Home > Consumer Reviews > Shure SE530 Sound Isolating Earphones

I tried both the Ultimate Ears Triple.fi 10 and the Shure ES530 for an entire weekend, and came out impressed by both but chose the Shures.

Both earphones are exceptional. I had the Super.fi 5 pros and loved them, then when I lost them I wanted to see if there was another level. There is. If you want an entry-level pair of amazing earphones, I would say you get the most bang for your buck with the Super.fi 5 pros. But if you want the best, it's going to be triple-driver.

The Triple.fi earphones are impressive, until you try the Shure ES530s. Both have extremely good resolution. The Triple.fis just come up a bit short against the Shures in every respect. The Shures are more classy, more integrated, more like a good pair of speakers, and the Triple.fis come out more like a pair of monitors - you don't hear the sound as integrated and as finessed.

To get the most out of these earphones, you MUST use the new Shure smooth foam tips, which you have to order separately. And if you're not getting enough bass, you have to pull your ear out with one hand and push the earphones in farther with your other hand. You don't get the full experience until they are DEEP in your ear canal.

I would rate both the Triple.fis and the SE530s as 9.8/10, but the final deciding factor is the comfort. The SE530s are much smaller inside the ear and can stay in longer. They also have a great cable system, giving you more flexibility (for example, if you have an iphone, as I do, they have a special cable with a speaker for that). They are lower volume and stay in the ears better. The one thing I'd like to see on the Shures is a stiff "memory" cable near the earpieces, like Ultimate Ears uses - it's a great idea.

For $200, get the Super.fi 5 pros. For the complete experience, get the Shure SE530s.

Okay, Where do I start? These little pieces of audio joy are just amazing.

My previous earphones were the Sennheiser CX300 and Skullcandy Ink'd. I know, very crappy earphones. I was doing a lot of research on Hi-Fidelity audio products. At that time I never knew they incorporated Hi-Fidelity audio into earphones. I always thought it was in full size headphones and speakers costing [...] I then stumbled across these babies. Soo many reviews I read were praising these earphones wonderful sound quality and that justifying the high price of [...] I then bit the bullet and ordered them from Amazon for[...]. Upon ordering these earphones I was expecting to be completely blown away by the sound quality once I receive them.

The anticipation when waiting for these earphones was so ridiculous I kept checking the UPS shipping progress on their website. Oh was the wait annoying. This is the reason I generally hate online shopping. The day finally came!! UPS knocks on my door I jump up in glee and answered the door and signed for my package and....You guys already know. I then proceeded to un-package these earphones like I was opening a first AID kit to help someone in their injury. My first thought was the nice casing these earphones came in. It really made me feel like I really spent my money wisely. I then held them in my hands...They were such a beauty. The light was just glistening off of then like a diamond. I never knew they were so shiny. Shure really hit home on the aesthetics of these earphones. They actually looked expensive. I then looked at the amount of tips that was included with the package. I was astonished soo many tips came with this earphone. Shure really wanted to make sure you got a good seal. Usually with every earphone I bought I always used the sleeve that was pre-installed on them because they were medium and happened to fit me good. I did the same with my Shure SE530's. I then compressed the foam as stated everywhere and pulled my ear out and put them in and waited 30 seconds for the foam to expand in my ear creating a seal....I then found my favorite song play on my Zune 120gb....

The first thing that popped into my head was "It sounds clearer...but not [...] clearer" Immediately I thought I was ripped off. 1 week later I then realized something. My songs were all encoded in 192kbps and lower. I then learned more about lossless audio quality. I then re-ripped all of my songs into lossless quality and decided to also change the foam tips from medium to large because the medium wasn't big enough for some reason. As the large foam expanded in my ears the isolation sky rocketed and it felt like I was under water. I then began to listen to my song re-ripped to lossless..........I literally began to drool onto my lap. The sound was so effortless yet detailed. It couldn't have been coming from earphones, it just couldn't just have. The bass was so tight and deep yet fast enough to keep up with songs like Drum and Bass or Techno. The midrange was so clear. Let me restate that...The midrange was so precise. I have never heard vocals so correctly done. Voices sound as if the artist were shrunk and crawled into your head and started singing. I can hear every exhale and inhale. It added a whole new element to the music. The treble was so natural yet crisp and detailed with very far extension. Even when the volume has been cranked up these earphones maintain the sound with absolutely no distortion. Every other earphone or speaker I've heard begins to distort when the sound is increased. There is 3 drivers (1 tweeter and 2 subwoofers) in each earpiece which is the primary reason for such clarity across each frequency and no distortion as the volume increases. I kept reading reviews upon where people said these earphones have a rolled off treble. This means the volume of the treble as it goes up in the frequencies decreases. I personally do think the treble is a bit recessed in the extreme upper treble area. This was done to reduce listening fatigue because I personally never heard earphone with so much detail and clarity yet still while sounding natural. Most earphones boost the treble to sound as if it is detailed when truly it is not and this comes across as a ear sore within 10 minutes of listening. The treble on these earphones sound as if you would hear it in real life.

These earphones really need a worthy source to make you think the are a bargain at [...]. Here's why. My friend is an audiophile and is into home audio not portable audio as he thinks that is not true fidelity. I later changed his mind with my Zune 120gb and Shure SE530 combo. He recommend I go visit the audio store nearby us I never knew of. He said they have a ton of high end audio equipment you can demo before you buy. So I went there with my Shure SE530's and Zune 120gb. I walked in a was completely astonished at the price of some of the equipment in here. We're talking about AMPS and DAC's costing [...]I came across the DAC and AMP setup costing about[...]that had an 1/4" earphone input jack. I could demo it!!! Oh crap!!! My Shure SE530's has a 1/8" jack and I forgot my 1/8" to 1/4" converter. I was in luck though the salesman went into the back of the store and brought back a 1/8" to 1/4" converter. I then plugged my Shure SE530's in and turned the volume all the way down to prevent my eardrums being blasted down my throat when I hit play. I hit play and slightly raised the volume to get some sound.....OMG.....I kid you not....I nearly fainted right there and then in the middle of the store. The sound was absolutely and positively the best thing my eardrums has had the pleasure of vibrating to. Sure it was music I never heard before but the instruments sounded so realistic and alive it seemed as if there was band in the store playing in front of me. The sound stage well expanded outside of my head. The sound was literally flowing around my head as if there was speakers circulating my head. I was amazed!! Right there I was disappointed in how the crappy the Zune sounded in comparison to this [...]What do you expect? I'm comparing a [...] On the Zune the earphones lost their spacial sound. Also everything sounds less vivacious and exciting. it's still listenable though.

Here is a run down on how I think these earphones handle every frequency.

Bass:
The bass is tight, deep, punchy, super fast and natural. I hear no bass roll off whats so ever. I have run bass test on these earphones and 20hz sounds just as powerful as a 80hz tone. The bass is not the big boomy bass often heard from cheap car subwoofers or clubs. This bass is tamed and blends in perfectly with the music.

Midrange:
In my opinion and many others the main reason to buy these earphones. The vocals spring to life as if the artist are actually in your head. Guitars sound so life like. Every other earphone or headphone I have tried seems muddy in the midrange compared to these.

Treble:
Not in your face but has a more natural approach to give you a life like treble experience. The detail is all there as well as the extension. To my ears I find the treble crisp when needed to be. The treble kindly compliments the midrange and makes for a more smooth and luscious sound most earphones simply can't reproduce without sounding harsh and unnatural somewhere.

Soundstage:
Amazingly wide and open when I plugged it into that super high end source. Instruments and vocals were surrounding me like a wall of music. On any other portable device I've tried it on the soundstage significantly closes in more towards the head but is still more expansive than any other earphone I've heard.

I have not experienced any cable failure at since me owning this earphone for a year. I also heard Shure fixed the cables for all 2008 models and up. My Shure SE530's are a 2008 model so that may be the reason for no cable cracking or tearing.

I wouldn't call these earphones nuetral as in every frequency has the same volume intensity. The bass and midrange are flat but the treble does in fact roll off buuut this gives you a natural sound since you will never hear treble so pronounced an in your face in real life. If you want an earphone with a completely flat response I recommend you look elsewhere.

Pros:
* Stunning sound quality did I mention stunning?
* Nice stylish look.
* Feels durable.
* Comes with a lot of accessories.
* Backed by Shure's 2 year warranty.
* Complete [...]
* Most natural sound I've heard.
* NO listening fatigue
* Great noise isolation

Cons:
* Portable devices won't really show you the true capabilities of these earphones. Shure promotes the use of the earphones with portable devices.
* Treble has a slight roll off
* Not completely nuetral and true to the source.

Thanks for reading and hoped you enjoyed my experience as well as the review of these wonderful earphones!

EDIT [ August 16, 2009 ]:
I've been playing around with EQ on winamp on my laptop and found a nice setting. The Shure SE530's are known for having a rolled off treble which can make music sound a bit un exciting or dull to some people. I precisely raised the lower bass, upper midrange, lower and upper treble volume according to my perceived hearing. The sound is now balanced and full of life. The soundstage opened up greatly. Nearly matching that of the nice setup I plugged it into in that store. The bass is now a bit more powerful in the lower octaves around 20hz to 70hz. The bass punch, tightness, decay, and texture all remains the same with no exaggeration anywhere. The midrange is now in line with the bass and treble response and not so in your face. The treble is now nice and airy with a beautiful sparkle that introduces no unwanted sibilance in the voices of the artists. This also increased the soundstage greatly. The soundstage seems wider and the instrument placement increased with the more of a blackness between each instrument. I'm loving this new sound. Going back to the Zune 120gb is a dissapointed now. Need help getting the same EQ I did on winamp for a Windows based PC? [...]

This was my response to a certain post on a certain forum. The original poster claimed that the Shure SE530s and ER4Ps might be in the same tier. The text below is my response to him:


I personally do not claim that the ER4Ps are in the same tier as the SE530s. About a year ago I went through a "I need good earphones" craze that ultimately landed me in Shure E500 PTH territory (the predecessor to the SE530). I wanted a set of really, really good earphones and that's exactly what I got. The ER4Ps had a very good stage and very VERY good highs (and upper mids) -- but the low end was severely lacking, especially compared to the E500s. The rest of the lineup I tried -- UE Super.fi3s, ETY ER6, Klipsch Custom-1 -- just didn't come close to the other two.

Oh, on an aesthetic note, the ER4Ps look like you have mini-dicks plugged into your ears, whereas the SE530s look like you have hearing aids in your ears -- your choice :)

I took a gamble and purchased my E500s on Ebay. At the time I didn't know two very important things:

1. E500s are not supposed to be covered under warranty if purchased through an unauthorized dealer, and
2. E500s have a defect where the earphone cords would crack and expose the internal wiring.

Lo and behold, 9 months down the line my cords cracked. I tried temporary fixes like electrical tape but it made the earphones almost unbearable to wear, and the cords kept cracking even more. I contacted Shure and it was $175 or so for the repair, if it wasn't covered by warranty. I asked about warranty repair for my particular situation, and they told me to send it in and that they'll see if it's covered. I printed out my Ebay receipts, filled out their forms, and packaged all the stuff per their request.

Approximately a week later after sending the package I get a confirmation of delivery from Shure. No bill.

Approximately a week later after that I get an invoice for $0.00 and a shipment of brand-new Shure SE530s!

Obviously I was very happy at the outcome. I felt that it would be very inappropriate for them NOT to be covered for something that was definitely a manufacturing flaw -- I did use, but did not abuse the earphones.

The added bonus to all of this is that the E500s had a weak response zone in the 3-12 KHz range -- they just seemed "off"... I had to tweak the equalizer a bit in order to make them sound appropriate. However, once I got the new earphones I noticed that they were sounding strage for some reason, and I realized that I still had the EQ settings modified -- and the SE530s need no equalization!

I received these earphones this afternoon after returning a pair of SE420s...AND I'M GLAD I DID!!!

I demoed the 420s for two weeks and never cared for the sound of them. There didn't seem to be enough bass and the sound was somewhat thin. I know this can be the result of poor fitment, but don't think that was the case with me. I just couldn't justify the cost for what I heard. I decided to try the 530s before giving up and going back to the iPod earbuds.

The 530s are absolutely stunning. I can't believe the difference between the two models. The bass of the 530's is so much fuller and richer - rounding out the already solid mids and highs of the SE420. This is most likely due to the dual bass drivers in the 530s. The phones are not fatiguing at all and have proven to be very comfortable during long listening periods of 2 hours or more.

Out of curiosity, I've also ordered a pair of E2c's as a Gold Box special for 39 bucks that should be here next week. It will be interesting to see how they sound compared to the 420s and 530s. There was such a drastic difference between the 420s and 530s that I wonder whether the 420s I tried were defective in some way. The reason I mention this is that I was getting some signal distortion at times (volume moderately low). This isn't happening with the 530s. The sound quality is very accurate and is remeniscent of my recording studio's reference monitors. As a musician, I am very familiar with other Shure products and these definitely live up to their strong reputation in the industry.

The sound on the Shure 530 earbuds is very good, but the wires are very bad, especially for the price. After less than 10 months the wires became stiff, even a little brittle. After 11 months the connections at the earbuds and wires became frayed, even without mistreatment. I would not buy these earbuds again. Very disappointing, given what I paid for them.