[patricklph]

Recently I lost my westone 4R...unfortunately and don't ask me how, so now I am looking for a new IEM
My budget is $400 tops (I got the old westone for 130) so W4R is definitely not in consideration.  
I am now looking at either westone um pro 30 (or w30?) or Sennheiser IE 80.  
I have had great experiences with Westone, absolutely love their fit and isolation, never tried Sennheiser IE 80 tho, but I heard its sound stage is very good.  
Their price is around the same..anyone as any suggestions on helping me choose?
 
I usually listen to basically everything, although not much of metal, more of pop/jazz/rock/classical
 
Thanks guys!

 

[YTKNMonvin]

eh,i'm not sure what i need to say.but i think i could give you some choices about ie80. i was looking for w4r to be  my last in-ear headphone,but i was fail,because it was stop producing and in the ebay,that price is unacceptable. so, i choose the ie80 as a substite.
 
ok, back to the topic
 
firstly,if you are a person who really care about the voice quality,please stop and pick out it from your basket.because you won't think it worth that price.
if not, we can going on.
 
it's a absolutely exllent classical in-ear headphone,having a large sound field(of course it cannot compare with some headphone) and instrument location.and also got a significant treble and bass(it's tunable)but - - a great shame,it didnot got a suitable mids,it's quite ordinary.you can think it like a muscularman who have no suitable pens- -the bgm could be cover the voice in many cases.
 
the last thing,in german amazon,it's just cost around 196eur(include postage),but the people in the forum seem donot know that well...

 

[patricklph]

Oh wow..it is very cheap in the german amazon, but it takes about 6 weeks minimum to ship it.  How about comfort wise? Anyone has both pair and could tell me if IE 80 is as comfortable as Westone's? thanks! It really sucks Vancouver doesn't have many stores to try them on..

 

[YTKNMonvin]

actually i donot think it can be a suitable sub to w4r.
because on the main feedbake of w4r said that it donot have any attractive to buy this EP, but it's quite comfortable.that's it.
 
and i forgot this web is for the US. because i'm in the england. 

 

[smailbz]

Oh dear things must be expensive around your area if you can't find a pair of W4Rs for cheaper than a UM Pro 30. Anyways I'd say that the UM Pro 30 nor the W3 seem like they would exactly "replace" the 4Rs as they're really quite different in terms of sound. Why not give some more information on what traits you'd like most from the W4R to point you in a similar direction?
 
Or if you're bent on Westones I did put up my comparison on the UM Pro 30 vs W4R in the UM Pro Appreciation thread, somewhere around page 18 if I remember correctly.
 
And sorry to hear about losing the W4Rs, that must really be a bummer.

 

[patricklph]

Yeah I was depressed for quite a few days.. No way I can get another chance to buy a westone 4r for 120..and it's such a great earphone. I like the overall balance of the 4R,but I don't really mind trying any new flavors. Regardless um 30 of IE 80,they are both great earphones I'm sure. So I guess I'm just looking for opinions on which is more comfortable to wear and more durable. And maybe some heads up about the type of sound coming from them.

 

[smailbz]

Yeah I was depressed for quite a few days.. No way I can get another chance to buy a westone 4r for 120..and it's such a great earphone. I like the overall balance of the 4R,but I don't really mind trying any new flavors. Regardless um 30 of IE 80,they are both great earphones I'm sure. So I guess I'm just looking for opinions on which is more comfortable to wear and more durable. And maybe some heads up about the type of sound coming from them.

 
Can't speak of the IE 80. But I do like what I get with the UM Pro 30. Main differences between that and the W4R would be:
 
Smaller soundstage (No more concert hall feeling like the W4R, more like you're in the studio with the artist)
A more pronounced midrange, which makes vocals sound more lively.
Stronger bass, not as deep as W4R, but certainly more impact.
Slightly weaker highs than the W4R.
 
You become more involved with the UM Pro 30, there's much more energy coming from the UM Pro 30s than the W4Rs. More fun to listen, despite the compromises you have to make.
 
Hope you make your decision soon!  

 

[patricklph]

Ya maybe I'll go with the um30,I'm used to the isolation and fit.. And their customer service is awesome

 

[Spyro]

   
Can't speak of the IE 80. But I do like what I get with the UM Pro 30. Main differences between that and the W4R would be:
 
Smaller soundstage (No more concert hall feeling like the W4R, more like you're in the studio with the artist)
A more pronounced midrange, which makes vocals sound more lively.
Stronger bass, not as deep as W4R, but certainly more impact.
Slightly weaker highs than the W4R.
 
You become more involved with the UM Pro 30, there's much more energy coming from the UM Pro 30s than the W4Rs. More fun to listen, despite the compromises you have to make.
 
Hope you make your decision soon!  

This description is accurate but IMHO (and I owned both back to back).  UMPro 30 is CLEARLY a lesser product than W40.
 
W40 adds 20% more bass than W4 but you are getting superior treble and a more balanced sound versus UMPro30.   UMPro 30 is a stage monitor with a very bassy dominance.  If it is about musicality, W40 is the way to go.   The added bass makes it the best improvement between W3 and UM3X.

 

[patricklph]

Thanks Spyro! But as I said I really don't have the budget for a 4R... =(

 

[mochill]

Maybe you can get the fx850 by jvc, or the tenore by zero audio and save alot of money

 

[patricklph]

mm...great now you just opened an entire box of worms..Actually any suggestions to a great earphone at around 350 (although um 30 is already 400) would be great! Its such a shame Vancouver doesn't really have any place to try earphones on. 
 
However, I do want it to be comfortable to wear, definitely not sticking out of my ear (aka I can lie on my ear and still feel comfortable), durable, removable cable..(in case I break my later..had that experience before) and good isolation.  

 

[uelover]

mm...great now you just opened an entire box of worms..Actually any suggestions to a great earphone at around 350 (although um 30 is already 400) would be great! Its such a shame Vancouver doesn't really have any place to try earphones on. 

However, I do want it to be comfortable to wear, definitely not sticking out of my ear (aka I can lie on my ear and still feel comfortable), durable, removable cable..(in case I break my later..had that experience before) and good isolation.  

You won't be disappointed with the um pro 30. It's one of my top three favorite universal iem around. The w40 didn't make it to the list.

 

[yilun]

Recently I lost my westone 4R...unfortunately and don't ask me how, so now I am looking for a new IEM
My budget is $400 tops (I got the old westone for 130) so W4R is definitely not in consideration.  
I am now looking at either westone um pro 30 (or w30?) or Sennheiser IE 80.  
I have had great experiences with Westone, absolutely love their fit and isolation, never tried Sennheiser IE 80 tho, but I heard its sound stage is very good.  
Their price is around the same..anyone as any suggestions on helping me choose?

I usually listen to basically everything, although not much of metal, more of pop/jazz/rock/classical

Thanks guys!

Why not going for w40. I heard that the sound of w40 was just identical to w4r..

 

[defguy]

Yeah I was depressed for quite a few days.. No way I can get another chance to buy a westone 4r for 120..and it's such a great earphone. I like the overall balance of the 4R,but I don't really mind trying any new flavors. Regardless um 30 of IE 80,they are both great earphones I'm sure. So I guess I'm just looking for opinions on which is more comfortable to wear and more durable. And maybe some heads up about the type of sound coming from them.

Patrick, I got my w40's at Headphonebar in Vancouver

  mm...great now you just opened an entire box of worms..Actually any suggestions to a great earphone at around 350 (although um 30 is already 400) would be great! Its such a shame Vancouver doesn't really have any place to try earphones on. 
 
However, I do want it to be comfortable to wear, definitely not sticking out of my ear (aka I can lie on my ear and still feel comfortable), durable, removable cable..(in case I break my later..had that experience before) and good isolation.  

  Hi Patrick, if by Vancouver, you mean Vancouver, BC, you most definitely have somewhere to try ear phones. Headphone Bar is local and has lots of different headphone to try. I got my W40's there......and my AKG's.....etc