Westone Audio AM Pro X20 IEMs Review – Clarity, Precision, Music Refreshed
Westone Audio AM PRO X20 is a $499 USD pair of IEMS Or In-Ear Monitors with superior comfort, dual drivers and pristine clarity. Today we will review the AM PRO X20 and will also compare them with Letshuoer Ember (499 USD), Moritz Aura (429 USD) and Xenns Mangird Tea PRO SE (449 USD).
Introduction
Westone audio is a company now owned by Dekoni Audio and which is showing signs of serious improvement having released new IEMs and Earphones for the first time in a long while. The new X line will be featured in upcoming reviews on Audiophile-Heaven, and the first one is X20, a fun, colorful in case but transparent pair of IEMS. Given the price point, and the current market, they have a lot to beat and answer to before they are
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Product Link
Amazon – https://link.amazon/B08aMZ4JQ
Build Quality – Design
At their core, AM PRO X20 are designed mainly for musicians, with a low-profile design, and with precise matching between the left and right pieces, so that the IEMs can integrate the passive ambient in your mix. With a Dual Driver in a 2-Way setup, AM PRO X20 will be capable through sound, not necessarily by trying to look interesting. In fact, it is essential that they look as stealthy as possible, to not distract from the performance of an artist.
Technically, they are some of the better fitting pairs of hearhp-ones and come with 5 pairs of silicone and 5 pairs of foam tips. There’s a special transport case and Westone uses the special T2 Cable with a 3.5mm jack. We also have a 27 OHM impedance for the IEMS, with a 119 dB SPL and a 132cm long cable. This means that the X20 should be fairly easy to drive.
Subjective Usage
While passive noise isolation is incredibly strong and can reach up to 30 dB with the perfect eartips, AMprox20 needs to go deep inside fo your ear canals being some of the earphones with the deepest fit that I’ve experienced recently. This makes them somewhat fiddly and not the best match if you have any kind of kinks or curvatures in your ear canals. In general, you will like them if you’re generally comfortable with deep insertion earphones.
The whole design is centered around the premise that you will be using AMxpro20 on the stage, to perform or to work in music, from the transport case all the way to the thin and stealthy cable. They are perfect for this purpose and generally are very lightweight, bio compatible and will not cause wearing fatigue even if you keep them for long periods in your ears.
Sound Quality
Pairings – For today’s review I’ve used the latest sources I’ve reviewed, including Sendy Audio Kylin, FiiO K17, Argon Audio SA-2 Amplifier Driven by FiiO Warmer R2R, Acer Nitro 18 AI Laptop (with 3.5mm adapters), iBasso Kunlun, FiiO Snowsky Echo DAP, Orchard Audio Valencia driven by Musician Pegasus III and Luxsin X9.
Altough they are super super easy to drive, AMPROX20 responds well to source quality changes and will improve significantly with a better source. This being said, they are quite sensitive to hissing and source noise and I do not recommend using them with sources that either have a high output impedance or which are known to be noisy.
Overall Signature – WestonePRO X20 to be quite lightweight, snappy and bright, with a sharp and open treble, snappy and quick bass, lots of midrange vocal presence, strong presence for instrumental layers as well, with a good separation between the background and the foreground layers without sounding too vague.
Bass – At the low-end, AM PRO X20 sounds rather clean, snappy and fast, but it fails to convey a lot of bass, being a lightweight sounding pair of earphones. They produce enough to be interesting, but bass mostly starts around 50 Hz, with most energy being more of a mid bass warmth and upper bass, centered around 70 Hz – 90 Hz. They do not sound veiled, dark or thick, so you simply get a fairly flat and fatigue-free bass. If you are easily tired by too much bass, you will love the leaner, more flexible sound of the X20.
Voicing And Midrange – Vocal range is a focus for X20 for sure. They sound quite forward, as vocals are more present in the mix, with about 10 dB relative to the bass and the treble, at least compared to other IEMs. This makes the Am Pro x 20 sound quite vocal, but not in a fatiuging way, and they are quite enjoyable even for EDM, Pop and bassy styles. If anything, the tuning tends to favor just the middle of the midrange, like an inverted V shaped, or an arrowhead shape that brings forward the middle of the midrange. This is not a common style but I did see it a couple of times before.
Treble – Top end has a bit of extension and sparkle, clarity and impact, but it is mostly smoother, relaxed although it does have a fair amount of detail. X20 is clearly aimed to be enjoyable for many hours in a row rather than to sound sharp and analytical. It does feel snappy and light, since there is theoretically a bit more treble than there is bass, but bands like Underground fire show a tiny bit of air and upper level extension / sharpness while still being well within safe limits. In fact, I think that AM Pro X20 is currently the smoothest, most relaxed, and leanest sounding pair of earphones from Westone, especially in the treble.
Dynamics And Textures – Dynamic range is on the compressed end of things, leaning towards detail and control rather than a wide dynamic range. This helps Prox20 reveal more details, extract more information from music and reveal texture while staying controlled and clean. Texture is smooth, on the organic – smooth – relaxed end of things with a good side of details. While not as exciting as Mach 80, I can see this being the perfect for for playing music, monitoring and mixing. Vocals in particular stand out and sound correct, and balance between instruments is really good, which makes music work really well for vocal centric styles.
Loudness Saturation Gradient – Westone made the AM PROX20 a controlled even at high and extreme volumes, and the overall sound balance is better at higher volumes, with the bass becoming more present, treble a bit sharper, but in general they will have no distortion at any volume level, but also have a good sound quiet. The only downside is that at quiet levels you can hear the source hissing with certain sources, but you have to be at really quiet levels around 50-60dB.
Soundstage – AM PRO X20 has a forward sound with a somewhat small soundstage, focused sound, it isd best for music that is supposed to sound centered and in your face and will bring all music more in your face. This can be mitigated with a source that sounds wide and holographic as they respond really well to source changes. This being said, it is never a wide sounding pair of earphones.
Comparisons
Westone AM PRO X20 vs Moritz Aura (499 USD vs 499 USD) – Aura has a different design, full, isolates more and also fits more shallow inside of my ears, having less discomfort, being more comfortable but isolating also a bit more than AM PRO X20. Cable is more standard on Aura and it is easier to replace, and they also come with a transport case, being more beautiful, but also far easier to spot and more flashy. AM PRO X20 has a deeper insertion, slightly less passive noise isolation, and is more stealthy. Sonically, both have a good resolution, but Aura follows a more traditional tuning and signature, has a full bass, lots of details and a bright treble, being a strongly V-Shaped pair of IEMS while AM PRO X20 is more of a mid centric / linear pair of IEMS that enhances voices, but leaves the bass and treble in a 2nd plane. Aura has a wider soundstage and a higher dynamic range, while AM PRO X20 has some compression and has a more shallow soundstage. For a singer, AM PRO X20 is far better, it allows perfect monitoring while aura sounds dramatic, and a bit loose, which is perfect for listening, especially rock, metal EDM, but won’t work well for monitoring, mixing and mastering music.
Westone AM PRO X20 vs Mangird Tea PRO SE (499 USD vs 449 USD) – the inner setup of the tea pro SE is far more complex with a dual driver + 6 BA combo producing sound, but this makes the shell also huge, and they are a shallow-fitting pair of IOEMS with a metallic shell that is less comfortable than the deeper-fitting but much smaller AM PRO X20 from Westone. Resolution is excellent on both and both feel like mid centric tuned IEMS, but there are a few key differences, including the tendency of Tea PRO SE to have more bass, more drama, a higher dynamic range and a somewhat increased resolution, while AM PRO X20 has a higher acuity, better vocal precision and feels less dramatic, better for monitoring and performing. Soundstage is similar in size, but AM PRO X20 separates the voices far better, while Tea PRO Se has a more audiophile rendering that is fun and catchy but not necessarily better for music work.
Westone AM PRO X20 vs Letshuoer Ember (499 USD vs 499 USD) – ember is a much heavier pair of IEMs, coming with a much thicker and more reliable cable, and actually a comparable comfort relative to AM PRO X20. The overall sonic profile is quite different as Ember has an impressionistic sound, high speed, but extreme punch and kick, warm bass and a lot of weight in their sound, having a high dynamic range, engaging sound. AM PRO X20 sounds much flatter, linear and less intricate, less impactful but more vocally and tonally correct, better for monitoring, mixing, master and less enthusiastic. I generally would work with AM PRO X20 on the stage but would prefer listening to the Ember.
Value – Conclusion
Considering the somewhat crispy price of 499 USD, AMPROx20 does not immediately seem like a good value, but after being in the market for so long, for the right person, someone who works in music, someone who needs a live presentation pair of earphones, and someone who wants to have fun, they are the perfect fit. In fact, nothing has quite the same value for professional accessories, eartips, fitting, but you have to keep in mind that they are purpose designed, and will not come with a 4.4mm balanced cable in the package, rather using the universal 3.5mm standard.
I feel like Westone Earphones in general have been targeted towards a professional audience, and many of them miss the mainstream market because of this, but they are excellent earphones nonetheless. While not necessarily pandering to audiophile whims, Westone is a mega brand if you’re into music production or singing, performing any instrument and while not as deep inserting or as well isolating as Etymotic, Westone IEMS in general have a far better comfort for most people. At the end of the day, AM PRO X20 is a niche, specific pair of IEMS precisely for vocals, and will sound sweet, relaxing and easy to use for the right person, being a fully recommended purchase in our review today.
PROs
- Excellent passive noise isolation, down to professional levels
- Pro level transport case that can protect the earphones
- Lightweight and comfortable, also bio compatible once you figure out your correct eartip size.
- Mid centric, vocal and clean signature that works really well for monitoring or listening with a linear tone
- Detailed withotuht being fatiguing or exacerbated
- One of the smoothest, most compatible with humans tonalities I heard
- Good overall deal for music production
Cons
- It comes with no 4.4mm balanced cable
- Very deep fit can be fiddly until gotten right
Product Link
Amazon – https://link.amazon/B08aMZ4JQ
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Full Playlist used for this review
We listened to more songs than those named in this playlist, but those are excellent for identifying a sonic signature. I recommend trying most of the songs from this playlist, especially if you’re searching for new music! The playlists are different for Spotify, Tidal and Youtube, and based on the songs I enjoy and are available on each!
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL_cjBXGmwSHSdGcwuc_bKbBDGHL4QvYBu
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5J3oloz8Riy9LxEGenOjQ0?si=979ba4f082414be7
https://tidal.com/browse/playlist/330fd544-8e5b-4839-bd35-676b2edbb3d5
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