Shure SE420 Grange-over-Sands
Shure's SE420 are noise-isolating earphones, which basically means that they completely fill your ear canal and block out all external sound. To accommodate different ear sizes, you'll find seven different adapters in the box - three squishy foam ones in small, medium and large.
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Shure SE420
It's well recorded that the first thing you should do after buying an iPod and loading it up with tracks is ditch the bundled white whine-fest that is the included earphones and replace them with something more up to the job.
If you take your music seriously, then it's worth splashing out a fair amount on the bit that lets you listen to it - after all, you wouldn't spend £500 on an HD DVD player and hook it up to a 14in telly.
With that in mind, £250 isn't that much to spend on some decent earphones to get the most out of your portable pal.
Shure's SE420 are noise-isolating earphones, which basically means that they completely fill your ear canal and block out all external sound. To accommodate different ear sizes, you'll find seven different adapters in the box - three squishy foam ones in small, medium and large; three soft rubber ones again in small, medium and large; and finally some scary-looking white ones that give the impression they'll drill into your brain.
After you've found the right adapter to get a good fit in your ear, you then need to get the hang of putting the earphones on. If you've used Shure phones before, then it shouldn't pose a problem but if you're new to them, it takes a bit of practice.
You need to wrap the cable over the top of your ear and then down the back of your neck. Once you've got them in position, there's a sleeve that wraps around both the left and right wires that you need to slide up to secure them in place. It sounds overly complicated to explain but once they're fitted correctly you shouldn't have any problems with them accidentally falling out.
Shure has also cleverly split the cable, so you can use the phones with an inline remote control without having lengths of wire to deal with.
Sound quality is incredibly good. Firstly, you don't need to have your iPod blaring at full volume to make out the music as you're isolated from outside noise. In a noisy office it was possible to enjoy music with the volume control set to only a quarter. Even when out and about you'll probably never need to push it past halfway.
Bass reproduction on tracks like Dare by the Gorillaz was amazing from such small devices. Even more laid-back tracks like William Orbit's Barber's Adagio for Strings sounded crisp and well defined. If you want top-quality audio on the move, then you won't fail to be impressed by the abilities of these earphones.
However, getting used to isolator earphones does take some adjustment and they won't suit everyone. If they don't fill your ear canal completely then the audio quality will be drastically reduced. Bear in mind too that you won't be able to hear external sounds very well which means they're not really suitable for cycling as you might not hear traffic coming. You also need to pay extra attention when crossing roads.
That aside, if you can get used to them then you won't be disappointed by their performance. They are expensive but if you appreciate music and want the best quality while you're out and about they are well worth investigating.
Needs 3.5mm headphone jack
If you take your music seriously, then it's worth splashing out a fair amount on the bit that lets you listen to it - after all, you wouldn't spend £500 on an HD DVD player and hook it up to a 14in telly.
With that in mind, £250 isn't that much to spend on some decent earphones to get the most out of your portable pal.
Shure's SE420 are noise-isolating earphones, which basically means that they completely fill your ear canal and block out all external sound. To accommodate different ear sizes, you'll find seven different adapters in the box - three squishy foam ones in small, medium and large; three soft rubber ones again in small, medium and large; and finally some scary-looking white ones that give the impression they'll drill into your brain.
After you've found the right adapter to get a good fit in your ear, you then need to get the hang of putting the earphones on. If you've used Shure phones before, then it shouldn't pose a problem but if you're new to them, it takes a bit of practice.
You need to wrap the cable over the top of your ear and then down the back of your neck. Once you've got them in position, there's a sleeve that wraps around both the left and right wires that you need to slide up to secure them in place. It sounds overly complicated to explain but once they're fitted correctly you shouldn't have any problems with them accidentally falling out.
Shure has also cleverly split the cable, so you can use the phones with an inline remote control without having lengths of wire to deal with.
Sound quality is incredibly good. Firstly, you don't need to have your iPod blaring at full volume to make out the music as you're isolated from outside noise. In a noisy office it was possible to enjoy music with the volume control set to only a quarter. Even when out and about you'll probably never need to push it past halfway.
Bass reproduction on tracks like Dare by the Gorillaz was amazing from such small devices. Even more laid-back tracks like William Orbit's Barber's Adagio for Strings sounded crisp and well defined. If you want top-quality audio on the move, then you won't fail to be impressed by the abilities of these earphones.
However, getting used to isolator earphones does take some adjustment and they won't suit everyone. If they don't fill your ear canal completely then the audio quality will be drastically reduced. Bear in mind too that you won't be able to hear external sounds very well which means they're not really suitable for cycling as you might not hear traffic coming. You also need to pay extra attention when crossing roads.
That aside, if you can get used to them then you won't be disappointed by their performance. They are expensive but if you appreciate music and want the best quality while you're out and about they are well worth investigating.
Author: Will Head
