[michael viscera]

What's up gang. I'm almost ready to take the plunge on a pair of Westone's UM3X. But I have a question about their durability.

How good do this earphones withstand abuse? And by that I mean wearing them to daily public transportation commutes, for jogging, the gym, bus trips, long walks etc..

Believe it or not this can be a deal maker or breaker for me, since the last "quality" earphones (which shall remain nameless

) that I owned did pretty bad on that part.

Cheers.

 

[muxenle]

I don't think durability has so much to do with how you use them(unless they are getting yanked around) but more with how you store them(aka: shoving them in pocket, wrapping around ipod, putting away nicely in a portable hard case, etc).

I wouldn't consider normal every day use abuse

though jogging/gym work might be a problem with sweat, but since I don't own a pair(and I really don't go to the gym...) I can't comment on that.

 

[jc9394]

I use my UM3x daily (gym twice a week) for over half a year and did not have any issues with it. I store it in the case if I don't use it.

 

[Oomingmak]

Quote:

Originally Posted by muxenle /img/forum/go_quote.gif I don't think durability has so much to do with how you use them(unless they are getting yanked around) but more with how you store them(aka: shoving them in pocket, wrapping around ipod, putting away nicely in a portable hard case, etc). I wouldn't consider normal every day use abuse though jogging/gym work might be a problem with sweat, but since I don't own a pair(and I really don't go to the gym...) I can't comment on that.

This is correct. The only thing you need to be really careful with is how you treat the cable, I'm not sure how you'd damage the housing unless you were exceptionally neglectful.

 

[Sladeophile]

Personally, I would get some cheaper phones for gym/jogging. These are made great and should be durable, but I wouldn't want to risk ruining a $300 pair or IEMs on the chance that you drop your MP3 player and the cord gets yanked too hard, or you drop them and accidentally step on them. You never know.

As for everyday use, I don't see durability being a problem with these.

 

[gameboy115]

I sleep with them for over few month, have no problem with that.

For me, it builds like tank

 

[lisztian420]

I got mine 6 months ago when it first came out: ) I take them to the gym quite a lot since I am waiting for my new cable to go into my customs. I am clumsy as hell so I drop my phone and yank the cable all the time. Dropped it on the floor a gazillion times and I can tell you that even Jah Jah will have no problem with these.

Of course if I carry this on,.. I know I will break it someday. Well,... when that day comes I can always send them to UM for reshell

 

[mvw2]

A shorter time user myself. Just from a design standpoint, they're well built. The casing is moderately thick and durable, glued but pinned. The cable is twisted which does allow for some spring, and there are reliefs at every connection. Being unsheathed, you might chance to catch the wire on something, but that's about it. The nozzle might be the only weak point, but even that feels sturdy and well bounded to the enclosure. Really nothing screams fragile to me. You'd really have to do intentiional damage to them to break them.

 

[A_Dying_Wren]

I'll just re-emphasize the point that you NEED to keep them in a case (doesn't have to be rock hard, the westone case is more than sufficient) when you're storing them away. Knots and entangling are really easy with the UM3X and will result in the cable getting unwound.

 

[michael viscera]

Thanks for the replies.

When outside, I'll be using them mostly for bus/train commutes. I never really liked carrying headphone cases while I'm in public transportation, so I just wrap them (carefully) and put them in my pocket when I'm done using them. Guess this won't be a big issue for the cable (also taking into consideration that i put the cable beneath my t-shirts).

Cheers.