[xaddictionx]

how much better are w60 to re-600?

I suppose you can't compare this two IEMs as they are vastly different in terms of its tuning and sonic characters.

I don't own the RE600 nor heard them before but I do own the RE272. I have had a few occasions to listen to the W60 too.

To me they have more differences than similarities. RE272 is tuned more clinically. It dissects the music with precision. Every little nuance and details can be heard. Leaning towards bright side of things, though not as bright as t-peos h300. With no emphasis on the low end it does portray more of a neutral sound signature except for a slight lift in vocals. Overall a very analytical and clean sounding phone.

W60 on the other hand offers a more coherent tuning. It simply sounds very natural like. Very BA type of sound. Relax with details that should be present in the music and not forcing each every single bit of details out of the music. Treble is also exceptionally smooth with the right strike of bass.

I suppose W60 will be a good compliment to your collection!

 

[Danz03]

Well, I don't know how that FR graph was measured, but I'm sure it wasn't done with a sound environment similar to the ear canal. If you have a pro EQ with some reference monitors, try cutting 20 dB off 5kHz and I can guarantee what you'd hear would sound nothing like the W60, but more like the Beats solo.

Sure it's not perfect and naysayers will say you have to hear it as an excuse. But a 20db drop? are you friggin serious Westone? That's like testing out a sportscar that turns out to take 10 seconds to get to 60, while people are "but you have to drive it"

 

[T.R.A.N.C.E.]

I've just bought a silicon CIEM! the CustomArt Harmony 8 Pro. Now I'm debating whether to sell the W60 in anticipation of the possibly better CIEM or just hold onto them a while to directly compare. I have high hopes for the Harmony 8 though, I don't really have any complaints about the W60, but me being a quality bass head am attracted to the Harmony 8's awesome bass design of 2 BA for sub, 2 BA for mid bass and both vented armature designs for more extension and speed! Also the Harmony 8 has very nice treble extension between 10k and 20k, overall just very excited to hear  them.

 

[M Coupe]

As Head-Fi goes, we all go on to new toys.  I will likely buy the Noble K10 in the next month or two and then I will face the same decision.  The W60 does not get the press it deserves and not any of our esteemed head-fi moderators have even listened to it..  The SE846 is very special and if the K10 was not in  my future, I would have held on to it.
 
Good luck on your tough decision.  My vote would be to demo them side by side.  If you don't once the new car smell wears off you may question your decision.  I would rather know absolutely and move forward.

 

[M Coupe]

Also, I will say that with my new HUGO I appreciate the W60s ability to resolve nuance even more.  I am listening to many of my favorite songs for the first time again.  It does not need power like the SE846 but seems to show it skills when sources can resolve more details.  The AK240 took it one step forward, the HUGO took it another 2 steps forward.

 

[burnoutcat]

Nice review. I really having a hard time to choose an upgrade from my SE535ltd. 

 

[Danz03]

I have not heard the Harmony 8 Pro, but if it's quality bass you're after, there is nothing better than the SE846 in my opinion, it's better than my W60, UE 18 Pro, LCD-2/3/X/XC, AKR03, in fact their bass is the nearest thing to full-range reference speaker monitors' or subwoofers'.
 
Quote:

  I've just bought a silicon CIEM! the CustomArt Harmony 8 Pro. Now I'm debating whether to sell the W60 in anticipation of the possibly better CIEM or just hold onto them a while to directly compare. I have high hopes for the Harmony 8 though, I don't really have any complaints about the W60, but me being a quality bass head am attracted to the Harmony 8's awesome bass design of 2 BA for sub, 2 BA for mid bass and both vented armature designs for more extension and speed! Also the Harmony 8 has very nice treble extension between 10k and 20k, overall just very excited to hear  them.

 

[T.R.A.N.C.E.]

I have not heard the Harmony 8 Pro, but if it's quality bass you're after, there is nothing better than the SE846 in my opinion, it's better than my W60, UE 18 Pro, LCD-2/3/X/XC, AKR03, in fact their bass is the nearest thing to full-range reference speaker monitors' or subwoofers'.

 
The thing is I want quality bass along with quality mids and treble 

 
 
I know for a fact that the 846 has rolled off treble between 10K and 20K. The W60 treble is much more extended than 846, but Harmony 8 is much more extended than even W60! as W60 is 20dB down at 20K while Harmony is 10dB down at 20K.
 
Then for mids, 846 aren't quite as smooth as I'd like, I like the W60 mids presentation, and I'm led to believe Harmony 8 has similar mids to the W60 being warm and smooth yet still exquisitely presented.
 
Then the BASS! While the 846 has some of the best bass around, If there is any BA iem that could challenge or overthrow it, it would be the Harmony 8 as it has its own innovations in the bass department, having vented BA's for bass allows drastically different tuning, then having a cross over point between dual sub bass BA's and dual mid bass BA's allows a huge range of tuning capability coupled with the vented design. The vented design actually allows the BA's to be tuned much more linear by increasing speed and extension, aka if tuned correctly it can offer essentially the same advantage as the 846 low pass filter. The 846 bass has to travel through 4" of maze, I shudder to think what that is doing to the phase. I like the Harmony bass design better personally.
 
I know at least that the Harmony 8 has much better bass than the other big ciems like K10, Mentor, Roxanne, Heir 8a, TG334, JH16, 1+2, EM32 etc (a guy that owns them all says so at least). He doesn't have the 846 though.
 
Anyway, after all my research I came to the conclusion that the Harmony 8 Pro would fit my needs of brilliant bass, smooth warm mids and extended smooth treble. soooo excited for them 

 

[gordynor]

Have any of you tried the W50 as well as the W60? I'm trying to determine the sound difference between the two, but I can't find a solid comparison.

 

[Malevolent]

  Have any of you tried the W50 as well as the W60? I'm trying to determine the sound difference between the two, but I can't find a solid comparison.

 
I listened to both of them today, and in comparison to the W60, the W50 is darker, has a heavy bass presence and has less clarity throughout. I didn't spend much time with them though, as they were leagues behind the W60. I also listened to the SE846, and it easily bested the W50 on all fronts.
 
Anyway, the W60 is a stunning earphone. It oozed clarity throughout, and had exceptional imaging capabilities. Treble was detailed, controlled, and was never sibilant. Mid-bass quantity was a little short, but the overall bass presentation was punchy, with fast decay times. Vocals were clear and smooth, but not as forward or in-your-face as that produced by the SE846.
 
Overall, both the SE846 and W60 are superb IEMs with enough differences to set them apart. In the end, I preferred the greater detail and imaging present in the W60 over Shure's flagship. I'll have another go at them soon, but as it stands, they are my favorite universal at this present time.

 

[gordynor]

   
I listened to both of them today, and in comparison to the W60, the W50 is darker, has a heavy bass presence and has less clarity throughout. I didn't spend much time with them though, as they were leagues behind the W60. I also listened to the SE846, and it easily bested the W50 on all fronts.
 
Anyway, the W60 is a stunning earphone. It oozed clarity throughout, and had exceptional imaging capabilities. Treble was detailed, controlled, and was never sibilant. Mid-bass quantity was a little short, but the overall bass presentation was punchy, with fast decay times. Vocals were clear and smooth, but not as forward or in-your-face as that produced by the SE846.
 
Overall, both the SE846 and W60 are superb IEMs with enough differences to set them apart. In the end, I preferred the greater detail and imaging present in the W60 over Shure's flagship. I'll have another go at them soon, but as it stands, they are my favorite universal at this present time.

 
Thanks for the post. That's the conclusion I've come to regarding W50 vs W60 as well. I was able to find a few more scattered reviews/comments on the differences between the two and it seems that the W60 really is that much better and removes the darkness of the W50. So I'm returning my W50's and have ordered the W60's. I was tempted by the 846 but I do like the overall presentation of the Westones and the fit is just amazing. I love the workmanship of the Shure, but prefer the understated look of the Westone. (I travel a lot and don't want to advertise that i have $1k cans in my ears when I'm walking around some strange city...) So overall, my bet is that the W60 will give me the sound and fit I'm looking for over the W50 or 846 - and now I've put my money behind that bet. Can't wait to hear them!!

 

[Malevolent]

 
Thanks for the post. That's the conclusion I've come to regarding W50 vs W60 as well. I was able to find a few more scattered reviews/comments on the differences between the two and it seems that the W60 really is that much better and removes the darkness of the W50. So I'm returning my W50's and have ordered the W60's. I was tempted by the 846 but I do like the overall presentation of the Westones and the fit is just amazing. I love the workmanship of the Shure, but prefer the understated look of the Westone. (I travel a lot and don't want to advertise that i have $1k cans in my ears when I'm walking around some strange city...) So overall, my bet is that the W60 will give me the sound and fit I'm looking for over the W50 or 846 - and now I've put my money behind that bet. Can't wait to hear them!!

 
Hey, no problem. I think you'll love the W60s. They sounded great with all of the tracks I threw at them - Rock, Pop, and EDM. Crystal clear is how I would describe the sound coming from these little gems. Besides, they have a smaller body than the SE846s, and are slightly more comfortable to wear, as a result.
 
Anyway, enjoy your W60s. I hope that I can say the same for myself one day.

 

[milford30]

   
Thanks for the post. That's the conclusion I've come to regarding W50 vs W60 as well. I was able to find a few more scattered reviews/comments on the differences between the two and it seems that the W60 really is that much better and removes the darkness of the W50. So I'm returning my W50's and have ordered the W60's. I was tempted by the 846 but I do like the overall presentation of the Westones and the fit is just amazing. I love the workmanship of the Shure, but prefer the understated look of the Westone. (I travel a lot and don't want to advertise that i have $1k cans in my ears when I'm walking around some strange city...) So overall, my bet is that the W60 will give me the sound and fit I'm looking for over the W50 or 846 - and now I've put my money behind that bet. Can't wait to hear them!!

 
It's actually really hard to tell the difference between the um/w-10/20 series clear version with the se846 unless you really know your iems and are 3-4 steps away from the person, while the w60 gold/silver/red metal plates are a sure tell if you don't use the reds. The build quality of the 846s are significantly better than the westones. Unless you have small ears, the fit will be very similar.
 
Anyway, if you are entitled for a full refund, may I suggest waiting ~2 weeks for a possible discount during black friday sales? 

 

[gordynor]

  Anyway, if you are entitled for a full refund, may I suggest waiting ~2 weeks for a possible discount during black friday sales? 

 
Well, if I was smarter or had more patience, I might have waited until BF in the first place. However, I can't get a full refund now - I have to pay a 15% restocking fee if I return it (it's waived if I exchange with equal or greater priced cans). That's about $125 on the W50's. I doubt any deal on the W60's would be greater than that on BF. #live&learn

 

[Danz03]

Agreed, I don't like the W50 at all, even though it's better than the Pro 50 already. Some ppl said the W60 are not worth the high asking price, I thought the W50 and Pro 50 are far worse, their sound signatures are more similar to Beats Solo than Westone IEMs, even the Pro 30 are miles better. I love both the W60 and SE846 but the W60 just a little more because of the super smooth treble.

I listened to both of them today, and in comparison to the W60, the W50 is darker, has a heavy bass presence and has less clarity throughout. I didn't spend much time with them though, as they were leagues behind the W60. I also listened to the SE846, and it easily bested the W50 on all fronts.

Anyway, the W60 is a stunning earphone. It oozed clarity throughout, and had exceptional imaging capabilities. Treble was detailed, controlled, and was never sibilant. Mid-bass quantity was a little short, but the overall bass presentation was punchy, with fast decay times. Vocals were clear and smooth, but not as forward or in-your-face as that produced by the SE846.

Overall, both the SE846 and W60 are superb IEMs with enough differences to set them apart. In the end, I preferred the greater detail and imaging present in the W60 over Shure's flagship. I'll have another go at them soon, but as it stands, they are my favorite universal at this present time.