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- Oct 6, 2013
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Looks like I was wrong about the Pro 50. I've kinda assumed that since the UM3x got along well with foamies and the Pro 50 seems to have a similar overall shape it would play fair with foamies too, but it doesn't. Most foamies make it sound muffled and dull, or at least the older Comply ones I used with it did. But I've found some mystery tips (grey silicone Phonak tips, I believe) that definitely help open the Pro 50 up and make it sound more linear. It's still quite warm, rather HD650-like, but no longer muffled, just very smooth, clear, detailed, not overly compressed and in-your-head sounding, just well-rounded and very nice. I just wish I had a better ID on these tips, knew where to find more, or find something else that sounds like them. They're also not totally comfortable, but sadly nothing but foamies for me ever is.
I've been sitting on a really great pair of IEMs without even realizing it. Oh well, better late than never I suppose. They're getting some use now.
I find foam tips to have the best isolation, but also they suck the energy out of highs. Foam gives you better isolation which usually improves low end response, and maybe there is a difference between sound absorption/reflection of foam vs silicone which affects high frequencies. Either way, I usually stick with silicones, and actually use Shure olive silicone tips with all Westone iems. Sweetwater sells them in packs of 5-pairs for under $15, here is a medium set, and they also have small and large sizes. For me, foam vs silicone tips makes a big difference not only with umpro50 but also w60 and w80.