Price Paid:  $265.00 from Tweeter In Nashville

Summary:
I bought these because I wanted an upgrade from apple Ear Buds for my IPOD.
My initial purchase was Grado SR-80's, a great phone in their own right, but too bulky for air travel and not able to allow listening without spilling over the sound to neighbors.

Initially, I was looking at the ec-3's, but when I heard the 4's, it was all over. They are a superb product, very compact with very high quality sound. I have been an audiophile for 30 years and own and have owned some of the most famous equipment ever made (LS 3/5a's, Martin Logan Cls's, Aerial 10t's, etc) and I believe these phone measure up in every way. Anyone who is having trouble with the bass needs to use the yellow foam rubber ear plugs to insure a good fit with the ear canal. If you do this the bass is fine and the absolutely superb resolution of this product will shine through

Strengths:
Uncanny resollution, transparency and clarity. Very compact size. If you have an MP3 player and travel, these phones are ideal for the plane or the office. High end sound whereever you go!

Weaknesses:
They are pricey, but worth every penny. Have not heard the 5c's, but it hard to imagine they could have superior resolution to these things. I hear the 5's offer more bass, but trust me you don't need more bass, more would only muddy things up.

Similar Products Used:
Grado Sr-80's
Apple Ear Buds
Koss Pro 4 AA's

Price Paid:  $140.00 from Ebay

Summary:
Extremely detailed and full bodied. After finding the right fit, sit back and enjoy. It's everything you want in quality and comfort and more.

Strengths:
Craftmanship-sound

Weaknesses:
For the price I paid--none.

Similar Products Used:
I have a house full

Price Paid:  $299.00 from Apple Store

Summary:
I really am disappointed in the sonic characteristics of these headphones. To say they are biased towards treble would be an understatement, they have almost no bass. Plus, the mids and highs seem tinny and lack any sense of realism. Yes, they are detailed and some may prefer that sound; however, for me, these are not the right fit and they will be going back to Apple tonight or tomorrow. I will try the e5c next. If you are someone that prefers a bright, detailed sound, these would be a good choice. However, if you like a more balanced presentation, I would not recommend these headphones.

Strengths:
Detail
Good Fit

Weaknesses:
No Bass!
Tinny, detached sound!

Similar Products Used:
Bang & Olufsen

Price Paid:  $189.00 from PlasmaBAY.com

Summary:
This review is for those who want to buy the Shure E4c for their Ipod.

I’m sure you have already heard this from everyone else review but these are the best In the Ear Headphones I’ve ever owned. The reason I can say that is because I’ve owned or own: Grado 125, Shure E3c, and Sony Fontopia Ear-Bud headphones. Of course my Grados sound the best but have you ever tried using big container headphones at the GYM.

If you already own a pair of the Shure E3c and you want to upgrade to the E4c you will be making a wise choice. I noticed when I would set my Ipod’s EQ settings to Base Booster or R&B the bass was good but everything else sounded muffled with my E3c. With the E4c the bass is good and the Mids and Highs are CLEAR as glass.

Also…. If you encode your Ipod music less than 256 you might as well buy Radio Shacks $15 headphones because your not going to get the full potential of these headphones. By default Itunes is set to encode at 128, which is ok for most people but once you have tasted good sounding music you will never want to go back. Apple’s support web site will show you how to change the encoding.

AND for those of you who think these are not worth $299.00…… YOU’RE RIGHT!
Go to PlasmaBAY.com they have them for $189.00

Strengths:
Sound Quality

Weaknesses:
Travel case is to small

Similar Products Used:
Grado 125
Shure e3c