W2 vs W4 | Comparison & Review

[striker]

So, third thread by Katun criticizing the Westone 4, and with the previous one only 1 week old... that's some serious attention-seeking behaviour
 
I'd say technical merit at this level is about very small differences, and what sets one clearly apart from the other are merely personal preferences regarding sound signature.

 

[planx]

I love Westone but in 9 years of buying IEM's W4 is near the top as far as most dissapointing.  While I am not a big fan of either IEM, W2 certainly has better clarity.
 
As the other poster above stated, I think UM2 is much better than W2.  More natural sounding, smoother, a bit bassier and among the best midrange of any IEM I have ever heard.

Thanks, and btw I have a name ^^

 

[Katun]

Quote:

I love Westone but in 9 years of buying IEM's W4 is near the top as far as most dissapointing.  While I am not a big fan of either IEM, W2 certainly has better clarity.
 
As the other poster above stated, I think UM2 is much better than W2.  More natural sounding, smoother, a bit bassier and among the best midrange of any IEM I have ever heard.

UM2 sounds like it would be up my alley then. Add a little more bass to the W2 and it would be pretty close to perfect for me. I kinda wish it had the seductive midrange of the RE262, but you cant have everything. I found the W2 was a much better performer across various genres as opposed to the RE262. But if somehow you could mesh the two together, while adding a bit more bass... I would be in heaven.
 
Quote:

So, third thread by Katun criticizing the Westone 4, and with the previous one only 1 week old... that's some serious attention-seeking behaviour

LOL, this doesn't even deserve a response.
 

 

[zeitfliesst]

I'm intrigued by your post. But am I surprised? Not really. I've had the W4 before and I also hated it, maybe for a slightly simpler reason that they sounded flat, but I think you've elaborated nicely. Also, I also frequent the Korean "head-fi equivalent" forums, and they are also in favor of the W2 sound signature. They say that W2 is a strange model since it sounds so different from the "Westone family sound signature". I'd describe it as an ugly duckling, and if you actually look up the meaning for that, some dictionaries will give you the following definition: a child, who turns out to be beautiful or talented against all expectations. Seems to be quite fitting, for me anyways. Maybe if my atrios give up anytime soon I'll go for the W2 as my back-up pair.

 

[Katun]

Quote:

I'm intrigued by your post. But am I surprised? Not really. I've had the W4 before and I also hated it, maybe for a slightly simpler reason that they sounded flat, but I think you've elaborated nicely. Also, I also frequent the Korean "head-fi equivalent" forums, and they are also in favor of the W2 sound signature. They say that W2 is a strange model since it sounds so different from the "Westone family sound signature". I'd describe it as an ugly duckling, and if you actually look up the meaning for that, some dictionaries will give you the following definition: a child, who turns out to be beautiful or talented against all expectations. Seems to be quite fitting, for me anyways. Maybe if my atrios give up anytime soon I'll go for the W2 as my back-up pair.

Hmm, hated it huh? I was too scared to use that word...

(perhaps still too strong of a word)
 
See, assuming the W4 had wonderful treble, it would still sound pretty boring as a whole due to how flat it is. It would sound loads and loads better, but still not as euphonic as the W2.
 
Very interesting bit regarding the Korean interpretation of the W2. Didn't know it was outlier IEM from Westone though.
 

 

[zeitfliesst]

I guess 'hate' might be too assertive, but taking into consideration that 95% of the music I listen to is metal which doesn't fare that well with a flat sound sig IMO, I think the use of that word could be justified in my case. As I always like to say, everything's relative.

 

[Donnyhifi]

The W4 seems to lack that fun factor with its bit of treble bias and lack of bass impact. It is pricy and doesn't seem to justify its price tag since its more of a sidestep rather than a step forward when compared to other top tier IEM's.

 

[Jeremypsp]

Well sound is subjective, there are many times where someone will find a cheaper IEM to be even better than one that is sometimes 2x more expensive. Like for me, I do love my Westone 4s a lot, I even prefer them over the AKG K3003s which costs about 2x more. But hey, it's all about preference, right?

 

[striker]

But hey, it's all about preference, right?

In terms of personal satisfaction, yes, undoubtedly.
But in the case of a "review", I disagree. Personal preferences should be put aside, or, at least, in the background.

But then the "shock-value" of this thread would be somewhat lost...

 

[Jeremypsp]

Quote:

In terms of personal satisfaction, yes, undoubtedly.
But in the case of a "review", I disagree. Personal preferences should be put aside, or, at least, in the background.
But then the "shock-value" of this thread would be somewhat lost...

But don't everyone hear things differently? So even is 2 reviewers reviews on the same earphone, surely they will hear things different and in a different point of view depending on their source, music and sound preference. So something that is more expensive isn't necessarily better, like how the GR-07, RE-0 and DBA-02 are able to stand really high as "budget high-end earphones". 

 

[Danz03]

I'd pay anything for a pair of perfectly flat headphones/IEMs, that's why I like the W4, and that's the point of Hi-Fideity. Flat doesn't mean boring, to me it means accurate sounding.
 
Quote:

 
See, assuming the W4 had wonderful treble, it would still sound pretty boring as a whole due to how flat it is.
 

 

 

[Jeremypsp]

Quote:

I'd pay anything for a pair of perfectly flat headphones/IEMs, that's why I like the W4, and that's the point of Hi-Fideity. Flat doesn't mean boring, to me it means accurate sounding.
 


 

I think when it comes to flat or neutral, whether is boring or not varies from headphone/IEM to headphone/IEM. I do not find the Westone 4s boring but I do find IEMs like the brainwavz b2 to be boring though it's flat and neutral as well.

 

[144004]

^ Have to disagree. Whether something is boring depends on the listener's preference; whether something is neutral or not depends on the objective facts of headphone in question, and the likelihood that they have been engineered to account for variances in listener's hearing ability.

 

[Jeremypsp]

Quote:

^ Have to disagree. Whether something is boring depends on the listener's preference; whether something is neutral or not depends on the objective facts of headphone in question, and the likelihood that they have been engineered to account for variances in listener's hearing ability.

Yes, it mostly depends on how the listener's preference. Like how someone feels that more highs, mids or lows is a fun thing. Though I would say there would be a certain reference for "fun" so some IEMs can feel dull while some can be fun. 

 

[Darkocean-62]

I own the westone 3 and 4 and i preferred the 4's instantly for the greater accuracy and clarity compared to the 3's
but i never really considered the westone 2 mainly because i assumed more expensive would mean better sound.
Are the westone 2 better than the westone 4 for clarity and accuracy?