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"Good, not the best, still MUCH MUCH better than ETYs"
3.0 starson by charesr22Pros: Comfortable design, fairly good sound, very precise, good bass
Cons: single drivers limits soundstage range
Summary: Let me begin by asking what the cnet editors who reviewed these are smoking???
First of all, these are NOT the best cans out there. They are not even the best phones made by Shure. Anyone with an internet connection can go to the Shure webpage which clearly shows that their top of the line model is the Shure e5c, which has dual drivers in each earbud and an inline crossover to split high and low sound frequencies and maximize driver efficiency.
Furthermore, the CNET editors, in their haste to name every new product "the best," began a year or two back by naming the ETYs as the "best." That is completely ridiculous. In the world of high end personal audio equipment, the ETYs are the low end, entry studio model. I don't know any professionals that use them. In fact, no serious audiophile does, unless they don't have the money for something better.
The three main players for the really expensive earbud market are Shure, Sensaphonics, and Ultimate Ears. Ultimate Ears are probably the best, but they are mostly limited to serious professionals because of their fantastic cost, which is about $1,000 for their flagship UE-10 pro model. Sensaphonics also has a great industry reputation, but they are a bit lacking in customer service and have a lame webpage. Shure is very good, and I highly recommend the e5cs, which retail for $500, but can be had for $350 or so on the internet.
To turn specifically to the e4cs, they are what they are. They are good, but not great. They are severly limited by only having single drivers, which no matter how good they are, can only produce certain sound frequencies at a limited efficiency.
They were obviously designed for the "prosumer" market. That is to say, people who like music, aren't professionals, but know the difference between crap and something good, and have a little extra cash. Hence the IPOD matching design.
My final thought - save up a little more money and go for the e5cs over the e4s, there is a very significant difference between the two.
- 13 replies to this review
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Shures Top of the Line is the 500 series not the 5's, the 5's were flawed, and overall where never better than the 4's, just more overbearing bass, the 500's are definitely better, and I haven't yet tried the replacement 520's. The 430's which replace the 4's will be available in July?, I'll then make a decision between them and the 520's. <br>In the meantime I will still use my superb 4's, with ETY's 4p as my (excellent) backups. The ETY's I use when I'm flying because they are less fatiguing to wear over many hours and have (slightly) better isolation.
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I completely agree with the comments on the E5C's. When you're dealing with a digital source (i.e. MP3 player), go with the best headphones you can afford. Headphones/earbuds are typically the weakest link in the system. I have owned the E5C's for approx. 1 year and they are phenomenal. If you want to hear all your music again for the 1st time, listen through the E5C's.
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Who is this guy i do not know a lot about earphones i dont profess to know a lot but i have read lots of reviews and it seems to me the three major brands shure, ETY and Ultimate ears all have there fans. I live in the UK nad the major hi fi mag here called what hi fi gave the shure earphones five stars and so have many others. Who are you whats your job like you seem to think your the man not everyone can afford a set of earphones at 1000 dollars or shure ones at 500 dollars. Why would i buy and Ipod and then buy earphones at 500 dollars is this not doing the earphones an injustice. I have just ordered Shure E4c and cant wait for them to arrive and a wee hint stop imposing your opinion on others i might live in Northern Ireland but im not U2 i dont get givin a product for free so Ultimate ears can go hey look who uses are product. Its all marketing at the end of the day i say to anyone thinking of buying a product hear it for yourselfs at the end of the day its all about who has best marketing etc to make money to re invest etc etc
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Nowhere did the editors say that the 4cs were for the professional market. They clearly state that they are at the high-end for people who want to get a little more out of their Mp3 players. Who is going to attach a $1000 pair of earphones to their Mp3 player? They provide balanced sound. You want bass-thumping sound, the editors recommend the V-Moda's. You want professional sound, that's another earphone market altogether. I think some people just write to show off their knowledge, because they can't get their friends t listen to them. Also, these reviews should e qualified b the reviewers specifying which player they use. The player makes a difference as well.
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The review said "Shure's E4c earbuds are simply the best in-ear headphones we've ever heard."<br>They didn't SAY or IMPLY that they were the best on the market and any intelligent person like yourself should know that it's virtually impossible to review ever model of every vendor in the world. If you think that is possible then sounds like you need to setup your own webpage.<br>You obviously have a lot of first-hand experience with audio equipment but taking on that smug, elitist tone negated your whole review.<br>Sorry. I give your review a 5 out of 10.<br>D
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The CNET people didn't say they are the best ever. They said thay were the best they ever heard. My guess is that they haven't heard that much. I think you're right. By the way, for people with a medium budget, i recommend to look at (listen rather)the Stax ST-001 MK2 also. Available at audiocubes for about $300 US$ Including the separate portable battery operated driver.
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Even if a "better" item can be had at any price, a lower cost item can still be the "best" when price is considered part of the package (and I take price into consideration myself). So the higher-end items mentioned by this user might be dinged by their extravagant prices. Myself, I would consider a 10-cent Toyota Corolla a better item than a million-dollar Rolls.
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The reviewer is correct that the UE-10 Pro and the Sensaphonics Soft 2X models are known to be superior to all of the IEM's reviewed by CNET. But these are high-end, custom-made products costing upwards of $1000 (I think the Sensaphonics are a little cheaper). It doesn't bother me that these aren't included in these reviews, though perhaps somewhere in the vast world of CNET their existence should be mentioned.<br><br>I also agree with the reviewer that it's odd that the Shure E4C model is presented as Shure's "top of the line" product, when in fact, the Shure E5's exist, cost about $500, and are not a custom product. They definitely should be reviewed and included in these comparisons. <br><br>Likewise, Westone makes a $299 model called the UM2 which gives the Shure E5's a run for their money at much lower price. I'm sure CNET readers would be interested.<br><br>Where I disagree with the reviewer is in his disdain for the Etymotic line of IEM's. The ER-4S and ER-4P probably are not used by "professionals" for in-ear monitoring much these days, since those who can afford it have moved to the customized products mentioned above. But among audiophiles these models still are much-beloved and have a loyal following. Check the postings at the Head-fi web site and this will become clear. Because of all the current competition, Ety's prices have dropped considerably from years past, and they certainly remain fine IEM's. I don't know exactly how they compare with the Shure E4C's, but among single-driver IEM's I'm guessing it's a close race between the Shure and the Etymotic products
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I have the E5c & E4's. The only time you can tell any difference in any product is by performing a side by side comparison. You obviously have not done this. <br>Every product has a different sound and some are designed for a different use or purpose. The E5c was originally a musicians in-ear monitor and did not require the detailing that the E4 can deliver when listening to music just as I would not use the E4 as my sound monitors. The E5 has a strong low and mid range but not as much high-end detail although it still does sound better than almost any other phones on the market. I am not only a musician but a sound fanatic and have tried almost every product above $300 on the market. If you like detail and depth get the E4.
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I just wonder at how professional the CNET ratings are. What I mean is that I doubt the guy who gives rating to audio products is actually an audio professional or audiophile who listened to hi-fi very often. As this user pointed out, they praise the etys a fews years back as "excellet", and now they are saying the Shures are the best. So, I doubt they really are not biased and business like when they give ratings. IF you want better advises and getting more info about higher end audio, you should check out head-fi.org, it is a good place to start. It has ratinsg of various hi-end audio equipments that will probably expand your horizon, and give you more informed about headphones. THey are written by audiophiles who acutally bother to do comparative listening and discuss their headphones, so it is a much more reliable source than the CNET.
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I don't agree with what this user is saying about headphones. From what i have read in his post, it is obvious that he never listened to any Ultimate Ears, Sensaphonics products, and probably not the etymotic Er4. But he trashes the etys and just praises the most expensive models available. True, to most people who have little experience with hi-end audio these sound terrific and marvelous, and they will say it is the best sound they ever heard. However, the Ultimate Ears and Sensaphonics are not neutral phones. They sound warm and have a lot more bass than what a neutral can should should like. Also, the Shure e5c has the design flaw of having only one bore to let the signal from the two drivers to mix. The Sensaphonics and the Ultimate Ears have individual bore for each driver, and the sound isn't muffled in heavy bass after 5k frequency as the Shure e5c. Also, the reason rock stars choose Ultimate Ears and Sensaphonics is because these companies were the first to coorporate with Apple as quality headphone providers, so they gain their popularity. Since they were the first to promote in ear monitors to the rock stars and other entertainers, obviously they will gain popularity among stars. If you look at which stars use Ultimate Ears, you will see most of them are rock stars and pop stars, playing bass heavy music, of which Shure, Ultimate Ears and Sensaphonics are very good at. If you go for neutrality, better go for full sized headphones, or get the etys.
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ive been looking round and found it hard too find an unbiased review. Im not rich but like good sound and ur words have now given me a lot more information than i could find elsewhere. Thanx now i may not feel like ive wasted my money when i decide which headphones to buy
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They may be considered the low end for audiofiles. But, they're often the preferred in-ear brand for research. Plugging your canal creates an articial listening experience. Ety incorporates a transform function that allows the reproduction of the sound in the ear canal as if it had travelled through the outer ear first (as would be the case for live listening). I'm not sure Shure (LOL) bothers with this, but I would suspect not. So phones like those by Etymotic mimic an actual listening experience than in-ear phones that neglect the fact they they remove the very real transformations caused by the outer ear.<br><br>In other words, don't discount them because the're not the standard brand used by MUSIC professionals... because they are arguably the standard used by AUDIO professionals. The isolation ability of the Etys came from perfecting their design to accurately reproduce sound of all variaties in a lab setting. (No, I don't work for them.) My point is, you ARE getting quality with them.
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