[tuahogary]

 
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because low ends are always an issue with in-ears, IMO amps do the trick. however, fiio e5 does not. i found bass sounded blurry and washed, when amplified with an e5. you should try a better amp, headstage or rsa is recommended...
but if you can afford it, go with W3 and a good amp.

Are you using the W2 as well? I find the E5 to be a surprisingly efficient combo with my W2 despite its ridiculously low price. While it gives the bass more impact and overall sound more body, it's still fast and accurate & I didnt find the extra bass to be overlapping the mids and highs. I think it is because of the W2's amazing ability to separate the different frequencies and allowing them to shine with balance. Trying the IE8 with the E5 however does cause the bass to muddle up the mids a bit. I had briefly tried the ibasso T3 (with a cheap mp3 player unfortunately) and I didnt find it to be much better. Maybe I'll have a go with it again next time, certainly with rsa and headstage as well if I get the chance; but if you can look past the E5 being "too cheap to be considered serious", it does wonders for my W2, maybe less so with other IEMs 

 

[tuahogary]

 
Quote:

  
 
 Make no mistake, I am a huge fan of the W3's.  But, I'm not a fanboy by any means.  They aren't for everyone.  They might be overly warm for some, sibilant for a few, recessed for others and too bassy for the analytical crowd.  For me they just work.  I've never felt the need to EQ them up or down in any area (not a big fan of EQ'ing).  If I had one IEM to pick and live with every day, it would be the W3, at this moment.
 
 
 

Thanks for your insightful opinion Joey, it is very much appreciated 

 I've just read this rather interesting thread (don't know how I missed it the first time) http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread/458399/westone-2-true-fit-iem-appreciation-impressions-thread & one of the members (PCKS) loved the W2 so much, he signed up just to compliment them! He was comparing it to the ES3X 

 which is quite unbelievable and he seems to like it more than the W3. I find it fascinating how so many ppl have different opinions on the same pair of IEMs. I for one find it strange that few ppl use the triflanges which for me are comfortable and very close to how a custom tip will sound like. I'm really interested to try out the W3 from reading posts like yours but I have no chance to. Maybe just one thing I want to ask you, where would you put the bass in the W3? i.e. in the IE8, the drums feel like they're in front of the singer whereas the W2 put the singer in front of the bass which I think is more natural as that is what you'll see on stage. I understand it's less forward than W2 but, does the extra emphasis on bass pushes the mids behind them?
 
oh, and I cant wait for your impressions on the 535, especially against the W2 if you can remember them as well as the W3!
 


Quote:

Hi
 
Know what you mean.  This would be a perfect iem if it had a tad more bass.  Vocals, clarity great just missing a bit of thump. 
 
Also after these most iems seem quite heavy in the ear, they are that light.  Tried Monster turbines and whilst they have the thump the w2's are missing they don't have the quality.
 
Cheers.
 

Cheers David. I agree Westone makes the most comfortable IEMs by a long shot imho. They seem to take their "fit" more seriously whereas others emphasize on style. I find the bass on the W2 very accurate to the recording. From my experience, most rock songs "expect" the listener to amp the bass artificially. for example, I feel a lack of bass listening to Linkin Park but when I switch to acoustic songs from the Swell Season, boom! there's the bass. It's strange to hear that a cello will have more bass impact than a drum set but that's what I get from the W2. True to the recording (but not necessarily always good 

)

 

[JoeyRusso]

Quote:

 
Quote:

  
 
 Make no mistake, I am a huge fan of the W3's.  But, I'm not a fanboy by any means.  They aren't for everyone.  They might be overly warm for some, sibilant for a few, recessed for others and too bassy for the analytical crowd.  For me they just work.  I've never felt the need to EQ them up or down in any area (not a big fan of EQ'ing).  If I had one IEM to pick and live with every day, it would be the W3, at this moment.
 
 
 

Thanks for your insightful opinion Joey, it is very much appreciated 

 I've just read this rather interesting thread (don't know how I missed it the first time) http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread/458399/westone-2-true-fit-iem-appreciation-impressions-thread & one of the members (PCKS) loved the W2 so much, he signed up just to compliment them! He was comparing it to the ES3X 

 which is quite unbelievable and he seems to like it more than the W3. I find it fascinating how so many ppl have different opinions on the same pair of IEMs. I for one find it strange that few ppl use the triflanges which for me are comfortable and very close to how a custom tip will sound like. I'm really interested to try out the W3 from reading posts like yours but I have no chance to. Maybe just one thing I want to ask you, where would you put the bass in the W3? i.e. in the IE8, the drums feel like they're in front of the singer whereas the W2 put the singer in front of the bass which I think is more natural as that is what you'll see on stage. I understand it's less forward than W2 but, does the extra emphasis on bass pushes the mids behind them?
 
oh, and I cant wait for your impressions on the 535, especially against the W2 if you can remember them as well as the W3!

Well, there are many factors that will affect someones opinion of any IEM/Headphone.  We all judge an IEM or headphone to our preferred personal sound signature first and foremost.  One man's neutral is another's warm/cold/bassy/etc. Then there's the obvious.  Everyone is unique, the length and contour of every ear canal is different. Then you have to factor in varying degrees of hearing loss. Add it all up and no two people will ever hear the same IEM the same exact way.  The best you can hope for is a consensus.  The triflanges/custom tips may bypass a contour that "shapes" the sound and causes an unnatural resonance in someone's ear canal.  Personally, I've never been able to use tri-flanges for more then an hour at a time.
 
Ok, back to the W3's vs. W2:
 
The W3's mids are just behind the bass, yet they don't sound that recessed to me. The highs and lows are definitely what you'll notice first. There's no denying that they are V or U shaped.  However, I adjusted almost immediately and noticed that all the detail is still there.  I also noticed that, although the bass is more prominent, it's extremely detailed as well.  The bass line is clearly there and never gets lost behind the mids or bass drum.  The Westone engineers nailed the decay of the bass and highs. They sound more realistic than the 535's to me.  If you're looking for more bass and more fun from your music, then I highly recommend the W3's.  If you're looking for balance or neutrality, look elsewhere.
 
The jump from the W2's to the 535's wasn't as large as one might expect.  The mids of the Shure's are more forward and they  may have slightly more bass quantity but the highs are more realistic with the W2's.  They are more alike than I hoped they would be.  I was expecting more from the Shure's.  They are too polite for me.  The bass can't compare to the W3 and the highs are rolled off compared to either Westone.  The details are there they just don't jump out at you.  Shure took care to make sure they weren't offensive in any one area.  I wouldn't call them boring or flat, they're just missing some life at both ends of the spectrum.
 
 
 
 
 
 

 

[genesis]

Hi,
 
I thought I would chime in and offer my 2 cents. 
 
I presently own a westone 3 and a um3x. I have previously owned the um2 and super.fi pro. I first upgraded from the um2 to the um3x. At first I loved the upgrade and the um3x totally destroyed the um2. But after a few months, I started feeling a bit claustrophobic with the um3x. The sound was just too closed in and I wanted more soundstage. From the description of the op, it seems like soundstage and bass impact are top of the list. 
 
I would recommend that you go with the westone 3. There is no way you could be disappointed. um3x will have the same or mostly smaller soundstage compared to the w2 which would mostly disappoint you. The um3x excel in many genres but the w3 can handle more variety in my opinion. Also since you are used to the w2 sound and already like it, I would say that you should surely go with the w3. They are just so much fun. I really don't want to take them out every time I put them in. The um3x has the tendency of sounding really boring and lifeless with some music. That's what made me opt for the w3. Also the w3 mids are not recessed at all. Take it from a guy who came from the forward mid sounding um3x. The um3x forward mids might really crowd you with some music which also kills the soundstage for me at times. But the w3 mids are at the right distance from the listener to make the sound feel more spacious but not recessed. If you want to hear recessed mids then you should try out the super.fi 5 pro. Now that can drive you crazy. With the w3, you are always at a concert. 
 
Again coming from w2, the w3 would be the best upgrade ever especially since you like the w2 so much. I have also not noticed the mid bass hump or sibilance that many people have mentioned. 

 

[tuahogary]

Thanks for your feedback guys! Right now, I'm planning to buy the W3 this weekend and perhaps the iBasso T3D to complement it. Whether my plan holds up come Saturday is another story 

 It'll be interesting to do a direct A/B between W2 and W3 because they are truly different beasts. On a side note, ljokerl has finally posted his review on the W1,2,3 on his epic multi-IEM review: http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread/478568/multi-iem-review-118-iems-compared-westone-1-2-3-added-11-15#post_6492044. Interesting to see that the W2 scores on average 9.3 ahead of the W3 which scored 9.2! It's currently 3rd of the 118 IEMs he's reviewed, only beaten by the analytical CK10 and CK100s. Also, SQ wise W2 scored 9.5 whereas W3 scored 9.75. For now, I think the W2 is the best investment I made (I bought it used for £92 and got a BNIB replacement from Westone because of a small crack 

) Certainly if you take price into account, the W2 is a better bet than W3 but I'm still getting the W3 out of curiosity!
 
Thanks again to Joey for eliminating the SE535 out of the equation for me. Thanks to genesis for the UM3x impressions. The IE8 and TF10 weren't in my consideration so that just means W3 for me (oh wait there's the SM3, CK10 and eQ7! but maybe next time!)
 
When I started this thread I asked for a better IEM than my W2 because I thought that with more money I can buy a better one. With the help of you guys, and also several other members around Head-Fi such as ljokerl, PCKS & HeadphoneAddict, I have a much better perspective on where the W2 lies and it is indeed on top of the pile where little improvement can be made and is only dependent on our individual ears