Well I'm sitting here listening to my 30gb iPod after I found the Shure e3c's I ordered right next to the front door. I immediately opened them and put them into my ears. It didn't fit and I forgot that I needed to find the right fit, too anxious.
Fit
The Shures come with many sleeves and anyone should be able to find the right fit. The package included Foam Sleeves that you roll up before you put into your ear and then they expand in your ear to create a tight seal. Then there were the flex sleeves. The 2 kinds were the classic flex sleeves which were a harder rubber and the silocone rubber which was a lot softer and were more like the comfortable sleeves on the EX-71. Each one came with a S, M, and L pair. Which in my opinion are the most comfortable canalphones. I immediately tried the soft flex sleeves because they were the most like the Sony's. I put the smallest ones on and it created a good seal. A little less comfotable then the Sony's but they still worked. I have a little problem because I think my left ear canal is bigger then the right one so I get a really good seal on the right and a decent seal on the left. I didn't want to try the classic flex sleeves because they seemed so hard. Then came the foam sleeves. I rolled them up as instructed, and then let them expand in my ear. These provide the BEST seal. I can't hear myself typing at all right now. So I give the isolation to the foamies but they have to be replaced after awhile. So I'll use the soft sleeves for normal use and the foamies for horrible things like the noise from flying on a plane.
Design
The cord is extremely thick which reduces microphonics. For example, when the wire rubs against your shirt or something like that, it usually creates that sound and you can hear it very well because the earphones are IN your ear. But the thicker wire reduces this. It also is a lot more durable because of this. Shure recommends you to wear the earphones looped around your ear. This reduces microphonics too but if you prefer to wear them the normal way, it still works. I just find the over the ear way to be a lot more comfortable and convenient. The top part of the cord where the Y-splitter is, there is a little plastic tube to "tighten" and "loosen" the cord. The earphones are also very small which makes them easy to carry around.
Case
Apart from the sleeves, you also get a Shure carrying case for your earphones. It is very durable and uses a zipper to close it. It lets you wrap your earphones aroung the plastic thing inside. Hard to describe but if you are looking at a review for this product, you've probably seen a picture of it around somewhere.
Sound
The sound of the earphones work the best with a better source. Through my ipod it works very well and since it isolates noise outside, you can have the volume very low and still hear it perfectly. I have it on where you can barely see the color of the bar and it is plenty loud enough. If you've read some other reviews, they have said the bass is not there but it's totally the opposite. I listen to mostly rap and I feel that it has plenty of bass. I would like a little more but for earphones this small and having all the outside noise isolated from you, it is perfectly fine. The mids are the best on these. It's kind of hard to describe sound but I would say it's how it's supposed to sound. The highs on the other hand are a little interesting. I feel that it tries to exaggerate it but I kind of like this because I listen to mostly rap and everyone wants to hear every part of a song and treble is definitely not one of the parts you usually hear in a rap song. So for me, I think it's perfectly acceptable. Coldplay sounds wonderful on these earphones when the piano comes in. Overall, I would think these earphones would be for everyone except the people that ONLY listen to things like classical or something with a lot of highs. Of course, sound is completely subjective so the only thing I could tell you is to try them out, and you'll find out if it's right for you. As for me, I totally depended on reviews and luckily, they work for me.
Warranty
Shure provides a 2 year warranty unlike the Etymotic 1 year warranty. Companies only offer longer warranties when they are confident their product will last that long. This just tells you the durability of the product.
I found these earphones to be worth every penny. I only paid 96 dollars for them from Amazon with the 30 dollar discount when you sign up for their credit card. If it were over 120, I would probably just spend the extra 60 and get the E4C's as I've heard they are more for EVERYONE and that extra price difference isn't much when you are already spending this much.
Superior sound quality for your Black ipod Nano or other black MP3 or Sony PSP. Sound Isolating in-ear design provides exception clarity prevents outs...More at Amazon Marketplace
Epinions.com periodically updates pricing and product information from third-party sources, so some information may be slightly out-of-date. You should confirm all information before relying on it.
- Add to My Yahoo!: 
- Add to Google Homepage: 
© 1999-2010 Shopping.com, Inc.