Customer Rating: 
Summary: Great Customer Service
Comment: I'm a consultant and travel a lot for work so I love the noise isolation for airplanes and less than ideal work environments. I used them daily for 16 months and then the right earbud started to lose volume. I sent them back to Shure and within a week I had a new pair.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Great Customer Service from Shure!
Comment: I have had these earphones for just over 2 years.
Sound: Clear midrange audio. Pretty good highs and only fair lows. Fairy good detail contributing to fair imaging. You encounter their limitations when you record at HIGH bitrates. At 128 and even 256 they are fine.
Comfort: A very personal thing. My wife can't stand sleeves 'in' her ears. I think they are comfortable and I appreciate the selection of sleeves. I have settled on the soft gray sleeves as the compromise which suits me. The foam gets trashed pretty quick. (but sounds very good) The clear sleeves are too firm for my ears. Also, the sizing; sml, med, and lg, has been experimental for me. I like the 'over the ear' design. It is well suited for athletic activity.
Isolation: Very good isolation once you find the sleeves which fit your ears. I snowblow, mow, run, and travel on airliners with them. Great to use in busy places, while you are trying to concentrate on singular tasks.
They can be dangerous if one is in a situation requiring any alertness.
Quality/Customer Service: The service is absolutely outstanding. I have had to return THREE earphones. They have sent me replacements quickly and painlessly without any hassle or fee ...Amazing!
BUT... I have had, what I presume to be faulty drivers on two of the phones (volume dropped dramatically on one speaker). I inspected them for earwax, etc., evaluated the ipod, then sent them in. The last earphone cracked along a fusion seam behind where the sleeve-tube projects out. This may have been some trauma I inflicted while unaware. It had been just past the original 2 year warranty period but, they sent a replacement to me in less than 2 weeks.
-Now, there was never an explanation. I just got a new pkg of E3C's each time.
I like the design: The plug and cord are sturdy and without any apparent fault.
I just purchased a pair of E4's. Got them at a discounted price here. Same basic design but, upgraded speakers/drivers. They have noticeably better detail and imaging. Slightly better bass- I like them but, I like tight bass.
I have also have a lot of spare sleeves and accessories. This contributed to my decision to stick with Shure. I cross my fingers regarding quality.
They deserve plaudits for customer service.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Excellent for working out
Comment: These are awesome headphones. I'm very particular and I love them. They offer high quality sound and comfort. I've had them for about 8 months now. I use them mainly for working out; pilates, treadmill and some weight lifting. I use the yellow foam ear pieces. Once I put them in, they stay in without needing adjustment for the whole workout. What I do is I bring the cord up the back of my neck with the ear pieces reversed, then wrap the cord once around my pony tail, righting them, then install in my ears with the cord running up from my ears. This technique really works to keep them in place so you can enjoy the music without messing with your earphones every time you move around. My old set of Sony headphones were always sliding out. This style with the foam was a stroke of genius!
Customer Rating:
Summary: Better than noise canceling headphones but...
Comment: I purchased these last December and have been very happy with them on my numerous plane trips this year. If you're used to wearing foam earplugs, this is the way to go. The sound isolation is fantastic as is the sound quality. Be sure to wear them as indicated in the diagrams, with the cord pointing up and wrapping over your ear - this provides the best fit into the ear canal. The foam inserts are best for me and lasted at least 6 months before I felt the need to buy some replacements. I'm also experimenting with replacing the yellow foam with the softer foam from normal earplugs - just trim the earplug to the appropriate length, bore a hole in the center with a paperclip, cut the yellow foam off the plastic tube, and insert the tube into your own earplugs.
I also recently had the chance to compare the Shure E3c earplugs to the Bose QC3 noise-canceling headphones - the Shure's are far better, since the Bose still lets through some of the high pitched engine noise as well as people talking around you. Again, if you're used to wearing earplugs, the Shure's are for you.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Simply Great
Comment: Bought these after my Ultimate Ears Super Fi 5 stopped working and I am not disappointed. The sound reproduction is excellent, the noise canceling is good and they are very comfortable to wear during long periods of time. They are also light weight. I would really recommend these to anyone looking to upgrade their iPod headsets.
Summary: Great Customer Service
Comment: I'm a consultant and travel a lot for work so I love the noise isolation for airplanes and less than ideal work environments. I used them daily for 16 months and then the right earbud started to lose volume. I sent them back to Shure and within a week I had a new pair.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Great Customer Service from Shure!
Comment: I have had these earphones for just over 2 years.
Sound: Clear midrange audio. Pretty good highs and only fair lows. Fairy good detail contributing to fair imaging. You encounter their limitations when you record at HIGH bitrates. At 128 and even 256 they are fine.
Comfort: A very personal thing. My wife can't stand sleeves 'in' her ears. I think they are comfortable and I appreciate the selection of sleeves. I have settled on the soft gray sleeves as the compromise which suits me. The foam gets trashed pretty quick. (but sounds very good) The clear sleeves are too firm for my ears. Also, the sizing; sml, med, and lg, has been experimental for me. I like the 'over the ear' design. It is well suited for athletic activity.
Isolation: Very good isolation once you find the sleeves which fit your ears. I snowblow, mow, run, and travel on airliners with them. Great to use in busy places, while you are trying to concentrate on singular tasks.
They can be dangerous if one is in a situation requiring any alertness.
Quality/Customer Service: The service is absolutely outstanding. I have had to return THREE earphones. They have sent me replacements quickly and painlessly without any hassle or fee ...Amazing!
BUT... I have had, what I presume to be faulty drivers on two of the phones (volume dropped dramatically on one speaker). I inspected them for earwax, etc., evaluated the ipod, then sent them in. The last earphone cracked along a fusion seam behind where the sleeve-tube projects out. This may have been some trauma I inflicted while unaware. It had been just past the original 2 year warranty period but, they sent a replacement to me in less than 2 weeks.
-Now, there was never an explanation. I just got a new pkg of E3C's each time.
I like the design: The plug and cord are sturdy and without any apparent fault.
I just purchased a pair of E4's. Got them at a discounted price here. Same basic design but, upgraded speakers/drivers. They have noticeably better detail and imaging. Slightly better bass- I like them but, I like tight bass.
I have also have a lot of spare sleeves and accessories. This contributed to my decision to stick with Shure. I cross my fingers regarding quality.
They deserve plaudits for customer service.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Excellent for working out
Comment: These are awesome headphones. I'm very particular and I love them. They offer high quality sound and comfort. I've had them for about 8 months now. I use them mainly for working out; pilates, treadmill and some weight lifting. I use the yellow foam ear pieces. Once I put them in, they stay in without needing adjustment for the whole workout. What I do is I bring the cord up the back of my neck with the ear pieces reversed, then wrap the cord once around my pony tail, righting them, then install in my ears with the cord running up from my ears. This technique really works to keep them in place so you can enjoy the music without messing with your earphones every time you move around. My old set of Sony headphones were always sliding out. This style with the foam was a stroke of genius!
Customer Rating:
Summary: Better than noise canceling headphones but...
Comment: I purchased these last December and have been very happy with them on my numerous plane trips this year. If you're used to wearing foam earplugs, this is the way to go. The sound isolation is fantastic as is the sound quality. Be sure to wear them as indicated in the diagrams, with the cord pointing up and wrapping over your ear - this provides the best fit into the ear canal. The foam inserts are best for me and lasted at least 6 months before I felt the need to buy some replacements. I'm also experimenting with replacing the yellow foam with the softer foam from normal earplugs - just trim the earplug to the appropriate length, bore a hole in the center with a paperclip, cut the yellow foam off the plastic tube, and insert the tube into your own earplugs.
I also recently had the chance to compare the Shure E3c earplugs to the Bose QC3 noise-canceling headphones - the Shure's are far better, since the Bose still lets through some of the high pitched engine noise as well as people talking around you. Again, if you're used to wearing earplugs, the Shure's are for you.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Simply Great
Comment: Bought these after my Ultimate Ears Super Fi 5 stopped working and I am not disappointed. The sound reproduction is excellent, the noise canceling is good and they are very comfortable to wear during long periods of time. They are also light weight. I would really recommend these to anyone looking to upgrade their iPod headsets.