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Originally Posted by Jensen /img/forum/go_quote.gif
I have zero favoritism in one company vs another, my main goal is finding the best sound that I can in a universal earphone.
I bought the "new and better" Westone 3 with every intention of having it replace my SE530. To summarize; the Westone just wasn't my cup of tea when it came to sound. I assume this is a preference thing, but me and another guy in my office who happens to own the Image X10's agreed that the Shure engineers really understand what qualities of sound are most important for the enjoyment of music. And the SE530's, while not totally perfect, are an amazing piece of sound reproduction equipment.
In fact we both came to the same exact conclusion after listening to all three headphones. The Shures are all around the best, the X10s we both agree are very good but lack some of the Shure magic, and the Westones can produce high quality sound, but not - and this is important - what we would describe as high quality PLEASING music. It's all about the different sound signatures the different phones are trying for. So the only thing my 2nd foray into high end earphones, the Westones, has done is make me realize how much I appreciate the Shure sound signature.
To answer your question, no, the SE530's are not irrelevant now because of their age, and I don't think they will be until Shure decides to put out a higher end model. The thing is, once you get to this level - the top tier of products is more about what you prefer. You can't really objectively say one is better than the other. ALL of the top level stuff is great. The only way you can decide is by identifying what type of music you mostly listen to and audition everything you can to determine which plays it back the best.
I'd also HIGHLY recommend you do so without pre conceived notions, based on forum reviews, of which is better. Be honest with yourself and let your ears be the deciding factor.
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I also bought (into) the Westones as an upgrade cum replacement for the Shures. I am disappointed with them. The bass is recessed and the high end is not particularly detailed. They are very "warm" sounding, but that's about it. It's no fun listening to Mahler's 2nd symphony if that powerful double bass theme in the first movement sounds so recessed that you can barely hear it running under the violins which aalso sound recessed and undetailed. There is also an issue with note decay which is not well transmitted by these iems. In fact, listening to any of my Mahler recordings is problematical with them as they are instantly transformed to Mahler-lite. About the only bass instrument that seems to have any punch are the tympani, and then again, everything sounds a little out of whack.
I've listened on these phones to an assortment of classical music both compressed (I use ALAC or 320kbps AAC for compression) and uncompressed and I find them not particularly good for the low notes of cellos, the double basses or gongs and tam-tams (their reverberations die out so abruptly on the Westones they almost sound clipped on many recordings) used in late Romantic music. Conversely, because the highs are also not particularly detailed, they don't shine for Mozart and Haydn either. They seem to do an adequate job with certain movie scores, but nothing exceptional. The Shures are not bass heavy either, but they are more neutral so what they do carry has more of a punch and their highs are more detailed as well.
Now, having said this, I also have to consider that I may have a defective set; everything I have read about these phones says that they are bass heavy. The inline volume control accessory they included in the package
was defective (it only transmitted sound to one ear at a time depending on the position of the control dial, and only with a great deal of static). Westone promptly sent me another volume control, but that control while functional is also defective or of extremely poor quality because it buzzes whenever the volume wheel is used, transmits static along the line, and makes the iems sound recessed even at ear-splitting volume.
If my set is defective, then what does that say about Westone's quality control and build? Aside from the issues of the thin cabling that carries ugly grayish white marks that make the cables look as if they had been worn through, or the fact that there were numerous raw, plastic ends wherever the cabling was connected to something that I had to clip; more seriously, I was informed by someone in the sales department that this cabling used by Westone is the "most expensive" cabling available because it transmits less microphonics. Then in the next sentence I was told that it's the same cabling used by Etymotics which we all know transmits excessive microphonics! Why bother to make claims like this at all?
Then there's the matter of the packaging and included accessories. The accessories included in the box (a cheap, soft carrying case that they label misleadingly "deluxe," a wax cleaning tool, a set of different sized ear tips, the previously mentioned inline volume control, and a¼-inch adapter) are pretty standard and nothing to write home about. Frankly, for $399 I expected something packaged at least as sturdily as my less expensive ipod nano as well as a decent case large enough to store the iems without tangling, and the tips and other accessories when not in use, as well as a sturdy hard case for travel. This wasn't too much for Shure and Ultimate Ears to do, so I can't understand why Westone couldn't also do it. (When I bought my UM2s, they came in an otterbox. Certainly that's gone by the wayside!) I dread carrying such a soft case on a jet when I know my handbag will possibly be crushed and mashed in security and baggage check lines. I wouldn't put my glasses in a soft case when traveling, and certainly want something as sturdy for $400 iems. Worse, when taking the iems out of the "deluxe" case, they are unfailingly tangled no matter how carefully I coil the cables.
Sadly, Westone went the cheap and shabby route for packaging and included accessories. It's a pity they didn't carry this a step further and cut the price accordingly.
