Shure E2c Sound Isolating Earphones: Digital-Camera-Near.com

Shure E2c Sound Isolating Earphones

Shure E2c Sound Isolating Earphones
by Shure

Our Price: $199.99
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Buy Used: from $99.90 (click here)
Category: CE
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Customers in the UK, Buy this product at amazon.co.uk for British Pounds

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Manufacturer: Shure
Model: E2C
Product features:

Sound Isolating in-ear design - Hear only what you want to hear
Portable and lightweight design - weighing only one-ounce
Personal fit kit to contour to your ear size
Built in High-Energy in-ear speaker technology
Enriched studio quality sound used by Musicians worldwide

Accessories:

Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Shure E2c Sound Isolating Earphones

Customer Review: Great sound but not perfect...
Summary: 4 Stars

Hello All,

I've owned the Shure E2C Sound Isolating Earphones for almost a year now.
I'm not an audiophile, but I can appreciate good sound reproduction. These earphones are amazing interms of clarity of highs and mid level sounds. The base is more than passible but not deep and ear-bleeding like some Sony or Bose models. I'm not into those models at all, since the music I listen to are often instrumentals with very little base, also supplemented with Podcasts and the occasional audio book.

I was immediately and pleasantly surprised to hear sounds I've never heard before in music I've listened to a thousand times from my car and computer speakers. I was very impressed and happy with my purchase. But, as with most things, it does come at a price. I'll get to that in a bit.

These earphones comes with 3 styles of earbuds. One is the round soft rubber kind (which come in large, med, small to suit your ear canal), the other is the soft squishy yellow foam, which molds to the shape of your ear (also comes in large, med and small), and the hard plastic kind (also in large, med and small).

The hard plastic kind works the best in terms of blocking outside sound but because its hard plastic, my ears start to ache after a few hours of continuous use. The foam feels the best in terms of comfort but doesn't block out sound as well as the hard plastic and the soft rubber ones. I finally settled on the soft rubber ones, a nice compromise between the hard plastic and the foam. It's soft, fits comfortably and blocks out most of the outside noise.

Now, it's important to NOTE that people have been tossing around the term NOISE CANCELING freely without any regard to its meaning. In terms of earphones and headphones, NOISE CANCELING refers to the mechanism within the headphones or earphones that actually emit a noise canceling signal that actually cancels out the frequency of most of the outside sound coming in.

I've tried the ones from Bose, Sony, and even Shure, which all have a seperate switch to turn on this function. The feeling is really weird and needs some getting used to. It feels like being stuffed up with a head-cold, or your ears on the verge of popping. But, it does do what it claims, which is actively canceling out a large percentage of outside noise coming in.

THESE earphones are NOT NOISE CANCELING earphones. They are sound isolating earphones. This means that they just block out the sound by forming a tight fit into your ear canal to prevent any other sound from getting in. That's all. Its the same as someone doing constuction across the street from your house and you close all the windows and doors to block out that sound. These earphones DO NOT emit a noise canceling signal to actively cancel out outside sound.

I hope this was helpful and makes sense to you.

Anyhow, back to the review.

You need to practice putting these things on your ear. What the hell does that mean? Well, if you've never used these type of earphones before, you will see that its more than just popping in these earbuds like the standard ones do.

The earphones comes with instructions and pictures to show you how to put them on, so don't worry. But, to give you an idea, first the darker colored earbud is ALWAYS the right side earbud. The clear colored one is the left. You first take the earbud cord, loop it around the back of your ear and then insert the earbud into your ear. Don't worry, if this doesn't make any sense, you'll understand when you own your own pair. These earphone won't fit into your ear in any other way AND will always pop out if you don't do it this way.

Is it comfortable? Yes, but over an extended period of time, my left ear starts to ache, but this is after 3 hours of continuous use.

Again, the sound reproduction is great. And it blocks out a large percentage of outside noise. I commute by bus and train and these guys are perfect to keep out all that excess noise.

Now, here are some drawbacks:

1) These are not good for exercising, or anything that involves active movement and sweating. REASON: as you sweat the earbuds will always slip out. If you are just lifting weights, they're fine. If you are on an exercise bike, most of the time, its ok. For jogging, no good.

2) This reason is also in tandem with the first one. If you are motionless, i.e. lying down or sitting or just standing in line waiting for the train or bus, these earphones will produce great sound. However, because your ear canal is almost completely sealed by the earphones, internal sounds will be amplified. What does this mean?

Here is the easiest and most accurate example:

Please try the following: Plug your ears with your fingers, (not put the palms of your hands over your ears). Please becareful when you do this. Take whatever finger fits, completely plug up your ear canal and eat some potatoe chips. The sound of you crunching on those chips are incredibly loud. Walk around a room that has hard wood or concrete floors. Your footsteps are also annoyingly audible.

This is almost the exact sensation you will experience when you have these buds in your ear.

So please take note of this. I commute to work by bus and train, and the only thing that bothers me is the noise that I hear when i'm eating, walking and the buds slipping out when I'm sweating on a hot day.

3) In addition to 1 and 2, the cord itself, if its free and dangling, you will hear the sound of the cord hitting your chest if its not taught or secure in some way. And that sound is quite loud and distracting.

That's it in terms of drawbacks. The earphones come in a nice looking zippered case for easy storage and travel. So, I'm pretty happy with my purchase, because the sound is great and my commute is mostly sitting down or waiting, but hearing my loud footsteps as I rush from my bus stop to the nearest subway train is still very annoying, something I haven't gotten used to yet, probably never will.

I hope this review has been helpful. Buyers beware, as always, try to get as much info on a product before purchasing. Be safe.

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Description of Shure E2c Sound Isolating Earphones

The Shure E2c In-Ear Headphones combines a Dynamic MicroDriver speaker technology with a sound isolating design, to deliver rich, full-range sound while blocking outside noise.

Shure's E2c in-ear headphones are tiny, lightweight, and designed to sonically outperform most ear-bud-style headphones. The E2c's unique, relatively affordable design comes from Shure's years of collaborating with professional musicians. With high-energy drivers in distinctive enclosures, the E2c produces high-quality sound with excellent isolation from background noise.

The E2c's speakers are constructed with studio-grade components, producing exceptional audio clarity. Their in-ear design, using supplied flex sleeves, naturally blocks background noise. This permits lower listening volumes in loud environments--critical in safeguarding your hearing during performance or other activities. No batteries or extra equipment are needed for sound isolation.

Because every ear is different, E2c earphones come with 3 pairs (small, medium, large) of flex sleeves and 3 pairs (small, medium, large) ultra-soft flex sleeves to ensure a personalized fit. These disposable foam sleeves gently compress to fit in the ear canal. Once in the ear, the foam expands to form a tight seal. Once tightly sealed, the sleeves hold the earphones firmly in place.

The E2c's cables pass behind the ear--out of sight and out of the way for comfort and discretion. Weighing only 1 ounce, the E2c is lightweight and comfortable enough for any portable listening application. The set comes with a soft, stylish, compact, and zippered carrying case, which allows for an easy, tangle-free way to store your earphones.

What's in the Box
Earphones, 2 triple-flange sleeves, 3 pairs (small, medium, large) of flex sleeves, and 3 pairs (small, medium, large) ultra-soft flex sleeves (kit 90XC1371, with cleaning tool), a soft carry case (80B8232), a user's manual, and warranty information.

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