[Arfan]

Hey guys, 
  I've bought some shure se 215's for use on the bus, and I was wondering whether the black shure foams actually give you a better seal if you skip the bit in insertion where you are supposed to squeeze them into a small cylinder before putting them in your ear.
 
 I mean you'd expect it to be the same if you didn't squeeze as they would have to contract to follow your ear canal anyway. 
 
 I was just asking in case any of you have done any real tests to find out and searching doesn't seem to give an answer to my question being as specific as it is.
 
Also, I was just wondering why so many people were complaining about the audio cutting out on these things mine have been perfect since purchase so if anyone could enlighten me as to what time these malfunctions kick in I'd be thankful.

 

[Shark]

I have those earphones also and I love them. They're not the greatest things on the planet, but great for the price in my opinion. 
They tell you to squeeze them so you can really get the best fit and seal. Comply says the same things about their tips. I think it has something to do with making sure you don't squish the sound hole at all, which would kill the sound.
 
I think we're experiencing perfect 215s because we haven't been messing with the earphones. I assume that people tried detaching/reattaching the earphone so many time that they ruined the connection. F'ing with the earphones will obviously make them suck. Know what I mean?

 

[navmau]

You can just push the foam sleeves without compressing them but you risk damaging the tapered end of the tip. I do something in-between where I only compress the thick part of the sleeve as the front, tapered end goes in without having to be compressed and since the thicker part is compressed, there is no friction getting them in the ears and therefore, no damage to the sleeve.
 
I have found the Shure black foams to be number one out of every foam tip, they deliver the sound very well without altering SQ, are super comfortable and last forever (current pair is 12 months old and still going!). I don't submerge mine in water, I just wipe them down with a damp paper towel, works great.
 
Hope that helps.

 

[bcasey25raptor]

Well i just shove em in my ears usually. They still block out sound really well. I find the compressing of the tips doesn't do much for me. I love my se215s. Good value imo.
 
But i can't say anything regarding them breaking as mine are only about 10 days old. Hopefully i won't have to use the warranty.

 

[Arfan]

 
Quote:

You can just push the foam sleeves without compressing them but you risk damaging the tapered end of the tip. I do something in-between where I only compress the thick part of the sleeve as the front, tapered end goes in without having to be compressed and since the thicker part is compressed, there is no friction getting them in the ears and therefore, no damage to the sleeve.
 
I have found the Shure black foams to be number one out of every foam tip, they deliver the sound very well without altering SQ, are super comfortable and last forever (current pair is 12 months old and still going!). I don't submerge mine in water, I just wipe them down with a damp paper towel, works great.
 
Hope that helps.

Thanks Navmau, that answers my question very well. I'm still debating personally whether I should use the shure foams or the silicons buds right now for ease of insertion.
 
But that's another topic altogether. 

 

[Arfan]

Quote:

I have those earphones also and I love them. They're not the greatest things on the planet, but great for the price in my opinion. 
They tell you to squeeze them so you can really get the best fit and seal. Comply says the same things about their tips. I think it has something to do with making sure you don't squish the sound hole at all, which would kill the sound.
 
I think we're experiencing perfect 215s because we haven't been messing with the earphones. I assume that people tried detaching/reattaching the earphone so many time that they ruined the connection. F'ing with the earphones will obviously make them suck. Know what I mean?

I don't agree with what you're saying about the SE 215's as the detachable cable is there to be removed and put back. A little research, and my friends phone call to Shure when his failed, reveals that the connections(which are similar to coaxial cables) can sometimes be dislodged or be weak on the earlier batches. 
 
My friends cut out too but he never mis handles his stuff so I guess it's cuz we bought our IEM's when the problems in the factory line were presumably ironed out. Whatever it is I'm glad mine havent =).

 

[nicholars]

I just roll them a little bit and they are better then all the other types... They give best SQ and isolation.

 

[navmau]

Quote:

 


Thanks Navmau, that answers my question very well. I'm still debating personally whether I should use the shure foams or the silicons buds right now for ease of insertion.
 
But that's another topic altogether. 

I find the Shure foams very easy to insert and not all that much different from silicon tips. I think it'e because of the tapered design, I just squeeze them a tiny bit and they insert very well and expand quite quickly so I don't have to hold them in the ears waiting for them to expand. It's this overall ease of use and the amazing longevity that makes them among the best tips on the market.