Review: Westone AM PRO 10X

Gosh, I miss my AM PRO X10s. One of the earpieces came off while I was in a sound booth and with all the black on black on black around me, I simply couldn’t locate it again. And I’m genuinely bummed.

So how to describe the AM PRO X10s? It’s part of a new range of generic IEMs for pro musicians and audio people designed to provide a certain amount of ambience. 

The key to in-ear performance is a good seal. For custom in-ears, that’s out of your hands but for generics, it’s a big deal. That’s why you should always invest time experimenting with the supplied inserts. Get the fit wrong and you’ll lose your low-end and they’ll keep falling out.

So it feels a bit counter-intuitive for an in-ear specialist like Westone to be singing the praises of a hole in its latest in-ear range.

MORE THAN A HOLE

Here’s the promise: The passive StageSense filter system is built into the housings on all AM PRO X models. This provides linear attenuation, reducing external ambient noise by 10dB [or 12dB, depending on which specs you find – Ed.] and providing the user with a clear sense of their environment without jeopardising audio quality.

Of course, StageSense is more sophisticated than a ‘hole’ in the back of the earpieces but it is ‘passive’, ie. it’s there’s no active mic electronics feeding your ears with level-appropriate ambience. So it’s a tuned, filtered vent (fancy word for ‘hole’).

The quoted 10-12dB figures surprise me. While performing using the AM10s as my IEMs, I didn’t have a huge stage ‘sense’. If I had to guess, I’d say the earpieces attenuated stage sound by considerably more than 10-12dB. So my summary: when the band is fully involved and you’re performing, then, relatively speaking, StageSense didn’t do anything for me – I wasn’t experiencing more of the audience, for example. But when no one’s playing, StageSense does allow for some communication without needing to pull out an earpiece.

NOT A TINY LUNCHBOX

Like I mentioned at the top, I really miss my AM PRO X10s. They’re an excellent upper-mid-priced IEM. I was regularly preferring them to my Sennheiser IE40 and IE100 Pro dynamic drivers, which I consider to be a benchmark in the lower A$100-$180 price range. Get the insert fit right and you’ll experience a very detailed and balanced sound. I can attest to the fact that the StageSense venting doesn’t impact on the LF performance – by rights, the lows should be eviscerated but not so.

The price seems about right as well. They present as go-anywhere IEMs – robust and well designed. That said the T2 micro connector might be tried ’n’ tested but proved a tad tenuous for this reviewer (as previously outlined… did I mention that I miss my AM PRO X10s?).

The single armature driver design means the 10s are very low profile and fit neatly into the tiny ‘pelican’-style impact resistant and waterproof ‘monitor vault’ – which once got confused by someone for a tiny lunchbox, which I thought was cute.

There are two others in the range (the AM PRO X20 and 30) which offer dual and three-balanced armature designs.  

STAGE PRESENCE

Westone has produced another range of excellent generic IEMs. As I mentioned, the StageSense feature won’t mean much to those dealing with louder stages but could offer advantages for those not needing to run their IEM levels particularly hard. 

Recreationally, it does mean you can hit pause on your device and talk to the person next to you on the tram without pulling out an earpiece. And, in my book, that’s just good for humanity.