Shure e2c's: Worth it?

[DJ LUCiTE]

I'm thinking of getting a pair of the Shure e2c canalphones. Now my previous experience with canalphones has consisted of the laughable Koss Plugs, but they weren't all that bad. I used the extensively until I found the Sennheiser PX200's, and upgraded to the Sennheiser HD212 Pro's recently.

So for ~$80, would it be worh it? Or should I just stick with my HD212's?
I'm also looking at them because I'm thinking the Shure's would let me take my HD212's sound, but more portably. Any thoughts? Thanks in advance.

 

[minime]

I was looking @ the Shures also. After doing a lot of research and getting opinions of E2c users I have come to the conclusion that they are indeed worth it. Great isolation-people say that when inserted correctly and with the music on, you wouldn't be able to hear a car drive by!! Great sound too. I don't know much about bass and all that. Basically all I know is that they sound awesome. I ordered mine for $71 shipped from Microphone Solutions about a week ago and they should come tomorrow!! I will post when I get them!!
P.S. If you want to get them for $71 shipped at a great online store, read my last post on this page titled How to get Shure E2s for $71.00.....http://www.ipodlounge.com/forums/showthread.php?threadid=41309&highlight=How+to+get+Shures+for+$71.00

I really recomend the Shures and getting them from Microphone Solutions!

 

[Joshdude]

Eh I tried them and didn't like them. Of course, they didn't fit in my small ears. But I also didn't like the lack of bass. Oh, sure it mught be more "accurate" or "true" but I prefer deep thumpy bass, and the E3c's didn't deliver. I actually chose the Apple in-ears over them, if that's believable.

 

[ambika]

i'm a bit upset about my e2cs.
they're completely dead, i've tried them in multiple media players to no avail...now this would be fine, but shure isn't getting back to me about replacing them. i purchased them earlier this year, so they're well within their warrantee. not something i expected out of them, i've got sony headphones from the 80s lying around my house that are still working well.

i have small ears too, so my sony ex71s fit a lot better -- but the e2cs do sound better.

 

[Jackson]

E2's got good sound quaility, but I choose the EX71 over E2. The ex71 earphones are very comfortable. You don't buy them for the sound, you buy them for the isolation, design and usability features at a certain price (39 bucks in igearbox.com).

If you do care about sound, save up for the Shures E3. You will get what you pay for.

 

[br-]

If you find yourself caring about sound, I really wouldn't go for the Shure e2 or e3, unless you enjoy low detail and a greatly accentuated mid-bass. You should go for one of the Etymotic earphones. The er-6 is in your price range. Take my word for it, it will give you great sound quality.

 

[thedodgyguy]

If you find yourself caring about sound, I really wouldn't go for the Shure e2 or e3, unless you enjoy low detail and a greatly accentuated mid-bass. You should go for one of the Etymotic earphones. The er-6 is in your price range. Take my word for it, it will give you great sound quality.

Low detail? Greatly accentuated mid-bass? Do you actually own these phones or do you just retype what other people say? Take my word for it, the E2c/E3c are great value. The E3c are however not for people who want truckloads of bass... and neither are the ER-6 or ER-4.


The E2's are a great step up from the EX71. They are more detailed without being scratchy, there's fairly decent amounts of bass, and above all you get much more isolation than things like the Plugs (or the EX71) can provide.


One thing you must do is to wear them correctly. That's shoved up quite far in your ear. A good seal is fairly critical with phones like these. I haven't seen anyone wearing the E2 apart from people I know, but I have seen E3c's fitted too loosely (fit is rather more critical in the case of balanced-armature drivers) and I see people wearing EX71's in all manner of ways. In either of these cases, you're p!ssing away the potential in sound quality and tonal character.

 

[Xavier]

seems like alot of u dont know what ur tallkin bout. the shures are very good, nuff said. and more people say that the shure e2c's have more bass then the shure e3c's

 

[MuzakMan]

I just got mine the other day, and they are worth every penny. I have heard them described as much more "fun" to listen to, over the Etymotics. They may not give as much separated detail, but together, as a whole, they make your music sound great. They may not be for true audiophiles, but they definitely deliver. The bass is great if inserted right, they are plenty loud, and the isolation is GREAT. With the music on, you can't hear anything.

So far, they are BY FAR the best accessory I have bought for my iPod. They have caused me to enjoy listening to my iPod, instead of always disliking the crappy quality I was getting.

 

[usurp]

The E2s were for me one of the coolest things i have ever gotten. I had the Bang & Olufsen earphones with my second generation 20GB ipod but i was never satisfied with them. So after purchasing the ipod mini i decided I wanted to get better earphones. After tons of research I realized that the SONY's and Apple In-Ear earphones werent anything spectacular and my choices were either the Shure or the Etymotics if i wanted something special.

In the end my options were down to the E2 and E3 and when I found the E2s for 80$ with shipping I quickly went for them since they were a very decent price.

The outcome?

The E2s are seriously great. I have listened to them with everything from alternative and scandinavian metal to R&B and HipHop. They are soo good that i have actually started reripping all my music at higher bitrate.

Finally i can hear the difference between the various equalizers on the ipod. From setting to setting the changes can be incredible. so pure.

My advice would be dont pay to much and dont pay to little. The E2s come just in the middle.


here are pictures of my E2 with the Foam sleeves.
http://www.unex-t.com/e2

 

[MuzakMan]

I definitely have to use mine with the foamies though. Those clear silicone things hurt badly. I have to use a medium in my right ear, and a small in my left ear... Go figure... I have mutant ears...
Also, I took that stupid spool out of the case. It makes it much easier and faster to take them out and put them in. Just wrap it around your fingers, slip them off, and put them in. The little screw in the middle of the spool is an allen screw, and it just screws out.

Buy them!

 

[usurp]

i was using foamies, small one ear and medium in other also. i guess we must be related.

now though been using the silicon sleeves. the foamies are definetly better but dont want to use them until i buy a couple of more new ones.

will try removing the spool. always found it time consuming to put my e2s away. thanks for the tip.

 

[MuzakMan]

I sat there and stared at it, trying to figure out how to take it apart. I thought there could be a possibility that the little screw was an allen screw, and it was. After you do that, take pliers, and gently squeeze that middle split thing, that holds the spool on. Then, take the spool off, you can always put it back on.

The next part took a bit of though. i wanted to keep the Shure logo on the outside, but it was very wobbly and loose, with the spool taken off. I couldn't think of how to keep it tight. Rubberbands didnt work.

After you take the spool off, take a paper clip, regular size, and unroll it. Stick part of it, crosswise into the slit, and start wrapping it around and around the nub, not to tightly. You can keep it at the right tightness, by screwing the allen screw back in. When you get to the end, bend the leftover end of the paper clip back into the slit. It works perfectly, and seems permanent.

Hoped that helped a little.

I really want to use the silicon things, because I hate putting the stupid foamies in my ears, and having to buy new ones. I just cant get used to them. They hurt my ears to damn much. It sucks. i wish they had the grey soft ones like the E3's have.

 

[Xavier]

but if ur a basshead lik me, and want the best earphones out on the market, u would go with the shure E5c's like iam doin !

 

[DJ LUCiTE]

So it sounds like they would be more similar in sound to the Sennheiser PX200's?

Has anyone, by chance, have listened to both the Senn 212Pro's AND the Shure e2c's and would like to comment? Thanks, lol.

And thanks for all your comments, guys.

 

[DJ LUCiTE]

OMG, I just realized the Etymotic ER-6's are $100 at headphone.com.

Should I just get those or the Shure's?

omg I can't decide!!! arrrgh...

 

[Xavier]

if u want bass, go with the shures, and this numerous sites out there that off the shure E lines at riducuosly low prices, SEARCH AROUND

 

[br-]

Low detail? Greatly accentuated mid-bass? Do you actually own these phones or do you just retype what other people say? Take my word for it, the E2c/E3c are great value. The E3c are however not for people who want truckloads of bass... and neither are the ER-6 or ER-4.

I currently own the ER-4, I owned the e3c for a month, and I have auditioned the e2c on several occasions. So I am writing from personal experience and not from reading others' comments. It is not too hard to come to the conclusion that the Shures have "low detail". When comparing the e3c and er4 for instance, it is quite apparant that the Etymotics are giving you a wealth of information that the e3c is not providing. And how I came across the accentuated mid-bass conclusion was when listening to the e3c, I found that the mid bass was far too prominant, so much so that it sounded very unnatural. It was louder and had more presence than the other parts of the spectrum.

seems like alot of u dont know what ur tallkin bout. the shures are very good, nuff said. and more people say that the shure e2c's have more bass then the shure e3c's

More bass is not necessarily good. If the bass is loose and boomy, then the result will be worse sound.

 

[DJ LUCiTE]

Anyone owning an ER-6 care to add your $0.02 (USD)?
Thanks again for the wealth of info/opinions. Last year's birthday, I got my iPod...what better to make it sound twice as good this year?

 

[DJ LUCiTE]

Alright, thanks guys, my mom made the decision before me and got my the Shure E2c's. They are very much worth the price. My first impression of it was that it sounded like absolute #### (I'm not holding anything back on this). Honestly. No bass, no highs...just, mids. WTF? But I remembered my experience with my Sennheiser PX200's and breaking in to sound good. So I fed them music for about 3-4 hours or so, and took another listen.
OMG.
The highs opened up, finally shaking off the 'veil' they seemed to be hiding behind. The highs are loud enough so you can tell they're there, yet not too loud so that 's' sounds and cymbals aren't deafeningly sharp. (like slicing into your ear sharp...HD212's had that problem a bit.) The bass flowed out much, much deeper, yet still remaining relatively 'tight'. (not as tight as my HD212's, but those are hideous to go out in public with, hahaha)
The mids are alright, although I do think the mid-bass is accented a tiny, tiny bit too loud. But the other feature on here is isolation, holy crap, it's a great feeling to be inside your own little bubble. Silence in the music IS silent. I have a feeling that the sound quality will only get better as I use it (break it in more).
I also have a feeling that the ER-6 would have been the better buy, since I'm more of an 'analytical' listener, I like to hear details. My Senn HD212's provide that for me at home, but the Shures are GREAT for on-the-go listening. It's a great upgrade from the Sennheiser PX-200's.
And a GODSENT upgrade from the Koss Plugs, but hey, that's not even in this CLASS.

Alright, that's it, this is the last pair I'm buying/saving up for/getting as a gift until next year. iPodding is an expensive hobby, first the iPod, then the case, then headphones, headphones, earphones, etc. Hell, at this rate, I'll have bought Etymotics before I saved up for my damned car!!

DAMN YOU APPLE! hahaha...again, thanks for your advice guys. Always helpful to have a nice community around.