Digital Trends

Shure E3C Earphones

March 6th, 2004 | by Brandon King

Performance

Audio quality was very good with the E3c, but very different from the E2c. In fact, we would go so far as to say that the audio signature is completely different. While the E2c had deep murmuring bass that muffled some high pitched frequencies, the E3c is nearly the opposite. The high pitches are very detailed, but the bass is very weak, especially without a perfect seal. The responsiveness is excellent, proving that the “High Energy Microspeaker” present in the E3c lives up to its name.  However, the bass is lacking regardless of what sleeves are used, especially lower frequencies. The E3cs were easily driven with any portable player we threw at it.

We used the same music used for the E2c review to test the E3c: Bjork's “Vespertine” (DVD-Audio and MP3), Mahler Symphony 10 (Berliner Philharmoniker — conducted by Sir Simon Rattle — DVD-Audio), The Cure's “Disintegration” (CD + MP3), Gary Numan's “Exile” (CD and MP3), and Delerium's “Karma” (CD and MP3). Our test players were a SoundBlaster Audigy 2 Platinum (for DVD-Audio, CD, and MP3), iRiver SlimX 350 (CD and MP3), and Rio PSA|Play 120 (MP3). All MP3s encoded with VBR 160kbps-320kbps/44kHz.

The high energy sound worked well with Bjork's fluctuation in voice, but the bass was unable to descend to levels needed for songs like “Hidden Place.” Again, Mahler sounded excellent. The balance across the spectrum shone through nicely, and we were able to easily place the various symphony components. The Cure sounded slightly distant, but very similar to concert quality of instrument balance. Both Gary Numan and Delerium lost their airy quality, and while the vocals came through very crisp and clear, the atmosphere was largely removed.

For gaming we used only Unreal Tournament 2003. Sound localization was excellent, far better than most of the headphones we have used, but the bass was merely okay. What should have been booming explosions left us wanting more, but was made up for with the detailed sound of alien innards squishing against the walls. As with the E2c, reproduction of sounds coming from behind was very clear.

The Shure E3c Canalphones pack a lot of punch in a small package.

Conclusion

Before you consider buying the E3c, decide what you want to use them for, and what type of music you will be listening to.

If the answer is more bass driven music like drum and bass or trance, you may want to pass on the E3c. If you plan to listen to vocal, rock, or pop, the E3c is an excellent choice. The sound is lively and clear on the upper end and midrange, and slightly lacking in the low range.