Design
While the E5c earbuds are larger than other earphone-style headphones, they're still stunningly small. The cord, which includes an inline crossover unit that separates high- and low-frequency signals, is thin and pliant. A bendable stiffening material is added to the section of cable that runs behind the ears, allowing the listener to loop the cables over and behind the ear-- a simple and discreet solution. The gold-plated, 3.5mm input connector has a low-profile elbow bend to minimize accidental unplugging and snags. Shure includes a detachable in-line volume attenuator that controls volume without the need to fiddle with your player or listening source. The attenuator did seem a tad larger than it needed to be and, because it is not built into the E5c cord, it must be plugged in at the end of the cord. More than one tester said, "Why not just change the volume on the iPod instead of this doo-dad plugged directly into it?" A solution that places the attenuator nearer the listener's chest would be a welcome addition, but it's admittedly a minor niggle.

In an effort to match the earphones to ears of all shapes and sizes, the E5c earphones come with a number of earplug "sleeves" packaged in what Shure calls a "fit kit". Our testers had little trouble finding a sleeve that felt comfortable. We especially liked the expanding foam sleeves that, like those foam dinosaurs that grow in water, expand to fit the contours of the ear canal.

Lost in Sound
With the E5c earphones comfortably placed in our ears, we listened to a range of music genres encoded in both music CD and MP3 format. The most common response was, "Wow, I never knew this song had all these other instruments." Indeed, the E5c's have such dramatic clarity and frequency response that we were left wondering how we'd ever listened to music any other way. They're that good. The earphones produce the sensation that the music is actually inside one's head. Bass vibrates the cerebral cortex, high ranges dance in the frontal lobes. While Shure posts impressive impedence and sensitivity ratings for the E5c's, the truth is in the listening and we were simply blown away. In loud, crowded environments such as airplane cabins and teeming Seattle coffee shops, we heard absolutely nothing but music, a sensation that is both eerie and liberating. Anyone who says there is no difference between high-bitrate MP3 and CD audio tracks should strap on a pair of these earphones. The difference is striking.

The earphones remained comfortable after extended use, especially with the expanding foam sleeves. Listeners with especially small ears may want to give the E5c's a trial run; they are somewhat larger than the other, more affordable earphones in Shure's "E" line. This concern aside, if you have the ears, and the earmarked funds, for the E5c's, you are in for a listening adventure like none other. --Joshua Gunn

Pros

• Simple, compact design
• Designed for compatibility with most ears
• Did somebody say something? We were lost in sonic bliss.

• Costs more than many things it plugs into
• May be a tad big for small ears
• Volume attenuator could be better designed and integrated