Those with shure e3cs

[rayx2]

how do they sound with the d2?

oh and can you wear them like traditional earphones instead of looping them behind your ears?

[Judge]

I have Shure E4, which sound great with the D2, but I can answer your second question: yes, you can wear them straight down out of your ears. There will be some microphonics if you do that though. No microphonics if you loop them over your ears. I loop the over my ears and have the cable in front of me, not in the back of my neck. After a week of using them you won't even notice it, they are much more comfortable than normal earbuds, there is no pull on the IEMs because they are looped over the ears.

[rayx2]

I have Shure E4, which sound great with the D2, but I can answer your second question: yes, you can wear them straight down out of your ears. There will be some microphonics if you do that though. No microphonics if you loop them over your ears. I loop the over my ears and have the cable in front of me, not in the back of my neck. After a week of using them you won't even notice it, they are much more comfortable than normal earbuds, there is no pull on the IEMs because they are looped over the ears.

so i CAN wear them straight down.. i am really tempted to buying a e3c

[digivate]

I've got Shure Ec3's and they're easily the best headphones I've had. However, if I was you I'd wear them in the over-the-ear way for which they were designed. As the other poster already said, it removes cable microphonics and in absolutely no time at all you get so used to them that it's as if you not even wearing anything.

I also bought some of the black foam earbuds that have just become available. They can be quite pricey (but well worth it) and I picked some up on eBay for a third of the retail price. They are incredibly comfortable and don't get dirty as much as the yellow foam buds that are supplied with the headphones.

Go ahead and buy them ... I'd be shocked if you didn't think they were a good investment.

[tabv]

how do they sound with the d2?

oh and can you wear them like traditional earphones instead of looping them behind your ears?

I have the Shure E500's and I wear them behind the ear...when I first got them I was wondering how I would like that thinking I wouldn't...now I wear all my IEM's behind the ear including my V-Moda Vibes, Creative EP-630's upside down and every IEM i own...I find I get a deeper fit that way also...

[4ki]

^agreed, and they're a lot more discreet in this way. However comfort is based on tips that you use; stick to shure black foamies and you're usually set.

The E3c's have a gently frequency hump around the 200-1000hz range that you'll find lovingly warmer with the somewhat colder-sounding D2. Also owning E4cs, I'll say that mid to high range Shure phones are a good match unless you're a killer bass-head.

tabv, I'm surprised that you still use EP630s after something as amazing as the E500; I personally couldn't stand them even after my YUIN PK3 earbuds, because the sibilance is so darn sharp.

[JULE5]

I'm also a "behind the ear convert"!

I deliberated over buying my Shures, either e2c or e3c at the time, as i wasn't sure over whether i'd like over the ear. I must say it is great and i wouldn't wear any others through choice now.

I ended up waiting and getting the SE210, as it clearly stated that you can wear them either way around, but now i only use them up and over anyway.

I can vouch for the black foamies too. The Shures come with a bag of different tips, but the foamies are what I stuck with for that nice comfortable isolation. The triple flanges were a good sound, but not as easy to fit and remove quickly, which for me is an issue as I listen at my desk. (will take the ebay tip for my replacements, ta).


EDIT: I also found that the triple flanges were excellent for cleaning out the wax from your ears! It just gathered by the gallon behind the flanges. Please tell me its not just me....!
Jules

[mrsmr2]

Nice image on the wax[blink]

I probably found the clearest sound with the flanges but they didn't isolate as well as the black tips and were much less comfortable.

My vote is for the black tips.

[4ki]

Foam also reduces microphonic noise a little since they're not "solid-state" material that generate and conduct sound as readily.

We seem to have quite a few E4 series users here o_o while the sibilance can use some work, the phones work superbly well with Cowon players...

[goatherder]

I use the E3cs as 'beaters'. Commutes with podcasts etc. My regular 'proper-use' IEM's are the Ultimate Ears UE-10 and less frequently the Shure SE530PTH.

If you're used to a regular headphone the sound will be peaky in the midrange, low in the bass and highs... and as a result seem rather nasal and tinny. There's nothing 'warm' about it. This type of sound though is pretty typical of most single-driver, balanced-armature IEM's and it's just something you should get used to if you want a pair of affordable, highly-isolating phones. Fortunately the E3c's respond slightly better to EQ than Etymotics of the same class, so you'll find that it is possible to get them to sound a little more 'normal' than they would otherwise sound. The D2 obviously gives you good control in that respect.

Soundwise I can't say I'm a huge fan which is why these days I use them mainly for listening to podcasts. But I'd also have to say what I said above, which is that they're basically no better and no worse in terms of sound than many single-driver IEM's from other makers.

The 'either way' wearability of the E3c is also why I use them as commute beaters. I can jam them in with the cable either up or down and they stay in and feel right, while the SE530's for example can't be worn in the 'down' way and you've got to futz with cables over your ears once you take off the phones.

As befits my use of them, the E3c's are among the most durable IEM's I've ever owned. Both of the E3c's that have died on me did so through my own fault (water ingress) and they've proved pretty resistant to physical damage, be it of the cable or of the body.

Haven't tried the latest SE-model single-driver Shures, but I'd say they're still a decent buy in general. Just bear in mind they may not sound 'right' to start with.