Shure SE425 Earphone

Link to my review and measurement index thread where one can also find a full review overview, more information about myself as well as my general-ish audio and review manifesto: https://www.head-fi.org/threads/956208/

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I only give full stars. My ranking/scoring system does not necessarily follow the norm and is about as follows:

5 stars: The product is very good and received the "highly recommended" award from me.

4 stars: The product is very good and received the "recommended" award from me.

3 stars: The product is good/very good, but not outstanding/special enough to get any of my two awards. ["Thumbs Up"]

2 stars: The product is only about average or even somewhat below that and somewhat flawed/flawed in some areas. [neither "Thumbs Up" nor "Thumbs Down"]

1 star: The product is bad/severely flawed to outright bad. ["Thumbs Down"]

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Shure SE425


Source:

Personal unit.


Miscellaneous:

Decent unboxing experience and accessories.

I like the shiny silver mirror-like design.
Build quality is good.

Excellent fit, ergonomics and noise isolation.

Removable cable with MMCX connectors.
Long, good strain relief integration, does not lack a chin-slider. Feels sturdy and one can feel that below the outer shielding, the inner conductors are twisted. Supple.

Two BA drivers per side. Two ways.




Sound:

Largest included single-flange silicone ear tips.

Tonality:

Fairly neutral leaning towards rolled-off/dark-ish in the upper treble. Largely flat and uncoloured.

The lows show a gentle boost of warmth in the fundamental range/lower midrange, comparable to my Ultimate Ears Reference Monitors, with a boost of around 3 dB compared to my Etymotic ER-4S.
While the sub-bass is reproduced with sufficient level, it is generally a bit behind the upper bass in quantity as the lows level starts to gradually decline a little from the lower fundamental range towards the sub-bass.

Except for the gentle lift in the fundamental range that adds just a touch of lower midrange body, the midrange is tuned neutral towards ever so slightly dark, but quite prominent/intimate in the mix. Due to the mild roll-off towards the sub-bass as well as the relatively early treble roll-off, the Shure could also be categorised into the mid-centered side of neutral in-ears.

The treble remains unobtrusive in a positive way in the lower and middle highs, with a moderate dip in the middle treble, just to be around neutral quantity above again.
Above that, however, is the SE425s’ biggest pity, their treble extension, that is simply lacking, with a roll-off that starts already before the upper treble that is relevant for cymbal reproduction, with a muted super treble above that, wherefore the Shure clearly lack the reproduction of many instruments’ overtones and thus perceived “air”, with cymbals for example just sounding as if they were cut off. This also leads to a sound that appears somewhat “veiled”.

Frequency Response:


ER-4S-Compensation

Except for the 7 kHz peak that I do not hear when performing sine sweeps or listening to music, this is also how I perceive my SE425.


ProPhile 8-Compensation

Resolution:

Solid for multi-BA in-ears in this price range. Surpasses many similarly priced dynamic driver in-ears. Nevertheless definitely not class-leading for multi-BA IEMs in this price range, and surpassed by in-ears such as the Rose Technology Mini2, Brainwavz B200 (the good first generation, not the inferior v2), Etymotic’s in-ears, the Pai Audio MR3 and the Eternal Melody EM2.

The bass is very tight, fast and clean, while details in the lows could be ultimately a bit higher, but are still decently reproduced. Due to their bass speed, the SE425 remain clean and well-separated in the lows even in fast music passages. As for this, the Shure even outperform some other multi-BA in-ears with rear-vented BA woofers when it comes to tightness.

Midrange details and speech intelligibility are convincing as well.

While treble details are per se not really lacking, the early and steep roll-off in the treble that just cuts off the upper highs altogether makes the SE425 lack some upper end information.

Soundstage:

Very small and especially narrow soundstage, even to the point that I would say that there is more depth than width. Still more pronounced three-dimensionality than my Sennheiser Amperior, but that’s not a difficult thing to achieve.

Instrument separation is executed well with clean borders, but due to the stage’s small size, it seems a bit cramped.

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Comparisons:

Noble Audio SAVANNA:

The Shure have got the very slightly lighter bass (by ca. 0.5 dB) that also start to lose quantity slightly earlier.
In the mids, the SE425 are somewhat more forward and mid-centric sounding.
The SE425 have got the more forward presence range. In the treble, the Shure start to roll off noticeably earlier, wherefore cymbals sound quite muffled on them.

The Shure have got the slightly quicker upper bass punch, however their lows don’t appear as layered or detailed as the Savannas’. Likewise, in the mids and highs, the Savanna are ahead whereas the SE425 sound more veiled in comparisons, with fine details not being reproduced as effortlessly.

Regarding soundstage, the Nobles’ isn’t only larger in all dimensions but also considerably more realistic, in addition to being more precise as well.

Jays q-JAYS (2nd generation):

The SE425 win in terms of absolute neutrality, though they is more mid-centric and have got the obviously inferior treble extension; the q-JAYS' upper treble is noticeably brighter due to their peak whereas the Shures’ is a little on the darker side.

The q-JAYS outperform the SE425 in terms of resolution. In the mids, treble as well as bass, the Swedish in-ears outputs more details while the Shure sound “restricted”/a bit cloudy in comparison.
The Shure have got a closed BA woofer and as a result of this the quicker and tighter bass in comparison, but the Jays in return have got the more detailed lows and are still far away from being slow or soft sounding.

The Shure have got a very small soundstage whereas the Jays’ is more open, with the more precise instrument separation and, as a consequence of the larger size, better instrument placement.




Conclusion:

Neutral tuning with decent technical performance, especially in terms of bass speed and tightness, but unfortunately clearly too early and steep roll-off in the treble that just cuts off instruments’ overtones and leads to a severe lack of perceived “air” and extension. Narrow soundstage.
A price closer to 200$ is more realistic than the ~ 300$ price tag.


Photos:

Bluf: save your money and buy Tin T2s.

I know this has been around for a while, and I've owned my pair for a while, but I pulled them out of the drawer recently to re-evaluate and thought it useful to share my impressions and explain why it is that I've ended up reverting to using the IEMs I bought the Shure's to replace.

I listen to classical music 90% of the time. There is bass in classical music. Not a lot, but it's there, and it matters. Besides obvious examples such as when there's a big pipe organ at work, orchestral or chamber music frequently has at the very least cellos that are beating out a rhythm, using their lowest notes. Sometimes they're doing much more. And of course there might be actual upright bass instruments, or basoons, etc. What they are doing should seldom be center stage, but it needs to be present.

Anyway, the Shure 425s, though excellent in many ways, are adequate in the bass department when it comes to rock or pop. There, there's a lot of bass, and the 425s capture it, though the sound might not satisfy bass heads. For example, I just threw on Bjork's Homegenic. Got Bass? Yes. Enough? Maybe? But when the quantity of bass in the music is small--like in classical music--the 425s come up short. So the music feels flat and anemic. Just slightly, but enough.

I recently was listening to Handel's Concerti Grossi. It's chamber music. There are cellos and at least one double bass. The 425s just don't do them justice, leaving the music without a measure of texture. The cellos and double bass need to bite.

Then I switched to my old Fischer DBA-2 MK2, which I bought years ago to replace the MK1s, which I bought because they were heralded as "neutral kings," and a great value for money proposition. At the time I thought neutral was what I wanted. Anyway, the Fischer's sound better, to my ears. What's the difference? The bass. No one's ever thought the bass on the DBA-02 was noteworthy, but relatively speaking, it's better than the 425, and it makes classical music more enjoyable; it also reveals what's lacking with the 425s.

I'd still like to up my game and improve on the Fischers, which have served me well. But the 425s aren't it.

Update: I recently bought a set of Shure bt adapters to attach to the 425s to use running. So now I'm listening outside, where there's more noise. On the positive side, the comfort and fit are great, a result of having well made behind the ear adapters that are tailor-made to fit Shure IEMs. But where TF is the bass? There's the body? And I'm not listening to Bach, I'm listening to stuff with a beat, like Aurora and Bjork. But it's just not there. So, I switched out the Shure 425s and attached the adapters to Tin T2s. Ahhh....That's better. There's the truth: 425s are good but outclassed by $70 Tins. Take note, Shure.

I know this review is quite late, as this IEM has been around the market for at least 7 years now, dating back to late 2010-2011 when it made its debut. However, I also understand that audio is a hobby, and one way or another people might want to get their hands on this piece of kit even if it has reached its saturation point, so I thought I'll make a review about it, for good or for ill

Now there are some points I would like to address before going more in-depth. First, my preference in sound signature lies more towards neutral/bright rather than warm/full. Second, I use silicone tips that were provided by Shure and I swapped out the original cable in lieu of a thinner, more comfortable FiiO Cable. Okay now with those out of the way lets get into the review!


Shure is undoubtedly one of the best if not the best designed IEM when comfort and fit is put into consideration. Correct me if I'm wrong, but if I remember correctly Shure and Westone collaborated in their IEM design, so Westone comes at a close second when it comes to the overall body design. Even when compared to higher-end IEMs like the likes of Campfire Audio, Noble, 64Ears, and Dita, the Shures still stood out as the most comfortable IEM in my lineup due to its size and form factor. The shells are made out of plastic which keeps the body lightweight, and although I am quite disappointed since I got the silver version, I felt that plastic is better as it does not get cold in the winters and does not have rough edges that might irritate my ears. I give the Shures a thumbs up in this regard.


This section is where Shure gets its first yellow card. Cables.

Now I understand that Shure has always gone for this 'studio quality' thing as they claim that their IEMs are the industry standard used by musicians, sound engineers, and in studios all around the world. While I appreciate the addition of removable cables via the MMCX connection, I absolutely hate how the cable looks and feels. On paper, the cables provided are strong and durable, made with reinforced kevlar and a super sturdy, chunky wire splitter in the middle. However, on practice, I felt this to be quite uncomfortable, as the cable is quite stiff and they never 'relax' when worn, holding their shape over time, which makes it hard when you need to stuff your cable into your jacket or pants pocket if it gets too long. In addition, since the cable did not conform well, a change in posture (i.e standing to sitting) can also be a little awkward, as the cable stays stiff and you basically have to re-form the wires again.

Now I sound like I absolutely despise the cables, which is not true since I appreciate that Shure is one of the few mass-market companies that pays attention to cable quality, and the idea of imbuing kevlar into the cables is super smart. However, I value comfort and flexibility when it comes to cables, except if they sound amazing to the point that I can sacrifice my values. Shure sadly does not tick those boxes (for me), which made me swap my cables.


Before we go here I want to quickly touch on the genres of music that I normally listen, and what I used to test this IEM. For my everyday, I am a J-Pop and Anisong fan (it makes up ~70% of my library). However, I also listen to others like Rock, Pop, Classical, and Smooth Jazz (~30%). I tested this IEM with all genres mentioned, with a couple of EDM tracks to test out bass.

Bass: Starting out with bass, people might have different views about it. Some will say the bass is just right in quantity and quality, but some will also say that the bass is lacking. Imho, I feel like the bass is really good when it comes to quality, but meh when it comes to quantity. Bass notes in tracks like Hidamari Days by SisterS and Break Free by Ariana Grande feel really tight and punchy, but is lacking in weight. Tracks like Miss You - Nick Talos Remix lack the rumble down low, which makes the track less pump-y. Overall, bass is just right for me, and it will for you, too, if you choose the right genre and tracks. I would also say that DAPs play a role in enhancing this region, as bass notes sound weightier and fuller out of my X5iii compared to my AK100ii.

Midrange: Mids is generally Shure's forte, and it is no stranger in the 425s. Midrange is very forward, grabbing all the heat and attention from the audience. It is also very smooth and silky, with full-sounding notes to give listeners a more intimate time, and make them feel like the singers are singing right there in front of them. This is the part which amazed me the most, as Shure is able to compete against the higher-tier JH Audio and the likes of Layla and Dorado when it comes to pure midrange smoothness. I never said they came out on top, though so keep that in mind . Detail is very good too in this region, with good micro-detail retrieval (this is where people say "I heard things I never heard before"). However, what Shure is offering in the plate here is intimacy and smoothness, not detail. Search too extensively, and you will be disappointed. Tracks like Beauty and the Beast by Ariana and John Legend sounded amazing, and it feels as if I am in a concert, standing front row center listening to their duo. Vocals shine beautifully and overflows with realism, while the other instruments dance around in the background. I believe by Il Divo sounds amazing as well, with the 425s reproducing the group's mesmerizing vocals with beautiful fullness and clarity. Finally, Deatta Koro no You Ni by Takahashi Rie's beautiful guitar rythms are presented with beautiful realism, and again vocals are reproduced effortlessly until the end. Overall, Mids are AMAZING here.

Treble: This is where I feel like again people have different opinions on, including me. In my opinion, treble is the weakest part on the 425's sonic signature, and honestly this is also the part that turned many people down when they first give this IEMs a listen. In terms of quality, treble is detailed, with a good sense of air and separation between the high notes. However, the quantity here is EXTREMELY lacking, and for me it brings down all that goodness the quality brings.*I need to apologize beforehand that I only have Anisongs and J-Pop music to showcase here* Okay so, as a general intro, Anisongs showcases midrange, treble, and air in an equipment. Gear that lack even one of those qualities will make Anisongs and J-Pop sound a little 'off'. Beautiful World by XX:me sounds okay with the 425, but it lacks the air and sparkle it once had when I listened even with my Orions. Asayake no Starmine by Asami Imai sounds a little off to me, with sparkles and synthesizers gasping for air, and sometimes even missing entirely in several sections of the track. When I listened to this track with the 425s, I feel like things are missing, as opposed to finding new details in the track. Overall, this is the dealbreaker for me, as I cannot listen to ~70% of my album at its fullest potential with the 425s. However, I am not surprised as well, as all IEMs in Shure's entire lineup never possess amazing treble. Not even the famed 846s.


Soundstage in this IEM is good, not great, with better width than depth. Imaging is quite precise which is surprising, given the circumstances. However, due to the lack of air and treble, complex tracks tend to sound a little congested, and imaging alongside spacial accuracy degrades the more complex a track gets. I would say this IEM is more on the dark, thicker side, with smooth vocals, non-invasive bass and polite treble.


In conclusion, this is a niche IEM that will serve a specific group of people. You enjoy vocals and don't care too much about the instruments taking the backstage? go for it. You enjoy a more organic, full sound like the old times? buy it now. You a metalhead? plz stop. You listen to J-Pop and other genres that require great air and treble? don't come any closer. In all seriousness, this IEM will please a crowd but will turn others away. Similar to its bigger brother, the 535s, this is not a jack-of-all-trades IEM, and it favors a certain genre over the other. I would say get this for a specific purpose, but don't expect your entire library to sound amazing in these, except if its vocal-strict.
*Bonus Section: Cables*

I put this as a bonus because people who believe in this, read; for those who don't, the conclusion is up there . So I tried a couple different cables with the 425s in hopes of getting a better treble response. Note here I am going to focus on adding treble, not warmth or bass so that is what I will focus on.

1. Lavricables Pure Silver: This cable has to be a quick, not too expensive fix for people who want higher quality cables than stock. In terms of sound, there is definitely an improvement in the treble region, with added presence and shimmer. The low end seems to tighten a tad bit too, but is barely noticeable as the 425's bass are tight enough. However, even if this is a good cable, I will not justify the purchase as the improvements are not night-and-day.

2. Effect Audio Ares II: This cable is copper, and oh boy does it add more warmth to the 425s. Treble is extended just a tiny bit, and the overall sound gets more intimate. A good pair if you want a very smooth and warm sound.

3. FiiO Replacement MMCX Cable: This is the oddball but I definitely recommend you to grab it if you hate the cable ergonomics. The FiiO cable is way softer and more flexible, and it also has a mic (yeah yeah interference, etc). To me it hooks to my ears better, and is very comfortable and does not feel stiff nor bulky. Does not change sound, but yea for 16 bucks what can you expect?