Funk-O-Meter
100+ Head-Fier
- Joined
- Dec 1, 2005
- Posts
- 247
- Likes
- 20
After much moaning and carying on because the UM-2's I ordered showed up one day later than I expected (just a joke) I listened to them really carefully for a couple hours and compaired them to everything else I have that makes good sound. Here's what I found:
Build: Built well. No worries about anything happening to them in the next few years. I'm a musician and I expect these to last me years on the road. Two minor complaints, and they are the same everyone says about these IEM's. 1. The distance between the IEM's and the point where the cables join is a few inches too short. I don't find a problem with the over all length of the cable to the plug though as many have found. 2. The little plastic sleeving that slides up and down the upper portion of the cables to hold the L and R cable together when running down the back of your neck looks like it'll last a month or two and tear right off. We'll see. would have been nice to have a more substantial hard plastic ring for this job. Maybe I'm wrong.
Fit: These are the second most comfortable IEM's I've ever put in my ears. the first being the UM-1's I tried and didn't like enough to listen to on stage every night. These are only second because they are physically larger due to the second driver and crossover. They sit far more comfortably than any of the Shure or Future Sonics, or Ety generic IEM's I've worn. Both flanges and the foam tips that come with them are very comfortable. I have no problem wearing them for hours like I did tonight. Even full size cans tend to rub on my ear after about an hour and make things uncomfortable. Not these. And they don't look too obvious either. They sit pretty close to the ear making them great for stage use where I'd rather not advertise my IEM's too much. They're clear too which helps. It also makes them look cool.
Sound: I'd been looking for an IEM that sounded better to me than my full size mid level cans I use in the studio all the time. (some middle of the road JVC cans.) Well they do. They have much more accurate bass and mids. Where the cans were very thumpy in the 50-80hz reagon the UM2's are pretty smooth down there. The upper bass/lower mids are much more present. They are't boomy at all. Although I've heard quicker bass, but the bass is fast or tight enough to not be an issue at all. Mids are pretty nice. MUCH nicer than the cans I've been using in the studio or the IEM's I've been using on stage which are all mids defficeint. This is a problem with %80 or all consumer audio gear in the world in my opinion. Highs are all represented pretty well but a little quieter. Just a bit. I'd say they start to take a dip about 6k and head down a few db. Probably no more than 4db. You can still hear the shinny top, just a little recessed. Much better than the UM-1's I tried or the EM-3's I have been using for the past few years on stage. The main thing I noticed it that the high end is not hyped at all. The cans I was using in the studio are all 8-10khz and 60hz. Real hyped. Now I put them on after using the UM-2's and I can't stand them. And that's what I was hoping I'd find. Over all everything is well represented and nothing is lacking. With an EQ around, I boost some 60hz and some 16khz for air because I'm still a fan of thump and air. But thats not Westone's fault. To date the UM-2 is the best sounding IEM's I've had the pleasure of having stuck in my head.
I also ran a frequency test using a sine wave to determine a. how well I hear these days and b. how well the UM-2's reproduce very high and low frequencies. The results of both were that I could detect 20hz to about 16,500hz. I tested my girlfriend while she was in the room cause whe wanted to know what the hell that racket was and and she tested 25hz to about 15khz. I told her she should clean her ears and try again, although I know plenty of people that can't hear past that anyway. I myself was surprised. last time I tested myself I couldn't hear past 13,500hz. I must have been clogged. HURRAY!.
There is an over all fealing I'm wearing headphones using the UM-2's. Which is fine cause I've rarely gotten that out of body experiance using cans anymore. I do with loudspeaders, but not cans. Strange. Anyway, there was a sense of things not quite being palpable with the UM-2's in. I don't feel compelled to reach out and grab the instruments. (unless I'm really drunk) I don't know quite what is is. I suppose its just the sound stage/imaging characteristics that all IEM's I've heard have. Sitting in fron of my nearfields in my studio while I type this listening to Muddy Waters play slide, I get more of the impression that he's right there in front of me. Not as much with the UM-2's. But almost. I think its a possitional audio thing.
I agree with what others have said about the UM-2's making all background noises obvious. More than any other Phone or speaker I've heard, for some reason you'll hear avery DAC jitter, Every motor noise and every ground buzz no matter how small. Good for me for cleaning up noisy Pro Tools sessions. I chalk it up to them being so sensative.
They RAWK!! I recommend them to everybody needing a great sounding IEM for stage or personal use. I think its the best value IEM's I've heard. Its right at the point of dimishing returns on spending. To get anything better sounding, you'd have to drop another $300. And the leap from the $100 or $150 models is exponential. If your a musician or an audio junkie....buy some. Don't think that the $100 models are gonna make you happy for very long.
Hurray Westone UM-2's. They cost me a chunk, but I'm sure I made the right decission. Especially after all the threads I read here about Futur Sonics owners having to buy new cables and having one side split open just for the fun of it. Though I bet they sound as good.
I'll add more later if I can think of anything.
Build: Built well. No worries about anything happening to them in the next few years. I'm a musician and I expect these to last me years on the road. Two minor complaints, and they are the same everyone says about these IEM's. 1. The distance between the IEM's and the point where the cables join is a few inches too short. I don't find a problem with the over all length of the cable to the plug though as many have found. 2. The little plastic sleeving that slides up and down the upper portion of the cables to hold the L and R cable together when running down the back of your neck looks like it'll last a month or two and tear right off. We'll see. would have been nice to have a more substantial hard plastic ring for this job. Maybe I'm wrong.
Fit: These are the second most comfortable IEM's I've ever put in my ears. the first being the UM-1's I tried and didn't like enough to listen to on stage every night. These are only second because they are physically larger due to the second driver and crossover. They sit far more comfortably than any of the Shure or Future Sonics, or Ety generic IEM's I've worn. Both flanges and the foam tips that come with them are very comfortable. I have no problem wearing them for hours like I did tonight. Even full size cans tend to rub on my ear after about an hour and make things uncomfortable. Not these. And they don't look too obvious either. They sit pretty close to the ear making them great for stage use where I'd rather not advertise my IEM's too much. They're clear too which helps. It also makes them look cool.
Sound: I'd been looking for an IEM that sounded better to me than my full size mid level cans I use in the studio all the time. (some middle of the road JVC cans.) Well they do. They have much more accurate bass and mids. Where the cans were very thumpy in the 50-80hz reagon the UM2's are pretty smooth down there. The upper bass/lower mids are much more present. They are't boomy at all. Although I've heard quicker bass, but the bass is fast or tight enough to not be an issue at all. Mids are pretty nice. MUCH nicer than the cans I've been using in the studio or the IEM's I've been using on stage which are all mids defficeint. This is a problem with %80 or all consumer audio gear in the world in my opinion. Highs are all represented pretty well but a little quieter. Just a bit. I'd say they start to take a dip about 6k and head down a few db. Probably no more than 4db. You can still hear the shinny top, just a little recessed. Much better than the UM-1's I tried or the EM-3's I have been using for the past few years on stage. The main thing I noticed it that the high end is not hyped at all. The cans I was using in the studio are all 8-10khz and 60hz. Real hyped. Now I put them on after using the UM-2's and I can't stand them. And that's what I was hoping I'd find. Over all everything is well represented and nothing is lacking. With an EQ around, I boost some 60hz and some 16khz for air because I'm still a fan of thump and air. But thats not Westone's fault. To date the UM-2 is the best sounding IEM's I've had the pleasure of having stuck in my head.
I also ran a frequency test using a sine wave to determine a. how well I hear these days and b. how well the UM-2's reproduce very high and low frequencies. The results of both were that I could detect 20hz to about 16,500hz. I tested my girlfriend while she was in the room cause whe wanted to know what the hell that racket was and and she tested 25hz to about 15khz. I told her she should clean her ears and try again, although I know plenty of people that can't hear past that anyway. I myself was surprised. last time I tested myself I couldn't hear past 13,500hz. I must have been clogged. HURRAY!.
There is an over all fealing I'm wearing headphones using the UM-2's. Which is fine cause I've rarely gotten that out of body experiance using cans anymore. I do with loudspeaders, but not cans. Strange. Anyway, there was a sense of things not quite being palpable with the UM-2's in. I don't feel compelled to reach out and grab the instruments. (unless I'm really drunk) I don't know quite what is is. I suppose its just the sound stage/imaging characteristics that all IEM's I've heard have. Sitting in fron of my nearfields in my studio while I type this listening to Muddy Waters play slide, I get more of the impression that he's right there in front of me. Not as much with the UM-2's. But almost. I think its a possitional audio thing.
I agree with what others have said about the UM-2's making all background noises obvious. More than any other Phone or speaker I've heard, for some reason you'll hear avery DAC jitter, Every motor noise and every ground buzz no matter how small. Good for me for cleaning up noisy Pro Tools sessions. I chalk it up to them being so sensative.
They RAWK!! I recommend them to everybody needing a great sounding IEM for stage or personal use. I think its the best value IEM's I've heard. Its right at the point of dimishing returns on spending. To get anything better sounding, you'd have to drop another $300. And the leap from the $100 or $150 models is exponential. If your a musician or an audio junkie....buy some. Don't think that the $100 models are gonna make you happy for very long.
Hurray Westone UM-2's. They cost me a chunk, but I'm sure I made the right decission. Especially after all the threads I read here about Futur Sonics owners having to buy new cables and having one side split open just for the fun of it. Though I bet they sound as good.
I'll add more later if I can think of anything.
