Shure

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Shure Incorporated is a consumer and professional audio electronics corporation. Shure Incorporated mainly produces microphones and other audio electronics, but also produces in-ear monitors (earphones) for a variety of audio applications including MP3 players.

Contents 1 Background 1.1 Brief history and milestones 1.2 Phonograph cartridges 1.3 Microphones 1.4 Personal monitors 1.5 Earphones 2 Products 2.1 Phono Cartridge Series 2.2 Microphones 2.3 Wireless Microphones 2.4 Public Address / Vocal Amplification 2.5 Earphones 3 Works cited 4 See also 5 External links

Background

Shure was founded in 1925 as The Shure Radio Company under an audio magnate named Sidney Shure. The company is based in United States, and has been a Chicagoland company since its founding, when Sidney Shure worked out of an office in downtown Chicago. The company moved to Evanston, Illinois in 1956. In 2002, Shure Incorporated relocated to an award-winning [1] office building in Niles, Illinois. The building was designed by renowned architect Helmut Jahn, and was originally the headquarters of HA•LO Industries.

The company's products including their wireless systems and microphones are ubiquitous in well-known music award events, such as the Grammy Awards.

Brief history and milestones

Up until 1933, The Shure Radio Company strictly made radio systems. Since then, the company has expanded its audio horizons to microphones, phonograph cartridges, discussion systems, mixers and digital signal processing, and recently headphones, including high-end earbuds.

Shure introduced a stylus force gauge, which eventually became the industry standard. The SFG-2 Precision Stylus Phono Gauge (essentially a balance) can measure the tracking force of a cartridge to within a tenth of a gram. It is useful in setting up the configuration of a record player.

Phonograph cartridges

In 1958, Shure introduced one of the first phono cartridges designed to play stereophonic discs. Shure produced numerous cartridge series as well as replacement styli, in many cases continued offering dedicated 78-rpm styli as an option for its cartridges.

Shure continues to produce fine cartridges, but the highly-acclaimed V15 Type V-MR has been discontinued.

Microphones

Shure has produced a vast array of microphones for decades, among which are the well known SM and Beta series of dynamic and condenser microphones. The series includes the SM58 (the standard and most-used microphone worldwide for live vocals), SM48, SM86, SM87A (primarily for vocal reproduction) and SM57 (used to mic guitar amps, drums, brass instruments, etc...), SM94 and SM81 (often used for strings, pianos, overhead drum mics, large choirs). The Beta 52A and Beta 91 are two of the most common microphones used for kick drums. The SM57 and SM58, and their more modern variants, the Beta 57A and 58A, are some of the most widely used microphones in the world, particularly for live sound reproduction. The SM7 is also a widely used vocal microphone for brodcast and voiceover work as well as low frequency instruments (kick drum, bass guitar).

The elite line of Shure microphones is the KSM series. These mics are primarily used in studio recording, but do have some applications to live sound, such as overhead drum mics or for use with guitar and bass amplifiers. The KSM series includes the KSM27, KSM32, KSM44, KSM109, KSM137 and the KSM144. The new KSM9 microphone recently debuted. It is the first microphone in the KSM line made for use with live vocals, and features both cardioid and supercardioid polar patterns.

Shure's dynamic mics are popular because they are relatively inexpensive, sound good, and are extremely durable. For example, in the 1970s Roger Daltrey of the Who often used industrial tape to secure a Shure SM58 to his microphone cord, then swung it around in huge arcs from the stage. On occasion, it would strike the floor or PA equipment, yet kept working.

Shure's 55SH Series II microphone is a fifties-era iconic mic that is still popular today among musicians and radio personalities.

Other Shure microphone series include the Performance Gear (PG) introductory professional series, Specialty Consumer Microphones, and Microflex and Easyflex installed conferencing systems for commercial installed applications.

There is also a full line of wireless microphones, most of them wireless versions of their wired models.

Personal monitors

Shure introduced their personal monitoring systems in 1997. These systems enable musicians and professional audio producers to fine-tune all music and its related background notes with minimal distortion and clear frequency. Shure's personal monitor library are tailored differently to fit different budgets and recording needs of many musicians and professional audio producers.

A pair of Shure's sound-isolating earphones (called in-ear monitors in the professional audio channel) can be included as a part of a personal monitor system—prior to its earphones being available through consumer channels, Shure's sound-isolating earphones were only available as a part of a personal monitoring system package.

Earphones

Marketed as "sound-isolating earphones" for the personal audio channel, the demand for Shure earphones grew rapidly with the rising popularity of portable audio devices such as the iPod and when musicians, professional audio producers, and even audiophiles utilized the company's earphones (initially included only in personal monitor systems) utilized the earphones on devices other than Shure's personal monitor/mixer systems. As of 2007-01-01, Shure has a vast library of earphones and headsets for the personal audio market.

Shure expanded their consumer earphone line with dedicated earsets for use with cellular telephones initially (Shure sells 3 types of cellular earsets as of 2007-01-18), and opted to combine their cellular telephone earset components with premium audio components found in the E2, E3, and E4 to form the "I" series, a band of two-purpose earphones that can be used with both music and cellular devices. A trim for the Treo smartphone has only one connector.

Shure catered to the mobile gaming market with the G variation of its E2, E3, and E4 earphones, although only cosmetic differences and the branding are different. Shure pursued to provide more variety towards the consumer-grade audiophile with the release of its first three-driver product, the E500 (which was shown at the 2006 Consumer Electronics Show in las Vegas. [2]). At the same time the E500 was released, Shure's push-to-hear accessory was also introduced (included with the current E500PTH).

Shure has recently introduced its lineup of next-generation consumer-grade earphones known as the SE series. The E and I series will continue to co-exist even with the arrival of the SE series. The E500 will be called the SE530 effective the SE series' release. The SE series introduces Shure's reorganized accessory line for its earphones, ranging from an airline adapter to ergonomically-designed black foam tips. Shure discontinued the clear soft sleeves after hearing complaints about discomfort reported amongst users. One of the SE's examples of improving existing technology was the SE420, although it shares the same armature technology as with the E5, uses pre-emptive (in-ear) inline crossover (as opposed to cooperative inline crossover) to fix some sound overlapping flaws reported on the E5. The SE series was released with Shure Push-To-Hear, multi-purpose audio utilization, lower prices, and improved sound signatures in mind. ^[1] [3] [4]

All of Shure's earphones have the same performance as the only difference between the professional audio trim and the consumer trim is the packaging, cosmetic appearance of the earphones, and the naming. For example, the E4 and the E4C has the same sound detail performance although they are marketed differently. Shure states in its solutions database that all sound isolation earphones, regardless of the labeling and packaging, has the same sound performance. For example, Shure claims that the E4, E4C, and E4G (for the gaming audience) have the same level of performance. The only exception to this is Shure's i series, which was tailored for both stereo jack and cell phone usage.

All of Shure's earphones and/or earsets utilize a unique closed-canal sound isolation technology — blocking outside noise from interfering with the audio without active noise cancellation, which requires batteries. This makes the earphones lighter and more portable while also blocking out more noise than noise cancelling headphones. [5] In addition to its canal-blocking noise isolation technology, Shure earphones utilize a variety of foam and plastic sleeves to ensure a good fit on all ears. [6] Getting the proper fit [7] when inserting these is key to getting the best sound and blocking out the most noise.

Products

Phono Cartridge Series

• M44 series starting in the early 1960s,
• M91 series in the early 1970s,
• M95 series in the mid-1970s,
• V15 series beginning in 1965, followed by the V15 Type II in 1968, V15 Type III in 1973, V15 Type IV in 1978, V15 Type V in 1982 (discontinued).
• M97 series in 1990s.
• Whitelabel Spin/Mix
• M44-7 Turntablist
• M44-G Club/Spin
• M35X House/Techno
• M25c General Use

Microphones

• Performance Gear Series
• SM series, starting in the 1960s
• Beta series, starting in the 1980s
• KSM series condenser studio microphones
• KSM9 cardiod/supercardiod live performance microphones

Wireless Microphones

VHF Technology

• T Series

UHF Technology

• UT Series
• PGX Series
• SLX Series
• ULX Professional Series
• UHF Series
• UHF-R Series

Public Address / Vocal Amplification

• Shure Vocal Master PA mixer & speaker columns (1960s - 70s)

Earphones

In-Ear Monitor	Also Known As	Driver
E2	E2C/E2G	One miniature dynamic high-energy magnet
E3	E3C/E3G	One Low-Mass/High Energy Balanced Armature
SE210	SE210	One Low-Mass/High Energy Balanced Armature with collapsable cable and Shure Push-To-Hear compatibility[1]
E4	E4C/E4G	One Low-Mass/High Energy Balanced Armature with Tuned Port (Shure's Tuned Port technology allows air to flow through the armature, allowing the armature to perform more efficiently)
SE310	SE310	One Low-Mass/High Energy Balanced Armature with Tuned Port (Shure's Tuned Port technology allows air to flow through the armature, allowing the armature to perform more efficiently) with collapsable cable and Shure Push-To-Hear compatibility[1]
E5	E5C	Two Low-Mass/High-Energy Balanced Armatures (one for treble, one for bass) on each side with cooperative Inline Crossover
SE420	SE420	Two Low-Mass/High-Energy Balanced Armatures (one for treble, one for bass) with in-ear pre-emptive inline crossover, collapsable cable, and Shure Push-To-Hear compatibility[1]
SE530 (formerly E500)	SE530PTH (formerly E500PTH—will be available with and without Shure Push-To-Hear)	Three Low-Mass/High Energy Balanced Armatures (one armature for each range of notes—highs, mids, and lows [2]) with pre-emptive (in-ear) inline crossover [8], and tuned port on each side[3] with collapsable cable and Shure Push-To-Hear compatibility
I2C	I2C-T (for Palm Treo models)	One miniature dynamic high-energy magnet with VoicePort Microphone
I3C	I3C-T (for Palm Treo models)	One Low-Mass/High Energy Balanced Armature with VoicePort Microphone
I4C	I4C-T (for Palm Treo models)	One Low-Mass/High Energy Balanced Armature with Shure's Tuned Port with VoicePort Microphone

SE Series Works Cited can be seen by clicking here

The SE incarnations of the E3, E4, and E5 will undergo a major facelift, while the E500, when renamed to the SE530, will retain its design. [9]

Works cited

See also

• Earphones
• Audiophile
• Microphone and wireless microphone
• Head-fi
• SM57 and SM58

External links

• Official Shure Incorporated website
• E500PTH headphones review
• E4c review
• E2c review
• Shure SE Series press release
• Shure SE Series preview from Skattertech
• Owners and Service manuals for Shure Phono Cartridges and Tonearms