Commando
The sonys actually isolate quite well, though not as good as the shures. I use the foamies only with the e2s and they do a very good job isolating. The sonys only come with the black mushroom tips (three different sizes) but thats what makes them so comfortable and easy to insert - these don't stick as far in the canal as the shures. I don't hear a single sound in the gym with the shures other than whats coming through my tuner. I can faintly hear some things with the sonys. Isolation is important to me because it allows me to really get in the zone. The shures foamies seem to last forever also - they won't fall off the earpiece (at least not easily), but the sony's mushroom tips have fell off several times. Another thing to remember is that the shures are good with sweat or drizzle while running. They got wet several time and they seem fine. I think all the wetness finally got to the sonys though.
Which is more comfortable? The sonys are. They are so easy to insert - no twisting at all, just pop them in. I've had the e2s for a while and I believe I am more than used to them by now - so I would give the sonys a 9/10 for comfort and the shures a 7/10. After wearing them for a couple months, you will get used to them though.
Ok, heres the deal with the cord length. I use a tuner and it is clipped to my hip and I'm about 5'10. The sony length was shorter than the shures but they both had slack. In regards to the sony: I could get away with them just hanging down the front/side to the tuner with most exercises. There are some that require me to do a little extra with the sonys whereas with the shures, if I wrap them once around my neck, I don't ever have to do anything extra so they don't get in my way. I will explain. The shures cord is stiff and will not slouch but the sonys will slouch much more when bending over. This effects a couple of my exercises. Lat pulls with a V-handle and an olympic bar in the standing/squating position is a good example. You have to pull the handle up towards your lower chest while bending over slightly. The sonys will slouch and get caught on the handle as your on the negative - the shures will not if wrapped around your neck. I remedied this by either wrapping the cord around my tuner a couple times or by holding some extra slack in my mouth. Its not a huge deal but I don't have to worry about this with the shures. On my last post I said the sonys short length is more convenient and I don't mean to confuse you. So it comes down to this - do you care about wrapping the shures around your neck (I don't) or would you rather just have to fiddle with certain exercises with the sonys (but not have to wrap around the neck).
Hope this helps Commando.
