[elfary]

Definitely sending my Pro 30 back to my reseller this week. I'm having random cut offs on the right channel, and the female connector has considerably weakened despite careful use. Way too flimsy for the price paid imo.

As i was not happy with the looseness of the connection of the Epic cable bundled with my W30s i asked Westone for the redesigned Epic cable (which features a thicker male mmcx connector) i was told about last summer by Westone support.
 
I got that redesigned Epic cable a week ago and the tightness of the mmcx connection is almost as strong as on the old 2 pin cable whereas with the bundled Epic cable the connection would move back and forth just by the slightest contact of a finger.
 
Now it looks more promising lifespan wise and i hope that cutoffs will no longer happen with this tighter fit between cable and earphone.
 
Even tough i still sigh whenever i reach for my SE846s.

 

[TCD1975]

Definitely sending my Pro 30 back to my reseller this week. I'm having random cut offs on the right channel, and the female connector has considerably weakened despite careful use. Way too flimsy for the price paid imo.

It's a regular issue with the UM Pro range (and I wouldn't be surprised if it's an issue with W60 as well, as the connectors are effectively the same) but if you send it back Westone will replace them.
 
I had to return mine back 3 times, but the 4th pair I got are most definitely a lot more secure and I've had no issues since.
 
Westone need to seriously reconsider their cable connectors before they release a new generation of IEMs. The really let products down that are otherwise premium quality.
 
Other than the cable connectors, and replaceable face plates that crack too easily on the W range, I don't think the build quality of Westone IEMs is too bad. They do feel more lightweight and fragile than Shure IEMs but are more comfortable, and reasonably sturdy given their lightness.

 

[Gosod]

I agree that the connector at vestono weak!

 

[Spyro]

How do faceplates crack? Like when you place the housing in your ear do they just shatter and spider away like a windshield from the force of your fingers?

 

[Gurashieruro]

  How do faceplates crack? Like when you place the housing in your ear do they just shatter and spider away like a windshield from the force of your fingers?

I'm not sure. Several things can cause it. Too much pressure to spontaneously cracking. My first one cracked spontaneously, for no reason. I barely tightened it.
The way they shatter is usually close to the joint that combines the two pieces together. You can see that joint running vertically down the plate through the screw. The way the plate holds into the IEM body is the reason for the plate failure. Looking at it, the plate is held in place by three things:

• ​The obvious screw
• Pressure of the plastic plate against the body of the IEM. In this case, the plates are shaped or created with an inward bend and is made to flex outward when slipped onto the IEM. Thus, creating a "clamping force" on the IEM body to hold the plate in place.
• Little grooves/notches on both the IEM and plates to allow them to slide and stay put. Its also a reason why you cannot put some rare W series plates on others. On my W60, I had two different revisions and had different notches for both. Those notches look like tiny triangles.

 

[Tuneslover]

Terrific customer service Westone! I had an annoying periodic failure in the right earpiece of my UM Pro30's. I just couldn't bear parting with them but finally this last failure had me packing them up and shipping them to Colorado. I wasn't sure what was going to happen or when I could expect to get them back. Four days after I received UPS confirmation that they arrived at Westone a FedEx man showed up at my door with a new pair of UM Pro30's. Awesome timing as the wife and I are heading to Mexico shortly...didn't want to leave home without them.

 

[Tuneslover]

Terrific customer service Westone! I had an annoying periodic failure in the right earpiece of my UM Pro30's. I just couldn't bear parting with them but finally this last failure had me packing them up and shipping them to Colorado. I wasn't sure what was going to happen or when I could expect to get them back. Four days after I received UPS confirmation that they arrived at Westone a FedEx man showed up at my door with a new pair of UM Pro30's. Awesome timing as the wife and I are heading to Mexico shortly...didn't want to leave home without them.

Ouch!! I haven't been on this thread for quite a while and decided to catch up after my earlier post and noticed that my problem is far from unique with channel cut outs. Sounds like the Westone connectors are the issue so hopefully the new pair they just sent me is more durable, assuming that it was in fact the connector. Fingers crossed.

 

[davidcotton]

It's more likely to be an issue with the mmx design full stop.  Notorious for it to keep happening (I had one of the first or second batch shure se215 which had the same issue).  Why companies like it over the tried and trusted two pin standard lord only knows.

 

[HiFiRobot]

New OCC silver cable from eBay and Spinfit Eartips for my UM30 Pros. The cable is not as soft as original (more microphonics) and there is a small irritating gap between connector and housing. But soundwise nothing to complain about, seems clearer but haven't done any A/B:ing. Cable is intended for W-series maybe the fit is better with my W30:s, will try it later.

 

[slackerpo]

New OCC silver cable from eBay and Spinfit Eartips for my UM30 Pros. The cable is not as soft as original (more microphonics) and there is a small irritating gap between connector and housing. But soundwise nothing to complain about, seems clearer but haven't done any A/B:ing. Cable is intended for W-series maybe the fit is better with my W30:s, will try it later.

 
interesting. i love the star tips, how would describe those spinfit fare with them?

 

[Spyro]

The patented Westone star tips are a sensational product.   They provide a terrifically secure and comfortable fit WITHOUT changing the intended frequency response....unlike foam tips.
 
The star tips have striated walls (this is the patent) where insertion enables the tip to remain perfectly secure and intact while in your ear canal.  Amazing invention.

 

[smaragd]

The patented Westone star tips are a sensational product.   They provide a terrifically secure and comfortable fit WITHOUT changing the intended frequency response....unlike foam tips.
 
The star tips have striated walls (this is the patent) where insertion enables the tip to remain perfectly secure and intact while in your ear canal.  Amazing invention.

Me too I prefer the star tips (red in my case) which provide a comfortable seal and fit without reducing the high frequency range details.
Very nice bass extension and beautiful detailed sound.
I had a pair of UM56 custom tips made by Westone using 3D digital scan of my ears but after 3 refits I'm giving up on them and returning them for a credit. The last pair fits fairly comfortable now without pain but the HF roll off is unbearable and I don't see my $200 investment worth it if there's no improvement in sound quality. Also the seal isn't any better than the start tips. Tried the foam tips but again too much HF detail is cut off.
So staying with the start tips for now ...

 

[slackerpo]

Me too I prefer the star tips (red in my case) which provide a comfortable seal and fit without reducing the high frequency range details.
Very nice bass extension and beautiful detailed sound.
I had a pair of UM56 custom tips made by Westone using 3D digital scan of my ears but after 3 refits I'm giving up on them and returning them for a credit. The last pair fits fairly comfortable now without pain but the HF roll off is unbearable and I don't see my $200 investment worth it if there's no improvement in sound quality. Also the seal isn't any better than the start tips. Tried the foam tips but again too much HF detail is cut off.
So staying with the start tips for now ...

 
that is very interesting. were you able to get pics of the custom tips?

 

[Spyro]

I also have a pair of UM56 tips.  They fit perfect but the star tips blow them away.  Sound is better (more open), fit is more comfy.
 
The UM56 are WAAAY to inclusive....like from brain to ear with zero soundstage.  Very tight, snug fit which is umcomfortable after about 10 minutes.
 
Colossal waste of $120

 

[macbug]

Hey guys just an update on my um pro 50s. I pretty much quit headfi for a while after I got them to stop myself from wanting anything else since I blew my budget for the year...

Anyway, last time I posted I was having problem with the seal, none of the star tips for me very well and nothing else I had in my inventory was right. I managed to get my hands on a pack of Shure olives for cheap and they fit just about perfect, plus they've been lasting a surprising amount of time so far, so for anyone looking for better fit, definitely give the olives a try.

As far as sound goes I see people are still debating it vs se846. I think people should state their source when doing any sort of comparison because the um pro has some where around 50 ohms of impedance while the Shure se846 is what, 8? Or less. This means that the Um pro 50 wouldn't really sound at all different amped vs not, where as the se846 would sound way different given different cable and amp. Straight out of iPhone though there is no question that the um pro 50 wins to me, and logging around an amp was quite a hassle for me (I do most of my listening on transit where honestly it doesn't really matter).

Build quality wise so far it has survived being in my pocket for the past year just fine, which was surprising to me because in comparison to the se846 the um pro did look kinda cheap and flimsy. The cables are thin and yet duration and has no problems with glasses, which definitely is a win over the se846 (then again most of you are likely to invest in custom cables anyway).

Bass wise it's definitely not going to deliver on the levels of my ie80 in terms of sub bass (where as I thought the unamped se846 was quite similar to the ie80), but it makes up for it by having far better isolation and better mid/highs.

Overall I am very happy with my um pro 50, and props to Sonic Electronix for getting it shipped to canada directly from Westone hq