Westone UM Pro 30 vs W30 – Which Sounds Excellent?

Westone has gained its popularity through its top-quality products by combining acoustic technology with unmatched comfort.

Two of its products – the Westone W30 and Westone Um Pro30 – have characteristics that make it worthy of its name.

We shall have an elaborate look into these two earphones and help you decide which would suit you the best:

Earphones have seen significant growth over the past years due to its portability and ease of use as compared to the large headphones.

The earphones don't lack behind in performance either, making it a prior choice for music lovers and professionals as well.

Let's have a look at their specs before reviewing them.

Westone um pro 30 vs w30: An in-depth review

Design and build

If you are looking for portable and travel friendly earphones with great balance and detailing, Westone W30 aces it all; whereas the Westone Um Pro30 is an amazing alternative for live performances to avoid wearing huge and bulky headphones.

The earpieces of both the Westone W30 and the Westone Um Pro30 have three balanced armature drivers – one for the bass, second for the midrange and the last one dedicated for high frequencies – with the help of a passive three way crossover.

You get removable faceplates and two detachable cables with the Westone W30.

• The first one is an extra durable braided cable.
• In the second one, you get a three-buttoned rubberized remote which enables you to control your phone conveniently. It has a built in microphone as well which lets you take calls.

The added feature of the Westone W30 are the interchangeable faceplates which come in a set of three colours – blue, black and red – so that you can change the look of your earphones whenever you want.

The Westone Um Pro30 has a pretty dull look comparatively making it way less fancy than the Westone W30.

The Westone Um Pro30 comes with a heavy duty braided cable which you can detach from the earpiece according to convenience.

Both the Westone W30 and Westone Um Pro30 come with a storage case, including 5 pairs each of silicon tips and foam tips.

Noise cancellation and comfort

In terms of noise cancellation, the Westone W30 and the Westone Um Pro30 can block up to 25dB of external noise. With the Westone W30 on, you can enjoy your music without being interrupted by any kind of unwanted noise while travelling.

 And if you are performing live with a pair of Westone Um Pro30, you can effortlessly concentrate on a single instrument or vocal track if your venue is very loud.

As for the comfort level, Westone have put significant effort in making their in-ear buds. The foam tips are easy on the ears but it is recommended to put on the silicon tips for a relaxing experience.

Sound quality

Lows:

With the Westone W30, the bass response in the mid-bass area is quite impressive and the sub-bass has been rolled off which improves the detailing in the mid-bass region.

Instruments like bass drum and string instruments get immense clarity in the Westone W30. However, the bass response can be disappointing during complex beats in a song.

The Westone Um Pro30 on the other hand has great bass punch and it can extend further low whenever it's necessary which contributes to the wholesome and warm sound.

The bass driver of the Westone Um Pro30 is pretty huge compared to the mid and high drivers which doesn't let the mid section blend in with the lows and maintains the separation.

You can feel the realistic decay of low sounds during live performances with the Westone Um Pro30 which doesn't lose its tracks during multiple bass hit as well, unlike the Westone W30.

Mids:

The overall mid range performance of the Westone W30 is rather good and you can feel it through the powerful male vocals and acoustic instruments which demonstrate the clean lower mid region that is flat and neutral.

The Westone W30s upper mid range can be a little compromising, especially the female vocals which tend to thin out.

The mid range doesn't completely get lost in the mix but somehow exerts a sense of rawness to the sound. You'll feel it's not as smooth as it should have been.

However, with the Westone Um Pro30, you can get a taste of the crispier and detailed mid range sounds.

 Both male and female vocals are clear and upfront; the male vocals don't get lost with the sub lows and the female vocals stay intact without getting deteriorated.

It is natural and well-balanced without being too bright on the top or thick in the lows which is exactly the kind of sound you need when dealing with mixes; Westone Um Pro30 doesn't disappoint you at all.

Highs:

You wouldn't be wrong at all if you feel the high driver of the Westone W30 is the best feature of the earphone. It has a controlled grip which doesn't let cymbal sounds and trumpets become thin.

The Westone W30 is skilfully designed to nurture the clarity of the high sounds without letting it be overbearing and eating away the entire. It also saves you from getting ear fatigue.

Quite surprisingly, this is where the Westone Um Pro30 loses its ground with its weak highs showcasing lack of presence. It does have good high extensions but somehow you'll feel it is being pushed behind the lows and the mids and it can be dark sounding.

It is another concerning drawback for the Westone Um Pro30 because of its high probability of giving ear fatigue to the listeners and being used for live shows, you do not want that to happen.

Bottomline

Both the Westone W30 and the Westone Um Pro30 are appealing earphones. While the Westone W30 offer stylish looks, the Westone Um Pro30 has better performance than it.

It would be apt to say that Westone W30 is suitable for music lovers and casual listeners although it suffers in its low and mid range sounds.

The Westone Um Pro30 on the other hand is best suited for professional musicians who need a clarified partition between the lows, mids and highs in the music.

The Westone Um Pro30 acts as in-ear monitors and helps the performers to tweak the knobs accordingly.

Due its low impedance, the Westone W30 works best with music players or phones and using it with anything other can that will tell you the difference instantly.

The Westone Um Pro30 has comparatively higher impedance for an earphone and makes it compatible to work with consoles.

The final verdict being, the Westone Um Pro30 is the better of two in terms of performance and accuracy and makes it a recommended choice.