Specifications:
Driver: 2 x Balanced Armature
Impedance: 27 ohms
Frequency response: 20 – 18,000 Hz
Sensitivity: 119 dB
Connector: MMCX
Disclaimer: I am not affiliated to Westone in any way and do not benefit monetarily or in any other form for writing this review. I purchased this in-ear monitor with my own resources and I am simply giving my honest review of the product!
Review by: “Gloryrain” from The Little Audiophile
TLA Score
Physical Attributes
Comfort: 9/10
Durability: 7/10
Ease of Wearing: 8/10
Noise Isolation: 8/10
Microphonics: 8/10
Value for Money: 6/10
Sonic Attributes
Bass: 6/10
Mids: 7/10
Trebles: 5/10
Sound Stage: 6/10
Separation & Imaging: 5/10
Source Matchability: 9/10
The UM PRO 20 (2017 model) is Westone’s newly revised mid-low range dual balanced armature IEM of the same name in the AM PRO x0 series, with the UM PRO 10 below it, and the UM PRO 30 and 50 above. The UM PRO 20 is marketed as a universal fit stage or studio monitor. But does this sub S$500 IEM justify its price tag with its performance? Well… I guess you just have to read on to find out.
THE BOX
Box design
The UM PRO 20 comes in a really simple white rectangular box. Really nothing fancy, and quite honestly, a little underwhelming for an IEM of this price range. The unboxing was easy and the IEM can be easily removed from the holder without the risk of damaging them.
Inside the box, you will receive five sizes of silicon and foam ear tips, a cleaning brush, a plastic hard case (which to be honest is pretty sturdy) and the UM PRO 20 itself.
BUILD AND DESIGN
Housing
Westone’s design language has really matured into the modern, sleek looking IEMs that they make these days. Long gone are the days of the Westone 4r with its somewhat childish and unimpressive looks. The UM PRO 20 sports a transparent plastic faceplate with a transparent grey plastic for its underside which is also the design basis that they use for the AM PRO x0 series of IEMs. The housing feels tough enough to withstand the stresses of daily usage, although honestly, I suspect it may not survive a drop from chest level. The nozzles seem sturdy and are unlikely to break without a considerable force or drop.
Wire
The 3.5 mm jack is very basic. It is an irregular shaped right-angle jack with no strain relief system. Upwards, the UM PRO 20 sports what appears to be a 4-core braided OFC cable which is decently strong and durable and does not tangle easily. The resistance to tensile force seems to be very good too (though we’ll never wanna know what the limits are). The Y-split, however, feels sturdy and sufficiently thicc (thick) and the chin slider glides smoothly along the wire. Smoother than me sliding into people’s DMs lol…
Up Up Upwards, the ear hook is of the memory wire type and the connectors seem more durable than the Westone MMCX connectors of old, which had quite a high product failure rate.
Connector
The MMCX connector on the UM PRO 20’s housing is of the recessed type and is sufficiently anchored to the housing. It appears very durable and will accept any MMCX cables you decide to violate it with.
COMFORT
Throughout my usage of the UM PRO 20, I did not notice any heat build up in my ears. The nozzle’s bore size is of Comply T100 size, which means this nozzle is very thin and does not press against the walls of my inner ear. The stem of the nozzle is also fairly long, as such, it sits deep into the ear canal. It may feel a little awkward to fit at first, but there was no discomfort at all throughout my use.
The UM PRO 20 shares a design very similar to that of the Shure SE215, or Nuforce HEM1 which is well known for its comfort when wearing them for long hours. Well… the UM PRO 20 is equally comfortable as compared to the Shure and the Nuforce mentioned above. The housing sits just perfectly in the outer ear and the nozzle angles are just plainly put – correct.
SOUND QUALITY
I’ll just go straight to it. While the UM PRO 20 seems to hit all the right notes in the design and comfort department, the sound quality on this IEM is really a hit or miss depending on the user’s preference.
The UM PRO 20 carries a slightly warm, slightly dark (in the bass region) sound signature, although it is leaned mostly towards neutrality. The focus is obviously on technicality here, with a hint of musicality in its presentation.
Soundstage is not particularly wide and sounds compressed. There is more depth than width in terms of what little imaging it has. Also, due to the compressed soundstage, instrumental separation and layering are again unimpressive.
Bass
The bass takes on a relaxed presentation and sub-bass extension is only average as it does not go deep, although there is more sub-bass than mid-bass in terms of quantity. Mid-bass is tight, though slightly muddy, but does not sound uncomfortably or unnaturally aggressive. Upper-mids do muddy the lower-mids slightly.
Mids
Thanks to the upper-mids warmth, along with the little musicality that the IEM has, vocals do not sound too flat or unexciting and can still be enjoyable to listen to, although they are not intimate enough for my liking.
Mids carry good body, especially in the lower-mids region where male vocals and guitars sound weighty, though some tracks can put it over as overly thicc. Heh, I did it again… For those who are coming from bright sounding IEMs, the UM PRO 20 would sound veiled in comparison to brighter IEMs such as the Oriolus Forsteni that we previously reviewed.
Treble
Upper-trebles roll off early and leaves us with much to wish for in terms of treble extension. As such, there is zero sibilance and there are no weird peaks in the treble region and the trebles are very very smooth.
Because of the early roll off and very smooth trebles, detail retrieval on the IEM is sub-par.
COMPARISON TO OLD UM PRO 20
=> The old UM PRO 20 had more bass (especially sub-bass), thus, it sounded muddy and boomy in the bass region. Mids were also notable more veiled on the old version.
=> The old model was more technical and flat in the mids and trebles, as compared to the 2017 model.
=> The new model has more treble extension and is better at detail retrieval from the upper mids onwards
PAIRING
Sources
The UM PRO 20 is sufficiently easy to drive from an average smartphone with a headphone jack and AMP-ing is really not needed. It pairs best with V-shaped or bright sources, to give it more musicality.
CONCLUSION
The Westone UM PRO 20 is surely a looker and a comfort(er)? Heck. It’s got a good build and comfort going for it, but the sound signature is probably not preferred by the masses for casual listening. For a stage or studio monitor, yes, it would probably suit that role decently. But for the average listener or audiophile, this IEM lacks the musicality that makes music exciting and engaging. Would I recommend it? Heh… it depends on what you plan to use it for and what sound signature you like… Thanks for reading and keep listening! XD
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