My take between the SE215 and SE425 and which I think is a better headphone for your dollar. At the time of this posting, a new set of 215's MSRP: $119.99 and the 425's MSRP: $299.00.
Right... so I found this review only after I bought the Se425. Have been using the SE215 for years. Having tested the SE425 for months, strongly disagree that SE425 is only marginally better than SE215. It is way superior in every way except for the bass. FYI i do have not tested SE535 so i do not know what difference it is to SE535. But as a user of SE215 for years, I'm happy with my purchase and do not regret it. To those that say SE215 = Se425, maybe it doesn't suit their taste. (maybe).
I hear a big difference. I bought the 215s and sang into a condenser and it sounded lo-fi to me. Did not inspired me much. Then I bought the 425s and I found it much more inspiring. I wonder if the splitter you used may have degraded the comparison. Thanks for sharing your thoughts. All the best
Thank God a real review!! Back in the day I used 550pth push to hear and they were surreal .. I never heard such sounds coming from my iPod (again back in day).. don't want to admit it but I use wired beats (not a wireless fan I have enough crap to worry about charging and imo wireless looses some sound) ...the beats are flat ..no bueno.. all I know is what I've experienced and the 500 series will draw sounds from whatever phone you are using that you can NOT hear with cheaper versions..anyway great review bc I'm in the so called market again for real sounding in ear headphones
Thanks for your honest opinion I was using Mee M6 Pro great set of IEM but was lacking some bass even with all the different tips I play Bass. Just order a pair of Shure se215 labor sale for $75. Everyone told me these sound great and have great bass without breaking the bank. Heard a lot of good reviews about the se425 too but told me their not worth the money.
How would you compare the 215s to the M6 Pros? I own the M6 Pros and was looking into buying the 215s next, but I've heard a couple people say that they sound about the same.
I used a pair of SE215 for a couple of days as a test in mind, but finally ended up purchasing SE425. SE215 was a neat and excellently performing in-ear headphone set for the approx. price of $100-150 as a whole, so they are definitely worth the money, too. SE425 costs around 250-350 dollars. I think they are absolutely worth it and I can recommend those! I still have them in break-in period, but in my opinion they are just getting better the more listening hours I put through them. The soundstage is whole lot wider and definitely more accurate than in SE215s. Different instruments sound just amazing; I think the midrange and crisp and punctual highs and percussions are probably one of the best I have heard in any headphones under $500. The bass is scarce, but accurate and very deep. It appears ONLY when there really is some bass on the track - so the bass is very typical, accurate and neat considering the old-school puritanical hi-end sound. The SE425s are unforgiving ie. if the track is badly produced and mixed, it will sound poor, too. On the other hand, most of your hi-res quality FLAC songs will apparently reveal something pretty unique when listened through SE425s. Shure in-ear products seem to be nicely finished: the cable is quite stiff & sturdy and there comes a little 'purse' for the headphones and different earbuds for the optimal fit and performance. I hope that the cable, connectors and the 3,5mm plug insulate will last. Usually they broke around 2-3 years of use like many of those in-ears I have used during the years (Skullcandy, Sony, Westone etc.). My output device was mainly Sony NWZ-A40. EQ and other stuff disabled, latest firmware updated. Here are some test tracks I used: Belá Fleck and the Flecktones - Flight of the Cosmic Hippo Dash Berlin - Till the Sky Falls Down Diablo II Original Soundtrack Eevil Stöö - Tyyppaa viel Infected Mushroom - Dancing with Kadafi Jón Leifs - Saga Symphony JVG - Fäijönii Kari Bremnes - Norwegian Mood Kemopetrol - Saw It on TV Lacuna Coil - My Spirit Lauri Järvilehto - Twilight Cinema Laurie Anderson - Tightrope Lenni-Kalle Taipale - Invisibly Beauty of My Flower Linkin Park - In the End Moby - Why Does My Heary Feel So Bad? Rammstein - Pussy Sanni - Jos mä oon oikee Starcraft II Wings of Liberty Original Soundtrack Vesala - Tequila Wolfenstein The New Order Soundtrack - New Order Main Menu Theme Yello - To the Sea
I am looking to buy something for two purposes - listen to music on the go/public transport and when I am working in the office and second is when I sometimes play my electronic drum kit. Do you think the 215s will suffice? Asking you since you specifically mentioned that the sound in much better in the 425s . Your help is appreciated.
Imo the cable is quite bad, the original cable broke where this metal thing above the ear is. I bought replacement and now my 3rd pair of replacement cable broke. Soundwise good though, thinking of buying the 535 but idk if they arent a bit too much xD
wow, you really opened the pandora box here, good casual review, i think what most people here don't understand is that the target market for de 215 - 425, are prosumers , and in my opinion this market would be entirely satisfied with the 215 because of the cost/quality balance , this is just my opinion and doesn't make any other opinion here any less true. i own the 215, 425, 535 and the 846 , i believe the real jump is from the 215 to the 535 or to the 846, again this is a really expensive jump that in most cases wouldn't be worth the money.
My man. Your gut instinct about the splitter is perfectly spot on. You’re a pro audio guy no? I’ll save my breath there but the difference in these two is the jump that matters. I could see you making these points for the 535. But saying there’s no jump here is the same as saying there’s no jump to the 846 from the 425. I appreciate the review as it gives people more to react to. Thank you for your work
Great video my friend!! I work with Guitar Center.... and I have met Shure reps multiple times. They always bring in ears for us to test and try. As a drummer, I personally use headphones to get the sound I want and need. However, keep in mind... the middle number of the model represents the driver. If the middle number is 1, then you have one driver. If your model has a 2 or 3.... then you have two or three drivers. Please keep in mind that the apple ear buds carry as much frequency bands as these share in ears. That is worthy of taking note of. If you are looking to buy in ears.... either buy single driver phones.... or 5 driver phones.... all of the in betweens are a joke. As a musician.... you will not tell or care for the difference in between. If you aren't happy with your 215's..... don't buy the in between models.... go straight for the custom in ear molded 5 driver in ears. Again, the middle number of the model represents the number of drivers. EX: 215. Single driver. etc... Go to an audiologist.... get custom molds done... open your mouth when putting your in ears in.... and always remember to squish the molds in before placing them in your ears... because this will allow them to expand in your ears once they are in.
So this comment is essentially saying 'well you wont be able to tell the difference between a SE215 ($100) and a SE425 ($300) or a 535 ($450) as they only have one or two additional drivers - you need to go all the way up to the $1200 5-driver custom moulded models to tell a difference? Well to that I guess I say that not everyone has such bad ears that they can't tell the difference between the bottom and mid-tier models - which have quite significant objective frequency response spec differences.
Now I’m confused with all these comments. I have the 215 and happy with it. But I kinda regret not getting the 425 with everything (bt, uni cable and ear tips) I had to buy the uni cable separately if I want it wired! Please tell me if there is really no big difference. The price diff is $120
They both stay in my ears equally well. It took about 2 hours of listening before I was used to the way they feel in my ears though. They both feel pretty durable. The only part that has broken was the tip holder when my guitarist was trying to change out the tips on the 215. Otherwise I am happy with both models
Cool review, thanks for posting! I think you just saved me $200. Your findings confirm the specs from Shure which have the SE425s giving a little more at both the low and high end. For most uses, especially coming from a mobile phone type player, the differences will be negligible. I'm wondering if you had a chance to run them both through your ME-1 which might accentuate those subtle differences. I'll be running mine through a Behringer P1.
What source were you using and which tracks? I moved from Spotify to Apple music with hires lossless tracks and it makes a massive difference as to what you can hear. I've got the 425s from years ago and more recently the 215. Using the same cables I reckon the 215 give about 85% performance of the 425, so pretty good. But with hires lossless classical (and WAV), the difference is very noticeable. I'm using an LG v60 phone with its ESS Sabre quad dac. I used the 535 and they are noticeably better espcially for bass. And the 846 (not cheap) are wow, jaw dropping enjoyment. But if you're just using Spotify and not using a decent source device you may as well go cheap. Shure produces a lightning cable with an embedded dac which you can attach to any of the SE series (MMCX connector). There's also a 3.5mm cable for the SE range, Bluetooth earhooks for wireless and also USB c cable. One great thing about the shure earbuds (apart from audio quality, ability to stay in place, toughness...) is the replaceable cables. Means I can listen on any phone or dap. And if the cable breaks I can get a new cable🙂
why not buy triple driver for same money? Google "best iems under 100$". You will find 1more triple driver to be one of the best iems if not best. But thats only if you want "real" soundquality. If you just like bass, than 215 are surely better.
I need a dedicated middle for monitoring during our concert. For recording and listening I use beyerd dt770, and, as far as I understand, there's no strong bass in 215
1more does sound great especially for the price, but I think that's if it's just for more normal listening to your music. 1more's seems a bit more flimsy and doesn't seem built for live stage performance while the Shures are definitely more professional looking and tuned for stage setting.
Thanks Daniel, I heard the same feeling with you, I got a 425 and used for few months, then I bought the 215 because I want some more base, but I think they're 90% the same, except 215 is a little bit better on base, however, I let my girlfriend tried both, she said 425 is much better in every way, clearly 425 is an upgrade and more advance. So, I think her ear is better than me who can tell the difference, she may be more responsive to high pitch frequency.
I'm not a head phone user, but i found a lost Shure 215 on the sidewalk. There was no identification in the pouch that says "Shure", so i could not return it. I know absolutely nothing about these, except that they look expensive. I don't know how to even attach them and what those extra pieces that was included in a small, clear plastic bag. I am a little hesitant in using them, not knowing who and how it was worn. Any info would be appreciated. BTW, i notice that there is a SE 215, but all i can see on these was the number 215, if that can be any indication. Thanks "
I would be hesitant to buy anything like this off of eBay, there's a lot of counterfeit stuff on there and my suspicion is that you received a fake. Besides, $235 is what they cost brand new from any music site like Sweetwater or Musician's Friend; I think you got took. That aside, I use the 425's for in ear monitors while playing bass. I put the Front House mix in one side and my bass in the other. There's a humongous difference between the 215's and the 425's. The single driver in the 225's couldn't handle the frequencies as well as the two drivers in the 425's. To be honest, while the 425's are night and day better than the 215's, I still hear the limitations of them and I'm looking to step up to a three or four driver set of headphones.
Is there something about the shure iem (isolation?) that makes them especially good for musicians? Compared to MANY other iem's for just listening to music the 425 is absolutely trash for the price.
is it bass any bass in the shures? i have heard that the bass in the se425 suck and the se215 is better, but i dont get that since the se425 has a dual driver
The reason the SE215 has more bass than the SE425 is due to the fact that the SE215 has a Dynamic driver vs the Dual Balance Armature drivers of the SE425. Dynamics will, almost every time, be better for Bass frequencies than Balanced Armatures.
SE215 have an insane sub bass.. It can be a bit overbearing actually.. so it will depend on the music you listen to, like some EDM music will just give you an overbearing almost headache inducing sub bass. One thing I noticed about se215 (haven't tried se425) is somewhat muddied mids. Like vocals (particularly in a busy song) can be a bit veiled. I have many other headphones (mostly over the ear), se215 are very nice headphones, for me personally the fit is perfect, which is why I like them.
although over all the clarity and layers are vast and much more vivid I do miss the heavy bass of the 215s// my hip hop dub step just don't hit on my 425s like the 215s
I also compared them and I can't hear a big difference. I bought the new 425s to go along with an old PSM 600 system. I just bought an additional new PSM 300 system and it came with the 215s and I was surprised to hear how close they were in sound quality. I tryed both in both systems. I would say the 425s isolate a little better and are a little more clear.
actually I do agree with Daniel, I still have my 215 but did order 425 got them and compare even I like the 215 more because of bass is better in my opinion, so I end up returning 425.
I predicted this back then if I it is justified to buy more than an SE215, 5 years ago. I bought a Chinese triple driver 2 years ago which sound technically better in higher frequencies but I found that I really don't care much with the higher frequencies. They can be distracting in some tracks which I just EQ down.
You can´t use a splitter to test earphones in your Iphone, since they need quite some power to sound properly you are just downgrading both earphones tremendously by splitting the power each one recieves. If you really wanted to test them properly you need a DAC and test each earphone individually.
I'm late to yet another party but i was just about to type that. Surely splitting them will change the impedance? Therefore neither are running at the optimal levels they were tested at.
I'm thinking of buying 425s (freetime use mostly, also djing a couple times a year and hopefully actual onstage monitoring if my bands would start kicking off) and definitely agree that the splitter was a bad idea. Would you however think the 425s are justifiable if I'd be using them with my phone most of the time (without amp) and only using an amp when mixing, djing etc.
Totally agree. You notice virtually no difference until you go up to the SE535. Then, O Boy is there a noticeable difference!. Forget the 425 and go straight to the 535. They are utterly amazing.
846 ar soooo nice they sound like jou por gold in your ear. 1k it is wort it for a subwoofer wit a f lot of basse and subbase crazy. its a hi-fi sistem in your ears
Biggest difference with 215 and 425 is the 425 will cancel out WAY more sound than the 215. 215 have been having problems with the right ear piece having connection issues when I have had NO issues with the 425.
Good point & this is much more important when using them in a band situation... which is what I thought in ears were made for! Try hearing a bass guitar clearly when standing next to a drummer that hits the skins hard like he's supposed to.
Great question! The se315 is still a single driver and I wanted to compare a bigger step between products. I actually DID try out a pair of 315's but noticed no difference between the 315 and 215's.
That moment he said he bought the 425's on ebay... Should have bought on a legit store. I agree with you. Your 425's ain't any better than the 215's because you got scammed with a very expensive knockoff...
You can’t use a splitter on earphones/ headphones any audiophile would know that.! you need an off board headphone amp/dac to really hear the difference. Or at the very least listen individually to complete songs & then switch.
I don't think it's fair to compare the quality when you're using an iPhone as the source of audio for both. I'm also a little interested in what the volume wheels do to your audio quality. In any case your audio source is likely something akin to mp3; compressed to bits. You should really use a high quality D/A converter with great quality wav/aif audio source to compare. That, or use them in a band rehearsal with your personal monitor mixer. I can't really tell if I need to take your advice, now. :/
You may be able to tell the difference if you tested them on a high-quality source like a dedicated DAC amp. They were not designed to be used with phone even though it works.
The difference is you likely listened to an mp3 with compromised quality than a wav / flac file ... And also your phone that also has comprimised sound quality as well. Sheeesh
Just bought the se425's after owning the 215's for several years, and the reviewer is correct. There is no difference in the sound. In fact, the 215's might even sound better. I've been using "in ears" for years and there is little or no difference in the two sets. If you hear a difference, it's because you want to hear a difference because you paid more, not because there is one.
I’ve had both and can say they are almost identical aside from the 215 having a better low end. The 425’s I’m very disappointed in. They’re not flat response by any means. The lows are lacking and the highs too - they sound dark and muddy. Standard Apple headphones are way more clear. Very disappointing for the price.
last day I just purchased a Sure se 215 and after whole day listing song from my iPhone 6s plus and sony walkman I am not satisfied , after the full day listing I survey the whole night youtube sure 215 videos reviews and searching some good earphone which makes me satisfied, bose, beats, sony, jbl, akg, jaybird . but from a review, I know that if you change the se 215 rubber pics and connect the big rubber then u get good sound. and I m surprised when I change my rubber and adjust big rubber. now the sound is so good . and I m happy with my SE 215. But from your review now I m not interested in se 425. if so se 535 is good then ai will go for it. , thank u. thanks u very much :).
You can't use cheap dinky splitters and adapters when using professional audio equipment. That will make those Shures sound like $5 walmart ear buds...
You play instruments and can’t tell the difference? You can hear the difference when using a phone which is poor sound quality coming from basic phones maybe you need to forget the dream or could be a bit deaf
I would like to disagree with this comparison. The Shure SE425 is far superior than the Shure SE215 in every way except bass. Far better highs, mids, and also better isolation. The jump between the Shure SE215 to SE425 is quite significant. However the jump from SE425 to the SE535 isn't nearly as big as the jump from the SE215 to the SE425. In regards to Shure in ears, you won't get an actual jump from the Shure SE425 until you reach the Shure SE846.
Do you have a spec sheet from Shure that shows the dynamic range of each headset? My critique is just based on the opinion of a classical pianist who has been using IEM for the past 3 years in a church service context. Naturally there will be some discrepancy between people's opinions but it would be great to see some details about how each stacks up to each other on paper.
Spirit of a Handyman From what the specs show on the package of each, the Shure SE215 has a frequency range of 22Hz to 17.5kHz while the Shure SE425 has a frequency range of 20Hz to 19 kHz. There are also many charts online that show the dynamic range of both in ears.
having owned a pair of 215's that i lost(!) and the 425's i use while watching this i have to agree. the 425's are quite a bit more detailed but lacks some of the the low end of the 215's.
So the ones with the dual drivers made for more bass has less bass than the ones without ?? Come on now ..... i would rec to do some tweaking cause i get loads of bass ..i would try compensating on the hi and mid freq till you get a good mix then boost your vol on your body pack a little( assuming that you have all other gains at a reasonable level) ....You really gotta know what your doing with IEM .. tricky little boogers
William Cooper Tweaking the bass of the Shure SE425 with an equalizer will increase its bass, but it still won’t have as much as the Shure SE215. Balance Armatures simply can’t duplicate what a dynamic driver can, let alone a single micro driver woofer.
I own the 425s. They make different sizes for the rubber and you can cut out all sound. It’s better to get the 100 series headset for $120. If you wanna go higher get Sam audio in ear monitors and get better quality headsets
Oh dear! Anyone using an IPhone to carry out a serious audio comparison is wasting their time. You won't hear any difference unless you use a better quality player than an iPhone. The 425's are marketed for people with dedicated players and real musicians. I agree with your conclusion. Most people won't need 425's or similar quality if they are just using phones to play mp3s.
iPhone is alright, nothing wrong with it. And for most IEMs it's probably good enough. Having said that iPhone uses a class D amp, they do this to save power, all smartphones are like this. Nothing wrong with it, but class D amps tend to have limitations, they can produce a bit too metallic of a sound and they tend to add a bit of noise. Proper Class A/B dedicated amps can generally sound a bit better, particularly if you're listening in a quiet environment and you are really critically listening to songs. Class A/B can become completely transparent. Meaning they have virtually no noise and very low distortion. The other advantage of dedicated headphone amps is the sheer power they can deliver, which doesn't matter for in ear headphones, but it does matter for expensive audiophile over the ear headphones which in some cases require more power to be driven properly.
1) NEVER use music on your phone to test the quality of any IEM’s. They’re not meant for casual listening. They’re meant for on stage playing. Also putting any headphone through a splitter will deteriorate the quality immediately.
@@alexanderstojanov4342 well yes, that’s true. But they’re not truly meant for that. There’s certain IEMs that are built for that (hifi or studio custom in ears like Alclair studio 3 or 4s. I have a pair of KZ 5 drivers that are better for listening than stage use. My whole point was that IEMs like shure aren’t really meant for listening to music, they’re more built for the stage and how he was complaining about the quality was due to the splitter he was using. Those take sound quality and ruin it even with nice in ears. My $500 custom IEMs sound pretty bad through the Apple dongle.
Interesting. Because much of this stuff is incremental. We seem to pay a lot more for gear and ok, some of it has more Thing inside but you seem to pay your bucks and your returns are just...minimal. Anyhow, my 215s sound better than a pair of ex Samsung AKGs. My Ibasso Outboard sounds better than a bare phone...I'm not going on forever.
SE425, Just good on everything but nothing stands out. Also cord is too short. For me, not worth the price. Get the SE215, they are fantastic for the price. Or go with another brand. The SE425 are not worth the price.
I realise this review is a bit old now, but I see people still making comments and some will look at this video when doing their research as to what to buy. There seems to be quite a bit of of confusion here and I wish to clarify. These IEMs are for a particular purpose - on-stage monitoring. Sure, that can be used for personal listening to music. Many people commenting here seem to be doing just that, but the goal of these are quite different to what they are using them for. There is a whole different set of criteria for in-ear stage monitoring vs critical listening. If your intent is to purchase great earbuds on a budget for critical listening, then look to those manufacturers whom are designing their earbuds for that purpose. As far as commenting that this guy shouldn't be using splitters etc, for critical comparison - you are correct. Yet, the intended use of these will be fed with a mix from god knows what - a cheap monitor mixer to maybe a high-end one with all sorts of possible noise induced into the signal. In addition, musicians will still be feeling bass and impact from drums on stage, so how IEMs interact with this is a highly important consideration. This would be a more accurate comparison of the two models presented here Two different intents - two different criteria.
When you use a crappy source like an i-phone everything will sound the same. Use a good DAP playing Tidal master quality recordings or at least lossless FLAC recordings then use different IEMs. The differences will become apparent. You could have been listening to a $1000 set of IEMs and it would've sounded the same. The source material matters A LOT.
I shall never ever buy Shure again. I had trouble with the connection between the cable and the plugs within one week. I have bought two very expencive cables to no use. Never again. They are really terrible.
