Customer Reviews

Shure E3g Gaming Edition Sound Isolating Earphones for Portable Gaming Devices

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I own the Sony EX-71 earbuds and thought they were great compared to any other earbuds in the $40 range. In comparison, the E3g definitely has much greater clarity on the mids and highs. As low of a volume as I had using the EX-71, I could still turn the volume lower when using the E3g. Unfortunately, I found the bass to be richer using the EX-71. You can feel more of a bass reverb with the EX-71 versus the E3g. The E3g bass sounds tight and a flat. I don't like the foam pads that everybody uses. The middle-sized gray buds work great for me and look better. They are a tighter fit (literally pops out) than the middle-sized ones from the EX-71. I also picked the E3g over the E2g because I don't have to loop the cord around my ear.

As far as noise isolation, the E3g blocks out just a little more noise than the Sony EX-71 because of the slightly larger buds. Once you turn on the music (because of the mids and highs) it is much more effective at blocking out noise since your ears focus on the music. If you have $180 to burn, the E3g are the ones to buy but otherwise the Sony EX-71 is still a great buy. I still use both - E3g on the plane and EX-71 for workout (since I'm not sweating on my $180 headphones!!).

After a couple of years of heavy heavy use (I travel quite a bit through boats, planes, trains, and automobiles), my old trusty E2Cs conked out. They had been a fantastic set of headphones but I think I got the right headset cord snagged one too many times on passing objects. I went ahead and upgraded to the E3Gs (I did contemplate the E4Gs but couldn't justify to myself the extra $$$ yet).

These were purely a replacement to the E2Cs but I did like the design of the E3s and E4s better (I looked a bit like an alien with the pointy E2s and I did wonder whether they'd be any sound difference. I didn't expect to hear any sound difference from the E2Cs to the E3Gs but I did. They just sounded richer, a bit louder, and fuller. The soft plugs that come with them were noticably more comfortable on me. I always used the silicone sleeves but now I'm using the little gray ones that it comes with.

Overall, fantastic experience with these. I do mostly airplane travel and these really do isolate me from the noise and the gray foams aren't as sensitive at transmitting noise from rustling of the cord like in some of the older models. I own two Bose headsets too (the older and newer model). I like them but I always have limited space when I travel and overall, I think I get more isolation from the in-ear design of the Shures but there are advantages to the Boses (I prefer them for intercontinental travel as they're more comfortable over the very long distances). They're very different headsets just FYI. I hesitated to compare at all but they are headsets.

I know these little in-ears are either a love em or hate them affair. Sorry can't predict your particular experience and hope I don't steer anyone in the wrong direction. They worked for me and I did notice the difference in the upgrade from E2C to E3Gs. I wonder if there's a noticable difference with the E4Gs? Maybe when these snag on something one too many times, hopefully a few years from now.

I like the Shure E3G. I don't think of them as the ultimate in-ear-monitor experience, but they've given me much more than a lot of headphones I've listened to and with a recent bought of aggressive pricing-cutting on their current stock, Shure is working hard to change the E3G from a PSP-owner's status symbol to something like a bargain for portable audio lovers.

The sound that a user is going to out of a pair of in-ear-monitors, (Shure's E series, or Etymotic's ER6i/Er4, Westone monitors, etc.) depends on a number of factors which rapidly make any accurate assessment of their performance problematic. All in-ear-monitors work by putting the sound source into just the right place in the auditory canal for all the frequencies in the music or other listening you do and then sealing out external sounds so you can get accurate sound at a volume that is less likely to destroy your hearing and any use of in-ear-monitors involves an arrangement of factors which some may find not for the faint-hearted.

The E3G is no exception. They have to be placed *just right* in the ear canal, your sound source has to have just the right of base level for the music you're listening to through them or your music will become flat or take on strange emphasis.

Once you get it right though, the Shure E3s can be a revelation. I use my headphones for foreign language study programs and for music and the accuracy of the Shure E3G is very good for both jobs and at its best, it is a revelation.

Two examples (using a sony MZ-NH600D Mini-Disc Walkman with levels adjusted for the sound source and using the yellow foam eartips):

1. Topic Entertainment's "Total Immersion Japanese" demonstrated not only enough clarity for me to hear every nuance of what the speaker had to say but for me to hear artifacts in the material introduced by the recording process--a tiny halo of white noise before and after each phrase--and even flaws in the isolation of the recording studio itself in the sound of passing cars.

2. Peter Gabriel's, "Passion: Music for the Movie, the Last Temptation of Christ, tracks 1 and 2, 'the feeling begins," and "Gethsamene" displayed some very good nuances including the breathiness of the wooden flutes and a very sexy separation from the overlapping percussion.

All in all, however, the best thing about the E3G's is not their base-response but their basic, meat-and-potatoes accuracy. They allow someone like me with poor hearing not only to hear the music but to hear the subtleties that went into the studio work behind the music.

Physically speaking, they are far, far more robust than the Etymotic Er6/Er6i and they are much better thought out in terms human factors engineering like getting them into and out of your ears without damaging them. The units come with a pocket-sized, semi-rigid, woven nylon case with a cord-spool inside (the best such item included with *any* monitors on the market) to protect your investment as well as a number of ear-tips designed to offer a compromise between comfort and isolation. Of the last, the yellow, crush-and-expand foam units offer by far the best isolation and base response (and thus, the best sound) but at the cost of their fragility and the need to change them often.

I give the E3G four stars that would be definitely be a five if Shure had given the units just a smidgen more base response and made replacement foam eartips slightly less expensive (approximately $20 for 10 pairs), they would be a lot closer to perfect then. As things stand, with their current pricing, I have no regrets about having voted for them with my money.

I am giving this 2 stars because I paid $97.99 on Nov 13th, 2007. And now on Nov 28th, 2007 (as I come back to review this after a few weeks with the product), the price is now $159.00. DO NOT BUY these for that price. You can get these cheaper elsewhere, plus there are better options at this price point. (Namely, Shure's new line of earbuds. These earbuds are the old model, which is why you can find them cheap.)

Other than the price, these are 4 stars. I have a Sony MDR-V6 over the ear cans that I use at work, and a Sennheiser HD-580 cans + headphone amp that I use at home.

The positives:
I was looking for a few things when I bought this: I want to use these at work and not have *anyone* hear what I am listening to at loud volumes. The Sony's I have do a good job of blocking out sound, and they are reasonable at keeping sound in, but at loud volumes you can hear what is being played while not wearing the cans. With these earbuds you can run at max volume and no one will know what you are playing. So I am happy with these for work use.

Also the sound is great on these as others have stated (more on this in the negatives section). These are not as good as the Senn's + headphone amp, but as a naked out of the box listening experience these are superb.

The noise isolation is outstanding as others have said. These are great for zoning out in an office in order to get alot of work done with no distractions. If your phone is low, you probably won't even hear it ring.

The cord length on these are fine even though it is shorter than the E3cs. Frankly, I would probably think the E3c cord length is too long if this is the shortened version. Also, this is the *same exact* headphone as the (more expensive) E3cs in everything other than cord length. I would definitely buy these over that if you can save even $10, unless you really think you want a long cord. As a 5'10" guy, the cord is more than adequate for putting my ipod in my hip pocket.

The negatives:
These do take a while to get used to inserting properly. This is a big negative that really distracted from my immediate enjoyment of these. For the first week I was constantly paranoid that I didn't have them in correctly. This also leads to the next point:

Even when you learn how to insert these properly, it still takes time to insert properly. These are not good for when you have to constantly pause the music to answer a phone or have a conversation. You can't simply just take them out of your ear and place them quickly back on.

Although I haven't tried, I doubt these would be good for running. They might be fine for a stationary bike.

Summary:
I heartily recommend these buds if you want maximum sound quality while also having great sound isolation (both for you and for surrounding people). For pure sound quality without isolation concerns, there are probably better options in this price range (I would recommend Sennheiser full cans + a head phone amp).

These headphones turned out to be above average/semi-awesome. At first it came with a lot of different types and sizes of buds. None fit my ear properly to get the seal required to get the great SHURE quality sound. the back of the earpiece also didn't wedge in my ear as snug as my previous E2Cs. They are an older model but i figured for the price it was worth giving a shot... i was starting to get peeved that i wasn't getting the sound i wanted, and technically they were meant for portable video games (PSP specifically as it states on the box) so i thought that was why the sound quality wasnt as great as i expected as i predominantly use this for my ipod for tunes.

So i finally decided i would just bite the bullet and replace them stopping in one of the "in motion" stores at the airport (best place to test out pricey headphones and reps are very knowledgable). i was tempted to go with the less-expensive 80 dollar Klipsch Si4 as they seemed to stay in my ear better and had a different depth in sound. then i started trying out the Shures (loved the SE315s!)and i decided i would use the black memory foam testers they give you on my E3g's. WOW!!! what a world of difference!!! Glad i did as i felt like i had brand new head phones.

The fit became almost perfect and the sound quality is way better than my old e2cs, and also i realized that, in the $80-200 price range, Shure earbuds are far superior than Klipsch. I still have a gripe on how expensive a pack of these memory foam buds are(i still only have the tester ones that i asked to have since they were just going to toss em out) but great buds.

i am worried about the durabilty of the wire where it bends since they are over-the-ear head phones but im assumming i can get at least 2.5-3 years out of them based on my usage.

In conclusion, great sound with the right memory foam buds. takes time getting used to the shure signature wrap around the ear fit. Bass and Mid levels are the best in the industry. my next will be SE315s where the wire can disconnect from the buds in case it strips- also the fit is amazing on these, just hard to justify the added $100 for now.

Shure's earphones are my favorite, and I tend to favor the "3" line (scl, ec and se all seem similar in sound), and the latest I bought were thes ec3s. I say latest, because I've broken 2 sets before. However, I think these are sturdy, and the breaking has been entirely my fault - the casing cant withstand being run over them with an office chair, but then again, I dont expect any sensitive sound equipment to survive that kind of abuse.

I've read reviews of other top notch earphones, and when I've tried them out, return the the Shures. Their sound is clear, detailed, and round - very easy on the ears, which is really invaluable if you listen for extended periods of time. And the black foam tips are the best out there for preventing outside noise - better than sound cancelling headphones, better than any other sound isolating earphones. Which brings me to my complaint about the gaming edition ec3s. They didnt come with that particular foam tip. They included several sizes of silicone, flanged, the yellow scratchy foam, but not the comfortable and supremely sound isolating black foam tips.

Aside from that complaint, I highly recommend these...

I bought these bad boys in the summer of 2004 and they're still going strong. I use them every single day for working out and around the house as well as at the office. They have clear sound with great separation. Most people think they're not bass-heavy enough, but I think they're giving a nice, tight, flat bass that is really what studio monitors are all about. They don't boom or reverberate, but that's really not what they're supposed to do. If you want great, clear sound that will outlast you, get these buds.

Son increiblemente buenos. Suenan muy pero muy bien y son robustos (los uso bastante desde hace 6 meses y estan como nuevos). El cable es un poco grueso pero lo acepto porque no conozco cables mas finos y blandos que no se corten con el tiempo.

I upgraded from Shure e2's to these and I'm very, very pleased with the sound and comfort differences. The sound-isolation is decent with the black and clear flex sleeves, and the sound quality is fine. But with the yellow foam sleeves, the sound quality is even clearer because of much better sound-isolation. Also, the earphones are much more comfortable with the foams. The only problem with using these specific sleeves is that they need to be changed out unlike the gray and clear sleeves.

These are great earphones if you have the money to spend.

I researched these (and many others) thoroughly before choosing the E3g's. Compared to other earphones at this price point the E3g's are well-made and perform extremely well. Bass is (to my ear) just about perfect. Obviously these are quite efficient as well. It was necessary for me to reduce the volume significantly so be careful when you first use them. Clarity is excellent and compares very favorably to my studio headphones. A common complaint concerns fit but I have not experienced that issue. Shure provides quite a variety of foam covers and it seems likely most people should be able to find a good fit. For the price i paid (under $100) I can't imagine you could do better as long as fit is not an issue.