After winning over musicians from all over the world with their in-ear monitors, the American manufacturer Shure has gained a strong reputation in the mainstream earphone and headphone market since the mid-2000s. The constraints and requirements of the professional audio world allowed the brand to develop extremely efficient designs and technologies that are used today in conventional headphones and earphones. As a result, Shure offers some of the best models of single, dual and triple driver earphones on the market. Now, the American manufacturer has unveiled a new version of their famous range of earphones, with the added feature of including both Bluetooth and wired connections.
Bluetooth or wired connection
To allow both Bluetooth and wired connections, these new Shure earphones come with a 3.5 mm jack cable, in addition to a Bluetooth receiver which ensures wireless music streaming from a smartphone, tablet or computer. It’s easy to switch between the cable and Bluetooth receiver thanks to the earphones’ MMCX connectors. Moreover, these connectors allow the cable to be replaced should it be damaged or start to wear, but also allow the listener to use one of the many accessories or cables offered by the American brand. For example, the earphones may be connected to an Apple device with a Lightning port thanks to the Shure RMCE-LTG cable. The Shure RMCE-USB-C cable, however, is designed to be connected to a smartphone or tablet with a USB-C port. Shure also provides two Bluetooth receivers, the RMCE-BT-1 and the RMCE-BT-2, that make it possible to add Bluetooth connectivity to the SE215, SE315, SE425, SE535 et SE846 wired earphones from the previous range. The battery life varies from 8 hours for the BT-1 to 10 hours for the BT-2.
The new Shure earphones
The new models designed by Shure are a continuation of the American brand’s legendary in-ear headphones. They include the same time-tested acoustic solutions, the same passive isolation and the same appellations, with the Shure SE112 and Shure SE215 earphones kicking off the range. The former is the only Bluetooth-only model in the range. The latter uses the neckband-style RMCE-BT-1 Bluetooth receiver, and comes with an MMCX connector to swap the receiver with a wire. The major advantage of both of these models is their price: less than 90€ for the SE112 and less than 120€ for the Shure SE215.
The Shure SE425 earphones are the result of extensive research and are thus an excellent step-up. Unlike the previous models, they use two drivers rather than one to ensure precise musical restitution. One driver is reserved for the lows and mids, the other for the highs. This way, the entire frequency range is more precisely restituted. Just like all of the models in the range, the foam tips provide effective passive isolation, reducing external sound to a minimum of 37 dB. Convenient for public transport or noisy streets.
For an even more precise sound restitution with more prominent lows, the Shure SE535 in-ear headphones are fitted with three high-definition drivers. The first two drivers are assigned to the restitution of the lows and mids, whereas the third delivers the highs. As is the case for speakers, this configuration ensures more finesse and a more exact restitution of the different frequencies. In fact, using several drivers rather than one coaxial driver allows each frequency to be more precisely filtered and therefore provides separate restitution for the lows, the mids and the highs. The entire frequency range is accurately restituted, especially the lows, which is where most other earphones tend to fall short.
As the flagship of the range of Bluetooth and wired earphones, the Shure SE846 earphones are the embodiment of high end sound quality and innovation in 3-way earphone design. They ensure separate filtering and restitution for the lows, high-lows, mids and highs. The entire frequency range is therefore perfectly restituted. The Shure SE846 in-ear headphones also feature a revolutionary acoustic filter capable of emulating a genuine subwoofer for totally unparalleled performance.
Elegant and high-performance, the “new” Shure earphones are a perfect solution for any music lover or audiophile looking for versatile portable earphones for wired or Bluetooth listening.
