Review: Shure E2, Shure E3, and Ety ER-4P

[egokun]

Coming from a six-month experience with the Shures and their various tips, I am pretty positive I know how to insert canalphones in my ears. Inserting the Etys, then, is pretty much straightforward, much more so than the E3c which have a bend between the "body" and the "nozzle" and can be angled in slightly different ways once inserted. So, I believe I did get the Etys in the right way, but still, isolation felt lower than with the Shures, maybe because the cable, going straight down, tends to pull them out a little. I tried to put a double-flange sleeve on them (a "modified" triple-flange, you know) but the stem is just too long and it seemed to me that not only it was much easier for earwax to clog up the filter, but also that the tip may just stay in my ear if I wasn't extra careful in removing the 'phone.

I will say that again: it's IMPOSSIBLE to listen to quiet music with the ER-4S in public without getting intruded heavily by outside noise, and even with louder music, total isolation seems difficult to achieve with an unamped iPod. At home though, where I could enjoy the Etys with nothing noisy going on around, I could hear and feel what these 'phones truly have to offer - that is, clarity and detail beyond your wildest dreams.

I believe Etymotic should redesign their product line, and especially the ER-4, to match the better ease of use of its competitors. A behind-the-ear approach is not only extremely comfortable, but it reduces microphonics a whole load - when worn straight down, the E3c produce a lot of cable noise too. Also, other canalpones are much easier to remove because they're L-shaped or because they have a big body that doesn't go all the way into your ear, while many people complained of the ER-6i going too far into the ear and forcing them to pull on the cable to remove them. These are design flaws that make the Etys less comfortable and less easy to use than the Shures, the UM2, or the upcoming new 'phones from Ultimate Ears.

Seeing that Etymotic is going to make an appearance at MacWorld in July, I hope that they will show a redesigned ER-4 (not likely, but hey, it doesn't hurt to hope) or a new, improved earphone that finally makes Etymotic stand up to its competitors in terms of comfort and ease of use along with music quality. A new dual-driver Ety would be nice, seeing that almost all the other producers have at least one dual-driver model in their lineup. If I am ever to upgrade to something better than the E3c (and I'm very tempted to), I will wait until I see what Etymotic is up to come out with next.

[jefflackey]

Just got my iPod a few weeks ago and immediately started looking for earbuds. After a recent (Sunday/Monday) 20+ hour flight to Asia, I had a chance to try the Sony EX-71s and Shure E2cs. I have to say that I'm conflicted and I suppose still looking.

I've been a big audio fanatic for a while, and I listen to all types of music on the iPod. I assumed I'd prefer the E2s, and I suppose I even "tried" to like them more. I do prefer the sound isolation of them, particularly on the plane. After wearing the E2s for a while and then switching to the ex71s, I kept feeling like the 71s were not all the way in my ear. But while I could hear all of the instruments and vocals on the E2s and the 71s, after switching back and forth and back and forth, often on the same songs for comparison, the E2s just sounded like they were a bit muddy. Muddy really doesn't describe it properly - perhaps too warm is a better description. And bass was certainly lacking, even with the buds firmly in the ear canals. It was clear when switching back to the 71s that there was bass that was missing with the E2s. But the real issue was the overall dynamic range, I believe: the E2s seemed to squeeze all the instruments and vocals into what sounds like a somewhat compressed range, while the 71s seem to have more dynamic range: highs are crisper, bass is lower, acoustic guitar and piano or even acoustic and electric guitar in the same song, vocals, all seemed to be more distinct and separated on the 71s. If I just listen to the E2s I think I'm happy with them, but when I switch back to the 71s and then back to the E2s I'm not happy with the E2s.

So why am I still looking? I want the sound isolation of the E2s with the sound of the 71s (or, of course, even better sound.) From reading here I'm not sure the Etys or the E3s are my holy grail (the E3s sound like the sound very close to the E2s.)

[pod-e-mouth]

I just have to throw my $.02 in on the subject of the original review and ranking by the author. While I agree with most of what you said, there are a few mitigating factors that push the ER-4P easlily into first place for me.

First of all, I think the sound edges out the competition handily. The clarity and separation of the sounds, which you seem to take umbrage with, is far superior to anything else that is out there. While it may not be 'conventional' in your book, it is this very thing that makes this product exceptional.

Secondly, nobody has talked about Etymotic Research as a company, and their responsiveness to its customer base. Well allow me. My first pair of earbuds from them came about a year ago, when I bought a pair of ER-6is. I liked them very much, but was having a problem getting a good seal in my ear. Upon researching the issue (on iPodlounge, no less) I found a post by someone who said that they had called ER and got treated like royalty, with the company being responsive and sending him a couple of different ear pieces to try for a better fit. He reported back that the new eartips completely changed the whole experience for him, and how overjoyed he was. So I decided to do the same thing.

I spoke to the receptionist who was lovely, and told me she had just the person for me to speak to. I was transferred to a woman who is actually one of the product development managers! Not a CSR flunkie. Not an order taker. A manager who took their customer needs very seriously. She was incredibly nice, and offered to send to me a 'few' different earpieces to try out for free. She then asked if I would shoot her an email and let her know how they worked out. Of course I agreed.

2 days later, I got a package in the mail from ER. It contained no less than FIVE (5) different earpieces to try on my phones - 2 pairs of small 2-flange silicone earpices, 2 pairs of small foam earpieces, and one pair of large 2-flange earpices. Immediately I put the small 2 flangers on and oh...My...God...

Seriously. The sound that came forth was a whole new experience. Not only was I enjoying these phones on a whole new level, I was enjoying the COMPANY on a whole new level for taking the time to talk to me and for expediting help to get me squared away. They wanted me happy, and it wasn't about my money. How many companies can we say that about these days?

So, the moral of the story is...

I now own a new pair of ER-4Ps that just rock my world. I have used the Shure E3 and agree that they are good, but not as good as the ER-4P for the reasons that I mention above. Additionally, I am not sure what kind of response you'd get out of Shure if there is an issue, but I'll tell you right now, because of the way that I was treated by Etymotic (and the subsequent improvement in the sound of my phones), they have my loyalty forever, so long as they keep putting out quality product.

pod-e-mouth

[warpdrive]

I just got the ER-4S driven by a portable amp....and wow, what a BIG improvement over the E3C and even my previous ER-6i's.

The Shure sound was too skewed in the midrange...too rolled off in the high end. The 6i's were a big improvement in terms of overall sound accuracy, but the 4S, take the cake, they really are reference quality canalphones. I'm hearing details that were left behind in the other too. I am using the foams as I find they provide the best seal, and comfort.

I tried the E4C and those are a definite improvement over the E3C, but the ER4's comes closest to my home Grado SR225.

I would easily take the ER-4S over the E4C. I'm debating whether I should just sell off my E3C or just keep them as "beater" headphones that I can use around the house or at the gym (since the Shure seems more industrial strength in its build quality)

[iSoldier17]

I might be interested to buy your E3c, it depends for how much $.

[zerolight]

Still loving my Shure E5c's.

[DevilMayCry]

I've used the Sony MDR-EX71 for almost 4 years now, not like everyone else I love the heavy boomy base that the earphones provides and after getting a iPod mini I was looking for something else that could sound better.

After reading all 4 pages of reviews I decided to pick up E2 but I wasn't satisfied by its quality, I thought it sound less "solid" then the Sony one and just not even half a day the left earphone already lost its sound due to some kind of internal fault(the left side was a little bit crack which was there when I first opened the box). The store let me to exchange with the E3 for just a few extra bucks.

So then I thought I should give the E3 a try and YES I'm really impressed with the sound quality that it delivers, much more crisp, clearer and less boomy then the sony ex71 ones(which I thought it was a shame) ah well..

out of a 10 I'd rate the E3 a 9
the E2...I don't like it too much it'll probably be a 5/10

[skybl4ck]

E2c's I love them.. If you get them, set your EQ to R&B, it will blow you away. check my review at: schism.blogsome.com

[archurban]

I have both sony Ex71 and Shure E2C. all sound tastes are depends on personal feeling. anyway, I say that ex71 is too much bass so that I can miss all kind of music instrument playing. it is lack of supporting high, mid range sound. everything is just responded with lower bass. actually, it is too bad to listen to any kind of music. but it still provides good sound isolation.

on the other hand, shure E2C is perfect to block noise which is about 80% I think. when I walk on the street with it, I can't hear any noise but music. it is very comfortable to wear.

I gotta tell you that shure E2C is absolutely the best way to listen to music. comparing with ex71, bass response is different. when I crank volume up, it still provides good bass which is not muddy but some good punch sound. high range is little bit confused when I listen to classic. I try Adres Segovia classic guitar collection album, sound is generally clear but high or peak sound level seems to be weak.

shure e2c is good for pop, rock, jazz, electornic, dance. but it's not bad for hippop, rap, classic.

final thought about two earphones is that there is no way to compare both because two models have different price range first of all. shure product is the way better than ex71. ex71 is just general consumer product. it's not for professional use normally. so comparison is not fair. ex71 is just terrible that heavy bass is all the time there. so if you think that ex71 is good, your ear is not sensitive about sound.

one more thing is that if you want to improve shure e2c sound better, check treble boost on EQ menu. then, every sound will be much better than before.

[Bulldoze10]

I have the EX51 and I set the EQ at Treble Boost and it already sounds awesome for listening to Rap/R&B.

Now I'm thinking of getting the E3C. Anyone else do the same? Does it have the same big bass as the EX51?

[WiseJoeyD]

Does the generation of the iPod affect the sound?

With some people saying the new shure E4c not being a good match for a 4G iPod (or iPods in general?) I was wondering how Etymotics fare (4G)?

I'm leaning towards the Etymotic, though when people describe lack of bass I don't know how much they've calibrated themselves to Sony Ex71's-like levels of bass or if there is absolutely nothing ....in which case it might be a seal problem...

[twinsdad]

The Shure E2c's were the first canal phone I purchased and I kept them for several months but they never wowed me. I thought the bass was way too muddled and the highs were drowned out. I switched to the Etymotic E4s which were a phenomenal upgrade. I got em for $200 from Headroom.com. The sound seems very neutral so they do not provide a whole lot of bass with the Ipod. The sound is very clear with incredible distinction amongst instruments. They are a good match for the Ipod if you are not a bass addict. I think the bass is accurate but is in no way booming so this is not a good phone for hiphop fans.

After almost 2 years mine broke (a sad story I will not bore you with) and so picked up two phones for trial, the Sony ex81's and the UE super.fi pro's. The Sony's are pretty sharp for $50.00 but were too big of a step down from what I was used to, so I returned them.

The Superfi's? Well let me just tell you that these phones are the greatest in ear rock n roll phones I have ever heard. Bass, highs, mids, I don't care what it is, these things can chew it up and spit it out better than anything out there in this price range. They are a match made in heaven with the Ipod. i just listened to the new Wide Right CD (basically a kick ### bar type band) and it was like I had never heard it before. The bass was perfect. Not overdone and not too weak just strong and perfect. I don't care if they cost $250.00 it's worth it. Hell, it's more than worth it, it's down right cheap for the kind of sound it brings out of your Ipod.

[kgresko]

Thanks for the review. SInce I read it I found the Shure E3's on ebay, new in box for $118 plus shipping. I cannot wait to get them. This was a buy it now auction.

[wallywld]

So I've been a proud owner of a set of ER4-P's for a couple of years now. They are awesome and I really enjoy having them when I fly around the country. In the last couple of days, my right channel has been cutting in and out because the cable is wearing out from being used so much. So no problem, I call the company and ask for a replacement. THEY SAID NO! Can you believe it?
They say that they can't sell a cable for them. They have to be sent in, the cable replaced by their service department and then tested and sent back. This process takes 5 days and it is their POLICY therefore I would lose the use of the headphones for at least a week.

Am I the only one to find this to be a ridiculous policy? I have plugged and unplugged my transducers quite a few times with no ill effects and don't really understand what is so technical about it. I even offered to sign a release from responsibility, but no.I was told that was their policy and they would not change it period.

So I strongly caution anyone considering these excellent headphones to keep this in mind before they purchase from Etymotic.

I'm off to cut my cable and resolder it so that I can use my ER's.

That is so wrong...

W.

[skiwhistler]

I can see how that would bother you, but I think you're in the minority. It sounds like Etymotic is just trying to make sure that their products are always serviced according to their standards, which in turn allows them to control the quality of their devices. I would have no problem sending my phones back for a repair, I can deal with an alternate pair for a few days. Now, if they had refused to provide any wire change service at all perhaps to force you to buy another pair...that would be a different story. Don't knock ety, they are a good company and try hard to satisfy their customers.