Shure SE425 vs Audio-Technica ATH-E70

Short answer: the Shure SE425, though neither ranks well in its class. It ranks #434 of 450 in-ear headphones by sound quality, rated 1.9/5, at $299; the Audio-Technica ATH-E70 ranks #436, rated 1.7/5, and costs $429, so there is not much of a tradeoff to weigh. Both are rated below 3.0/5 among the 450 in-ear headphones, and the Truthear Nova, ranked #2 at $169.99, is a better place to start if sound quality matters.

What the Shure SE425 does well: Two balanced armature drivers with a 22 ohm impedance and 109 dB/mW sensitivity, so it plays loud from a phone without an amplifier. The catch: A preference score of 48 in crinacle’s measurement places its tuning far from what most listeners prefer, so expect a clearly colored sound.

The case for the Audio-Technica ATH-E70: Three balanced armature drivers per side with 109 dB/mW sensitivity and a 39 ohm impedance let a phone drive it to loud levels without an amp. The catch: A preference score of 46 in crinacle’s measurement places it far from the response most listeners prefer, so expect a strongly colored sound.

Buy the Shure SE425. It is rated higher for sound quality than the Audio-Technica ATH-E70 and costs less, so only choose the other one for a particular feature it does better.

Want more options? Browse the full Headphones rankings.

Specifications Side By Side

Related Headphone Comparisons

More worthwhile head-to-heads for Shure SE425:

• V-MODA Zn vs Shure SE425
• Shure SE425 vs Westone W10
• Shure SE425 vs Mackie MP-360
• Shure SE425 vs Etymotic ER4SR
• Shure SE425 vs Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 2

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The Two Headphones In Full

Shure SE425: $299.00 B&H Photo Video eBay

Pros: Two balanced armature drivers with a 22 ohm impedance and 109 dB/mW sensitivity, so it plays loud from a phone without an amplifier. It is rated above the Etymotic ER4SR at the same price and the Westone W10.

Cons: A preference score of 48 in crinacle’s measurement places its tuning far from what most listeners prefer, so expect a clearly colored sound. It is wired only, with no wireless features or microphone remote listed.

Full Shure SE425 review and specifications →

Released	2010 (16 years ago)
Back	Closed
Connection	Wired
Deviation From Target	4.17 dB standard deviation
Driver Type	Balanced armature
Drivers	2 x balanced armature
Form Factor	In-ear
Frequency Response	20Hz - 19kHz (Manufacturer specified)
Harman Preference Score	48 (measured by crinacle, via AutoEQ)
Impedance	22 ohms
Sensitivity	109 dB SPL/mW
Tonal Tilt	+0.59 (negative is warmer, positive brighter)

EQ preset to match the Harman target

Set a preamp of -6.6 dB, then add these filters in any parametric equalizer (Wavelet, Equalizer APO, Peace, or a player with parametric EQ). Calculated by AutoEQ from its measured frequency response.

Filter	Frequency	Gain	Q
Low shelf	105 Hz	+6.0 dB	0.70
Peak	223 Hz	-3.2 dB	0.57
Peak	8,943 Hz	+6.2 dB	1.83
Peak	48 Hz	+0.8 dB	1.86
Peak	5,492 Hz	+5.0 dB	3.43
High shelf	10,000 Hz	+5.8 dB	0.70
Peak	3,734 Hz	-2.7 dB	4.45
Peak	2,114 Hz	+1.2 dB	2.77
Peak	9,102 Hz	-3.1 dB	5.33
Peak	895 Hz	+0.7 dB	2.99

• Reviews, Comparisons and Sound Samples
  • AutoEQ results for the Shure SE425 (crinacle measurement)
• Head-to-Head Comparisons
  • Shure SE425 vs Westone W10
  • Shure SE425 vs Mackie MP-360
  • Shure SE425 vs Etymotic ER4SR
  • Shure SE425 vs Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 2
  • Shure SE425 vs V-MODA Zn

Audio-Technica ATH-E70: $429.00 Amazon eBay

Pros: Three balanced armature drivers per side with 109 dB/mW sensitivity and a 39 ohm impedance let a phone drive it to loud levels without an amp. Each earpiece weighs 9 g, and its rating matches the Mackie MP-360.

Cons: A preference score of 46 in crinacle’s measurement places it far from the response most listeners prefer, so expect a strongly colored sound. Plenty of better tuned in-ears cost far less, which makes it hard to recommend on sound.

Full Audio-Technica ATH-E70 review and specifications →

Released	Apr 2016 (10 years ago)
Back	Closed
Built-in Microphone	No
Connection	Wired
Deviation From Target	4.20 dB standard deviation
Driver Type	Balanced armature
Drivers	3 x balanced armature
Form Factor	In-ear
Frequency Response	20Hz - 19kHz (Manufacturer specified)
Harman Preference Score	46 (measured by crinacle, via AutoEQ)
Impedance	39 ohms
Sensitivity	109 dB/mW
Tonal Tilt	-0.70 (negative is warmer, positive brighter)
Weight	0 lbs (9 g) per earpiece

EQ preset to match the Harman target

Set a preamp of -6.3 dB, then add these filters in any parametric equalizer (Wavelet, Equalizer APO, Peace, or a player with parametric EQ). Calculated by AutoEQ from its measured frequency response.

Filter	Frequency	Gain	Q
Low shelf	105 Hz	+2.0 dB	0.70
Peak	214 Hz	-4.8 dB	0.58
Peak	5,106 Hz	+6.4 dB	0.99
Peak	2,872 Hz	+3.4 dB	2.08
Peak	6,870 Hz	-5.3 dB	3.97
High shelf	10,000 Hz	+5.7 dB	0.70
Peak	9,099 Hz	-2.3 dB	2.49
Peak	1,430 Hz	-1.5 dB	2.52
Peak	912 Hz	+1.3 dB	2.09
Peak	442 Hz	-0.4 dB	1.96

• Reviews, Comparisons and Sound Samples
  • AutoEQ results for the Audio-Technica ATH-E70 (crinacle measurement)
• Head-to-Head Comparisons
  • Audio-Technica ATH-E70 vs Mackie MP-360
  • Audio-Technica ATH-E70 vs Etymotic ER4SR