In my opinion, Shure repair service is awful

They offered to give me free refurb SE110 when I thought mine broke even after my warranty expired... admittedly SE110 are a lot cheaper then 500 series. And since they were phasing them out I think they wanted to get rid of them.

That's awful and inexcusable. I thought Shure's CS was pretty good. Call back up and ask for a free replacement. If they don't do it, I'd consider boycotting their products. Premium priced headphones should go hand in hand with premium quality customer service.

Tbh, they shouldn't get you to pay at all. You probably just had a bad customer service rep. Usually when I get people like that I just cut the conversation short, wish them a nice day and then call back later to speak to someone else. If we look at the logistics of it all, even including R&D, the mark up of profit on such earphones is likely exponential, the number of products sold that are returned for replacement minimal. They should really have a more accessible customer service system in place with a more flexible replacement scheme. 

Shure never fix, they replace. It has always been like these for them. If the IEM is in warranty, it will be free replacement; if not, you will be given an option to buy a replacement at lower cost. Since E500 has long been discontinued (almost 4 years now, so the 2 years warranty must have expired by now), so I really don't see why they should be considered as awful in anyway. Unless of course there is an attitude issue with that particular CS, but that's another story and has nothing to do with why Shure can't fix your IEM.

As for why Shure (or many other IEM maker for the matter) don't fix their IEM - the whole IEM is hot pressed and molded in a specialized machine. Fixing the IEM requires it to be cut open, rewired, remolded by technicians. With Shure factory in China now, keeping a team of technicians on standby just to fix broken IEM will cost a lot, probably much more than the cost of offering you a replacement option. That is why they don't fix, just replace. IT is the same for Westone, UE, Etymotic and most other brands.

Try to talk to another representative and keep your cool. My experience with Shure has been that they will quote you a higher price for the out of warranty replacement but actually charge you less. And you don't have to pay first - you can send the damaged goods into them, and they will quote you a price after they receive it.

Quote:

Originally Posted by HighLife 

sorry i have the SE530, not the 500...

 

But still, they are $500 IEM that are pretty much only good for their 2 year and after that if they break, they will need to be replaced...

 

How does this make sense?

 

My car warranty is up, if i need my brake line to be replace, will they fix the line or replace the whole car? See where im going here?

 

People crack these open and rewire them all the time...what makes them any different from Shure techs?

 

How i see it, they just greedy bastards looking for more money.

 

Even though i like their products, i will NEVER waste money on them again. Lesson learned ...

The same difference between a DIYer and a manufacturer. Trying running a cooperation like Shure and you will know. Good luck on finding your next IEM as most, if not all of them operate just like Shure.

Quote:

Originally Posted by HighLife 

sorry i have the SE530, not the 500...

 

But still, they are $500 IEM that are pretty much only good for their 2 year and after that if they break, they will need to be replaced...

 

How does this make sense?

 

My car warranty is up, if i need my brake line to be replace, will they fix the line or replace the whole car? See where im going here?

 

People crack these open and rewire them all the time...what makes them any different from Shure techs?

 

How i see it, they just greedy bastards looking for more money.

 

Even though i like their products, i will NEVER waste money on them again. Lesson learned ...

But....I bet the brake issue with the car would be about 200 bucks maybe. You'll get a brand new 535 for 240 bucks after 4 years of use with your 500's. I don't think that is that bad. The 535 kicks. I think as Cleos mentioned it's the nature of the IEM's Westone does the same thing, but I think they are better trained there and handle their customers in a much more professional way.. The guy sounding like he was sleeping or didn;t seem to care would rub me the wrong way too. Comparing to a car is not even close. I've gotten porked on so many car repairs, they make them so you can;t even work on them yourself anymore. Now that pisses me off. Take the 240 dollar plunge and make believe you just bought new shoes for your auto.

Quote:

Originally Posted by HighLife 

sorry i have the SE530, not the 500...

 

But still, they are $500 IEM that are pretty much only good for their 2 year and after that if they break, they will need to be replaced...

 

How does this make sense?

 

My car warranty is up, if i need my brake line to be replace, will they fix the line or replace the whole car? See where im going here?

 

People crack these open and rewire them all the time...what makes them any different from Shure techs?

 

How i see it, they just greedy bastards looking for more money.

 

Even though i like their products, i will NEVER waste money on them again. Lesson learned ...

See, the thing is, that it's cheaper to just replace the brakes of the car rather than the whole car itself.  However, after years of wear and tear and the car gets old, it may become that it will be more cost efficient to replace the car with another car (same brand and model) as it can be cheaper.  That is what is happening here.  It is cheaper to replace the whole headset than to repair it.  It's better for consumers and company alike.  Like ClieOS said earlier, just about every company does this, not just Shure.

Your getting (probably) a new pair of se535 for $240 because the housings are made in such a way as to not allow entry. They get destroyed when made into customs. Replacement is the common method of repair for most companies, even when an IEM can be opened. You guys are just way off base by damning Shure that gives what is typically twice the warranty of others and still a smoking hot deal after the warranty where you'd just be out of luck elsewhere. If you can find somebody locally to give it try, go ahead but I wouldn't blame Shure for not accommodating you with a deal afterwards for something that's been intentionally messed with. I find the lack of personal responsability and grand expectations of consumers rather disheartening.

If you guys want to use the car analogy...might as well just use the insurance companies point of view.  You have a nice brand new car, you get in a wreck, they fix it (give you a new pair of headphones).  You have a ten year old beater, you get in a wreck, they pay you cash (the replacement IEM discount) for the car cuz it costs way more to repair the thing then it would to take the 50% hit on the markdown for the replacement.

Quote:

Originally Posted by HighLife 

The work fine, they are replacing a whole unit over the housing of a cable...on top of that, they want me to invest another $240 for something that might just possible turn out to be the exact same issue when they need repairing..and thats why i think their repair service sucks....it should NOT be called repair service, it should be called REPLACEMENT service.

Again, as has been mentioned, this practice is essentially an industry standard.  Making a stink about it doesn't really do anything to prevent "us" or anyone else from buying Shure products.  The replacement program is obviously cheaper for them or they wouldn't do it...I can't imagine Shure and others are in business to LOSE money.