Buy Westone UM1 Bundle with Triple Flange, Monitor Saver, moreWestone UM1 Bundle with Triple Flange, Monitor Saver, more Product Description:
- High-quality mid-range sport headphones with over-the-ear wire hook design
- Audiophile-grade drivers deliver outstanding sonic performance
Product Description
1 Westone UM1 Made in USA with 2 Year Warranty (need to mail the warranty card with a copy of Earphone Solutions Invoice) with 1 adapter
Customer Reviews
Most helpful customer reviews
47 of 50 people found the following review helpful.
By M. Lucas
"Westone UM1 Review"I was in the market for a set of earphones to replace my Vmoda Bass Freq earphones which I gave to my daughter. Prior to the Vmoda, I owned a set of Sony MDR EX71 SLB earphones, which stopped working in the left ear due to a short in the wire. I really liked the portability of earphones over headphones, but hated the way the wires kept getting tangled up in the Sony and Vmoda earphones.I would not consider myself an audiophile, but I do like to listen to music and audiobooks. My criteria for my next set of earphones was as follows: noise isolation, price, comfort, sound quality, and customer service/product support (in that order).In my search for finding a good set of sound isolating ear phones, I considered looking into headphones. My friend got a pair of Bose Quiet Comfort II noise cancelling headphones over Christmas and he couldn't stop talking about them. But I ruled them out for the sake of portability.One of the best sites I found for providing information and user reviews was the Earphone Solutions website. I read every user review for every earphone that fit my criteria and I concluded on paper that the Westone UM1 earphones were the best ones for me.But before I shelled out the cash, I wanted to hear the difference myself. The opportunity came when I was at the airport awaiting my connection flight. I went into a high-end headphone store and asked the salesperson if I could listen to some of the earphones he had on hand. I listed to the Shure SE115 and SE210 models along with the Dr. Dre Monster Beats eaphones and Westone UM1s.SE115: The first earphone I tried was the Shure SE115. It was small and did not protrude excessively from the ear. I was impressed by Shure's heavy and high quality cords. The carrying case and accessories provided were really nice too. However, when I listened to the music from my iPod, I had to bring the volume level to approximately half to listen to the music and drown out the background noise. The bass and trebles were lacking and the mids were relatively flat. Pros: small, nice cord, nice accessory packet, many colors to choose from, price ($79), you could wear them hanging straight down or around the ear. Cons: sound isolation not as good as normal ear plugs (I used the foam inserts provided), sound was flat and lacked bass and treble.SE210: Next, I moved to the Shure SE210s. These were more expensive ($180) and although they touted a fuller sound than the SE115s, they were not significantly better. The pros and cons were nearly identical to the SE115s except that the price was significantly more expensive and they stuck out a little further than the SE115s.Monster Beats: This version was called the Dr. Dre Tour in-ear headphones. The most unique aspect of these headphones was the cord: they were flat and easily avoided entanglement through the great design. They also touted a strong bass sound. Unfortunately for my ears, that was about it. The worst part of these earphones was the rubber ear cups that were supplied. They did not do a good job at isolating sound as well as the foam inserts (which were available but for an additional $20). Pros: flat cord, strong bass, bling factor. Cons: expensive, sound quality was worse than the Shures except for the decent bass response. Treble was lacking and the mids were muffled.Westone UM1: The fit of the UM1s took a little getting used to because I have never had a set of earphones that required wrapping around the ear and behind the head. I looked on Shure's website (they have a nice video that shows how to wear sound-isolating earphones properly) and learned how to properly don my earphones. These blew me away! The sound isolation was remarkable. My volume level dropped down to approximately 10% on my iPod compared to nearly 50% with the Dr. Dre and Shure earphones. The sound was fantastic and although they were not overly bass heavy, they had better bass response than the Shures. I thought that the cord was really flimsy at first, but then I got used to them and realized that there was a true benefit to having the twisted pair of wires, which actually made them tangle resistant (though not as good as the Dr. Dres). The best thing I liked about the UM1s was the fact that I could wear them while lying on my pillow--I fell asleep with them a few times and hardly noticed that they were there at all. Pros: great sound isolation, great product support (2 year warranty), comfortable to wear for long periods, outstanding sound. Cons: a little pricey at $109 (for my budget), not very distinctive looking, style of wear takes some getting used to, did not have the triple flanges supplied (which would have added even more isolation).Summary: Overall, I was really impressed with the Westone UM1s. Prior to getting info from the internet, I had never even heard of Westone before. Now I am a big fan. I took my UM1s with me on a 3-hour flight and enjoyed peace and serenity throughout the flight. The slight pressure in wearing ear canal headphones takes some getting used to, but once you get accustomed to that, they are a great pair of headphones!I've attached a summary of my review and rankings of the various headphones I was considering from 1-5 (5 highest).Here is ranking for the Westone UM1: 4.45 out of 5.They are simply the best value for my limited budget!Pros:-Great sound isolation-Great product support (2 year warranty)-Comfortable to wear for long periods-Outstanding sound qualityCons:-A little pricey at $109 (for my budget)-Not very distinctive looking (clear)-Style of wear takes some getting used to-Did not have the triple flanges supplied (which would have added even more isolation)Here is a summary of my rankings from 1-5 (5 highest):Noise Islolation (40%)Bose QC2-2Shure-3Westone-5Dr. Dre-2Vmoda-2Ear Plugs-5Price (25%)Bose QC2-1Shure-2Westone-4Dr. Dre-3Vmoda-5Ear Plugs-5Comfort (15%)Bose QC2-5Shure-4Westone-5Dr. Dre-2Vmoda-3Ear Plugs-5Sound quality (15%)Bose QC2-4Shure-2Westone-4Dr. Dre-3Vmoda-3Ear Plugs-0Customer Support (5%)Bose QC2-4Shure-5Westone-5Dr. Dre-3Vmoda-2Ear Plugs-0OverallBose QC2-2.45Shure-2.7Westone-4.45Dr. Dre-2.6Vmoda-3.5Ear Plugs-4.0
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful.
By Tenacious Jay
When I first got these last night and tried them for a half hour with my iPhone I was pissed. No bass at all and the sound was weak. An added insult, while watching TV it didn't sound like they canceled noise at all. Very upset. Today I brought them to work and decided to try the longer ear tip pieces (it comes with the short ones on). I didn't think the length of the ear pieces would help the sound much. I thought it would just make the earphones more comfortable or fit more snug. Well apparently snug-ness is what it's all about because the sound today was AMAZING! The noise canceling was great too!The quality of the music is beyond what I've ever heard with headphones or speakers. The bass was a bit on the weaker side but still really good (especially compared to last night!) and the music just sounded so full! I listened to a variety of music, but classical was the most surprising. I never realized how many sounds I wasn't hearing before! Now I felt like I was in the middle of the stage at a symphony. I could hear each instrument come in separately and hear what each added to the overall sound. On some of the more emotional classical songs I almost felt like I was gonna cry because I could feel so much emotion. In short, the sound is awesome.Noise canceling was another major factor in my purchase. At work there's always lots of conversations, chatting, and a good dose of arguments. I was originally planning on looking at something more like the Bose active noise canceling headphones. The only prob was that they were pretty expensive ($300-400) and kinda bulky. I stumbled across some canalphone reviews and found that many of them passively blocked noise just about as effectively as the active ones. Some even said that mixing the actively blocking sounds in with the music muffled the music just a tad. In my experience with these UM1's they have done an awesome job canceling noise. Without any music playing I can still hear people talking in a kind of muffled/muted type voice. With music, however, I just see mouths moving but don't hear anything they say, even with the volume up only 20%. Speaking of which, it's a little weird listening to music with the volume up only a few notches. Usually I play with the volume at least 50% up and now actually find myself turning it down a bit for some songs because I don't really feel the need for more. Definitely pleased with the performance so far.Overall I'm glad that I went from pissed to extremely happy and would definitely recommend the Westone UM1's to anyone looking for some amazing sound and good noise canceling canalphones. Definitely one of the best investments I've ever made.P.S. I also looked at the Etymotics but decided to go with these after reading reviews from people who tried both and claimed that the Westone's were more comfortable to wear for longer periods of time and had a better "sound stage".
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful.
By Carson
I play drums for a worship band at church. The drums are in a room by themselves, like a studio. Headphones that cancel sound are a must in this environment. I had been using over the ear headphones, but wanted to try the in-ear kind. I bought these just as a test because the reviews were good and they were fairly cheap at only $100. I love these things. They isolate the sound better and have better sound quality than the over-ear monitors I was using. They are also much more comfortable to wear. These things are very comfortable and nice to wear.I would definitely recommend these to anyone. I would also add that if you have more money to spend, try upgrading to the UM2 or UM3. I am sure their sound quality would be even better. Down the road I would like to try upgrading to one of these myself. Enjoy.
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