[roy_jones]

Quote:

Okay, is the honeymoon over? I mean no one hardly ever talks about the W4 anymore. What gives? It's almost as if this IEM truly represented the FOTM stereotype to its fullest. Is it not what you thought it was initially? 
 
Well, those who seen me post for awhile on head-fi.org know that I've always been a proponent for hearing things for yourself if you are truly interested. So, I'm Johnny-come-lately, but I should finally have a W4 in my possession later on today. I'm going to hear (finally) how it stacks up against my beloved 1964-Q, the GR07, the EX600, the EX1000, the SM2 and Custom 3 (the FX700 will be from memory now). I will be brutally honest. If I love them I will say it. If I don't I will say that too. I have found out, however, that many on head-fi don't hear earphones the same way I do - even if we are listening to the same product. For example, so many of you that I respect your opinions love the DBA-02 and TF10, and I can't stand either. On the other hand, I seem to love the GR07 more than some of you who say it's just okay (I think it is quite better than okay). Some of you think nothing is better than the FX700. Although it's my favorite universal of all-time, I've heard some universals recently - EX600 and GR07 - that equal it in many way, and even surpass it in some areas.
 
So stay tuned. This is my first Westone. I hope we have a good experience with each other on this first date.

I'm going to take a wild guess that you won't like the W4 as much as your 1964-quads.  Wild guess. 

 

[shotgunshane]

I'd have to agree that the W4's never went FOTM posting like some IEM's.
 
Eric, I think you will like the W4's... with the zo but without not so much; you will probably find them too bass light but you really can turn them into bass monsters with the zo, if you so desire.  I think the W4's have nice intimate vocals, really good treble detail and a big soundstage with good instrument separation. 

 

[ericp10]

Quote:

I'm going to take a wild guess that you won't like the W4 as much as your 1964-quads.  Wild guess. 

That's not a wild guess @ roy jones, especially if the bass is not as authoritative as the bass in my quad. But if the insinuation is that I won't like them simply because it is not the 1964-Q, then your thoughts would be highly flawed. I have said this repeatedly that I like a variety of sound signatures. And my signature at the bottom reflects that. It amazes me that when certain regulars give their opinions on what they really like it becomes FOTM or them just being bias, while another regular can really express how much he or she likes a product and they're just giving their respectable opinion. I feel no opinion is greater than any other opinion on this forum, unless the discussion is about scientific facts on we receive sound or how a product was constructed. Some may have more knowledge than others from that standpoint.
 
And how could any member say that another member says too much? Really, that seems to be reaching into the abyss of elitism and arrogance (you didn't make that statement @ roy jones). This is a forum regarding a hobby (as expensive or as inexpensive as we individually choose it to be for ourselves). FlySweep, for example, gives nice long detailed comments (not full reviews) about the products he owns and/or heard. I love them. He gives even longer detailed and very precise comments in my inbox when I ask him to personally break down pros and cons of one IEM he has with another one that I don't have but might be interested in. He apologizes for his lengthy responses, but I find them highly valuable.
 
I've read some reviews @ james444 that said the GR07 was bland and somewhat boring. Yet, there were enough reviews out there to pique my interest in the Vsonic sill. So I went out and bought them to find out for myself, and I don't find them boring or bland at all. I'm quite enamored with the sound signature to the point where I like it slightly better (listening-wise) than the FX700 (my favorite universal of all time). In the end, however, whether I like the W4 or not, I am practicing what I always preach on head-fi.org: no matter what anyone says about any product, you have to find out for yourself. This could be by buying the product, and if not liking it sell it. Or become trusted enough that some head-fi members don't mind loaning an item out to you and vice versa. I'll give my initial impressions of the W4 in a few hours. By the way @ james444, I am also expecting to see your EX1000 sometime today here in Chicago (Monday at the latest).
 

 

[shotgunshane]

@ericp10, The GR07 sounds interesting.  Looking forward to your impressions with those in comparison to the W4's and EX1000's (with and without zo).

 

[ericp10]

Quote:

I'd have to agree that the W4's never went FOTM posting like some IEM's.
 
Eric, I think you will like the W4's... with the zo but without not so much; you will probably find them too bass light but you really can turn them into bass monsters with the zo, if you so desire.  I think the W4's have nice intimate vocals, really good treble detail and a big soundstage with good instrument separation. 

I hope I like them with or without the Zo @ shotgunshane. True enough, I love my bass, but I can't also appreciate a flat signature. It just all depends on how the details are laid out before me. But if the bass is truly that anemic, I am glad I brought the Zo with me. I really think most in-ear monitors and earphones that have been labeled FOTM have had those labels placed on them unjustly. To me, flavor of the month is the masses saying something really sounds great, then after a period of time those same masses say that product wasn't so great afterall. How many times has that actually happen on head-fi? I can't recall many times at all. What has happned is that a new product has come out that present sound in a different way that some like better than the product that came out before it. That doesn't mean you discount the previous product. Like, you will never read me stating that the SM3, DDM or Miles Davis are bad IEMs, although there are clearly a few newer IEMs that I like better than those at this point. They're still very good products, however, sound quality-wise. On the other hand, I found very few redeeming qualities in the DBA-02 and the TF10, but I recognize and accept that quite of few regulars really like (or even love) those IEMs. It's almost as if some of us are getting into "these opinions are subjective except when it comes to mine, which is the gospel" mentalities. All of our opinions are highly subjective here.

 

[shotgunshane]

I'm not sure how grooveshark encodes their music but when listening to the W4's with grooveshark on a macbook pro, without the zo, they do have really good bass response.  Then when listening to my regular itunes library, the bass response isn't as much quantity wise as it was with grooveshark. I'm not sure why that is...
 
@ericp10, from reading a lot of your impressions, I think you like similar things I do.  I really liked the W4's with the zo.  I still like them without it but if I was going unamped, I always chose the FX700 over them.

 

[ericp10]

The W4 came in earlier than expected. I have them in my ears now with comply tip on them (how it was packaged). Listening to a Tony Williams jazz piece. The bass is not as bad as I was honestly expecting, but it's not what I am accustomed to - and like - in my earphones' sound signatures, true enough. the piano, however, on this track called "Native heart" is freakin' fantastic! More initial impressions later. I'm digging the midrange and the treble.

 

[fomoz]

Okay, is the honeymoon over? I mean no one hardly ever talks about the W4 anymore. What gives? It's almost as if this IEM truly represented the FOTM stereotype to its fullest. Is it not what you thought it was initially? 
 
Well, those who seen me post for awhile on head-fi.org know that I've always been a proponent for hearing things for yourself if you are truly interested. So, I'm Johnny-come-lately, but I should finally have a W4 in my possession later on today. I'm going to hear (finally) how it stacks up against my beloved 1964-Q, the GR07, the EX600, the EX1000, the SM2 and Custom 3 (the FX700 will be from memory now). I will be brutally honest. If I love them I will say it. If I don't I will say that too. I have found out, however, that many on head-fi don't hear earphones the same way I do - even if we are listening to the same product. For example, so many of you that I respect your opinions love the DBA-02 and TF10, and I can't stand either. On the other hand, I seem to love the GR07 more than some of you who say it's just okay (I think it is quite better than okay). Some of you think nothing is better than the FX700. Although it's my favorite universal of all-time, I've heard some universals recently - EX600 and GR07 - that equal it in many way, and even surpass it in some areas.
 
So stay tuned. This is my first Westone. I hope we have a good experience with each other on this first date.

the W4 is a really good IEM, especially with bass boost. however, when i don't need the compact factor (most of the time i listen to music either in the office or at home) it doesn't quite stack up to my Ed. 8

 

[ericp10]

Hmmm? You know what the W4 reminds me of (I say remind me of because I've heard the other IEM frist)? It reminds me of the GR07. Now, I'm not saying the GR07 sounds better than the W4, not at all. But both signatures are sort of similar. The GR07 has more of a natural bass boost, but definitely more clarity and transparency in the W4's mids. The W4 has better treble and a seemingly wider soundstage. Details-wise I'm not sure if the W4 edges out the GR07 greatly. I'm sure there are more details in the W4, but there is lots of wonderful detailing in the GR07 too. The W4 wins in clarity for the most part. I think thus far, however, I like the vocals better in the GR07 and I still like the drums overall in the GR07. This could change because I clearly need more time with the W4 and I believe in burn-in (to a lesser extent) with BAs too.
 
Piano and decay in the W4 remind me of the EX600. The piano is rendered beautifully in the W4. So really the compliment goes to the GR07, because while I definitely know that the W4 is technically better and is ahead of the GR07, it's not leave that Vsonic in the dust.

By the way, did the rest of you get a plethora of tips when you bought your W4? I'm surprised by the number of tips I see in the bag (a good thing).
 
Now, I remember when I owned the SE535 I thought the bass was anemic (I even said I heard more bass in the SE530, although the SE535 improved on the highs greatly). With that said, I don't find the bass anemic in the W4. Yes, the sound spectrum is flatter than I'm generally used to, but I hear the bass. Quality-wise, the bass is quite nice. Better than 1964-Q's bass? Well definitely doesn't touch the quad in quantity, but I can't say either bass is better in quality without A/Bing at this point. Both have excellent quality bass.

I don't like comply tips that much, so I switch to the large oval-shaped transparent single-flange silicon tips. I like the sound coming from those tips, but I can't wait to try the W4 with the Shure olives as those are my favorite tips for that size nozzle. Of course, more detailed observations about the W4's sound to come. I'm still trying to get acclimated to the sound of my first Westone ever!

 

[Anaxilus]

Quote:

the W4 is a really good IEM, especially with bass boost. however, when i don't need the compact factor (most of the time i listen to music either in the office or at home) it doesn't quite stack up to my Ed. 8

Haha.  W4 vs. Ed.8.  

 

 

[shotgunshane]

Quote:

Hmmm? You know what the W4 reminds me of (I say remind me of because I've heard the other IEM frist)? It reminds me of the GR07. Now, I'm not saying the GR07 sounds better than the W4, not at all. But both signatures are sort of similar. The GR07 has more of a natural bass boost, but definitely more clarity and transparency in the W4's mids. The W4 has better treble and a seemingly wider soundstage. Details-wise I'm not sure if the W4 edges out the GR07 greatly. I'm sure there are more details in the W4, but there is lots of wonderful detailing in the GR07 too. The W4 wins in clarity for the most part. I think thus far, however, I like the vocals better in the GR07 and I still like the drums overall in the GR07. This could change because I clearly need more time with the W4 and I believe in burn-in (to a lesser extent) with BAs too.
 
Piano and decay in the W4 remind me of the EX600. The piano is rendered beautifully in the W4. So really the compliment goes to the GR07, because while I definitely know that the W4 is technically better and is ahead of the GR07, it's not leave that Vsonic in the dust.

By the way, did the rest of you get a plethora of tips when you bought your W4? I'm surprised by the number of tips I see in the bag (a good thing).
 
Now, I remember when I owned the SE535 I thought the bass was anemic (I even said I heard more bass in the SE530, although the SE535 improved on the highs greatly). With that said, I don't find the bass anemic in the W4. Yes, the sound spectrum is flatter than I'm generally used to, but I hear the bass. Quality-wise, the bass is quite nice. Better than 1964-Q's bass? Well definitely doesn't touch the quad in quantity, but I can't say either bass is better in quality without A/Bing at this point. Both have excellent quality bass.

I don't like comply tips that much, so I switch to the large oval-shaped transparent single-flange silicon tips. I like the sound coming from those tips, but I can't wait to try the W4 with the Shure olives as those are my favorite tips for that size nozzle. Of course, more detailed observations about the W4's sound to come. I'm still trying to get acclimated to the sound of my first Westone ever!

Hmm, I think I'd like to hear a pair of GR07's...
 
These are the best tips for the W4's imo: ES biflange.  I didn't like any of the stock tips.  I like the ES biflange b/c the sound hole is large. Normally I have'n't liked multi-flanged tips but these are very comfortable.  I think they have better bass response than the Olives and you don't have to worry about foam interfering with the treble.  Here is a better picture of the tips: http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread/552337/earsonics-sm3-v2/540#post_7559734
 

 

[ericp10]

Thanks @ shotgunshane. I'll check those tips out.

 

[Anaxilus]

Quote:

Thanks @ shotgunshane. I'll check those tips out.

They should be similar to the Sensorcoms Bennyboy sent out if you ever got those.
 

 

[ericp10]

Oh, I have those tips...lol. What was I thinking? Have them because extra ones were sent to me when my SM3 nozzle broke and was replaced, and I also think those came with my SM2. Funny, but in anticipation of receiving my W4 today, I set the ES, Shure olive and Shure olive silicon tips aside to bring with me to work and test on the W4. I made all of that effort and still forgot them....lol. Oh well, I'll try them out when I get home.
 
Quote:

Hmm, I think I'd like to hear a pair of GR07's...
 
These are the best tips for the W4's imo: ES biflange.  I didn't like any of the stock tips.  I like the ES biflange b/c the sound hole is large. Normally I have'n't liked multi-flanged tips but these are very comfortable.  I think they have better bass response than the Olives and you don't have to worry about foam interfering with the treble.  Here is a better picture of the tips: http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread/552337/earsonics-sm3-v2/540#post_7559734
 

 

 

[shotgunshane]

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They should be similar to the Sensorcoms Bennyboy sent out if you ever got those.
 

I'm not familiar with those.  I recently compared the ES biflange to the Future Sonics biflange and there was really no comparison.  The FS were uncomfortable and finicky about insertion depth.  Also the ES flanges are very close together, almost overlapping and the FS flanges have space between them.  I think that makes the big difference in them.  I can't really tell how the flanges are on the sensorcom website.