Shure Se210 Sound Isolating Earphones Review - Sweet Silence

I have these earphones almost six months now, so I'm in a good position to do a review.

Now, when I first set out to buy my first high end set of buds I got a bit of a shock. Everything over forty euro seemed to be in-ear and while those usually sound fine I usually find my ears get sore after a long enough period of use which kind of prevents me from enjoying the music.

But I settled on these in the end. It was a cool ninety euro for these bad boys so I had my fingers crossed that they would be worth it.

The Agony of Choice: The first thing you'll notice opening the box is the selection of different ear inserts. Instead of the different sizes of the same shape that you get with cheaper buds here you actually get a selection of different type. The default inserts are foam, like ear-plugs. I didn't like them too much and they didn't feel comfortable in my ear, so I decided to experiment. Eventually I settled on the type called "triple flange" which felt comfortable in my ear without having to be pressed in too far.

Sound Isolation: The inserts are seriously good at cancelling noise, in my old job there would be frequent shouting matches and while I might take the buds out if I felt like enjoying the drama I always had the option of completely ignoring them. Nothing interrupts your music, so at the very least the sound isolating part of the name is very true. This also means you don't need to turn your music up too high to drown out ambient sound so can be good news for your ears and you don't need to worry about bothering the guy sitting beside you with whatever crap you are listening to.

Quality, isn't that all that counts: These are the cheapest pair you'll get in the Shure range but they are also by far the nicest sounding buds I have ever owned. Classical music is rendered clearly and vibrantly so I can't really fault the treble. While I can't say it has blown my earlier set out of the water I have a feeling that these guys are limited more by the quality of my mp3s than anything else.

The bass is okay. I would say that it might be the one area I found disappointing because it does lack some power for example Rob Dougan tracks or similar Techno music. It doesn't ruin the songs but it is outshone by even the most basic of speakers here.

So, should I buy them? If you're looking for a pair of buds that will block out all sounds (I use mine as earbuds when sleeping sometimes, they really work) and sound great I can recommend these.

If you are looking for pure sound enjoyment I do feel there must be better out there for maybe fifty euro more. This is a nice purchase that I in no way regret but I will probably buy slightly higher end for my next purchase.