Shure SE420

Who's It For

Audiophiles

Audiophiles probably aren’t looking for the best isolation since they plan on listening in an ideal environment. Therefore the most important quality is audio performance. While the tracking is impressive, distortion was a bit high and the frequency response wasn’t particularly breath-taking.

Portable User

Portable users are who these headphones were made for. They’re in-ears which means they’re hardly a burden to lug around. They also have excellent isolation and leakage control to keep the morning commute and your music separate.

Airplane Traveler

Despite them not being the most comfortable set of in-ears (which could make a difference on a long flight), the SE420s block out so much sound that we can’t not recommend them here.

Home / Office Use

In-ears are just not ideal for the home theater. The tiny, closed-off sound puts in-ears below on-ear or over-ear headphones in this category, unless the entry is absolutely remarkable. The Shure SE420s are not remarkable in this way.

Conclusion

The Shure SE420s are a solid pair of headphones. Their frequency response graph wasn’t bad, their distortion was fairly low (to the point of not being noticeable unless you were looking for it), and they can isolate better than any other headphones we’ve reviewed. If you’ve been getting annoyed at how loud your commute is, or if your desk at work is right near the squeaky air conditioner, the SE420s can offer you the silence you seek. They are great isolators, both for you and those around you. What they aren’t, however, is cheap or particularly special-sounding. If you’re buying based on your wallet’s contents then we’d point you at any of the other five comparison headphones, especially the MM 50 iPs or Denon AH-C351s. The former is a better overall set that can’t isolate nearly as well, but retail for half the SE420s’ price; the latter is good for what it costs, which isn’t a lot. While the SE420s should be taken into consideration if you’re looking for in-ears, they’re a shoe-in for isolating its users from everything.