shure E5c phones

[Rubycon]

Are these worth $450?

That seems expensive for a tiny earspeaker piece.

How is the sound on these? 123 dB/mw is insane efficient.

Imagine fitting them to someone's ears and connecting the jack across a lantern battery. hehehe! :laugh:

That would probably sound like a claymore going off in a portajohn.

 

[bigrash]

no earspeaker is worth 450

 

[Rubycon]

Originally posted by: bigrash
no earspeaker is worth 450

Ok any audiophiles here care to answer?

 

[IAteYourMother]

no, thats stupid. Get real headphones with that cash

 

[CrazyShiz]

My E3c's were worth every penny I spent on them. Miles above any other in-ear phones in terms of sound quality and the isolation was so much better than I thought it would be. I haven't used the E5c but I can only imagine the sound quality is even better than the E3's.

(And don't listen to people who tell you it's not worth it. If you can tell the difference in quality, need portability and sound isolation, it's a no brainer)

 

[YOyoYOhowsDAjello]

I haven't heard them, but if I was going to spend around that much I would seriously consider them.

 

[Crono]

I know people who swear by the E5c's, but I would rather get sound cancelling headphones (over the ear) for a lot less than that. But if you have the cash, are an extreme audiophile, and must have the mobility and isolation of earbuds, go for it.

 

[Rubycon]

Ok this is more of the feedback I was looking for. (pun not intended for those knowing what I mean hehe)

I've tried active noise canceling 'phones and they don't sound right to me. Nasty things going on with the midrange and the sound stage collapses. Those cellos have GOT to keep their sizzle!

Oh and they have to have the contra bass too. I hear these deliver that with aplomb so we'll see (or hear) soon.

 

[Anubis]

for that kind of money id just but the Grado RS2s

 

[tm37]

I have a set of 6i Isolator Earphones and I love them.

They are great for flying on planes (I do that alot) and They block out everything.

Also very small and portable.

 

[Skiguy411]

I love my E4s! Are they worth the $200 I payed for them? Yes...as long as they last me a reallllyyyyy long time.

 

[Rubycon]

Originally posted by: Anubis
for that kind of money id just but the Grado RS2s

Well that is the problem, I have full sized 'phones now (Stax 3030 w/ ref amp) and they sound good but definitely not practical for on the go. Earbuds are painful to listen to and wear - they just totally lack the definition of a good earspeaker.

 

[Ornery]

Where does reality end, and hype begin? $450.00 just BEGS for double blind testing. Hell, anything over $75.00 for earphones should be evaluated closely, IMO. And, if you're just casually listening to MP3s on a portable, while doing chores, WTF, how "awesome" do they need to be? Is 6 Hz to 23 kHz frequency response not good enough?

Comfortable, great for bass heavy music

• I recently bought both these and the Shure e3c in-hear headphones (which cost about six times as much). The Sonys are for the gym (where they will surely take a beating and eventually need to be replaced) while the more expensive Shures will be used for my daily commute on public transportation (a generally less violent activity).
  
  I really enjoy both headphones, but they are sonically worlds apart. The Sony headphones are a bit easier to insert and sit more comfortably in the ear than the Shures, whose cables have to be looped up and over each ear, newscaster-style. When it comes to ease of use and physical comfort, the Sonys are simply better. Sonically, it is hard to say one set of earphones is objectively better than the other. The Sonys feature a very prominent bottom end while the Shures have tighter bass response and much more mid-range clarity. I would say the Sonys have been engineered to sound "hot" (lots of bass and treble) while the Shures were designed to sound more neutral. In places where a sense of energy is more important than nuance (e.g., at the gym or out jogging) I'd recommend the Sony earphones. For longer periods of more introspective, careful listening, the Shures can't be beat.
  
  P. Gunderson, July 8, 2004

 

[Rubycon]

Sony audio is terrible quality. Even their "higher end" 'phones are quite colored.

If that is ok then you don't have golden ears - this is why bose does so well in the marketplace.

 

[Ornery]

Let me know when Bose is selling a set of anything for twenty five bucks! Oh, and explain P. Gunderson's unbiased rview.

 

[Rubycon]

Originally posted by: Ornery
Let me know when Bose is selling a set of anything for twenty five bucks! Oh, and explain P. Gunderson's unbiased rview.

[*]Even if they were $25 the sound "quality" would still be crap. Ever listen to the 901? It is so equalized it isn't funny. Don't even get me started on their Triports!

[*]"The Sonys feature a very prominent bottom end while the Shures have tighter bass response and much more mid-range clarity. I would say the Sonys have been engineered to sound "hot" (lots of bass and treble) while the Shures were designed to sound more neutral. "

?That says it all right there. Yes unbiased reviewer actually admits the Sony's have colored sound. No thanks.

I understand your point, different strokes for different folks. I am *extremely* picky about the sound. Despite recommendations and reviews 75% of what I purchase winds up getting sold because I don't like it.

 

[YOyoYOhowsDAjello]

Originally posted by: Ornery
Let me know when Bose is selling a set of anything for twenty five bucks! Oh, and explain P. Gunderson's unbiased rview.

set of wall mounts

 

[loup garou]

If I had the money, I'd buy them in a second. I love my E3c's.

 

[Ornery]

I'm NOT one to get sucked into the hype. $450.00 earbuds could easily fall into that category. Who's to say the cheap Sony's aren't more flat? Can you be sure the others aren't falling off on the top and bottom? I've never listened to any Shure's, but I do have the EX51s, and I have to tweak the treble up a bit for crisper sound. I'm spoiled by the bass in those things!

 

[Rubycon]

These came in a box today that I almost missed it was so small.

The sound and dynamics of these are incredible. Even the preamp in an ipod can create dynamic range that causes flinching on the snare drums! When inserted properly the bass is quite impressive and it really seems weird to hear those long waves and not have things moving on the table although there were a few tracks that did make things appear to flicker. Air SPL >140 dB does this. These (as I figured given 124 dB / mV sensitivity!) are quite dangerous as high levels more than a few seconds like that can do real damage to the ears.

The sensitivity reveals quite a bit of noise in the ipod preamp that was not heard with full sized cans. Even though, the ipod output is very enjoyable and doesn't seem to exaggerate and/or color the music like some other players.

Without a doubt the best feature is to be able to listen at very LOW volumes and still hear all the details in the music. The isolation is excellent indeed.

 

[Mackie2k]

I had E3Cs for a couple weeks, they were amazing....

They block out every sound you can imagine the response is amazing...

So clean at high volumes....almost too clean