Starting this work week, with my new Shure E2c's:
- Spoon - I Summon You
- Beck - Side of the Road
- Jimi Hendrix - Castles Made of Sand
- Cowboy Junkies - Someone Out There
- The Cure - A Thousand Hours
- Sonic Youth - I Love Her All The Time
- The Cure - The Hanging Garden
- Steely Dan - Hey Nineteen
- Apollo Sunshine - A Finger Pointing At The Moon
- Iron And Wine - Freedom Hangs Like Heaven
- (bonus - since that Apollo Sunshine song was only 30 seconds long) : Pixies - Wave Of Mutilation (UK Surf mix)
The "sound-isolating" aspect of these earphones works really well. The standard iPod earphones let a lot of sound through. But with these, I can't hear a damned thing besides the music (which really does sound excellent) and my own breathing. It's a bit like being underwater. Since I can't even hear typing, I'm making more typos. This will take some getting used to.
Hey Cleek:
Are they worth the dough? Are they comfortable for extended wear? I have been thinking about the Bose over the ear, but don’t like the bulk for travel.
i’m about 50/50 on returning them right now.
they sound great. no doubt.
but, apparently i have the smallest ear canals in the world.
they come with an assortment of different tips and sizes (3 hard rubber, 3 very soft rubber and 3 earplug-type foam) but none of them are comfortable in my ears. in fact, my ears are sore right now.
i started with the hard rubber ones that are on there by default, but couldn’t get them in my ear – even the smallest size. then i tried the soft rubber ones. they went in OK, but i had trouble equalizing the air pressure in my ear when putting them in – they make an air-tight seal in your ear canal and it’s hard getting them in just right so that you’re not squeezing too much air in, or creating too much of a vaccuum when you stop pushing them in. then i tried the foam ones. and they’re ok as far as pressure goes, and they fit ok. but after a couple 9-hour days of taking them in and out, they’re starting to rub and irritate.
but, like i said, i think i must have smaller than normal ears. the original iPod earbuds (the kind that don’t go inside) hurt my ears the first few days, too. maybe i just need to give these in-ear ones a longer trial.
jury’s still out.
oh… also, the wires on these don’t really have anywhere to go, since the earbud doesn’t extend outside your ear anywhere. so, you have to kind of loop them out the front of your ear, then around the top, then down. combine that with the fiddly way i have to get them in (find the right angle, squeeze them foam, push a little, turn a little, push a little, pull the wire front, over, down)… it’s a bit of work.
Thanks for the info. I routinely wear hearing protection for work (in and out of manufacturing facilities), so I am familiar with foam-style plugs, and can wear them for extended periods without discomfort.
The iPod buds (which I have used for 4 years-I was an early adopter of the iPod) were fine, except for long periods of use, but after a long flight my ears would be sore (and I think I had to crank them too high to drown out the sound).
With that said, I’m going to order them and try them out for my next flight, they can always go back…
Thanks again for the information.
hm… I just ordered a pair and now you’re scaring me. they’re not returnable, at least to the vendor I used (a Dj supply place, cheap). but ever since my snoring ex I have worn earplugs to bed every night so I’m pretty used to having things jammed into my ear canals so I can probably deal with em.
the original Apple ‘phones hurt my ears with the foam things which made them a little too snug, and without them they’d just fall out of my head, so they were replaced pretty quickly.