Review: Westone B30 & B50

The new Westone B30 & B50 IEM series are the subject for today. They sell for $449 and $699. Let’s have a close look!

 

Disclaimer: The Westone B30 and B50 samples were sent to me free of charge for this review.

Intro

Westone was one of the first companies I was introduced to when I started my journey in IEMs. I used the famous UM1 model for a long time before switching to the Westone 3; the world’s first 3-driver IEM.

After that, I continued to climb the ladder and purchased a Westone 4R. Since then, we saw a great expansion of the portable audio market and it’s still growing. Yet, Westone was always there.

About Westone

The Colorado based company, as we all know, is one of the pioneer companies in portable audio. As a matter of fact, Westone was established in 1959! That is basically ancient when you compare it to other brands in this field. They’re celebrating their 60 years of work in 2019 and you can find their history HERE.

Westone B30 & B50

But Westone is not only in the personal audio business. They’re also known for their work in other markets, such as hearing protection, hearing healthcare and military products. I think you all know something about Westone so I will cut it short. You can have every bit of information on Westone’s webpage.

Westone is also a great Custom IEM manufacturer. In fact, our previous Westone review was non other than the flagship ES80.

Established in 1959, Westone Laboratories has more than 55 years of experience delivering premium in-ear solutions for critical listening applications.

About B30 and B50

The new B series from Westone simply are a continuation of their former 3 & 5 driver IEMs. Westone decided to refresh this lineup with these new additions. The B30 and B50 is targeted for a wide range of people who enjoy listening to popular music.

These two retain the same 3 & 5 driver configurations but they’re meant to satisfy bass lovers this time, especially the B50. It features Westone’s largest bass driver out there to give some oomph. The B30 is meant to be more balanced and easy-going on the other hand.

The new B series come in with new and fancy packaging, including the all new Bluetooth cable, which comes in handy when you want to get rid of the cables attached to your source. I will mention that on the next pages, so keep reading.

Westone showcased this lineup at the CanJam London 2019 show and I firstly listened to them there. Michell Dailey, Sr. Manager of Sales and Marketing was there to help us and I thank her for her co-operation.

Westone B30 & B50

Design

We all know what a Westone IEM looks like. Westone has a well-established design since 2014-15, and they haven’t changed it ever since. We have the same shape and small form factor here, providing a great fit and the lightweight design is really useful in day-to-day basics.

Once again there’s the replaceable plates which are easy to remove and mount, allowing to change the appearance of your Westone. You have one spare pair in the package and one pair is already mounted on the IEMs. The colors are orange and black. As far as I know, you can always purchase alternative colors from Westone, but I’m not %100 sure on that.

The compact design of Westone is simply hard to beat in terms of fit and usability. I honestly don’t know how they squeeze these drivers into these shells. I was particularly astonished by the W60 and W80 models before, considering their driver count and crossover solutions.

Build Quality

The build is the same in terms of materials and assembly just as the former models. You have a plastic closing which exists of 2 pieces joined together. This all plastic design maybe isn’t the most premium looking solution, and I agree that the feel is not the best in the hand when compared to some other IEMs. However, I think producing lightweight and small IEMs is vital for Westone.

The plastic nozzles look smoothly assembled to the shells and they almost look uni-body. They’re quite sturdy and I don’t think you’ll have any problems for a long long time. The MMCX sockets look sharp, they connect perfectly and they don’t fit shallowly. I personally think that the MMCX connection has evolved in the last couple of years, and you can rely on them just like the 2-pin connection type.

The review continues on PAGE 2 by clicking here using the page numbers below

4.3/5 - (70 votes)
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A keen audiophile and hobby photographer, Berkhan is after absolute perfection. Whether it is a full-frame camera or a custom in-ear, his standpoint persists. He tries to keep his photography enthusiasm at the same level as audio. Sometimes photography wins, sometimes his love for music takes over and he puts that camera aside. Simplistic expressions of sound in his reviews are the way to go for him. He enjoys a fine single malt along with his favourite Jazz recordings.

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