp: Ray Samuels - Predator

Budget: I would prefer to stay below $500 - but could stretch it if not super crazy.

IEM Type: Prefer Universal but am open to Custom

Edit: Should mention what IEMS I am considering (but have not heard)

• 64 Ears U4 or U6
• Campfire Audio (not sure which one would be best)
• FLC - 8S (Can be tweaked to liking)

 

[jodgey4]

I can say that the Massdrop Noble X fits the bill, as might some of their other offerings. The 3-driver model of theirs is a very nice v-shaped headphones with the characteristics you describe, though the treble is a bit above average which might be bothersome.

 

[ahmadfaizadnan]

I have westone 30; a slight bump in the bass from westone 3. It was $234 at massdrop but not sure if there's a drop anytime soon.