Shure SE110 or Klipsch custom 2

[admin_exported]

Hi all, my igrados which I absolutely love, have given up the ghost. The cable within the flexible section at the top of the jack has broken.

Although I love the detail, spaciousness and bass that these phones put out I am very conscioius that other people on the tube can hear what I'm listening to. Consequently I always turn the music right down which I guess defeats the object of having music on the move and my enjoyment.

I am therefore considering some in ear phones - budget of around £70.00 and for this I am considering the Shure SE110 or Klipcsh custom 2.

Anybody have any suggestions/comments on these phones or other recommendations.

Thanks people.

Tony

 

[Anonymous]

I've had the Shure SE110 and although they sounded pretty good I hated the size of them, wherever I walked/ran it felt like I had a boulder in my ear. I now own the Klipsch Image X10 and can't rate them enough, they're brilliant. I don't think people around me can hear them, noise isolation is excellent and the detail & spaciousness is great too. I recommend saving up for these. I know now they are over double the price (shame this didn't come up over Christmas when they were £129.00) but if you don't mind stretching to £179.99 they are definitely worth it, comfortable too.

 

[Anonymous]

£129.00!!!

Oh, well I'd better get saving then.

Thaks for the reply.

Tony

 

[Anonymous]

I'm sure there are many more good 'phones out there but just giving you my personal thoughts, for all I know the Custom 2's may well be as good? I bought mine on the strength of the WHF review, Clare's advice and the special offer that was apparent at time of purchase! I would again sing the praises of the Image's . Happy choosing!

 

[Anonymous]

The exact same thing happened to my iGrados. I loved the sound from them too; wonderful detail, spaciousness and musicality but I also had the same concerns over sound leakage. Rather than turn them down though, I'd just feel self conscious that everyone was thinking what a *** I was for having my music so loud. But that was the only way to drown everyone else out...

Back to the question in hand; I replaced the iGrados with the SE110s based on the strength of the reviews from this very publication. The first thing that struck me was the noise isolation afforded by the very snug (but comfortable) foam buds which effectively blocked out just about all noise from even the loudest tube journey. Where I had the volume at full blast all the time with the iGrados just to block out external noise, you simply don't need the have the volume up more than about 75% and you'll still hear nothing from outside.

As for the sound quality itself - I would say that they don't sound as good as the iGrados, but I think that is mainly due to the fact that they are a closed back design and so don't sound as open. At first listen they can sound a bit lifeless but stick with them and you soon appreciate that they're delivering your music with a subtle competence, the merits of which only grow with extended listening.

I've not heard the Klipsch models so cannot comment on them but I can defineitely say that for commuting purposes, or indeed any situation where you're likely to encounter external interference the SE110s are a massive improvement over the iGrados. And I didn't pay £70 for them either. I got them brand new on eBay for £30 plus £3 p&p.

Please let us know what you go for in the end and how rate your purchase.

Mark

 

[basshound]

I have the se110`s too and am very pleased with the sound quality and isolation they provide.I`ve not heard the Klipsch so can`t comment on them.The SE110`s can be had from amazon for around £45

 

[Anonymous]

Hi guys, thank you all for your comments - especially Castroman - thats exactily how I feel on the tube!

I have ordered a pair of SE110's and also a pair of igrados which I found amazon for £30.00.

I'll give the Shures a good road test and let you know whether I decide to sacrifice sound quality in favour of being generally thought of as a '***' on the tube.

Tony

 

[Anonymous]

Arftnoon,

Well chaps, I have given a full road/tube test and here is my opinion for what its worth:

I first left both sets on play over the weekend to burn them in and first tested the iGrados - ah yes you always remember your first time!! The sound is all that it always was, spacious, punchy, detailed and various other superlatives.

Then i tried the Shure's - it took a while to find the buds that gave me the most comfortable fit - but was not entirely comfortable - I thought i'd give them a go for a few days and see whether it was just that I wasnt used to in-ear buds. I tried them for four days straight and although at first i wasnt that struck by the performance I have to admit that they grew on me. It was certainly nice to travel on the tube not feeling conscious that everyone may be thinking 'what at that ***'. So that was it - I was sold.

Until...

I went back to the grados to compare and there it was - that lovely sound... ******!

I apologise in advance to all you tube travellers out there but if you see a guy on the central line with his igrados, avoiding the stares of other passengers, then thats me. I did try, but I just could not sacrifice the superior sound - so i'll turn the down the sound a bit and hope I dont look too much of a ***!

Cheers all

T

 

[Anonymous]

It's hard to argue with that.

 

[manicm]

Tony, I didn't want to mention this but now that you've gone back to your Grados I wanted to recommend the Sennheiser CX300s to the Shures.

There have been many comments about this, and I also was not impressed with the SE110s (some like 'em, some don't), I went back to my Senns.

 

[matts]

I've got the SE110 and the Custom1's so i can't comment on the custom 2's. The 110's grew on me over time, it wasn't an instant love. The iGrado's are brilliant, only superseded by the new c-jays IMHO. not so much in pin pint detail, but the c-jays are far fuller and warmer. It's hard to criticize the iGrado's though!