Westone 3 True 3-Way Driver Earphones (not UM3 headphones)

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WESTONE 3 TRUE 3-WAY DRIVER EARPHONES (NOT UM3 HEADPHONES)

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Just posted: New Westone 3 Earphones Review

Just to clarify, some people mistakenly have been calling the Westone 3: Westone UM3, however that is not correct. The model name is WESTONE 3. The other two universal fit earphones made by Westone are called UM2 (dual driver) and UM1 (single driver). The new TRUE 3-Way 3-Driver earphones are called Westone 3.

Westone's new 3 or, as we like to call it, W3 � The first true three-way earphone made for music lovers

Hear your music, movies and games like never before. The Westone3 is the first true universal fit three-way earphone designed for personal listening. Its balanced armature drivers and three-way crossover network add incredible realism and punch to your listening experiences. The 3�s ergonomic fit provides unmatched comfort, outstanding sound isolation, and accurate reproduction that will satisfy the most demanding listener. The Westone 3 comes complete with inline volume control, �� adapter, travel case, and ten different types of eartips to customize the fit to the anatomy of your ears.

Westone 3 Specifications

Sensitivity: 107 dB SPL
Frequency response: 20 Hz -18 kHz
Impedance: 30 ohms
Driver: Balanced armature
Features: Soft padded travel case, ten different eartips, and wax loop for cleaning.
Standard Color: Black

Also on a side note, there is a difference between a "triple driver" and the "3-way driver". The "3" is not a triple driver.

triple driver = dual bass, single high

3-way = low driver, mid driver, high driver

The Westone 3 is the culmination of almost 50 years of experience creating products for the human ear, and 20-plus years of developing in-ear technology for pro musicians. Westone monitors� clarity, response and fit have made them the favorites of top recording and performing musicians worldwide.

Technical Specs: Sensitivity � 119 dB/mW Impedance � 27ohms Drivers � 3 balanced armatures with 3-way passive crossover

Accessories:

Inline Volume Control �� Adapter Travel Case Tips (various sizes and styles)

OK to answer a few questions:

1) pics - have not got any press shots yet. Will soon and will post them.

2) size - about the same as the UM2, a little more oval in shape. Still as flush fitting as the UM2. Out current protoypes are using the UM2 casing, so that will give you an idea of the compact size of the drivers.

3) sound - subjective of course; but very warm mids, tight base and sharp, crisp highs. Some have stated they sound at least as good as the ES2.

Westone Announcement sent to Earphone Solutions in March 2007:

"45 + 20 = 3

...Many customers dissatisfied with the comfort or retention of their stock earbuds have opted to see a hearing care professional for custom adapter earpieces. Others, frustrated that they cannot appreciate the full fidelity of the music with stock earbuds, have upgraded to higher end universal earphones such as our UM1 and UM2, and even the custom ES1 and ES2.

Looking at this trend, we took note that our existing line of music products was designed, and the sound shaped, for the performance musician. But an on-stage musician looks for something a little different in their sound than an audiophile would. With that thought in mind, we have developed the new Westone 3, a true three-way universal fit earphone, featuring separate low, mid and high frequency drivers in each earpiece. The sound accuracy and frequency range is unbelievable. The feedback we've received from testing has been very encouraging and there is already a lot of positive "buzz" for the product appearing in online blogs and forums...

We are certainly excited about the positive feedback for the Westone 3 and its potential in the market.

(By the way, if you have been wondering about the arithmetic in our headline, don't worry - it's not more "new math" that you'll need to learn. It's just marketing speak for "The new Westone 3 is the result of over 45 years of making products for the human ear and 20 years of involvement in the music industry.")"

Westone 3 Specifications

Sensitivity: 107 dB SPL
Frequency response: 20 Hz -18 kHz
Impedance: 30 ohms
Driver: Balanced armature
Features: Soft padded travel case, ten different eartips, and wax loop for cleaning.
Standard Color: Black

The Westone 3 will be shipping with:

3 Pairs of Comply Tips - standard, slim and short
3 Pairs of Silicone tips - small, medium and large
3 Pairs of Gray rubber tips - small, medium and large
1 Pair of tri-flange tips
1/8" to 1/4" adapter
Volume attenuator
Wax removal tool
Zip Carrying Case
User's Guide
FREE EarphoneSolutions Instructions and Tips on How To Get the Best Sound Exclusive

Love it
By Steve from Geneva, IL on June 11, 2009
I would recommend this item to a friend. Comments: Works great.

Not Blown Away.
By Paul Arditti on May 2, 2009
Comments: The Westone 3s are very good. They are fair and accurate, clean and detailed. They are comfortable to wear and appear to be well-built. I'm glad the included volume control can be disconnected, as I prefer not to use it. My only real comparison is my old Etymotic ER6i's, which are of course a far cheaper, single-driver earphone. The Westone 3's are in a different league, as you'd expect. As a sound designer, I spend a lot of time wearing headphones, and I'm pretty sure I know what I'm hearing. What I'm hearing is great. However, my old Etymotics are a better seal for my ears than the Westones, and exclude outside noise much more efficiently. Here's the main thing: the Westone 3's are disappointing in the bass department. I had hoped, at this cost, and with three drivers, that I could expect something pretty wonderful. But the bass is only just there. There doesn't seem to be an issue with extension, by which I mean that the lowest notes are reproduced, but the level is far too low in the mix for the bass to properly contribute. I have listened extensively to rock, pop, jazz and classical. So, four stars, not five.

Not Blown Away.

By Paul Arditti on May 2, 2009

Comments:

The Westone 3s are very good. They are fair and accurate, clean and detailed. They are comfortable to wear and appear to be well-built. I'm glad the included volume control can be disconnected, as I prefer not to use it. My only real comparison is my old Etymotic ER6i's, which are of course a far cheaper, single-driver earphone. The Westone 3's are in a different league, as you'd expect. As a sound designer, I spend a lot of time wearing headphones, and I'm pretty sure I know what I'm hearing. What I'm hearing is great.

However, my old Etymotics are a better seal for my ears than the Westones, and exclude outside noise much more efficiently.

Here's the main thing: the Westone 3's are disappointing in the bass department. I had hoped, at this cost, and with three drivers, that I could expect something pretty wonderful. But the bass is only just there. There doesn't seem to be an issue with extension, by which I mean that the lowest notes are reproduced, but the level is far too low in the mix for the bass to properly contribute. I have listened extensively to rock, pop, jazz and classical.

So, four stars, not five.

Great Sound and Comfort
By Byron on April 30, 2009
Comments: The W3 earphones have great sound and are perhaps the most comfortable I've ever used. No microphonic noise from cord movement and very light weight.

Westone 3 review
By Robin on April 27, 2009
Comments: Excellent earphones. I had an old SHURE E5c set, which I love(d). I have misplaced these, and have not had a head to head comparison to these earphones, but I am sure that these Westone 3s are better. Excellent clarity, soundstage, even bass is great. With higher quality recordings-lossless AAC or 256k mp3 you can hear much more. I highly recommend these earphones. Once you listen to these it is hard to go back to anything else. Phones used with ipod nano and ipod classic120Gb.

Westone 3 review

By Robin on April 27, 2009

Comments:

Excellent earphones. I had an old SHURE E5c set, which I love(d). I have misplaced these, and have not had a head to head comparison to these earphones, but I am sure that these Westone 3s are better. Excellent clarity, soundstage, even bass is great. With higher quality recordings-lossless AAC or 256k mp3 you can hear much more. I highly recommend these earphones. Once you listen to these it is hard to go back to anything else. Phones used with ipod nano and ipod classic120Gb.

superior sound-poor fit
By JR on April 25, 2009
Comments: These earphones truly do have a superior sound. However, the largest size ear foams do not fit enough to block out the noise in the area around me. I had an inexpensive pair of Koss earphones that had a larger foam ear fit and I loved the soundproof in the gym. Now I hear the gym music and clanking of bars. I really do not want to spend the several hundred dollars more for the custom fit earpiece, especially after spending so much for the actual headphones. I wish they would have at least included a size equal to the standard quiet earplugs they sell in drug stores.

superior sound-poor fit

By JR on April 25, 2009

Comments:

These earphones truly do have a superior sound. However, the largest size ear foams do not fit enough to block out the noise in the area around me. I had an inexpensive pair of Koss earphones that had a larger foam ear fit and I loved the soundproof in the gym. Now I hear the gym music and clanking of bars. I really do not want to spend the several hundred dollars more for the custom fit earpiece, especially after spending so much for the actual headphones. I wish they would have at least included a size equal to the standard quiet earplugs they sell in drug stores.

Whups. Not made in the USA anymore!
By matthew weaver on April 23, 2009
Comments: I was surprised to lean that Westone very quietly has moved manufacturing to China (at least for the Westone 3 model). They declined to respond to my inquiry as to why, which is unfortunate. At any rate, if you cared about this -- now you can know without having to buy (and return) a pair.

great Service from Earphone Solutions
By David on April 14, 2009
Comments: I got this product quite fast and was able to fly with them within a week of ordering.

The Ultimate Earphones
By Robbie Meyer on April 10, 2009
Comments: I have been using my W3's, combined with the UM56 inner canal sleeves for about 3 weeks now, and all I can say is "WOW". I started off using the w3’s a few months back with the included sleeves, and felt something lacking, even a bit disappointed. In my discussion with Flavio about this, he suggested I try the UM56's. THANK YOU Flavoi! It took a few tries with the UM56's, but when those sleeves slide into that "second bend" in the ear canal, all I can compare it with is it's like going from standard TV to HiDef. Stunning sound. It is no longer a matter of left and right but a complete and totally consuming sound field. Close your eyes and you are “in” the music. I feel totally emerged, be it classical, rock, jazz, trance/dance, anything sounds so pure and full. Especially with “Live” music, the resonance and ambiance is spectacular. The highs, lows and in-betweens sound just great, so clean and distinctive, especially on low volumes, where it sounds even better. I have also experimented with and have found music recorded in the 192kbps range and higher do indeed have a distinctly better quality for that “full sound” reproduction. In summary, these are spectacular ear phones for anyone expecting high quality music reproduction and will settle for no less. These are “IT”. Sorry for lack of technical jargon, I am merely a music lover, and these are my ultimate end. No need to look further. The combination of the W3’s and UM56’s is the way to go, hands down. Thanks to the folks at Earphones Solutions, Flavio & Adriana, for turning me on to these, and thanks to Dale Douglass @ Westone for the help with the UM56’s. The journey has only begun and it has been spectacular Robbie Meyer Chandler AZ

The Ultimate Earphones

By Robbie Meyer on April 10, 2009

Comments:

I have been using my W3's, combined with the UM56 inner canal sleeves for about 3 weeks now, and all I can say is "WOW". I started off using the w3’s a few months back with the included sleeves, and felt something lacking, even a bit disappointed. In my discussion with Flavio about this, he suggested I try the UM56's. THANK YOU Flavoi! It took a few tries with the UM56's, but when those sleeves slide into that "second bend" in the ear canal, all I can compare it with is it's like going from standard TV to HiDef. Stunning sound. It is no longer a matter of left and right but a complete and totally consuming sound field. Close your eyes and you are “in” the music. I feel totally emerged, be it classical, rock, jazz, trance/dance, anything sounds so pure and full. Especially with “Live” music, the resonance and ambiance is spectacular. The highs, lows and in-betweens sound just great, so clean and distinctive, especially on low volumes, where it sounds even better. I have also experimented with and have found music recorded in the 192kbps range and higher do indeed have a distinctly better quality for that “full sound” reproduction.
In summary, these are spectacular ear phones for anyone expecting high quality music reproduction and will settle for no less. These are “IT”. Sorry for lack of technical jargon, I am merely a music lover, and these are my ultimate end. No need to look further. The combination of the W3’s and UM56’s is the way to go, hands down.
Thanks to the folks at Earphones Solutions, Flavio & Adriana, for turning me on to these, and thanks to Dale Douglass @ Westone for the help with the UM56’s. The journey has only begun and it has been spectacular

Robbie Meyer
Chandler AZ

drummer life & Westone 3
By Andre on April 3, 2009
Comments: I'm a drummer who always looking for better sound for my music whenever i do performance, itried so many different in ear monitor start from cheapest (OSP) to super expensive (shure SCL5) and i got custom dual driver from hearyourself also ($300). Those are sound nice for me but when i first tried this earpiece, i love it so much (i think this much better than the other earphone i owned). For $399 it's worth for best quality and performance. My drum kit sounded really natural and soft also made me enjoy the music that i play. High, mid, & low mix verry well (*****). One think that i'm wondering why they are assembling in China instead of USA ? But Overal is good and perfect Andre

drummer life & Westone 3

By Andre on April 3, 2009

Comments:

I'm a drummer who always looking for better sound for my music whenever i do performance, itried so many different in ear monitor start from cheapest (OSP) to super expensive (shure SCL5) and i got custom dual driver from hearyourself also ($300). Those are sound nice for me but when i first tried this earpiece, i love it so much (i think this much better than the other earphone i owned). For $399 it's worth for best quality and performance. My drum kit sounded really natural and soft also made me enjoy the music that i play. High, mid, & low mix verry well (*****). One think that i'm wondering why they are assembling in China instead of USA ?
But Overal is good and perfect

Andre

wonderful earphones
By Mike on April 1, 2009
Comments: Before I heard about the Westone 3s, I read numerous reviews and tried a pair of Shure SE 530s. In short, I was terribly disappointed. The sound was incredibly bright and harsh. I mostly listen to classical music - piano, chamber, choral and some opera - and was looking for an earphone that captured the warmth of the music, especially the strings. With the Shures, the strings sounded thin and reedy, and the piano had a "plinky" sound in the high notes and hardly any bass. I wouldn't say the Westone 3s are perfect but the difference between the two is certainly substantial with the Westones providing much of the "warmth" and "natural" sound I was looking for. They also fit well - in my ears anyway - and the noise cancellation is very good. So, all in all I'm a satisfied customer. Excellent work Westone.

wonderful earphones

By Mike on April 1, 2009

Comments:

Before I heard about the Westone 3s, I read numerous reviews and tried a pair of Shure SE 530s.
In short, I was terribly disappointed. The sound was incredibly bright and harsh. I mostly listen to classical music - piano, chamber, choral and some opera - and was looking for an earphone that captured the warmth of the music, especially the strings. With the Shures, the strings sounded thin and reedy, and the piano had a "plinky" sound in the high notes and hardly any bass. I wouldn't say the Westone 3s are perfect but the difference between the two is certainly substantial with the Westones providing much of the "warmth" and "natural" sound I was looking for.
They also fit well - in my ears anyway - and the noise cancellation is very good.
So, all in all I'm a satisfied customer. Excellent work Westone.

Westone 3
By robert leo on March 22, 2009
Comments: These sound distinctly better thamn my UM-2s with the same great fit. I still prefer the black foam sleeves as the grey ones poke my ear.

Just as promised
By Dave on March 21, 2009
Comments: Ordered my UM3s to replace a set of Shure SE530s that I misplaced last year (gasp). I tried them out first with the foam tips and was underwhelmed because of the lack of treble. I have since switched to the soft rubber "black olive" tips which I have been using for the past couple weeks. I now find the UM3's to be highly satisfying. They have incredible transparency and a more open soundstage than the SE530s. They have tight and solid bass. I am quite happy with my (admittedly large) investment.

Just as promised

By Dave on March 21, 2009

Comments:

Ordered my UM3s to replace a set of Shure SE530s that I misplaced last year (gasp).

I tried them out first with the foam tips and was underwhelmed because of the lack of treble. I have since switched to the soft rubber "black olive" tips which I have been using for the past couple weeks.

I now find the UM3's to be highly satisfying. They have incredible transparency and a more open soundstage than the SE530s. They have tight and solid bass. I am quite happy with my (admittedly large) investment.

Westone 3
By Tim on March 21, 2009
Comments: First a little background... I'm in my mid-fifties and although I am by no means a true audiophile, I have owned a number of headphones, earphones and other equipment through the years. Hearing damage to the left ear some years ago ruined the headphone listening experience for me however. It nearly killed me when I put my Stax phones up for sale on eBay but listening to them was by that point only depressing. I received an iPod as a gift about two years ago and although I played briefly with the earphones, I used it mainly as a music source for long work related car trips until discovering the open source firmware replacement Rockbox about a year ago. Its crossfeed feature has all but eliminated the discomfort and one-sidedness that the headphone/earphone experience had become. So much so, that last summer I purchased a set of Shure SE110s as an upgrade to the Apple buds; and those, with the crossfeed, really got me back into the fun of it again. I decided a month or so ago that an upgrade may be in order and started reading the online reviews of various headphones and earphones. Because I would be using the iPod as the primary source, whatever purchased would need to be portable. Lightweight, open air phones would be desirable but being as I also sometimes like to listen to music while in bed, the sound leakage could be a problem. That narrowed the choice to another set of earphones / IEMs. I liked the SE110s; so as an upgrade, the SE530s, were tops on my list. I figured that they probably had a similar sound signature. I also found out about and became interested in the Westone 3s. Its sound signature sounded as though it would be even more to my liking, so I decided to take the gamble. I must now tell you that when I first listened to these phones that I was severely disappointed. These things had a high end that was so hot that it sizzled. It sounded as though Van Morrison was spitting in my ears. Cymbals were not smooth but instead grainy. No combination of settings, including everything turned off, changed this much except shelving the high end from 6kHz up by at least 3 decibels. I was disappointed enough to even get online and check out the return policy of Earphone Solutions. Not wanting to be rash and since I had a little while, I decided to see if a “breaking in” would help. I left the Westones plugged into a constantly playing radio for several days and much to my relief, the next listening session was incredible. I had to check the EQ settings more than once to make sure that I had turned off the high shelf of Rockbox's equalizer. I'm not informed enough to say that the “break in” is what changed these 'phones from “glass cutters” to awesome, but who knows? It's also entirely possible that acclimation to the local climate has as much, if not more, to do with it. By that I mean that Earphone Solutions is located in Florida, warm and humid. These 'phones made the trip from there to Pennsylvania in early March, to a colder and much, much drier climate. Many homes in the Northeastern United States use a forced air heating system and it's worth noting that without any humidification going on, which I do not have, the indoor humidity levels are lower than that of a desert. Lord only knows what else they went through on their journey here. I can see that it could be possible that it took a few days for the tiny drivers to get adjusted to that. It comes down to this... I'm glad that I didn't write the Westone 3s off because I would now be missing something special. Perhaps Earphone Solutions or Westone should make note of this. I can say at this point that I am totally satisfied with the Westones. Through the years I've found that there are certain pieces of gear that I have owned that I learned I could trust to always give me an enjoyable listening experience. When listening to them, I wouldn't be thinking about how much better things might sound with something else. As I write this, I am fondly recalling the Denon DL-103 phono cartridge, the Marshall Leach head amp and the Stax headphones. The Westone 3s have now joined that list. Other observations about these 'phones: With the SE110s, rarely did a listening session exceed more than 45 minutes. Listening fatigue would set in and I had to get them out of my ears. With the Westone 3s, I have now had several sessions go more than 3 hours. I would have kept going too if I didn't have to stop listening for other reasons. They really do reveal details in music that I never noticed before. I've actually caught lyrics that previously were too muddy/murky to discern. With the increased bass of their sound signature and their incredible detail, I don't find myself with the volume as loud as before. Their imaging is noticeably different than that of the 110s and my favorite crossfeed settings did not have the same effect. I had been using a combination of Rockbox crossfeed and custom channel separation settings with the Shures that not only got the sound out of my ears but also gave me a distinctive center channel that was moved well out in front. With the Westones, these settings did not yield the same result. Vocals and instruments weren't as focused and the center was pulled back even with the rest of the music. After experimentation, I am currently using a combination of the default Rockbox crossfeed settings plus a biophonic EQ curve suggested by binaural recordist Ron Cole (easy to do with the parametric EQ). Oh.... My.... Gawd. I now enjoy a panorama of sound, evenly spread out, with vocals and musical instruments distinctly focused, all with the gorgeous detail revealed by the Westones. What must these things sound like to people with perfectly fine hearing and without the need to use this sound processing? I'm somewhat envious. A couple of minor suggestions: I could use a 3 to 6 more inches of cable in the 'Y' area beyond the point where the cable splits. I don't have a small head and like to run the cable over the ears and down the front of my body. As they are; the cables, if run this way, are snug against my neck and besides bugging me, seem to pick up jaw muscle noise and my heartbeat, probably from touching the area near one or both jugulars. I know they suggest running the cables behind my head but I really don't care for that, especially while lying down. As I mentioned before, I like to listen to these while in bed. I've wondered about this before with other phones too, including the Shures... but does Sony have some sort of patent on the little bump or raised dot that they always seem to put on the left earpiece of all their sets? When in the dark, finding the proper left and right orientation with this is practically instantaneous. Yes, I know that the Westones have a little 'L' and 'R' on the earpieces. You try and feel which-is-which in the dark. I know that with a little bit of fondling I can find which earpiece goes to which ear but something like one of those Sony bumps would make it much quicker. That gives me an idea... maybe some super glue and a piece of something the size of a grain of sand would do the trick?

Westone 3

By Tim on March 21, 2009

Comments:

First a little background... I'm in my mid-fifties and although I am by no means a true audiophile, I have owned a number of headphones, earphones and other equipment through the years. Hearing damage to the left ear some years ago ruined the headphone listening experience for me however. It nearly killed me when I put my Stax phones up for sale on eBay but listening to them was by that point only depressing.

I received an iPod as a gift about two years ago and although I played briefly with the earphones, I used it mainly as a music source for long work related car trips until discovering the open source firmware replacement Rockbox about a year ago. Its crossfeed feature has all but eliminated the discomfort and one-sidedness that the headphone/earphone experience had become. So much so, that last summer I purchased a set of Shure SE110s as an upgrade to the Apple buds; and those, with the crossfeed, really got me back into the fun of it again.

I decided a month or so ago that an upgrade may be in order and started reading the online reviews of various headphones and earphones. Because I would be using the iPod as the primary source, whatever purchased would need to be portable. Lightweight, open air phones would be desirable but being as I also sometimes like to listen to music while in bed, the sound leakage could be a problem. That narrowed the choice to another set of earphones / IEMs. I liked the SE110s; so as an upgrade, the SE530s, were tops on my list. I figured that they probably had a similar sound signature. I also found out about and became interested in the Westone 3s. Its sound signature sounded as though it would be even more to my liking, so I decided to take the gamble.

I must now tell you that when I first listened to these phones that I was severely disappointed. These things had a high end that was so hot that it sizzled. It sounded as though Van Morrison was spitting in my ears. Cymbals were not smooth but instead grainy. No combination of settings, including everything turned off, changed this much except shelving the high end from 6kHz up by at least 3 decibels. I was disappointed enough to even get online and check out the return policy of Earphone Solutions.

Not wanting to be rash and since I had a little while, I decided to see if a “breaking in” would help. I left the Westones plugged into a constantly playing radio for several days and much to my relief, the next listening session was incredible. I had to check the EQ settings more than once to make sure that I had turned off the high shelf of Rockbox's equalizer. I'm not informed enough to say that the “break in” is what changed these 'phones from “glass cutters” to awesome, but who knows?

It's also entirely possible that acclimation to the local climate has as much, if not more, to do with it. By that I mean that Earphone Solutions is located in Florida, warm and humid. These 'phones made the trip from there to Pennsylvania in early March, to a colder and much, much drier climate. Many homes in the Northeastern United States use a forced air heating system and it's worth noting that without any humidification going on, which I do not have, the indoor humidity levels are lower than that of a desert. Lord only knows what else they went through on their journey here. I can see that it could be possible that it took a few days for the tiny drivers to get adjusted to that.

It comes down to this... I'm glad that I didn't write the Westone 3s off because I would now be missing something special. Perhaps Earphone Solutions or Westone should make note of this.

I can say at this point that I am totally satisfied with the Westones. Through the years I've found that there are certain pieces of gear that I have owned that I learned I could trust to always give me an enjoyable listening experience. When listening to them, I wouldn't be thinking about how much better things might sound with something else. As I write this, I am fondly recalling the Denon DL-103 phono cartridge, the Marshall Leach head amp and the Stax headphones. The Westone 3s have now joined that list.

Other observations about these 'phones:

With the SE110s, rarely did a listening session exceed more than 45 minutes. Listening fatigue would set in and I had to get them out of my ears. With the Westone 3s, I have now had several sessions go more than 3 hours. I would have kept going too if I didn't have to stop listening for other reasons.

They really do reveal details in music that I never noticed before. I've actually caught lyrics that previously were too muddy/murky to discern.

With the increased bass of their sound signature and their incredible detail, I don't find myself with the volume as loud as before.

Their imaging is noticeably different than that of the 110s and my favorite crossfeed settings did not have the same effect. I had been using a combination of Rockbox crossfeed and custom channel separation settings with the Shures that not only got the sound out of my ears but also gave me a distinctive center channel that was moved well out in front. With the Westones, these settings did not yield the same result. Vocals and instruments weren't as focused and the center was pulled back even with the rest of the music. After experimentation, I am currently using a combination of the default Rockbox crossfeed settings plus a biophonic EQ curve suggested by binaural recordist Ron Cole (easy to do with the parametric EQ). Oh.... My.... Gawd. I now enjoy a panorama of sound, evenly spread out, with vocals and musical instruments distinctly focused, all with the gorgeous detail revealed by the Westones. What must these things sound like to people with perfectly fine hearing and without the need to use this sound processing? I'm somewhat envious.

A couple of minor suggestions:

I could use a 3 to 6 more inches of cable in the 'Y' area beyond the point where the cable splits. I don't have a small head and like to run the cable over the ears and down the front of my body. As they are; the cables, if run this way, are snug against my neck and besides bugging me, seem to pick up jaw muscle noise and my heartbeat, probably from touching the area near one or both jugulars. I know they suggest running the cables behind my head but I really don't care for that, especially while lying down.

As I mentioned before, I like to listen to these while in bed. I've wondered about this before with other phones too, including the Shures... but does Sony have some sort of patent on the little bump or raised dot that they always seem to put on the left earpiece of all their sets? When in the dark, finding the proper left and right orientation with this is practically instantaneous. Yes, I know that the Westones have a little 'L' and 'R' on the earpieces. You try and feel which-is-which in the dark. I know that with a little bit of fondling I can find which earpiece goes to which ear but something like one of those Sony bumps would make it much quicker. That gives me an idea... maybe some super glue and a piece of something the size of a grain of sand would do the trick?

Westone 3
By Jon on March 17, 2009
Comments: From my listening experience the Westone 3 is a very great universal three way speaker. From my listening sessions it was clear that yes indeed a three way speaker is better sounding than that of a two way or 2.5 way design such as the Shure SE530's. I tested these earphones out to see how a triple driver design would really stack up against my custom dual driver Sensa 2X-S and Shure SE530's. I wanted to know if a three way speaker design would really be superior to that of a two way. In the follow aspects what stood out most to me was the Westone three's had much more bass and the high end was a bit more clear than either of my other pair. The midrange is also a bit more focused and I can hear the instruments a bit more clearly. I was a bit shocked to find they were better in these aspects than my customs. Although they cannot rival the extended high end of my Sensa 2X-S I think they no doubt are the best universal three way monitor around. The customs do stand out in the sense that they make the music sound more natural to my ears at least were all universal monitors I have tried seem to make the sound seem similar while only improving on aspects of clarity and range. I must also note I found the Westone sleeves to be far more comfortable than that of the Shure's! In ending my review I have concluded that I am going to end my quest for the ultimate in ear monitor and dwell into the UE-11 Pro custom monitor. But for anyone not wanting to drop a grand on in ear monitors I would highly recommend if you want the best in universal monitors please don't hesitate and pick up the Westone 3's!

Westone 3

By Jon on March 17, 2009

Comments:

From my listening experience the Westone 3 is a very great universal three way speaker. From my listening sessions it was clear that yes indeed a three way speaker is better sounding than that of a two way or 2.5 way design such as the Shure SE530's. I tested these earphones out to see how a triple driver design would really stack up against my custom dual driver Sensa 2X-S and Shure SE530's. I wanted to know if a three way speaker design would really be superior to that of a two way.

In the follow aspects what stood out most to me was the Westone three's had much more bass and the high end was a bit more clear than either of my other pair. The midrange is also a bit more focused and I can hear the instruments a bit more clearly. I was a bit shocked to find they were better in these aspects than my customs. Although they cannot rival the extended high end of my Sensa 2X-S I think they no doubt are the best universal three way monitor around.

The customs do stand out in the sense that they make the music sound more natural to my ears at least were all universal monitors I have tried seem to make the sound seem similar while only improving on aspects of clarity and range. I must also note I found the Westone sleeves to be far more comfortable than that of the Shure's!

In ending my review I have concluded that I am going to end my quest for the ultimate in ear monitor and dwell into the UE-11 Pro custom monitor. But for anyone not wanting to drop a grand on in ear monitors I would highly recommend if you want the best in universal monitors please don't hesitate and pick up the Westone 3's!

Excellent
By Julian Euell on March 16, 2009
Comments: Excellent product. Enjoy the full sound and accurate sound. Outstanding with iPod.

Great Earphones
By Steve on March 13, 2009
Comments: Wow. These are so comfortable and the sound is amazing. I would recommend these to anybody who is serious about there music. Great customer service. Do yourself a favor and buy these, well worth the $.

The verdict is in
By Kelly on March 13, 2009
Comments: The Westone 3 are almost perfect !! Well it's two weeks now. The sound is so accurate that good recordings sound great and poor recordings sound bad. I listen to music with them on my Iphone 3G every day all day, I am a contractor that works out side and has the luxury of being able to listen to music when I work. I put them in my ears at 5:30 am and take them out at 6:00pm with NO removal that is how comfortable they are(comply ear tips) lite and well shaped (took me a day to figure out best tips)that you forget you have them stuck half way to your brain. The cable design is soft pliable and non existent compared to most. The part about giving them time for burn in is BS if they don't sound good off the bat you are "A" not wearing them properly or "B" your music device and or recording sucks. If you really really want to put the W3's to the test then listen to I Mother Earth the Scenery & Fish album- Earth,Sky & "C" song It has every type of instrument in it and the sound quality will blow you away. How westone is able to produce warm clear lows Mids and highs in such a small package with no distortion and very very little over lap sets them high on my scale. The only problem with true sound reproduction if it sounds like a duck and it sounds like a duck and it sounds like a duck, it's a duck. The only reason I give them 4 stars is westone does not offer the Ipnone/PDA compatible cable with the mic and answer button like my triple FI 10's. So if high quality sound reproduction for under 500 dollars is your goal then Westone 3 is your best bet. But because I have to be available at all times to my clients and need my music to keep my sanity,I love my UE VI 10's that have a little less bass a ton of highs and Mids with the built in mic and answer button that doubles as a pause FF/RW button that I find indispensable. So when Westone offers this feature on the 3's it will be a five star and the ultimate pair of off the shelf ear-bud's

The verdict is in

By Kelly on March 13, 2009

Comments:

The Westone 3 are almost perfect !!
Well it's two weeks now.
The sound is so accurate that good recordings sound great and poor recordings sound bad. I listen to music with them on my Iphone 3G every day all day, I am a contractor that works out side and has the luxury of being able to listen to music when I work. I put them in my ears at 5:30 am and take them out at 6:00pm with NO removal that is how comfortable they are(comply ear tips) lite and well shaped (took me a day to figure out best tips)that you forget you have them stuck half way to your brain. The cable design is soft pliable and non existent compared to most. The part about giving them time for burn in is BS if they don't sound good off the bat you are "A" not wearing them properly or "B" your music device and or recording sucks. If you really really want to put the W3's to the test then listen to I Mother Earth the Scenery & Fish album- Earth,Sky & "C" song It has every type of instrument in it and the sound quality will blow you away. How westone is able to produce warm clear lows Mids and highs in such a small package with no distortion and very very little over lap sets them high on my scale. The only problem with true sound reproduction if it sounds like a duck and it sounds like a duck and it sounds like a duck, it's a duck. The only reason I give them 4 stars is westone does not offer the Ipnone/PDA compatible cable with the mic and answer button like my triple FI 10's.
So if high quality sound reproduction for under 500 dollars is your goal then Westone 3 is your best bet. But because I have to be available at all times to my clients and need my music to keep my sanity,I love my UE VI 10's that have a little less bass a ton of highs and Mids with the built in mic and answer button that doubles as a pause FF/RW button that I find indispensable. So when Westone offers this feature on the 3's it will be a five star and the ultimate pair of off the shelf ear-bud's

wow
By izzo bartolomeo on March 11, 2009
Comments: but i think shure 530 is the best earphones. I will more basses for westone 3

Great Choice
By Paul on March 11, 2009
Comments: The Westone 3s are perfect. They have a great, listenable sound with excellent detail, they fit nicely in the ear, and they are very comfortable. SOUND: The Westone 3s have a great balance between high, mid, and low frequencies. It seems that there is an incentive to make earphone “impressive” by boosting the high-frequencies and making all the details more noticeable. However, this is sounds unnatural and actually tired your ears when listening for long durations. I would compare this to shopping for a TV. TVs are always overly-bright when displayed in a store on factory default settings. It really draws your eye to the TV and makes it seem impressive, but it looks pretty unnatural and actually strains your eyes. Unfortunately, unlike TVs, headphones don’t have settings (except for the Sennheiser IE8s, to some extent) and you have to use either EQ or an amp, which is not an idea solution for portable audio – the amp makes it less portable and the EQ on most mp3 players causes horrible distortion. Anyway, because the Westone 3s don’t play this game, they have a balanced sound. The high frequencies are very accurate, so all the detail is there, but it is not in-your-face, which makes them more listenable. There is plenty of low frequency (bass) for popular music, but it is certainly not excessive. The bass seems to go deep enough for an earphone. I certainly don't feel like I'm missing out on low end. However, I think the bass response depends somewhat on how the earphones are positioned in your ear, so it probably will vary from person to person and from listen to listen. FIT: In terms of comfort, the Westone 3s are awesome. They fit nicely in your outer ear (see the picture) and are quite light. In the past, I’ve used silicone ear-tips, but I find that the foam ones included are even more comfortable and provide incredible sound isolation; they are basically ear plugs. The cable is a good length and will reach a hip pocket with no weird extension cables. The over-the-ear design is great for reducing microphonics (noise from the cord being bumped), keeps the cable out of your face, and should help prevent stress on the cable-earphone connection. Unfortunately, the cable appears to not be modular, which means accidentally pulling the cable out of the earphones could ruin them. Fortunately, cable-earphone connection seems durable and the over-the-ear design should prevent accidental stress on the connection. MY CHOICE: I didn’t really want to pay to try all the different earphones in the price range, so I chose after reading lots of reviews and comparisons. Based on what I’ve read, the Westone 3s have the best mix of highs, mids, and lows and you aren’t sacrificing any detail. If you really like lots of treble, you could consider the Ultimate Ears Triple.Fi 10s or maybe the Shure SE530s. The Sennheiser IE8s are supposed to be pretty awesome too, but I’m a little skeptical about whether a single-driver design can produce better sound. Also, the tunable bass response sounds kind of gimmicky. Based on the limited number of reviews available when I purchased, the impression I got was that the IE8s have deeper bass, but they are less detailed overall. There are probably more reviews and opinions now, so it would be worth looking into. Regardless, my experience with the Westone 3s has been excellent. Everything about them is great and there are no major downsides, so they should not be overlooked!

Great Choice

By Paul on March 11, 2009

Comments:

The Westone 3s are perfect. They have a great, listenable sound with excellent detail, they fit nicely in the ear, and they are very comfortable.

SOUND:
The Westone 3s have a great balance between high, mid, and low frequencies. It seems that there is an incentive to make earphone “impressive” by boosting the high-frequencies and making all the details more noticeable. However, this is sounds unnatural and actually tired your ears when listening for long durations. I would compare this to shopping for a TV. TVs are always overly-bright when displayed in a store on factory default settings. It really draws your eye to the TV and makes it seem impressive, but it looks pretty unnatural and actually strains your eyes. Unfortunately, unlike TVs, headphones don’t have settings (except for the Sennheiser IE8s, to some extent) and you have to use either EQ or an amp, which is not an idea solution for portable audio – the amp makes it less portable and the EQ on most mp3 players causes horrible distortion.

Anyway, because the Westone 3s don’t play this game, they have a balanced sound. The high frequencies are very accurate, so all the detail is there, but it is not in-your-face, which makes them more listenable. There is plenty of low frequency (bass) for popular music, but it is certainly not excessive. The bass seems to go deep enough for an earphone. I certainly don't feel like I'm missing out on low end. However, I think the bass response depends somewhat on how the earphones are positioned in your ear, so it probably will vary from person to person and from listen to listen.

FIT:
In terms of comfort, the Westone 3s are awesome. They fit nicely in your outer ear (see the picture) and are quite light. In the past, I’ve used silicone ear-tips, but I find that the foam ones included are even more comfortable and provide incredible sound isolation; they are basically ear plugs. The cable is a good length and will reach a hip pocket with no weird extension cables. The over-the-ear design is great for reducing microphonics (noise from the cord being bumped), keeps the cable out of your face, and should help prevent stress on the cable-earphone connection. Unfortunately, the cable appears to not be modular, which means accidentally pulling the cable out of the earphones could ruin them. Fortunately, cable-earphone connection seems durable and the over-the-ear design should prevent accidental stress on the connection.

MY CHOICE:
I didn’t really want to pay to try all the different earphones in the price range, so I chose after reading lots of reviews and comparisons. Based on what I’ve read, the Westone 3s have the best mix of highs, mids, and lows and you aren’t sacrificing any detail. If you really like lots of treble, you could consider the Ultimate Ears Triple.Fi 10s or maybe the Shure SE530s. The Sennheiser IE8s are supposed to be pretty awesome too, but I’m a little skeptical about whether a single-driver design can produce better sound. Also, the tunable bass response sounds kind of gimmicky. Based on the limited number of reviews available when I purchased, the impression I got was that the IE8s have deeper bass, but they are less detailed overall. There are probably more reviews and opinions now, so it would be worth looking into. Regardless, my experience with the Westone 3s has been excellent. Everything about them is great and there are no major downsides, so they should not be overlooked!

As solid an earphone as I've ever heard
By nycebo on March 10, 2009
Comments: I've had the Shure e3, Shure e4, and dozens of other headphones and earphones over the year. The Westone 3 has by far the best sound from an earphone that I've ever heard. However, let me preface the rest of my review by mentioning that it took me a long time to find the right eartips for the Westone 3. At first, I went with the eartips from my Shure e4. They did not work well. In fact, I spent a couple hours going back and forth from comfort foam to soft flex to triple flange (as is and cut/modified) to flex sleeves and back again. It was a lengthy and at times frustrating process because I know what a good seal is supposed to feel like a la my experience with earphones over the past few years. With my shures, I used to embed the eartip into my canal much more snugly since the Shure design was more tube-like and thus easier to seat. The Westone 3 is much trickier since it's 'flatter'. The foam eartips worked relatively well but they didn't give that super-solid fitment and enclosure that provided truly dynamic bass. With a lot of experimentation, I ultimately ended with the large grey soft flex eartips. The key is good fitment and it took me a while to get used to inserting the Westone 3 in my ears. Indeed, in the beginning, I would fidget with them almost all the time. Now, however, I've gotten to the point where I can pop them right in. Frankly, I think it was the same process with the Shures, but that was so long ago that I've forgotten the 'break-in' process. Anyway, the reason I mention my travails is because it is imperative with earphones that one gets a solid fit, seal, and insertion. If there are any gaps between the eartip and your ear/canal, the sound is negatively impacted...and tremendously so on the mid and bottom end. So, stick with it until you find what works completely best for you (meaning, try all the eartips, and the Westone 3 comes with many). Anyway, that said, on to the review. What can I say? The sound is sweet. The instructions are spot on when they urge you to turn the equalizer OFF. I've been shopping for new hifi speakers recently and damned if these earphones are pretty good by comparison. The bass is extraordinary. I find myself noticing percussion and sound effects on tracks that I never knew were there. Frankly, the same goes for the midrange. The soundstage is just expansive. I feel like I'm enveloped by the music. I can't iterate enough how fantastic jazz, classical, rock and vocals sound. On listening to Dire Straits', Mark Knoppfler's husky voice is dramatic, the drums are crisp, and his guitar has a clarity that was all but muffled with earlier earphones that I've used. The principle of having 3 distinct drivers to power the lows, mids and highs really does result in a more dynamic listening experience. With classical music, the strings sound alive and rich. This is truly where the enhanced texture of the bass really matters because the bigger string instruments carry a low end that really dies on other earphones. The Westone's ability to properly generate the richness across the bass clef really makes the hairs stand on my arm. In particular, Yo Yo Ma's rendition of Bach's Cello Sonatas was just fantastic. I went back and listened to my old Shures and noticed that on a flat EQ, there simply was no lower tonality on the tracks at all. I had compensated by goosing the bass on the EQ. Frankly, the Westone almost, but not quite, bordered on having too much bass. With my old EQ settings, the bass was bloated and overpowering. The guys at Westone really got it right here because I'm not able to listen to the music unpolluted by any DSP in the MP3 player. I guess the last thing to mention is how much better I now like wearing the Westones because of the different eartip that I'm now using. Because it's larger, it doesn't sit inside my ear canal as deeply and consequently, it's basically unnoticeable. I literally can listen for hours without fatigue. Moreover, sitting here at my computer typing the review, I'm already pining for the opportunity to pop them back in for my walk home. The cable is also fantastic in that it's pre-twisted so they don't get tangled as easily. Just a lot of little thought put into the details. Good stuff all around and completely recommended.

As solid an earphone as I've ever heard

By nycebo on March 10, 2009

Comments:

I've had the Shure e3, Shure e4, and dozens of other headphones and earphones over the year. The Westone 3 has by far the best sound from an earphone that I've ever heard.

However, let me preface the rest of my review by mentioning that it took me a long time to find the right eartips for the Westone 3. At first, I went with the eartips from my Shure e4. They did not work well. In fact, I spent a couple hours going back and forth from comfort foam to soft flex to triple flange (as is and cut/modified) to flex sleeves and back again. It was a lengthy and at times frustrating process because I know what a good seal is supposed to feel like a la my experience with earphones over the past few years. With my shures, I used to embed the eartip into my canal much more snugly since the Shure design was more tube-like and thus easier to seat. The Westone 3 is much trickier since it's 'flatter'. The foam eartips worked relatively well but they didn't give that super-solid fitment and enclosure that provided truly dynamic bass. With a lot of experimentation, I ultimately ended with the large grey soft flex eartips. The key is good fitment and it took me a while to get used to inserting the Westone 3 in my ears. Indeed, in the beginning, I would fidget with them almost all the time. Now, however, I've gotten to the point where I can pop them right in. Frankly, I think it was the same process with the Shures, but that was so long ago that I've forgotten the 'break-in' process. Anyway, the reason I mention my travails is because it is imperative with earphones that one gets a solid fit, seal, and insertion. If there are any gaps between the eartip and your ear/canal, the sound is negatively impacted...and tremendously so on the mid and bottom end. So, stick with it until you find what works completely best for you (meaning, try all the eartips, and the Westone 3 comes with many).

Anyway, that said, on to the review. What can I say? The sound is sweet. The instructions are spot on when they urge you to turn the equalizer OFF. I've been shopping for new hifi speakers recently and damned if these earphones are pretty good by comparison. The bass is extraordinary. I find myself noticing percussion and sound effects on tracks that I never knew were there. Frankly, the same goes for the midrange. The soundstage is just expansive. I feel like I'm enveloped by the music.

I can't iterate enough how fantastic jazz, classical, rock and vocals sound. On listening to Dire Straits', Mark Knoppfler's husky voice is dramatic, the drums are crisp, and his guitar has a clarity that was all but muffled with earlier earphones that I've used. The principle of having 3 distinct drivers to power the lows, mids and highs really does result in a more dynamic listening experience.

With classical music, the strings sound alive and rich. This is truly where the enhanced texture of the bass really matters because the bigger string instruments carry a low end that really dies on other earphones. The Westone's ability to properly generate the richness across the bass clef really makes the hairs stand on my arm. In particular, Yo Yo Ma's rendition of Bach's Cello Sonatas was just fantastic. I went back and listened to my old Shures and noticed that on a flat EQ, there simply was no lower tonality on the tracks at all. I had compensated by goosing the bass on the EQ. Frankly, the Westone almost, but not quite, bordered on having too much bass. With my old EQ settings, the bass was bloated and overpowering. The guys at Westone really got it right here because I'm not able to listen to the music unpolluted by any DSP in the MP3 player.

I guess the last thing to mention is how much better I now like wearing the Westones because of the different eartip that I'm now using. Because it's larger, it doesn't sit inside my ear canal as deeply and consequently, it's basically unnoticeable. I literally can listen for hours without fatigue. Moreover, sitting here at my computer typing the review, I'm already pining for the opportunity to pop them back in for my walk home. The cable is also fantastic in that it's pre-twisted so they don't get tangled as easily. Just a lot of little thought put into the details.

Good stuff all around and completely recommended.

Excellent
By Charlie Leach on March 10, 2009
Comments: A superb pair of earphones, very comfortable, fit right in my ear so I can lie against a pillow with them on. Very cool design, really pleased I found them. Very good customer service, despite my moaning and awkwardness, dealt with me very well. Would recommend them anytime: the website, the product and the service.

Incredible
By Ben A on March 8, 2009
Comments: The sound with the Westone 3's is absolutely incredible. The clarity here is incredible. Instruments which previously were hidden in the background of the music are now clearly and wonderfully present. However there is no loss of lower end or mid range (thanks to the three-way design). This leads to a sound which is warm, deep, and very tight in the low end, detailed, smooth, and pleasantly present in the mid range, and silky, smooth, quick, and detailed in the upper range. All in all an absolutely incredible audible experience. However finding a good fit with the included tips is essential for optimum sound to be achieved. Thanks to Westone and Earphone Solutions (received product very quickly as promised) for this wonderful product!

Incredible

By Ben A on March 8, 2009

Comments:

The sound with the Westone 3's is absolutely incredible. The clarity here is incredible. Instruments which previously were hidden in the background of the music are now clearly and wonderfully present. However there is no loss of lower end or mid range (thanks to the three-way design). This leads to a sound which is warm, deep, and very tight in the low end, detailed, smooth, and pleasantly present in the mid range, and silky, smooth, quick, and detailed in the upper range. All in all an absolutely incredible audible experience. However finding a good fit with the included tips is essential for optimum sound to be achieved. Thanks to Westone and Earphone Solutions (received product very quickly as promised) for this wonderful product!

best of you can carry
By burhan on March 5, 2009
Comments: it is the best you can carry but you can hear better music in a car which has an avarage speaker system

Sceptical
By Gary Majchrzak on March 5, 2009
Comments: Having read various reviews of the 3's I was sceptical about the claims made for them, but also curious. As I was not satisfied with the Ultimate Ears Triple Fi's I was using - principally a comfort issue - I decided to splash the cash. The 3's arrived 2 days later and after trying the various ear tips for fit and comfort I can only say WOW! They are so comfortable you forget you're wearing them. But more importantly they sound incredible, none of the claims made for them are over exaggerated. The sound stage wraps around you, they are incredibly detailed, superbly balanced with tight punchy bass, warm mid range and a crisp, clean treble. I can't my ipod touch could sound so good. As you may have guessed I love these phones. However, there is a downside, they do show up recordings for what they are and the quality varies enormously. But having experienced them I can't imagine life without them. The best purchase I've ever made?

Sceptical

By Gary Majchrzak on March 5, 2009

Comments:

Having read various reviews of the 3's I was sceptical about the claims made for them, but also curious. As I was not satisfied with the Ultimate Ears Triple Fi's I was using - principally a comfort issue - I decided to splash the cash. The 3's arrived 2 days later and after trying the various ear tips for fit and comfort I can only say WOW! They are so comfortable you forget you're wearing them. But more importantly they sound incredible, none of the claims made for them are over exaggerated. The sound stage wraps around you, they are incredibly detailed, superbly balanced with tight punchy bass, warm mid range and a crisp, clean treble. I can't my ipod touch could sound so good. As you may have guessed I love these phones. However, there is a downside, they do show up recordings for what they are and the quality varies enormously. But having experienced them I can't imagine life without them. The best purchase I've ever made?

?
By E. Wagner on March 2, 2009
Comments: Excellent - far better than the UM2's that accidentally ended in washing machine after six months. Superior clarity, separation, and spacialization. Disappointed that it is so hard to read "L" and "R" on the earphones.

increibles
By agustin matoses casado on February 27, 2009
Comments: westone 3 son unos in ear increibles, estoy muy contento con ellos, soy ingeniero de sonido y los uso en todas mis giras, son los mejores que he escuchado nunca, tengo que felicitaros por el producto, la atencion recibida y la rapidez de la entrega, se los recomendaria a todos los profesionales del sonido directo, creo que son una herramienta imprescindible para cualquier ingeniero de sonido que se precie.

increibles

By agustin matoses casado on February 27, 2009

Comments:

westone 3 son unos in ear increibles, estoy muy contento con ellos, soy ingeniero de sonido y los uso en todas mis giras, son los mejores que he escuchado nunca, tengo que felicitaros por el producto, la atencion recibida y la rapidez de la entrega, se los recomendaria a todos los profesionales del sonido directo, creo que son una herramienta imprescindible para cualquier ingeniero de sonido que se precie.

My Non-Technical Opinion
By David M. on February 27, 2009
Comments: As background, I am an avid music listener but know nothing about the technical aspects of sound. My reference point is either, I like the quality of a particular sound or I do not. Before purchasing my Westone 3’s, I used Shure SE420-K’s and Triple.Fi 10’s by Ultimate Ears. As to music, I listen predominantly to jazz, classical, trance and progressive. Without question, the quality of sound produced by the Westone 3’s far surpass my experience with either the Shure or Triple.Fi 10’s. Within seconds of listening, one senses additional “layers” of music that previously went unheard. The Westone 3’s produce a warmth and brilliance that gives life to the energy and passion of music. A purely subjective observation: if I listen to low Bit Rate recordings, perhaps 128kbps or less, the Westone 3’s do not distinguish themselves so markedly and to my ears, seem only marginally better than the Triple.Fi 10’s and about equal to the Shure SE420’s. On the other hand, with each incremental increase in sound quality, the Westone 3’s extend their lead to the point where listening to music with anything else, becomes disappointing. Before purchasing the Westone 3’s, I regarded myself as a bystander to music; someone on the edge of passing sound; given the 3’s brilliance and opulence however, you “are” the music and the pleasure of listening becomes extraordinary. In addition to unmatchable sound quality, the Westone 3’s braided cables do not tangle allowing me to avoid the complex puzzle of snarls other cables inexplicably create to frustrate me. If I were to find fault, it would be with the selection of eartips provided with the Westone 3’s; none (for me at least) provides a truly “comfortable” fit. In this regard, the Shure black closed-cell foam eartips do a much better job isolating noise and ensuring a remarkable fit. Second but less important is the Westone soft-shell travel case that may not provide adequate protection for business travelers; once again, I would defer to Shure and their hard-shell case. Whether any of this has been useful or not, I am uncertain but to my mind, the Westone 3’s have established the new baseline for sound-quality excellence. Minor changes to the accessories would further increase their remarkable lead.

My Non-Technical Opinion

By David M. on February 27, 2009

Comments:

As background, I am an avid music listener but know nothing about the technical aspects of sound. My reference point is either, I like the quality of a particular sound or I do not.

Before purchasing my Westone 3’s, I used Shure SE420-K’s and Triple.Fi 10’s by Ultimate Ears. As to music, I listen predominantly to jazz, classical, trance and progressive.

Without question, the quality of sound produced by the Westone 3’s far surpass my experience with either the Shure or Triple.Fi 10’s. Within seconds of listening, one senses additional “layers” of music that previously went unheard. The Westone 3’s produce a warmth and brilliance that gives life to the energy and passion of music.

A purely subjective observation: if I listen to low Bit Rate recordings, perhaps 128kbps or less, the Westone 3’s do not distinguish themselves so markedly and to my ears, seem only marginally better than the Triple.Fi 10’s and about equal to the Shure SE420’s. On the other hand, with each incremental increase in sound quality, the Westone 3’s extend their lead to the point where listening to music with anything else, becomes disappointing.

Before purchasing the Westone 3’s, I regarded myself as a bystander to music; someone on the edge of passing sound; given the 3’s brilliance and opulence however, you “are” the music and the pleasure of listening becomes extraordinary.

In addition to unmatchable sound quality, the Westone 3’s braided cables do not tangle allowing me to avoid the complex puzzle of snarls other cables inexplicably create to frustrate me.

If I were to find fault, it would be with the selection of eartips provided with the Westone 3’s; none (for me at least) provides a truly “comfortable” fit. In this regard, the Shure black closed-cell foam eartips do a much better job isolating noise and ensuring a remarkable fit. Second but less important is the Westone soft-shell travel case that may not provide adequate protection for business travelers; once again, I would defer to Shure and their hard-shell case.

Whether any of this has been useful or not, I am uncertain but to my mind, the Westone 3’s have established the new baseline for sound-quality excellence. Minor changes to the accessories would further increase their remarkable lead.

amazing sound
By Alejandro on February 25, 2009
Comments: I have owned several earphones and certainly the Westone 3 tru 3 way driver earphones are my favorite so far. I found an overall well balanced sound and very detailed. Very comfortable to wear and good exterior sound isolation

A REVALATION IN SOUND
By Christopher J. O'Keefe on February 16, 2009
Comments: I just recently received my Westone 3's as a replacement for a pair of Shure S430 in canal monitors which were stolen from my car. I labored long and hard reading numerous reviews across varying web sites before making the decision to purchase the 3's from Earphone Solutions. I was inclined to go with the UM - Tripe fi but, ultimately I think I purchased the best in ear monitor solution on the planet in the Westone 3's. I am an audiophime whose home rig is anchored my Lexicon Amp/Processor and Krell LAT 2's and a Martin Logan Descent subwoofer. In my opinion, however, the W-3's rival even these fine components in producing a truly musical, hi-fidelity signal in a tiny package. Since purchasing these in canal earphones (partnered with an iphone 3G) I have been rediscovering some of my favorite old cuts and finding new and finer details throughout my musical library. The dedicated 3 armature system pioneered by Westone combined with the comfort of their well fitting foam tips had the W-3's performin perfectly out of the box! The comfort, sound isolation and incredible detail and clarity of the W-3's has to be experienced to be believed. I purchased them blind, based only upon the review provided by Earphone Solutions after their visit to Westone Headquarters in Boulder, CO for the unveiling o the W-3 in ear monitors. The combination of incredible clarity, mid, bass and high end separation and overall signal quality makes them , in my mind the equal to my Krell LAT 2 monitors or overall listening satisfaction. KUDOS to Westone for delivering on the best in ear monitor solution in today's market

A REVALATION IN SOUND

By Christopher J. O'Keefe on February 16, 2009

Comments:

I just recently received my Westone 3's as a replacement for a pair of Shure S430 in canal monitors which were stolen from my car. I labored long and hard reading numerous reviews across varying web sites before making the decision to purchase the 3's from Earphone Solutions.

I was inclined to go with the UM - Tripe fi but, ultimately I think I purchased the best in ear monitor solution on the planet in the Westone 3's. I am an audiophime whose home rig is anchored my Lexicon Amp/Processor and Krell LAT 2's and a Martin Logan Descent subwoofer. In my opinion, however, the W-3's rival even these fine components in producing a truly musical, hi-fidelity signal in a tiny package.

Since purchasing these in canal earphones (partnered with an iphone 3G) I have been rediscovering some of my favorite old cuts and finding new and finer details throughout my musical library. The dedicated 3 armature system pioneered by Westone combined with the comfort of their well fitting foam tips had the W-3's performin perfectly out of the box!

The comfort, sound isolation and incredible detail and clarity of the W-3's has to be experienced to be believed. I purchased them blind, based only upon the review provided by Earphone Solutions after their visit to Westone Headquarters in Boulder, CO for the unveiling o the W-3 in ear monitors.

The combination of incredible clarity, mid, bass and high end separation and overall signal quality makes them , in my mind the equal to my Krell LAT 2 monitors or overall listening satisfaction. KUDOS to Westone for delivering on the best in ear monitor solution in today's market

Westone 3 True 3-Way Driver Earphones
By Egbert on February 12, 2009
Comments: These earphones are simply gorgeous. They fit perfectly and have a fantastic sound. Absolutely worth the money.

just keep getting better
By anthony l on February 6, 2009
Comments: Having owned and later sold the following earphones. Um1, Um2, se530, ue superfi 10, er6i, se500pth, i feel i can offer a real opinion upon these earphones, these people complaining about certain elements of these earphones, need to make sure they're a good fitting, as for me i feel there is ample seperation of the mid highs and lows. for me they offered the complete packaged in terms of a balance of detail and smooth sound signiture that doesn't leave your ears fatigue. These iem are just a joy to listen to, i would say unamped they sound better then any of the other earphones i've owned, but once these are amped ( graham slee solo ) you can really see what they;re capable of! after hearing these amped i sold my se530 and my super.fi10 as they;re not in the same league imo. Althogh these are not my rewired hd650's, they're on the move, as close to enjoyable as i am able to have. from a former se530 fanboy, lets hope shure bring out something to challange these

just keep getting better

By anthony l on February 6, 2009

Comments:

Having owned and later sold the following earphones. Um1, Um2, se530, ue superfi 10, er6i, se500pth, i feel i can offer a real opinion upon these earphones, these people complaining about certain elements of these earphones, need to make sure they're a good fitting, as for me i feel there is ample seperation of the mid highs and lows. for me they offered the complete packaged in terms of a balance of detail and smooth sound signiture that doesn't leave your ears fatigue. These iem are just a joy to listen to, i would say unamped they sound better then any of the other earphones i've owned, but once these are amped ( graham slee solo ) you can really see what they;re capable of! after hearing these amped i sold my se530 and my super.fi10 as they;re not in the same league imo. Althogh these are not my rewired hd650's, they're on the move, as close to enjoyable as i am able to have.

from a former se530 fanboy, lets hope shure bring out something to challange these

The next step toward perfection
By Randy on February 5, 2009
Comments: I've tried most of the upper end devices, and had settled on UM 2's for the past three years. I was completely satisfied with them--and still am, for that matter. But a side-by-side between the UM 2's and the W 3 shows just how far Westone has come. Nothing I have compared them with has come close. Clean, clear, efficient, balanced, pleasing, smooth and comfortable all come to mind as descriptors. They are as close to perfection as anything on the market, and as a previous reviewer noted, I too can't imagine where Westone--or anyone else--can go from here. It's as good as it gets.

The next step toward perfection

By Randy on February 5, 2009

Comments:

I've tried most of the upper end devices, and had settled on UM 2's for the past three years. I was completely satisfied with them--and still am, for that matter. But a side-by-side between the UM 2's and the W 3 shows just how far Westone has come. Nothing I have compared them with has come close. Clean, clear, efficient, balanced, pleasing, smooth and comfortable all come to mind as descriptors. They are as close to perfection as anything on the market, and as a previous reviewer noted, I too can't imagine where Westone--or anyone else--can go from here. It's as good as it gets.

Westone 3
By Jim on February 2, 2009
Comments: My first venture into high end in-ear earphones and the experience is extraordinary. The fit is comfortable and secure right out of the box and the sound is amazing. The separation and clarity is fantastic, rivaled only by premium floor standing speakers. The instructions on insertion and care are very helpful but would have liked greater discussion on changing out earpieces. While expensive, these Westone 3's are a marvelous listening experience and worth every penny.

Westone 3

By Jim on February 2, 2009

Comments:

My first venture into high end in-ear earphones and the experience is extraordinary. The fit is comfortable and secure right out of the box and the sound is amazing. The separation and clarity is fantastic, rivaled only by premium floor standing speakers. The instructions on insertion and care are very helpful but would have liked greater discussion on changing out earpieces. While expensive, these Westone 3's are a marvelous listening experience and worth every penny.

One man's 530's are another man's W3's
By MoJo on February 2, 2009
Comments: I am not a technical bod of any description and shall leave that to those who like to spout technical terms and phrases.......nor am I a musician (not even slightly) I do however know exactly what I like to listen to and how I want it to sound. I'm old enough to be able to spend my money on 'high end' products and have been around the block, from a musical perspective, quite a few times; just about every genre you care to name sits in my collection. I own some 530's and was somewhat nervous about replacing them with these W3's since they have performed admirably thank you very much. All the technical blurb and words from those in the 'biz' was very convincing, but nonetheless gobbeldygook to a layman like me. I just want to know do they sound good, do they give me goose bumps at the right moments, do they make me (heaven forbid) break out into spontaneous sing-along? I'm a hardcore mountain biker so it's the outside environment that they are being used in. The answer, after a few weeks of tweaking, is yes they do! There's no doubt that they make my goose bumps just that little bit bigger than those created by the 530's. Someone in this review panel suggested turning off the equalizer on whatever music machine I'm using which I have never done before - result? Stunning! They get my vote, I prefer them over the 530's BUT, as is evidenced by this review panel - it's so personal and so subjective that quite frankly, if you get the chance to test drive them first then do so 'cos you won't want to buy another pair (of either flavour) once you've made your choice.

One man's 530's are another man's W3's

By MoJo on February 2, 2009

Comments:

I am not a technical bod of any description and shall leave that to those who like to spout technical terms and phrases.......nor am I a musician (not even slightly) I do however know exactly what I like to listen to and how I want it to sound. I'm old enough to be able to spend my money on 'high end' products and have been around the block, from a musical perspective, quite a few times; just about every genre you care to name sits in my collection.
I own some 530's and was somewhat nervous about replacing them with these W3's since they have performed admirably thank you very much. All the technical blurb and words from those in the 'biz' was very convincing, but nonetheless gobbeldygook to a layman like me. I just want to know do they sound good, do they give me goose bumps at the right moments, do they make me (heaven forbid) break out into spontaneous sing-along? I'm a hardcore mountain biker so it's the outside environment that they are being used in. The answer, after a few weeks of tweaking, is yes they do! There's no doubt that they make my goose bumps just that little bit bigger than those created by the 530's. Someone in this review panel suggested turning off the equalizer on whatever music machine I'm using which I have never done before - result? Stunning! They get my vote, I prefer them over the 530's BUT, as is evidenced by this review panel - it's so personal and so subjective that quite frankly, if you get the chance to test drive them first then do so 'cos you won't want to buy another pair (of either flavour) once you've made your choice.

Westone 3
By SKS on January 28, 2009
Comments: The Westone 3 really is as good as the reviews say it is. The lows, mids, highs are all there. It sounds like a better version of the UE super.fi 10. Although the Shure 530 sounds great too and in my opinion has a better vocal component and soundstage effect, the Westone 3 price is more attractive.

Westone 3
By Ben L on January 19, 2009
Comments: I received my Westone 3s with great anticipation, having only used cheap earphones previously. However, I was greatly disappointed when I plugged them in to my iPod. I then realized there was a problem with the wiring. I contacted Westone, they were very helpful, and sent them back. Within a day I received a new pair of 3s within a day or two. They are great !!! I'm not a dedicated, know-it-all audiophile, but I know what sounds good to me and the Westone 3s sound great !!

Westone 3

By Ben L on January 19, 2009

Comments:

I received my Westone 3s with great anticipation, having only used cheap earphones previously. However, I was greatly disappointed when I plugged them in to my iPod. I then realized there was a problem with the wiring. I contacted Westone, they were very helpful, and sent them back. Within a day I received a new pair of 3s within a day or two. They are great !!! I'm not a dedicated, know-it-all audiophile, but I know what sounds good to me and the Westone 3s sound great !!

I was disappointed
By George on January 18, 2009
Comments: I was personally disappointed with these IEMs considering their price. Good and bad things: For the good, they are very comfortable and light. I would compare the comfort to that of the UM1 (which I own), the cable is improved, is lighter and more flexible (it does not get stiff in cold weather like the old westone cable). If you like Bass they have plenty, and percussion instruments sound great with these, punchy and natural. For the bad, I found that while their bass frequencies sound great for percussion, it makes bass guitars sound bloated and unnatural. The low frequencies are so prominent they cover up some of the mids detracting greatly in sound quality. The mids and highs are good except for there being a drop in response just above male vocal frequencies, which made female vocals a bit lacking on the top. But perhaps the biggest flaw I found after the bass, was the complete lack of "air" in the mix, which to me kills a headphone. If you mostly listen to electronic music I think these are very much worth the money, otherwise I would not recommend them. But your mileage may vary, as they say, since it seems a lot of people DO really like these. I have worked as a live sound engineer for 7 years and perhaps that conditions me to like a more analytical sound, I want to be able to listen to the instruments and recognize their sound as what they really sound like live, perhaps if you don't know what the instruments are supposed to sound like, headphone colouring is more acceptable.

I was disappointed

By George on January 18, 2009

Comments:

I was personally disappointed with these IEMs considering their price.

Good and bad things:
For the good, they are very comfortable and light. I would compare the comfort to that of the UM1 (which I own), the cable is improved, is lighter and more flexible (it does not get stiff in cold weather like the old westone cable). If you like Bass they have plenty, and percussion instruments sound great with these, punchy and natural.

For the bad, I found that while their bass frequencies sound great for percussion, it makes bass guitars sound bloated and unnatural. The low frequencies are so prominent they cover up some of the mids detracting greatly in sound quality. The mids and highs are good except for there being a drop in response just above male vocal frequencies, which made female vocals a bit lacking on the top. But perhaps the biggest flaw I found after the bass, was the complete lack of "air" in the mix, which to me kills a headphone.
If you mostly listen to electronic music I think these are very much worth the money, otherwise I would not recommend them. But your mileage may vary, as they say, since it seems a lot of people DO really like these. I have worked as a live sound engineer for 7 years and perhaps that conditions me to like a more analytical sound, I want to be able to listen to the instruments and recognize their sound as what they really sound like live, perhaps if you don't know what the instruments are supposed to sound like, headphone colouring is more acceptable.

A Very Satisfied Customer
By Mike on January 17, 2009
Comments: I am an older audiofile, & have been a consumer of audio equipment since the '50's. My equipment tastes run to McIntosh, Marantz, B&W, etc. - - not too eclectic by today's standards, but still right up there near the upper end of the quality/performance scale. My music tastes run from Jazz, Pop, and some limited Rock to Classical, Choral, and Organ. Having witnessed the evolution to true high quality sound reproduction in the personal portable player category over the years it is very gratifying to experience the warm audible delights of these Westone 3 in-ear headphones. They truly fully satisfy my sonic/soundstage preferences. I have avoided purchasing this type of product over the years, due to sonic inadequacies of earlier designs. These earphones have broken through that barrier and fully satisfy the emotional, sonic & soundstage experiences I seek when listening to my music. It is expected that future higher end products of this type will emerge to knock this one from its current "best one yet" perch, but I for one will remain quite satisfied with these earphones. All of the accolades for configuration and build quality by your other reviewers apply here, and I couldn't be happier with my purchase. Kudos to Westone in their pursuit of excellence, and Kudos to Earphone Solutions for providing this excellent site in its dedication to fully informing the customer and thus to enable a most comfortable buying decision

A Very Satisfied Customer

By Mike on January 17, 2009

Comments:

I am an older audiofile, & have been a consumer of audio equipment since the '50's. My equipment tastes run to McIntosh, Marantz, B&W, etc. - - not too eclectic by today's standards, but still right up there near the upper end of the quality/performance scale. My music tastes run from Jazz, Pop, and some limited Rock to Classical, Choral, and Organ. Having witnessed the evolution to true high quality sound reproduction in the personal portable player category over the years it is very gratifying to experience the warm audible delights of these Westone 3 in-ear headphones. They truly fully satisfy my sonic/soundstage preferences.
I have avoided purchasing this type of product over the years, due to sonic inadequacies of earlier designs.
These earphones have broken through that barrier and fully satisfy the emotional, sonic & soundstage experiences I seek when listening to my music.
It is expected that future higher end products of this type will emerge to knock this one from its current "best one yet" perch, but I for one will remain quite satisfied with these earphones. All of the accolades for configuration and build quality by your other reviewers apply here, and I couldn't be happier with my purchase.
Kudos to Westone in their pursuit of excellence, and Kudos to Earphone Solutions for providing this excellent site in its dedication to fully informing the customer and thus to enable a most comfortable buying decision

WESTONE 3
By Pons on January 16, 2009
Comments: I 'm a little bit desapointed by this ear, I was expecting more than UM2 for this price it 's not the case the trefle is too short, the medium trefle is too present and the bass is behind. The position in the ear is not confortable, so I 'm not really satisfied and I 'm going to sell it.

Westone3
By Ed on January 14, 2009
Comments: the selection of tip is key to the sound of W3, at this stage I am still going through break in, but I feel that so far music is a bit too "laid back"

awesome
By Keith Greene on January 14, 2009
Comments: The sound,comfort, cord length are all awesome and I love the volume control. However, two things I don't like is the cord isn't detachable so if you accidently get the cord hung up you'll have to send it in if you break the wire.Also if you choose not to use the volume control wire the regular end won't fit with some ipod cases.

Westone 3 is just what I'm looking for
By Silver_Bullet on January 12, 2009
Comments: been a while since I got my Westone 3, been spending quite some time with it and totally loved it!! Before Westone 3, I used to have Shure E530 and UE Triple fi, but both of them werent exactly what I was looking for, while Shure E530 had the best fit, the sound quality especially the bass cannot compare to UE which I love the most and UE Triple fi just gets in my nerves everytime I tried to get the best seal with it, and I dont like the design. I was frustated looking for a good IEM for me, I was thinking of something between Shure E530 with good comfort and UE Triple Fi with good sound, and Westone 3 is exactly the answer. The low is really controlled, the mid is better than Triple Fi and the treble is almost as good as Shures.. What I like the most is it's easy to get a good seal with it and eventhough I have tinnitus, I can totally enjoy the music with Westone 3!!

Westone 3 is just what I'm looking for

By Silver_Bullet on January 12, 2009

Comments:

been a while since I got my Westone 3, been spending quite some time with it and totally loved it!!
Before Westone 3, I used to have Shure E530 and UE Triple fi, but both of them werent exactly what I was looking for, while Shure E530 had the best fit, the sound quality especially the bass cannot compare to UE which I love the most and UE Triple fi just gets in my nerves everytime I tried to get the best seal with it, and I dont like the design.
I was frustated looking for a good IEM for me, I was thinking of something between Shure E530 with good comfort and UE Triple Fi with good sound, and Westone 3 is exactly the answer.
The low is really controlled, the mid is better than Triple Fi and the treble is almost as good as Shures..
What I like the most is it's easy to get a good seal with it and eventhough I have tinnitus, I can totally enjoy the music with Westone 3!!

Thinking of ditching SE530? Think again. Honest evaluation from earphone enthusiast

By Irakli on January 12, 2009

Comments:

Purchased W3s with great anticipation but I regret this decision now. I keep testing it to a range of devices (NWZ-A826, S615, Rio Karma and Cowon D2, vaio UX280P and two other PCs, etc.) and file types (wav, flac, mp3, aac, wma etc).

Even though W3s fit comfortably and are undeniably balanced and warm, they sound muddy (read: when compared to Shure SE530). Let me try to explain in my own words: The mids are clearly inferior and bass is â€œover entrenchedâ€ across the spectrum, up to the point where highs come into play. The soundstage is much more plain than compared to SE530. Its ironic that SE530s that do not have dedicated driver for mids best Westone3s with dedicated driver.

My other complaint with the phones are that they sound "piercing", so disturbingly that gives me headache and desire to remove them after 30 min. of use. No change of EQ settings and eartips help it.

Third, again, comparing to SE530 they provide significantly less isolation and believe me, I tested it in a variety of environments (home, subway, etc.) and all ten types of supplied eartips.

I asked several friends to compare these two and everyone agreed that while Westone 3s sound decent, they fade in comparison with Se530s in terms of clarity, richness of the sound and isolation.

What can I say in conclusion? Sure, these are a very high quality phones and built with great thought put in them, but listening to them does not bring any joy, if you know what I mean. No sudden smile on your face that SE530 does. You never hear that full sound that is so rich, alive and attentive to details as Se530 does. If I'd never used these before, I'd think Westone 3s are great, but Se530s set the bar higher and you can't ignore it.

P.S. Oh yes, if you are using audio files compressed at 192 and lower (in the case of mp3, for example), reconsider buying another phones. Westone 3s are not very tolerant towards highly compressed fillies. They sound horrible! Again, Shure famously wins here.

The point of view expressed here is solely mine and based with my intensive (6 day with W3s and 1 year with Se530) usage and comparison of these two phones. I really hope they grow on me since I feel like I wasted a lot of money for the new Westone 3s, while I already had a better alternative and a winner at home.

Long live SE530s!

Westone3 Vs UM2

By Jason on January 12, 2009

Comments:

I recently purchased the Westone 3 headphones after owning the UM2 for about 45 days. The reason I bought them was due to how impressed I was from the UM2 and for 100$ more I couldnt resist. Needless to say the UM2 were in such good shape that I gave them to my brother for his christmas present and kept the Westone3s for myself. They are better, and a step up, and you can hear the 3 drivers. I do think the UM2s played louder at a lower volume level on my ipod touch but that hasnt made any impact. Both are amazing headphones with the W3 even better in treble and bass. I now burn all my music in the highest quality because you can hear the difference with these and im running out of space on my ipod touch. If you can afford the money go with these for $399 they are worth it, in my opinion. Same cords as UM2, many more ear piece options though I only like the foam tips, these are awesome.

Really Comfortable

By Rob Murray on January 11, 2009

Comments:

Obviously, from all the accolades, these phones sound great- perfectly balanced across the entire spectrum, with deep bass and clear highs. I tried to pick out "holes" in the sound, and just couldn't find any. To really enjoy them, you will want a really good source, and leave out any kinds of enhancement.

But thing that I really love the most is that they are really comfortable, and can be worn for hours using the comply foam tips. They fit into the ear canal perfectly (like a hearing aid, so suppose they are showing their pedigree). I also have a pair of Shure E500PTH which also sound great but they aren't comfortable for long term wear- I would find my ears feeling sore after about 3-4 hours and had to stop listening. No such problem with these Westones.

You really can't go wrong picking up a pair of these if you are serious about sound and comfort.

The Westone 3 - I don't know where we go from here!

By Giovanna Visconti on January 11, 2009

Comments:

“I want a balanced sound that perhaps offers the SE530s’ outstanding soundstaging but with tighter, less-intrusive bass, plus most importantly a clearer, fuller, more prominent midrange, and the “airy” extension on the highs that probably only electrostatic sound can provide.”

I wrote that on this web site last August in a review praising the UM2 in-ear headphones, Westone’s outstanding two-way system that, to my mind (and ears) trumps their competition by a wide margin.

In that same review I said I’d be first in line when Westone finally delivered their triple armature system. And I was. Well, pretty close to the front anyway.

I’ve been living with the 3s for about a month now and several times during sampling I had to remind myself these are itty-bitty, ECHs! The technology available to create something this grand in such a small size is remarkable and something to be grateful for, but individual designers still have to apply that technology. And Westone has, again, trumped everyone in my opinion based on the ECHs I either own or have had the opportunity to sample.

In fact, the 3s are almost too good for portable devices. If you don’t believe me, run them through a high-end home system. I’ve been doing both and have been tremendously impressed with how they sound within my system. Oh, and also when connected to an iPod. Almost forgot! 

Once again, the bass is tight. It neither intrudes upon nor overwhelms the mids. It’s…balanced. Well, of course! However—as John Belushi used to say—“But, Noooo!” It just doesn’t happen that easily. As I mentioned in my UM2 discussion, bass is a tricky thing to balance in speakers and headphones, particularly in classical music recording. Because Westone have “balanced” the bass here, the most important area of music reproduction, the midrange, is left free, warm and detailed. And the difficult high end is revelatory. By that I mean, I’m hearing high detail that I knew was there in pieces I’m very familiar with but didn’t always hear via iPod. (Just to clarify, I transfer music uncompressed using Apple’s AIFF, i.e., WAV, format.)

The wicked test for the 3s was, however, in my home system. I have two, but don’t want to clutter this long review with more information than anyone wants. I use separate amp, preamp and D/A conversion. I also have an A/V amp for home theatre.

For headphone listening I’ve a pair of Beyer DT880s and the Stax SR-202s. However, I currently run those through a Luxman amp used solely for that purpose until I can afford to upgrade SRM-252II driver unit. All Cardas interconnects (and speaker cable), either Microtwin or Quadlink. For playing CDs, I use either my Oppo DV-983H or the DV-981HD. (Waiting for their Blu-ray player due out soon!)

By definition, all ECHs are closed systems. So I’m not going to compare the Stax, or even the Beyers (which are open phones) to the 3s. The 3s simply stand on their own against all other ECHs. They should probably be compared principally to the UE Triple.fi and Shure’s SE530. I wish I owned a pair of these because I think the 3s would equal or surpass them based on my experience with the E500s. Also, I believe Sennheiser has delivered a triple armature unit, but I haven’t heard any of their ECH products.

I’ve used several recordings as sound samples ranging from remastered analogs to more recent strtictly digital recordings. The fact that there are still sonic issues inherent in digital recording is not for this discussion since, for better or worse, that’s what we’re listening to these days. Mostly. (I’m leaving out any discussion of vinyl because I haven’t gotten round to sampling it yet. I’m saving the best for last. Perhaps another time!)

I ran the gamut of solo voice, large symphonic work, Wagner and Strauss operas, solo piano, heavy choral involvement, and so on:

- Christa Ludwig’s famous 1964 recordings for RCA of scenes from Ariadne and Goetterdaemmerung
- Nicolai Gedda’s four-disc “Best of” set which ranges from the 1950s through the ‘80s
- Gilels’ Brahms Concerti
- Kempff’s Beethoven Sonatas
- Klemperer’s 1964 Messiah to gain the benefit of the spectacular Philharmonia Chorus and Kingsway Hall
- Karajan’s magnificent 1980 Parsifal with the Berlin Philharmonic recorded in the Philharmonie
- Boehm’s 1967 Siegfried recorded live at Bayreuth
- Klemperer’s 1962 Mahler Second, again recorded in Kingsway and featuring the Philharmonia Chorus and Orchestra

- Basil Poledouris’s grand, thunderous score for 1981’s Conan, the Barbarian recorded with the Orchestra & Chorus of Santa Cecilia, and the Radio Symphony of Rome; produced for Varese by Robert Townson
- James Horner’s splendid score for 1994’s Legends of the Fall with the London Symphony Orchestra
- John Williams’s scores for the last (uh, first) three Star Wars films also with the LSO and the LSO Chorus
- Williams’s 20th Anniversary reissue of the E.T. soundtrack
- Charles Gerhardt’s benchmark recordings of Korngold and other great film composers from the early 1970s, recorded in Kingsway under the supervision of premier genius engineer, Kenneth Wilkinson
- Miklos Rozsa’s monumental and stunning score for El Cid reconstructed by Tadlow Music on three discs and recorded in 2007 by James Fitzpatrick—he is Tadlow—and Nic Raine conducting the City of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra and Chorus
- Rozsa’s complete multi-track recordings of the Ben-Hur soundtrack recorded in 1958 on the M-G-M soundstages, resurrected and restored by Rhino and Turner Sound

Most of this music will test any system, and if it plays well then any pop/rock/jazz, whatever, will present no problems to the 3s. And, indeed, after all that, Rod Stewart, Frank Sinatra (the Mobile Fidelity remaster of “Only the Lonely” as well as the comprehensive Columbia Years)…Glenn Miller, Paul & Artie, Fleetwood Mac, even The Everly Brothers(!) and anything else thrown at the 3s sounded just fine, thank you! The Miller originals, by the way, were really beautifully remastered by Proper Records and the 3s didn’t miss any of it.

The Conan score alone contains just about anything one could want to “test” speakers, or any part of a high-end system! However, Horner’s Legends and Rozsa’s El Cid are more recent recordings.

Selections 5 (“Death of Samuel”) and 11 (“Revenge”) on the Legends CD—just two examples, mind you—are simply stunning. Horner uses all his trademarks here, and listening is actually a lot better than sitting through the film which didn’t live up to the score, unfortunately.

As I mentioned in my August review, I own the UE Triple.fis. They’re very good in my system, very explosive, but they do lack the warmth and musicality of the 3s. The UE’s soundstaging doesn’t have quite the easy pinpointing of the 3s: There are the upper strings stage right; the lower stage left; the brass and horns in the center back; the winds forward center, and so forth.

I had the opportunity to spend a lot of time with the Shure SE530’s predecessor, the E500s, and was startled at the soundstaging Shure achieved. The most impressive thing about them, I think, but surpassed, or certainly equaled, by the 3s. Also, as I mentioned in the earlier review, with prolonged listening bass seemed to swamp the mids on the Shures. I was always conscious of this and found it intrusive.

Because of the superb soundstaging Westone has built into them, along with the smooth balanced sound throughout the spectrum, the 3s seem to wrap the music around you. It almost seems to be coming from within you, the listener, and you can focus on any detail at any time, or simply allow the music to flow through you. In the closed, dynamic headphone environment, the listening experience is very personal—one of the points of this kind of headphone.

Almost forgot: fit. I still forget I’m wearing these even though the body is slightly fatter than the UM2s, as you’d expect, and they’ve a slightly shorter nozzle. However, the grey, soft rubber tips are still the most comfortable choice for me and Westone’s own, included in the package, are slightly softer than those I’d ordered from Shure for my UM2s.

So what else could I want from such teeny-tiny giants? Maybe Westone’s custom fit earpieces since I’m guessing the 3s might be hiding a secret or two yet, they’re obviously that good.

Oh, and guys…just one thing: For those of us old enough to remember when we didn’t need glasses, perhaps the logo on the left earpiece could have been blue? I solved this problem by “coloring” in the letter “R” on the inside of the right earpiece with a Pentel Metallic Gold pen. Now I can see without my glasses which side is…right.

But I don’t think I’ll send them back to you to put a blue logo on my left earpiece! Although…I COULD use my UM2s while you did that…ahem.

Thank you, Westone. That doesn’t sound sufficient for what you’ve done here, but I don’t know what else to say.

Westone 3 earbuds
By Nathaniel Gershowitz on January 10, 2009
Comments: I own an extraordinary headset by ableplanet. The Westone 3 were on par, and a little better because of the very natural sound. I had to use the 3-fold adapter to get full bass.

Incredible!!

By Marc Soto on January 9, 2009

Comments:

i'm the type of person who wants the best of the best and if i know that i bought something that is not that, then i'll stress it out untill i do.
For my birthday i went to please myslef with the Se 530pth because many thought that it was simply fantastic. Now when i went to buy them, the store offers a free demo for any earphone and the Westones Blew my mind, so much definition, and tight base. As though if u close your eyes you can imagine your self in personal concert. Simply astonishing
ps. i heard that you need to play it for at least 100 hours to break the very high end earphones in.
just a sugestion

Best So Far

By Larry white on January 5, 2009

Comments:

I have purchased, Shure, Bose, Panasonic, and various other types of Ear Phones for my I Pod and C D Player,
The Westone 3 are the best of all that I have tried so far by a long shot. The high pitches as well as low pitches are clearly defined and without distortion.
I would strongly recommend these to anybody who wants to seriously listen to serious music!
L J White
I like to listen to good Classical Music as well as

Not the greatest
By Will on January 1, 2009
Comments: I was happy to get them, but when i tried them, i wasn't exactly pleased with them. I tried different settings on my ipod, even turning off the eq, but was i disappointed. i am looking at returning them or exchanging them for the UM2. Maybe others will be happy with them, but for me, the long wait was a waste of time.

Unbelievable!!!

By David from So. TX on December 31, 2008

Comments:

I own se530s, um2 and now the 3's I'm not a youngster I am in my late forty's and I have a relatively good ear I use a a classic ipod 120gb and have all my files in apple losses format bottom line is the 3's have no equal or competition as far as I'm concerned they sound good no matter what you listen to. I have run sound boards for bands and have herd some out standing sound systems and know I have there equal right in my pocket, or maybe even better. They fit your ear very well supper comfortable and have tons of tips to get the right fit well worth the wait
GOOD JOB WESTONE!!!

Awesome headphones

By Phil B. on December 30, 2008

Comments:

I upgraded from a pair of Shure SE310s, and have noticed a large improvement.

The Westone 3 in-ear-monitors have incredible bass reproduction. Listening to bass-heavy artists like Beck or Gorillaz, whose beats make even my giant Klipsch speakers distort, come through crystal clear and strong with these headphones. No rumbling or popping, just smooth perfect bass.

At the same time, the trebles and mids shine through without interference. I have noticed that the mids are ever so slightly recessed: it's not really a problem, as these headphones have a great, creamy, musical sound that feels like warm honey is being poured into your ears.

They are very comfortable, and I have worn them for 5 hour stretches without any discomfort. They isolate noise very well, but not as well as the Shures, which cuts both ways: loud noises, like the subway, encroach a little more on your listening experience, but in most cases you can also keep these phones in your ears while having a brief conversation on the street or at the register in a store and still hear most of what the other person is saying.

These phones are about as good as I think I can expect from any in-ear-monitor. I will probably never buy another pair of buds, unless it's to replace this pair. Cans are a separate story, just because of their reputation for an expanded sound stage. The Westone 3s have a good degree of separation anyway, but there are physical limitations to the effects you can achieve with one style of headphone vs. another.

Bottom line: if you want IEMs, get this pair: you can do no better.

Fumble
By Bailey on December 28, 2008
Comments: Super sound, but one needs acrobatic skills to insert them and ability to think in reverse. Not a fast lane product! Also chord dangles like string and can knot if not careful. Generally not a good mobile product-better for couches!

最高です
By 中川忠彦 on December 26, 2008
Comments: すばらしい！！！下手な表現はやめます。買ってそんのない品、もう１つ欲しいです。

Haven't tried them yet

By Eric Gethers on December 24, 2008

Comments:

I am waiting for my friends to bring the Westone 3's over to southern France where I am now living. They arrive on the 30th. I can't wait to see them. I am more anxious about trying the earphones. (forgive me, friends) I will let you know how I like them as soon as possible. Just for the record, it was a pleasure doing business with you all. Very helpful. No hustle. Two of my favorites.
My Best,
Eric Gethers

Westone 3
By Rhys on December 23, 2008
Comments: Owned shure SE530, Westone um2, shure E4C, and Shure E2's. Had Westone 3 for a few weeks. they are the best headphones i've ever heard and the most comfortable. Did actually feel a bit weird when i first started using them as it feels like there's nothing in your ears! treble is noticably better than se530's.

TRES TRES BON
By ArniDee on December 22, 2008
Comments: #NAME?

Very Nice
By Jim on December 21, 2008
Comments: I got these to replace a set of SE530's. I find that the Westone's to sound cleaner than the Shure's. The fit I would rate the same and the Westone cords, being more pliable, I would rate as better. Awesome sound; great value.

The Very Best
By Joe on December 21, 2008
Comments: These are the best earphones I have ever owned, I thought the 2's were great but the 3's surpass them. Gave my 2's to the wife and won't let her use the 3's because she will want a pair too. Well worth the $$, and shipping was excellent.

Leave out all the rest

By psycho_v on December 21, 2008

Comments:

The world of IEMS is a tough place to be in without reviews and actually trying them out for yourself. Being an audiophile, its hard to please oneself if you truly want to listen to music at a quality that is as close as the live performance itself.

I have started off with the shure se310 which is a single driver earphone and personally, its one of the best single driver earphones I have ever owned. When I had the budget to set the level a bit higher, reivews was all I had between the shure se530 and westone um2, but since I'm more of a bass listener, the um2's really delivered superbly.

When earphonesolutions confirmed the release of the westone 3, there is no way I'm not getting my hands on them. And just like a heavenly blessing, they sound unbelievable! Its like you couldn't imagine something so small can create such an outstanding sounstage. The highs were perfect, the mids glorious, and the heart-pumping deep bass is awesome.

After listening to a lot of hip-hop songs (I luv your girl - The dream feat. young jeezy) has been really the song that tests the bass of these babies. I just couldn't stop playing the song over and over again. But dont get me wrong, they are not only for hip-hop listeners, they sound great in all genres. Anybody who has the extra cash should get one, you wont be disappointed.

Thank you earphonesolutions for your passion in the business.

The smile on my face may have to be surgically removed.

By Jim Contos on December 20, 2008

Comments:

Flavio,

laptop + amp is dead quiet.

Checked this during quiet passages in a song as well as with playback paused.

I'll get back to you on the other items. Right now I'm enjoying the best d@mn universal fit true 3 driver earphones on the planet too much. :}

For perspective here are the other earphones/headphones that I own: (A pair of Boise Tri Port headphones and a pair of Sony noise cancelling headphones have already been sent to Ebay)

Apple iPod earbuds - Don't use anymore.

Unknown Sony earphones that were my first "I gotta get something better than these iPod earbuds" purchase. These are used if I want noise isolation and don't care too much if they get lost/damaged.

Sennheiser 424 HDs - Had these since the late 70s/early 80s. They pretty much spend their existence plugged into my conventional home stereo for the times when I am watching a movie late and don't want to use the speakers. They are a large "on ear" open design. I've replaced the leads once and the sponges a few times.

Grado 80s - my choice when listening while I work at home (laptop + amp) and have to stay "connected" to things like ringing phones, doorbells, family members, pets, etc.

Sennheiser PX100s - Small on ear headphones that I can wear in public and are typically used without an amp. They collapse down kind of like eyeglasses for storage and don't make me look like a ham radio operator...

Sennheiser CX300B - Followed the Sony earphones. Pretty good sound, terrible cord noise, weird popping/crackling when I insert them, pretty good comfort once in. Probably going away via Ebay.

Shure SE210 - Went with these to address cord noise of CX300Bs, they are not as heavy bass wise. They project out from the ear more than I would like. Ebay worthy at this point as well.

Which brought me to the purchase of the Westone 3s...

First, I reviewed closed and open cans and decided that in ears were the way to go. Took a brief look at custom fit, maybe the 3s will go that route someday if possible.

Candidates:

Westone 3s, UE Triple fi 10 Pro, IE 40, SE530

Just kept cycling through write-ups, feature comparison, etc. Talked to the folks at your end as well as Westone.

Why the 3s won:

True 3 element design, eartip selection, rave reviews everywhere I looked, price point, (sub $400 is pretty much it for me) and close to ear design.

Why I am very pleased so far:

Comfort. Left the foams on for now, will try other tips over the next few days.

Appearance. Very low profile. I wear glasses so I've been wearing them without looping the wires over the top of my ears. I get a bit more cord length and the is no cord to interact with the temple bars of my glasses.

Cord. Quite, extremely limp design hangs great right out of the box with no "fold up memory"

Sound. Tons of detail, very wide stage, frequency response, where has all of this sound been hiding?

Price point. Don't know if this is an introductory price or not. Huge bang to buck ratio.

The smile on my face may have to be surgically removed.

Regards,

Jim Contos

Amazing

By Joe K. on December 20, 2008

Comments:

Simply the best there is out there. I have yet to purchase the custom impressions for these but with bi-flange sleeves, shure black foams, and comply standards these produce the best sound i've ever heard from any pair of canalphones.

The UM2's simply do not compare in terms of balance, richness, and bass. A headphone amp is not even required to get most of the performance out of these.

I would recommend these to anyone, they are priced right for what you get. Once again, a very happy buyer.

Unbelieveable Clarity

By Bob on December 20, 2008

Comments:

I purchased the W3's kind of on faith that the 3 drivers would improve the sound experience of my Shure SE530's. I can report that my expectations have been exceeded especially in the mid and bass ranges.

I listen to mostly classical and even though I am really familiar with the music, with the W3's it is so much easier to hear the complex sonorities of a full orchestra and distinguish separate musical lines of the various instruments.

Clarity. Clarity. Clarity. I'd thought the bass on the SE530's was really good. Now it sounds muddy in comparison to the W3s.

I didn't really expect the hype to be true that some others have written that they could hear things in the music they hadn't before. But I have to say that I was surprised to discover an "extra" guitar track in a Leonard Cohen album I've listened to for years. And I thought I new that album inside and out.

The one area I've chosen to "made an adjustment" is in the treble... but it's me, not the earphones. I prefer jarringly crisp treble. The W3's to my ears are balanced, and I prefer my treble slightly out of balance. Making a slightly brighter eq for the treble gave me exactly what I wanted. I couldn't be happier with the sound.

I agree with a previous reviewer on this site that the flexible cords of the W3's are an improvement on the stiffer ones on the SE530's. I always worried about the Shure insulation cracking as the insulation aged and the the strain of on-and-off wearing took its toll. Unfortunately, just that very thing happened just before I bought the W3's and the SE530's have to go back for repair. I like being able to wind the W3 cord more easily without having to worry so much about this issue.

Everyone's ears have different geometry. The W3's fit my ears slightly better than the SE530's but more importantly, the foam tips stay in my ear canals a lot better. Both earphones are comfortable, but I found myself adjusting the SE530's in a way that I just don't have to with the W3's.

I now feel I have the most perfect earphones I've ever bought, and although they're expensive I don't have a single regret about the purchase.

Westone 3 - WOW!

By Chris Trahan on December 19, 2008

Comments:

I've had a pair of Westone UM2s for 2 years now. I thought the UM2s were the best until I tried the Westone 3s! Very balanced sound. At first, I thought the W3s were not as lound as the UM2s, then I realized that they didn't sound as loud because of the balance. They have very good seperation. I've heard instruments in songs that I didn't realize were there. Highly recommended. They are a big improvement in sound for only 100 dollars more than the UM2s.

Finest Earphones Ever Tried
By Allan on December 19, 2008
Comments: Having used several Shure models, I find these to be a more comfortable fit, and a far superior sound. I love them and would recommend them to anybody who wants the best.

Nice improvement on the Already Awesome UM2's

By Art M. on December 19, 2008

Comments:

I've tried almost all the earphones out there, and settled on the UM2's. To me they sound the best by a substantial margin, and also are the most comfortable (except for the UM1 :).

UM2 has always been in a class by itself in that it sounds incredibly NATURAL. Also the deep rich bass is a wonderful bonus. Other earphones strike me as either too tilted towards treble (artificially exaggerated treble detail) or towards bass, or, somehow just sounding less refined and natural.

Now I've sold one of my UM2's and replaced it with the Westone 3. The 3 is a solid upgrade over the UM2. It has the same family sound - rich and natural - with slightly more extended and detailed treble and also slightly more extended and detailed bass. It strikes me as almost as comfortable as the UM2.

I don't agree that the 3 "demolishes" the UM2. I strongly recommend UM2 and 3 at their respective price points, for the music fan that values comfort and a natural sound.

Art

ps: Break-in is important. Plug them into your iPod, put the iPod on repeat (careful with that volume!), and let it run 50 hours.

None Higher

By Carl on December 18, 2008

Comments:

I am comparing the new Westone 3 to both Shure SE530 and E5C IEM’s all with the flange inserts using an iPod video.

My first observation was that the cords were too thin, however, I soon discovered that the cord on the Westone 3 can be replaced! How nice since I just had to send my SE530’s in for the cracked cable problem. Shure did send me a brand new pair.

After using them for a while, I completely reversed my opinion on the cords. They are much more easy to manage and hang much better providing more comfort than the SE530. I also much prefer the angled input jack of the Westone 3.

As for appearance of the monitors, my first thought was that the Westone 3’s were not quite as sexy looking as the SE530’s and I thought that they would not provide as much comfort. In actuality, they are just a tad more comfortable than my SE530’s. Very nice fit.

When I first started using them, I thought they sounded strange, however, this was only for a couple minutes. Maybe these need a short break in period???

I did a direct comparison between the Westone 3, SE530 and E5C listening to Vivaldi’s Four Seasons, Christmas Carols recorded by the Morman Tabernacle Choir, some hard rock (Buckethead), Rap and old Stones recordings.

In all cases, the Westone 3 just sounded better. Much more range. You really notice a difference in the sound of cymbals for example. Also, the bass is much more powerful. All in all the depth of these IEM’s is just fantastic.

I am really enjoying my new Westone 3 IEM’s. Thanks to Earphonesolutions.com for providing such wonderful service.

The only disappointment I have is that they are not made in the US .

Westone 3
By Simon on December 18, 2008
Comments: Eccellenti...sono tranquillamente paragonabili alle Shure SE530 che costano di più; anzi il cavo è molto più flessibile e meglio concepito di quello delle Shure (troppo rigido...tende a rompersi). Le consiglio vivamente.

Westone 3 - The Best

By Johannes on December 16, 2008

Comments:

My last earphones before I got the W3s were the Shure SE530PTH. The W3s are clearly the better earphones IMHO. They are stunningly musical and natural sounding, reach unbelievably deep down and on top of everthing offer great useability thanks to the super-mellow/flexible cable that you do not feel when wearing them and that can be rolled up to a very small roll.
All in all a great earphone and it really gives me great pleasure. Heartily recommended!

Westone 3
By Charlie Roberts on December 16, 2008
Comments: Allow about 100 hrs for break in before rateing these. Once broken in they are outstanding.

worth the hype

By Michele Bayliss on December 14, 2008

Comments:

I've used the UM2's for the last few years, and before that a Shure earbud and these things blow the UM 2 out of the water. Everything you've read it true - the fit is superb, the sound amazing and the cord is perfect. Because it's twisted strands, you don't hear sounds when you bump against it (when jogging for example) like the thicker Shure cables. Couldn't be happier with the purchase. They look great too. Great for working out or just deep listening - let the sound overtake you.

Music Heaven

By Chris on December 13, 2008

Comments:

I’m in music heaven. I have had and tried decent earbuds and headphones. As Earbuds go I have had the V-Moda Vibes as my everyday use and have tried the Shure 530’s for a month while working at a golf course mowing lawn. I will have to say I feel in love with the Shure 530’s the sound isolation was great specially when mowing LOL and the clean treble was awesome. There was no comparison to my crappy V-moda Vibes. Unfortunately I was not able to keep the Shures do to the price tag. So I was forced to go back to the V-moda’s O yeah not to mention I had to use the 1-year warranty 3 times. The wire split and the buds stopped working. Real quick I have also tried a cheaper pair of Shures, good but not enough bass, those were returned. Also Bose earbuds great sounding if you are in a very quit place all the time. They had absolutely no sound isolation. But yet sounded good. OK headphones I have tried the Sennheiser PX 100. Great headphones for the price but the sound leakage can wake people up. Same goes for the Grado SR125’s. I compared this headphones to the Westone 3’s and it litally took me about 5 sec’s to get the Westones back in my ears. Bass and midrange took the cake hands down compared to the Grado SR125’s Ok that is the earbuds/headphones I have tried. Lets talk about the Westone 3’s. I will make this real easy BUY THEM. I received them about a week ago and was only able to use them with my laptop. The buds still sounded great yet I was getting a lot of feedback from my laptop. Do you think that stopped my addiction to listening to them every night, and I do mean every night after work? I had to listen to them, I wanted to hear all the sounds I was missing in almost every other earbud/headphones available. If you are going to be using the Westone 3’s with an MP3 play, I recived my first player today. After much research I went with the Sony NWZ-A729 do to all the reviews stating this MP3 player has amazing sound quality. I figured how could I not buy the best MP3 player to go with the best earbuds. The sound is unexplainable but I will try. Bass? I have an 12” JL Audio in my car, I could literally compare the tight responsive bass from this 12” sub to these tiny earbuds. Midrange? Amazing, present and keeps listening pleasant with no ear fatigue. Treble? This is my favorite part because usually when you have earbuds/headphones you either get bass or Treble. Well not anymore Bass and midrange are great and you may think great no Treble and then all of a sudden they releases the treble and you smile. It is all there. I LOVE the Westone‘s. I have been listening to them while writing this review and I don’t want to take them out. Remember how I returned my Shure 530’s, you think I am returning the Westones? These are worth every penny and I will NOT be returning them, THEY ARE MINE GET YOUR OWN TRUST ME. Sorry so long I just had to speak my mind on such a amazing creation. I’m in music heaven.

Westone 3 VS UM1

By Vince on December 10, 2008

Comments:

The Westone 3 did to my UM1 what the UM1 did to other earphones. It made my UM1 sound like some cheap earphones.
The UM1 made me hear music that normal earphones couldnt and I thought that was pretty impressive, save for a weak bass. The W3 showed me music that my UM1 couldnt show, coupled with the clarity and rich bass. Now I'm not audiophile, but when I tested the W3, I was shaking and totally blown away. I was rather skeptical when reviews rated the W3 as the number 1 IEM, but now I have to totally agree after hearing it with my own ears.
While the UM2 was slightly clearer sounding with stronger bass than the UM1, I didnt feel that it was that much better than I had to have it. When I listened to the W3, I just knew I NEED to get it. The improvement over the UM1 and 2 is trememdous.

Totally worth the price for the superb quality

UM1 vs. Westone 3

By Natasha on December 9, 2008

Comments:

Before I purchased the Westone 3, I was really worried how the sound quality would be like, as I have never tried them before and I was satisfied with my UM1. However, after I received the Westone 3 and put them into my ears, I knew immediately that I made a wise choice. All of a sudden, the sound quality of my "very good UM1" became stuffy and imbalanced. Sound from Westone 3 is very clear and layered, as if you were listening to a live concert at a concert hall!!

I personally prefer slightly stronger bass and weaker treble in which UM1 was perfect for me that I found Westone 3 a little too sharp in the beginning. But once I have got used to the clarity and detailed sound output from Westone 3, I do not think I could go back to my UM1 be as satisfied as before.

In terms of comfortableness, it is as good as the UM1, especially that you have a great variety of earplugs to choose for your personal preference. The soundproof would, however, be depended on the earplug that you use.

All in all, the price is totally worth it.

Serious Audio
By Bink on December 6, 2008
Comments: These are certainly the best headphines I've ever heard. Probably overkill for some but if you really enjoy the music and it's not just background noise, you can't go wrong with these. Solid workmanship and unbeatable clarity ... A new high-water mark.

SE530 vs. Westone 3

By Christopher Masten on December 6, 2008

Comments:

For the last week I have compared my E530s to my new 3's, unamped out of my Iphone 3g and then amped out of my predator via ALO silver from a Nano using my best samples on my train commute into my office.

I have used my Shures now every day for almost 2 years as I bought them when they first came out. i have considered them to be the best of the best for sound, fit and finish. I tried the Triple Fis and neither the fit or signature ever did it for me.

There is nothing I have heard to date the sounds better across the spectrum in universal fit IEMS than the 3’s. The 3s, IMO beat the E530s across the board and yes again IMO even in the mids.. the highs are the best I have heard to date (over an ER4P or S), the bottom is just superb and the fit in my ear with the mid soft flex tips is about as perfect as I have found to date. I like the olives but they get messed up and the soft flexes seem to slip in and out easy with a solid feel. I wear these 5 days a week for 3-4 hours. I alternated IEMS on the routes out and back for 5 days with amped and unamped samples. There was not a song or a day that the 3s didnt clearly come out on top and I was really hoping they were close out of courtesy to my faithful Shures.

Unamped they both can be driven just fine off an IPhone, amped they both sound better in the bottom end and presence and depth of field along with imaging seem to improve, but not like an amp makes say a Senn or Beyer stand out. Both are very comfortable, but I would have to say that after an hour the Westones just completely disappear.. the Shures you always know are there but stay comfortable. Both have good isolation, but again the Westones for me using soft flex tips beat out the Shures with Olives (my previous favorites).

I just received my new E530s as a return, courtesy of Shure, and gave them to a friend at work who would appreciate them, they were on top of their game 2 years ago and right up until Westone started to ship the 3, I have respect for both companies and what they accomplished. It seems like a lot of fan fair for the Westones like there was for the Shures when they came out.. but in my mind there is clearly a new champion for universal fit IEMS, regardless of driver count or cost, these 3’s are just superb. Every IEM I have listened to has holes, My new X10s, ER4P/S, E530, IM760 all of them.. The 3’s just do everything so well and I cannot tell where the cross over points are none of the 3 armatures stand out, they all just work flawlessly together and I get the crisp highs, the smooth mids and the tight bottom end that I have been looking for. I wont be actively looking for another IEM like I have been these past 2 years… I could actually get used to wearing these at home more in place of my full sized cans (RS1, D2000,650, DT880 and 770) they are that good, something I would never have considered with my E530s.

Again, hats off to Westone for taking the heat and waiting to get these right, its clear that everything they wanted is in the final product. Superb product and easily worth the full price of 399. Compared to even discounted prices for the 530 they are a great value.

Better than SE530

By Salvador on December 5, 2008

Comments:

Since buying a pair of Shure E3's back in the day I've been happy to check out the latest and greatest pair of in-ear earbuds. This has basically meant my climbing the Shure ladder to the SE530's. Which until now have been my favorite pair.

That is until I picked up a pair of the Westone 3's. Same big sound as as SE530's but with an overall cleaner and tighter sound. This will probably only make sense to Shure fans but imagine taking the best of the SE420 and SE530 and putting it together. That's what the Westone 3's are like to me.

The Westone 3's offer full, big, and rich sound without ever sounding "loose". Highs are clean, the mids pop, and the base pounds just the way I would want.

Very comfortable, probably more so than the competing Shure products mostly because the attached cables are so thin and light. Though I suppose this does give the Westone 3's a feeling of being more fragile.

By far the Ultimate earphone
By Larry Ganz, HeadphoneAddict on December 2, 2008
Comments: I have tried or owned just about all of the top rated and/or popular earphones over the past 2 years. I have a very long review of the Westone 3 linked below, and they simply crush the competition: http://www.earphonesolutions.com/reofwe3bylag.html

My iPod doesn't suck so much anymore!

By Adam on December 1, 2008

Comments:

Wow, I am impressed! These sound really good. When I need headphones, I am used to reaching for my Sony 7506's, but obviously these are not the best match to a portable music player. I have been looking for some good in ear earphones for a while after returning a set of Etymotic 6i's that I absolutely hated. I also tried some Shure E3c's and didn't care for those either... The UM3's showed up today, and even after some limited listening, I am very impressed. Nice balanced output with outstanding clarity. And they are comfortable to wear! With the foam tips you can barely feel them. I might still look into custom mold for them though. I thought I might be able to use my existing musician plugs, but they don't match up. The molded part would have to be limited to the section that fits in your ear canal.

A friend of mine A-B them against his top of the line Future Sonic in ear monitors and said they sound at least as good as his (which cost $900). For the money they can't be beat.

Announcement by Westone

By ES Editor on March 26, 2007

Comments:

Westone Announcement sent to Earphone Solutions in March 2007:

"45 + 20 = 3

...Many customers dissatisfied with the comfort or retention of their stock earbuds have opted to see a hearing care professional for custom adapter earpieces. Others, frustrated that they cannot appreciate the full fidelity of the music with stock earbuds, have upgraded to higher end universal earphones such as our UM1 and UM2, and even the custom ES1 and ES2.

Looking at this trend, we took note that our existing line of music products was designed, and the sound shaped, for the performance musician. But an on-stage musician looks for something a little different in their sound than an audiophile would. With that thought in mind, we have developed the new Westone 3, a true three-way universal fit earphone, featuring separate low, mid and high frequency drivers in each earpiece. The sound accuracy and frequency range is unbelievable. The feedback we've received from testing has been very encouraging and there is already a lot of positive "buzz" for the product appearing in online blogs and forums...

We are certainly excited about the positive feedback for the Westone 3 and its potential in the market.

(By the way, if you have been wondering about the arithmetic in our headline, don't worry - it's not more "new math" that you'll need to learn. It's just marketing speak for "The new Westone 3 is the result of over 45 years of making products for the human ear and 20 years of involvement in the music industry.")

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The Westone 3 has set the bar pretty high for the competition. This is the FIRST TRUE 3-way triple driver earphones and what Westone did with the sound signature is simply amazing. This is the best universal fit earphones money can buy. They have just been released on November 2008. Comfort and fit are unbeatable. The achieved clarity AND warmth is a first in the industry. If you have $399 to spare, these are unbeatable. Clearly better sound than the UM2 and SE530. It comes with a 2 Year warranty (you need to mail the warranty card in with the Earphone Solutions' proof of purchase). The crossover on these earphones does an incredible job in distributing and controlling the frequency ranges among the 3 different drivers. The SE530 and Triple.fi in contrast have a 2-way configuration with 1 driver of one kind and 2 identical drivers opposed to Westone 3's first 3 driver, 3-way which has a specific driver to handle highs, one for mids and one for lows, each with their individual characteristics. Simply amazing combination of art and technique. The sound is simply on a different league of its own only achieved before by custom in-ear earphones that cost $850 plus.

Best for those looking for the ultimate sound experience. The Westone 3 excels on almost everything one could think of. They sound like a UM2 but with extended highs and more detail. For those sensitive to highs, you may find the Westone 3's highs a bit piercing when playing certain songs. In that case, if you want a warmer sound earphones, our suggestion is the UM2. Otherwise if you enjoy detail, rich sound across all ranges, the Westone 3 is the best in its class.