Shure SE425 vs Etymotic ER4SR

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 Etymotic ER4SR ranks #440, rated 1.7/5, and costs $299.99, 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.

The case for the Shure SE425: 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 Etymotic ER4SR: For listeners who prefer a flat, studio style sound, the midrange from 200 Hz to 3 kHz stays within about 1 dB of target and its largest upper range peak is only 1.6 dB, so vocals come through clear without any glare. The catch: Sub-bass sits about 11 dB below target and falls 6 dB short at 75 Hz, so bass heavy music sounds lean and lacks impact.

Buy the Shure SE425. It is rated higher for sound quality than the Etymotic ER4SR and costs less, which makes it the one to get unless you need something the other one does better.

Still deciding? The full Headphones rankings cover every ranked option.

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 Audio-Technica ATH-E70
• Shure SE425 vs Mackie MP-360
• 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 Audio-Technica ATH-E70
  • Shure SE425 vs Mackie MP-360
  • Shure SE425 vs Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 2
  • Shure SE425 vs V-MODA Zn

Etymotic ER4SR: $299.99 B&H Photo Video eBay

Pros: For listeners who prefer a flat, studio style sound, the midrange from 200 Hz to 3 kHz stays within about 1 dB of target and its largest upper range peak is only 1.6 dB, so vocals come through clear without any glare. It is rated level with the Audio-Technica ATH-E70 and Mackie MP-360, which cost more.

Cons: Sub-bass sits about 11 dB below target and falls 6 dB short at 75 Hz, so bass heavy music sounds lean and lacks impact. Treble about 6 dB low from 6 to 10 kHz and a 9 dB dip near 11.7 kHz take away air and shimmer. Its 98 dB/mW sensitivity is on the low side for an in ear, so it needs more volume than most.

Full Etymotic ER4SR review and specifications →

Released	2016 (10 years ago)
Back	Closed
Built-in Microphone	No
Connection	Wired
Deviation From Target	4.26 dB standard deviation
Driver Type	Balanced armature
Drivers	1 x balanced armature
Form Factor	In-ear
Frequency Response	20Hz - 16kHz (Manufacturer specified)
Harman Preference Score	45 (measured by oratory1990, via AutoEQ)
Impedance	45 ohms
Sensitivity	98 dB/mW
Sub-bass Extension	Falls 6 dB below target at 75 Hz (-10.6 dB at 30 Hz)
Tonal Tilt	+1.38 (negative is warmer, positive brighter)

EQ preset to match the Harman target

Set a preamp of -6.0 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	2,470 Hz	-3.7 dB	0.94
Peak	7,389 Hz	+6.4 dB	1.15
Peak	77 Hz	+1.2 dB	2.20
Peak	1,450 Hz	-1.8 dB	2.27
High shelf	10,000 Hz	+2.5 dB	0.70
Peak	269 Hz	-0.5 dB	1.17
Peak	745 Hz	+0.5 dB	2.09
Peak	7,552 Hz	-0.8 dB	4.20
Peak	9,634 Hz	-1.0 dB	5.99

• Reviews, Comparisons and Sound Samples
  • AutoEQ results for the Etymotic ER4SR (oratory1990 measurement)
• Head-to-Head Comparisons
  • Etymotic ER4SR vs Mackie MP-360
  • Etymotic ER4SR vs Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 2
  • Etymotic ER4SR vs Audio-Technica ATH-E70
  • Etymotic ER4SR vs EarSonics ES2