(NOTE: I just reread this and it’s really as much about the UM-56’s as it is the Westone 3’s…also, my observations/impressions are based on using a Practical Devices Xm5 and iPhone 3g and lastest generation iPod Classic. And one very important caveat: I don’t know nearly as much about this stuff as you guys do. All I know is what I know, so… here goes…)
We all know that tip selection makes a HUGE difference in the sound you get with the Westone 3’s, right? Well I was making myself crazy swapping out tips, finding the “right ones”, only to discover some flaw and moving on to another.
Then I decided, ok, I’m going to spring for the UM-56’s. Yes, I had already dropped nearly 400 bucks …plus some more cash for an amp (practical devices xm5)… but I had the bug…I was hooked. Besides, how often to get a chance to approach reference quality sound for under a grand (in the speaker/component world, never.).
So I had my molds made. A couple weeks later I got the customs. Excited as hell, I tried to put them in… and tried… and tried. They just didn’t fit… I couldn’t even get them in without pinching and REALLY hurting. So my hearing technician instructed Westone to make them a little smaller… still no luck. So we tried again. Last week I got the third set back. Bingo! Fit like a charm. They can still be a little challenging to put in… but with some practice they’re actually relatively easy.
That said, they are not as comfortable as the gray silicones I had been using… with those tips there were times I literally could not tell I was wearing IEM’s… with the UM56’s I’m usually aware of them. BUT, it’s well worth it.
Simply stated, the customs are the only way to fly. To my ears, the Westone 3’s with UM56’s produce a sound that’s close to perfect. Bottom end is tight… never boomy. Mids are beautiful… as someone earlier said they are no way recessed (not even close)… If anything, they’re more out front then recessed… but I’d say they’re right where they’re intended to be. Highs are crisp, precise, and never overbearing.
Also… I am more sensitive to sibilance then anyone I know. I work in production, and when we’re in the studio I’m constantly picking up on things that other people can’t hear, even after I bring it to their attention. With the gray silicones I heard the sibilance that other people have mentioned. And it was starting to drive me crazy (in fact, that’s probably what pushed me to the UM-56’s). With the customs there is no sibilance. Zero. Zilch. Nada. Again, this is coming from someone who is always asking the engineer to “De-ess” the voice track.
Clarity. This is really what it’s all about. With other IEM’s I’ve used I was always aware of those infamous veils between me and the music… lots of veils. With the Westone 3’s and my UM -56’s there is virtually nothing between me and the music. You can feel the resonance of strings. You can hear the room (particularly in older, more natural recordings). You can see the instruments. In other words, you are there. On some really well recorded albums, the clarity is shocking.
I do, however, have one minor complaint. Soundstage. Perhaps I just don’t have enough experience with IEM’s (and headphones in general)… but I was expecting more. On a vertical plane I rarely hear anything that extends more than a few inches or so beyond my ears. I had read about instruments being 5, 10, even 15 feet out on extreme mixes. Man I just don’t hear it. My sound stage is slightly more than a headstage: about a foot out from my left hear to a foot out from my right ear; and from just below ear level to a foot or so above my head. In all fairness though, all the instruments usually find their own unique spot on the stage (the stage also extends from the rear of my head to a little out front), and the imaging is really clear and three-dimensional…It’s just smaller than I expected.
That aside, these monitors and tips are awesome together. And I believe they’re awesome for any type of music. In fact, I’ve started rediscovering my music collection again. Here’s some of the music I’ve listened to in the last couple of days, all of which has sounded amazing.
Ricki Lee Jones, Pop. An exquisitely produced album. You’re there, in the room with the musicians… much like virtually any Chesky produced album (I was also listening to Bucky Pizzarelli, Swing Live and The Body Acoustic featuring a variety of artists including Randy Brecker).
Like something harder? Put on Led Zeppelin II… Whole Lotta Love will blow your ass away.
Pink Floyd the Wall… haven’t listened to it in a long time. Unbelievable, particularly the whole Trial sequence… wow.
Rolling Stones, Beggars Banquet… Sympathy for the Devil sounds better than I’ve ever heard it.
Some others: Jeff Beck, Blow by Blow. Steeley Dan, Gaucho. Crosby, Stills and Nash, the first album. The Band, the album by the same name, Paul McCartney, Ram…man, I can go on and on. Obviously, the better the recording, the better it will sound. But with these monitors (and tips and amp) I find that just about anything I put on sounds good.
Bottom line: Before I got the custom tips I can’t honestly say I was happy with my Westone 3’s. Since I got them, I’m thrilled. More importantly, I’m starting to move to a place where I’m not constantly evaluating the monitors, but I’m actually able to just sit back and enjoy the music.
And isn’t that what it’s all about in the first place?
