Shure E2c First Impressions
I’ve been lusting after a pair of shure in-ear headphones for almost a year and last week i finally found a shop in vienna that had the e2c in stock, incidentally my favourite vienesse apple retailer, mc shark. They carry them for a very reasonable ‚Ǩ 99 and they can order e3c or e5c for you if you want.
Compared to the apple in-ear phones, the shure e2c are definitely a step or two up the ladder. I always found apples in-ear phones lacking when it comes to isolation and fit. The e2c might not be as comfy, but offer significantly better isolation and fit while still being bearably comfortable for several hours of continued use.
Sound quality of the e2c is very satisfying, imho. Bass is precise, but not as powerful as i usually prefer, mids sound clear and well separated, highs imho a little underpronounced, but still ok. Can’t expect everything from sub-100 phones. The soundstage is quite narrow, i’d say narrower than other earbuds, but that’s not much of a problem for me. Closed phones can’t compete with opened ones in that regard anyway and i actually kinda like the “originating right in your head”-sound. Overall i like them better than any other headphone i’ve checked out recently (i.e. sennheiser mx400, hd497, koss ksc55, sony v300, apple in-ear phones), especially for portable usage due to their magnificent isolation.
That’s the area that the e2c really stand out, imho. I’ve never experienced better isolation on a headphone before. Just try having a conversation with the e2c inserted in your ears without any music running and you’ll see it’s a futile exercise. If you actually appreciate the antisocial isolation that your ipod can offer you, get the e2c. You won’t be bothered by crying babys, barking dogs, annoying phone conversations, loud school classes, raving lunatics, gang wars, violent shootouts, tanks blowing up next to you, whatever. Considering the time i spend on sub-, tramway and train the e2c are a godsend.
As an added bonus the better isolation allows you to listen to your music at significantly lower volumes and is therefore a lot healthier for your eardrums. And you won’t have to worry that people around you might hear what you’re listening to, preventing that your sophie ellis bextor obsession turns into a potentially embarassing outing. For the same reason they’re obviously unsuitable when riding a bike or driving a car.
I wholeheartedly recommend the e2c as a magnificent pair of headphones for any portable music player, not so much for their audible qualities (which are great nonetheless), but for their isolation. You really don’t know how much this is worth until you experience it.