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Shure E500PTH Review: Headphones + a Microphone!?

Posted on November 7, 2006 by Jeremy Toeman

Microphone on/off switchWant a surefire way to make the best headphones on the market even better?  Easy, add a mike.  Confused?  Well, Shure (the makers of my favorite E4c and runner-up E2c headphones) did just that, and believe it or not, it all makes perfect sense.It turns out you can divide people into one of two camps when it comes to headphones: innies and outies.  Innies are the people who enjoy wearing in-ear headphones, the ones that go inside the ‘lobe and pump the sound right into your brain.  Outies prefer on-ear headphones, such as the Bose QuietComforts, which sit on top of your ears.  I’ve tried quite a few of both, in a variety of situations, and am quite certain of the fact that I’m an innie.  I like being able to fall asleep with the buds in my ear, I find the Bose set makes my head get a little, sweaty, and I find they simply can’t block out the sounds of a wailing child three rows behind me.

Until a short time ago, the Shure E4c’s were my favorite headphones.  I’d even tried the E5c’s, and while the sound quality was stunning, they just weren’t comfortable for a 13-hour flight to Hong Kong.  The E4c’s were the king of the innies in my world, with only one major nag: the process of removing/inserting them is unpleasant to repeat on a frequent basis.  Welcome to the Shure E500PTH’s.

Shure E500 inner packagingPackaging
As with all Shure products, the headphones are nicely packaged inside a small box.  The box has an inner metallic shell with a very nice finish, and inside that shell is a molded foam case to hold all the pieces.  Nice, simple, luxurious, and not overly wasteful.

Shure E500 packaging Shure E500 packaging Shure E500 packaging Shure E500 packaging Shure E500 inner packaging Shure E500 internal packaging Shure E500 in packaging Shure E500 in foam Shure E500 carrying case in the packaging Shure E500 carrying case in the packaging Inside the Shure E500 packaging Shure E500 carrying case

Shure E500 package contentsContents
When you buy the E500PTH’s you receive:

  • The headphones
  • The microphone
  • A mini-extension cable
  • A 1/8″ to 1/4″ adapter
  • Oval carrying case
  • Lots of extra earbuds

Shure E500 package contents in carrying case Shure E500 headset Shure E500 carrying case Shure E500 headphones

Headphones
I’m going to stay a little light on discussing the headphones themselves this time.  Others like Gary Krakow have already reviewed the overall sound quality of them (here’s Gary’s take on the E4c’s, and he’s about 100x a discerning listener compared to me) and CNet made them an Editor’s Choice.  Suffice it to say – they sound as good, possibly better, than the rest of the Shure lineup.  You’ll have nothing to complain about when it comes to the sound quality, be it at home, on a plane, or anywhere else you are using the E500PTH’s.  They sound great.

Shure E500 ear pieces Shure E500 ear piece 

Jack for headsetMicrophone
Now this is where the E500PTH’s get interesting.  Their noise-cancelling capabilities are tremendous, but as I said above, taking out and shoving in little rubber buds in your ear every time the person next to you wants to share some little detail of their life and why they love their home town can get, well, annoying.  And I have a hunch quite a few of Shure’s customers shared that sentiment with the company, since the E500’s specifically address that situation. 

Through some quite clever ingenuity (in my opinion), Shure added a microphone and a little on/off switch to the headphones.  When switched “on” (which does require a single AAA battery), the E500’s effectively mute the incoming audio source, and amplify the microphone.  This translates to: when you turn them on, you can hear the outside world again.  There’s actually a little volume control dial to adjust the level of amplification, and while it took me a little tweaking and a lot of getting used to, I finally got it right.

The next time the flight attendant walked by my seat (my original fiddling with them was on a plane), I was able to order my drink (and, of course, thank her for it), without whispering or screaming at the top of my lungs.  Again – it takes some getting used to, but once you’ve tried it for a few minutes, you’ll find yourself hitting the switch and carrying on a conversation as if you weren’t wearing the headphones at all. Very very impressive!

Microphone part Jack for headset Warning sticker Volume adjustment Battery holder Microphone clip Battery for the mike 

Shure E500 with iRiver ClixOverall
I have only a single annoyance with the Shure E500PTH’s, which is the size of the carrying case.  Granted, I was spoiled by the “fits in the palm of my hand” size of the E4c’s, and it’s still nothing compared to the mega-case which carries the Bose QuietComfort 2’s (forget the 3’s, they make ya puke).  So chalk that up as the only negative thing I have to say, otherwise, the E500’s are a winner.  Another nice touch is if the microphone battery dies, the headphones still work (unlike most over-the-ear noise reduction headphones).They are now, in fact, a permanent addition to my laptop case, and should be in yours as well.  However, they do cost over $400 (Amazon link), so if you already have headphones you like, you can opt to purchase the “push-to-hear” component instead (Shure site).

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Posted in General, LD Approved, Product Reviews, Travel | 6 Comments
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6 thoughts on “Shure E500PTH Review: Headphones + a Microphone!?”

  1. Pingback: Gear Diary » Blog Archive » Live Digitally Reviews the Shure E500PTH Headphones and Says…

  2. Pingback: GottaBeMobile.com - Jeremy Toeman Reviews the Shure 3500 Headphones - Your Tablet PC and Ultra-Mobile PC news source

  3. Pingback: HeadphoneBlog - Headphone News, Reviews & Advice » Shure e500PTH

  4. Lukas says:
    October 6, 2007 at 8:20 am

    I am looking for a good quality noise cancelling headphone with microphone so I can use it both for music listening and for phone calls on my blackberry 8820. From reading your review this does not appear to be a supported function of this product?

    Reply
  5. James Skinner says:
    February 2, 2008 at 10:45 pm

    The Shure e500PTH is no longer available. The replacement is the Shure SE530PTH sound isolating earphone, which comes with a Push-To-Hear control in the same way as the e500PTH. Got mine for a good price from the HiFi Headphones store in the UK.

    I agree with the review about the bulkiness of the carrying case. However, the sound quality is truly excellent and in my opinion sounds so much better than any of the noise cancelling headphones I’ve tried.

    Reply
  6. COLIN says:
    August 20, 2008 at 12:39 pm

    I have just bought a apir of these earphones and i must say im very very impressed. I have got a recording of the “Dreamgirls” album soundtrack and with the range of voices on that album, it quite magical.

    However, with such a high end product, both in price and quality, i am VERY VERY disapointed that Shure have not included a facility to skip,forward, or replay a track. It would seem that the PTH is just one big microphone with no other function. Im sure we have all come to a time when on certain albums there are tracks that we are to fond of, and being able to skip those tracks to the nxt one or even reply one can be a very useful addition. Well i have such albums. Now with these earphones i have to 1, get my iphone out my pocket 2,tap in my passcode 3,go to my ipod 4,skip the track and 5, put it back in my pocket. Now thats ok for one track but you may have 3 or 4 that you would like to skip or play again, with means a lot of manual swoppin and changin, very time consuming. This may seem nothin to some , but to me it a serious oversight, so much so that i may eed to change them for something more convenient to my needs. Sound is not everything !!!

    How disapointing, i hope Shure can come up with a solution.

    COLIN

    Reply

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About

Jeremy Toeman is a seasoned Product leader with over 20 years experience in the convergence of digital media, mobile entertainment, social entertainment, smart TV and consumer technology. Prior ventures and projects include CNET, Viggle/Dijit/Nextguide, Sling Media, VUDU, Clicker, DivX, Rovi, Mediabolic, Boxee, and many other consumer technology companies. This blog represents his personal opinion and outlook on things.

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