Good mids and highs, but weak bass

I bought a pair of Shure E4c's in 2005 for use mainly with my i-Pod. I was taking a trip to Japan that fall, and I wanted to have a quality pair of earphones for the long flight over and back. I already owned a pair of Shure E3c's, which I felt performed decently. But, I was disappointed when I found that the E4c's, which were a good deal more money, were not really any better: so far as I could discern, they delivered the same in terms of quality and sound.

The Shure E4c's (as well as all of Shure's lineup today) are "in the ear canal fit." That is, they achieve external noise reduction by blocking the ear canal with one of several available tips. Shure includes with their earphones in various sizes silicone and soft tips, as well as foam and even flange tips. (See the Shure website http://www.shure.com) Just about anyone will find one of these styles comfortable. I like the soft tips in medium size. The size you might use, of course, depends upon the size of your ear canal.

The E4c's are also single driver earphones. If you think of it in terms of a standard set of stereo speakers, a single driver earphone is comparable to a single speaker in the speaker cabinet. That speaker must reproduce all frequencies from high to low. A stereo speaker cabinet with a high frequency tweeter and a mid to low frequency woofer generally gives better sound. Single driver earphones, generally speaking, do not reproduce the full range of sound, high's to low's, as well as the newer dual driver earphones do.

From the beginning, I noticed that the E4c's had an interesting frequency response range. The highs and mids were very good; but the bass was weak. This makes them well suited to light classical music, of which I am a fan; but jazz, rock and roll, and country -- these genres tended to sound tinny. Of course, if I am plugged into my IMac or MacBook Pro, I could adjust the iTunes equalizer to give me a more pleasing sound for music that demands better bass response. But, my iPod's equalizer is not as capable in compensating for the under-powered bass response of the earphones. To be fair, the E3c's are no better in terms of bass. So, why did I buy the E4c's.... well, I guess because I thought they would give me better bass. However, they have not.

Over the last three years, I have used these E4c's infrequently -- usually with my iPod while traveling or on vacation. I have a private office where I can play music through a small stereo system; and at home I run iTunes via my MacBook Pro through a Bose Companion system.

What has led me to write this review now three years later, however, is that with all the relative non-use and gentle use I have given these Shure E4c's, I expected to be able to use them more often without a hitch. You see, my elderly father-in-law has moved in with us, and I can no longer play music through my Bose system at will. I need to use earphones most of the time. But, guess what, I discovered that the wire going to the left earphone has separated internally, causing the left channel to cut in and out. I could not believe that the set had broken so soon with so little use; and, as one might expect, we are well beyond the two year replacement warranty.

To their credit, Shure does stand behind even their out of warranty products. Their policy on repairing earphones that are out of warranty is to replace them for a modest fee. Shure will send me a new pair of SLC4's, which are basically equivalent to the E4c's, at a total cost of $109. Although I find this quite generous, I have decided not to take it for several reasons. First, I don't think that I should have had this problem with these earphones, given the relatively little I have used them. Most of the time, they have remained safely wound in the hard case that they came in. Secondly, I suspect that the SLC4's will probably give me no better bass response than the E4c's did (or the E3c's for that matter). So, why spend a hundred dollar bill on something that I really don't want?

Instead, I have shopped around, read the reviews, and have decided to buy a pair of Westone UM2's. These are dual driver earphones made in the USA by a hearing products company (http://www.westone.com). The UM2's are highly rated in terms of broad frequency response, and nearly everyone agrees that the UM2's produce solid bass. I have purchased them from EarphoneSolutions.com (http://www.earphonesolutions.com/), which appears to be a reputable company. Their price is as low as any I have found anywhere else.

One thing I like about EarphoneSolutions is that, because they handle all the major and better rated brands, they really explain the workings of these miniature electronic devices, and they are willing to give you candid opinions on the earphones they like in order of preference. Basically, it's the same old story: you generally get what you pay for.

Shure makes great products overall. The E4c's were okay; but they weren't great. They weren't worth what I paid for them, and they certainly were not worth the higher cost over the E3c's. EarphoneSolutions rates the Shure SE530-PTH Earphones (triple drivers) as the current best; but I am not ready to shell out $499 for them. My wife would kill me. So, I am going second best -- Westone UM2's.

The Shure E4c's were good for light classical music. I suspect they SLC4's are as well. But, if you want good bass response, I would go with a dual driver set of earphones. Or, at least, look at a different brand than Shure for a single driver set.