SHURE BROTHERS E3c Sound Isolating Earphone Stereo Headphone

Rating:
Summary: Great on Mids and Highs, bad on Low Freqs
Review: After reading many of the reviews for this product I had to give them a try. The isolation from noise is very important to me as I use these when I work out in a noisy gym. However, being a musician for 40 years, sound quality is of the utmost importance. The Shure E3C's have great mid-range and nice high-end. The clarity and articulation are superb and the isolation is top-notch. In this frequency range the only complaint that I have is that they are a bit harsh. But overall, I am very pleased with the quality there. However, listen to those who say that the low freqs are seriously missing with these in-canal ear phones. I have gone back and forth between these, regular studio-quality headphones (Sony MDR-7506), the ear buds that came with my Creative Zen MP3 player, and Sony noise canceling headphones (MCR-NC20). Of course the 7506's blow away any of the other options, but they are not really for use in the gym. The NC20's lack in the high frequencies, as do the Creative ear buds. (However the ear buds are better than the NC20). But the E3C's just lack any kind of low-end punch at all and to me are just unacceptable. I actually prefer the cheapo buds that came with my player to the Shure E3c's. While the higher freqs are not as crisp and smooth, the addition of low mids and bass that the E3c's lack make the Creative buds sound more natural to my ears.

Rating:
Summary: LOVE
Review: Directly out of the box and into my ears. Had to go back and relisten to all my music just to experience the sensational "new" listening experience. Just back from a four hour drive with phones in. Completely masked all road and wind noise. Dangerous? You bet. Worth it? You bet. I tried the e-6i's. Nope. Buy these.

Rating:
Summary: Amazingly, they are worth the money
Review: First, I should state my biases: I've never had a set of ear-bud headphones that I've been completely happy with. I've had some large (open ear) headphones that I've really liked (except everyone else in the room hears your music too, which doesn't work in all situations!) On the ear bud side, I had some prior to the ipod headphones that I never really liked (and thus never used). I found the ipod headphones acceptable but not great. I thus bought the Sony MDR-EX71's. Frankly, the 71's are bad. They are ok if you listen to uncomplicated music (I'm not sure what that would be), and you can't hear mid range very well. The 71's muddy up whenever more than 2 instruments are played at the same time. They are so bad I even took to tuning down the mid range and high's as much as possible so the sound wouldn't disintegrate into, well, crap. Thus, my purchase of the Shure E3's.

I like them (now). The included silicon / whatever size things didn't work for me at all (my ears are oddly shaped I guess -- I've always struggled with ear plugs). The included foam ear buds (the yellow things) worked good enough for me to actually use the headphones. I then ordered the 3 pronged insert from Shure. Heaven at last. They stay in! That whole business about strangling your ear with the cord, yeah whatever. You can do that with the triple flange sleeves if you desire but you really don't need to.

These ear phones are very good at reproducing music. So good you will be annoyed at any crappy mp3 files because the problem isn't with the headphones but with the encoding (go listen to the .wav)! Ignore all the complaints about bass response -- on these headphones the bass response is all about the fit. Get the triple flange sleeves and you will hear more than enough bass to make you happy.

What more can I say? Very accurate headphones. You will hear the fingers slide along the strings of the guitar as the chords change. Expensive, but worth it (but buy the triple flange thing -- Shure, my goodness just throw that thing in for the cost of these suckers).

One final bit of caution: these headphones are loud. Shure sells a volume control for airplanes. I thought they were kidding. But now that I have them I can see that they are serious. I actually have to think about the volume before I plug these in because set incorrectly, it's a world of pain.

Rating:
Summary: Great but may not suit everyone
Review: I have nothing more to add about the greatness of this earphone in terms of sound quality. But I would really recommed anyone who is going to buy the ear canal type of earphone for the first time (in particular at this price tag) to first try out this type of earphone to see if it suits you before the purchase. In my case, I have bought the Shure E3c based on the excellent reviews here but when I tried it on, I just can't get used to having something plugged into and sealed my ear canal, no matter how hard I try to convince myself that the discomfort is justifiable by the better sound. I also find it inconvenient to have to clean the eartips everytime I remove them from the ears contaminated with earwax. I finally have to resort to the less superior Sony MDR-E888LP "normal" earphone. All in all, I have no question about the sound quality of this earphone, but it just may not suit everyone.

Rating:
Summary: high quality - high price
Review: I have used the E3c earphones for about four weeks, (in addition to two weeks without them). I was hesitant about spending so much for, what essentially, looked like earbuds. My expectations were tempered with other reviewers' comments about unimpressive bass response. When I received them, I was indeed initially disappointed, because to my dismay the left speaker sounded "blown". I could clear up some of the buzz by pushing in on the nozzle. I did send them back to the manufacturer, (the vender only allowed a 15-day return period which I could not meet). I was very suprised to have a new, packaged, replacement set of earphones within days. I'm sure that they were immediately shipped the day my faulty ones arrived. The replacement earphones worked very well. The sound quality of these phones are exceptional. The bass is deep and significant, (but not like a sub-woofer if that's what you're looking for). Instead the bass compliments the music without overpowering it like a sub-woofer. The music's quality is so good it has a 3-dimensional feel, almost like the musicians are in the room with you! As an example, when listening to a guitar instrumental that I've heard many times before, while using the E3c earphones I could now easily hear the sound of fingers moving up and down the strings as cords were played. Somethings that I had not noticed previously. The sound-isolating qualities are also very good. In fact, as good as earplugs to the outside world, which further enhances the music quality. If you can afford them, these are very high quality phones. I chose this model as a compromise... I would love to try the next model up..., which costs three times as much! I am very happy with the customer service/support and the quality of the earphones. I would have given them a five-star rating had the first pair of phones worked properly.

Rating:
Summary: Well worth every penny
Review: I program to music. I listen to music on the bus (ipod). I listen to music in the car (no, _not_ on my shures. I'm not insane). I love music.

I bought these earphones so that I could listen to music on airplanes -- I'd heard good things about the noise reduction of Shure earphones, much better things than I had heard about active powered noise reduction systems -- and they do a great job. I can listen to my ipod on airplanes at the same volume as I do on the bus -- or at work.

I didn't expect that I would give up my beloved Sony MDR v600 at work, but the sound quality from my Shure's really make a night-and-day difference. Now, I wouldn't listen to anything else.

The downsides: (a) they -will- take some getting-used-to. It took me about a week before I was fast putting them in. I spent two days wondering why the entire world was SO LOUD. (b) the left and right markings aren't very clear, and even after four months, I still can't tell by feel which is which. (c) the fit of the sleeves matters a LOT -- my ear canals are evidently pretty tiny; I have to use the smallest of the light gray plastics for them to be comfortable. (That's not entirely true; I ordered the triple-flanged set from shure.com before a LONG flight, and those were comfortable for a few hours -- but probably not comfortable enough for nine hours at work. I pitied the fools without them in the airplane.) (d) the little sleeves can come off when the earphones are left alone overnight. Go buy a bag of your favourite type of sleeves from shure.com _before_ one of yours comes off. It's worth the $10 to ensure you don't miss even a day of music with your (soon to be beloved) shure's. :)

As for deciding between these and the 2c and 5c -- sorry, no help from me, but do strongly consider the included fit kit with the 3c -- the sleeves matter a lot, try several. As for deciding with the Etymotic, I can only say that a friend steered me clear of them due to excessive noise caused by friction with the earphone cord. Shure has almost none.

Oh yeah -- don't worry about all the "behind the neck" photos and so forth. I run my cord down my chest, no complaints.

Rating:
Summary: to cpseattle
Review: i think the e3c are actually quite good. if you are concerned about the foam earpieces getting dirty, just use the rubber ones. finally, cpseattle, if you are really interested in selling your e3c's for $15, email me at my 'reviewer name' (no spaces or periods) at yahoo -- i will buy them from you.

Rating:
Summary: Decent sound, difficult to use, and too pricey
Review: I use headphones a lot, and own about 5 pair encompassing the spectrum of quality. I got the E3's hoping I could get the best possible sound out of an in-ear headphone.

The headphones sound very good -- better than any other in-ear headphone I've tried. They don't sound nearly as good as my over-the-ear Sennheiser HD-497's which run about $50. I'm fine with that, because I needed portability and the over-ears are just too bulky when you're on-the-go.

The other positive aspect of the E3's, to be sure, is the isolation you get with the sealed design. Background noise is significantly blocked out, and this is the closest you will come to having music piped directly into your brain.

The positive effect of sound isolation comes with some big tradeoffs: namely, discomfort and the hassle of putting them on. They can be quite uncomfortable, in the same way that traditional earplugs are uncomfortable. It's tolerable, but it is definitely more intrusive than standard in-ear headphones (to be used properly, they're wedged pretty far into your ear canal). The biggest drawback for me is how difficult it is to put them in your ears. It takes me about 30 seconds to a minute to put them in my ears and adjust them properly, compared with 3 seconds for traditional in-ears. Once you wedge the plugs in just right (which takes 2-3 tries), the wires go above and behind your ears and around the back of your neck, then you reach around to the back of your neck to adjust the slack in the wires. This last step often pulls the wires over your ears and yanks the headphones right out. So you have to repeat again.

That's not a huge deal if you're sitting down for a few hours to read/study or on an airplane for a long haul. But it's just not worth the effort if you're on the go or are just listening for 15 minute stretches.

In brief, get the E3's if you have a lot of discretionary income, like great sound, don't want to haul around over-the-ear headphones, and are intending to use them for long periods at a time. Do not get them if you're an on-the-go listener or are fairly satisfied with your existing in-the-ears. The slightly better performance mixed with usage problems don't justify the price tag. I think they're worth about $49, personally.

Rating:
Summary: Not Enough Bang for the Buck
Review: I used these for about 3 weeks before returning them. If I didn't know how much I spent on them, I would say they are ok. There is something about spending a lot and expecting a lot. Well, find another pair of earphones, these have a decent sound, mid-range bass reflex and get uncomfortable after an hour of use. They are basically ear plugs with a small driver on the outside. If I paid $40 for these, I would keep them. Anything past that is simply not worth it. That small driver doesn't really compare to a good over-the-ear type headphone set.

Rating:
Summary: Ok but I agree to much for what you get
Review: I was expecting sound nirvana as I am a musician and am familar with the Shure brand. I tried every size ear peice and none realy fit. To get a full range sound I had to press them in my ear. If I moved around at all they alwasy came out. Way to much effort. Not worth (...)