Paradigm Shift E1, E2m, and E3m Earphones (Playback 59)

When I was a kid I used to read the Sears and Roebuck catalog from cover to cover. I saved up for months to buy the “good” fishing rod while still lusting after the Ted Williams signature “Best “ rod. Looking over the information on the new Paradigm Shift series of headphones gave me powerful feelings of déjà vu. Paradigm also uses the good, better, best method to differentiate the earphones in the Paradigm Shift line-up.

According to their product information all three Paradigm Shift earbuds use similar 8mm super neodymium drivers. But the E2m and E3m have slightly greater sensitivity than the E1 earbuds. I suspect that some of the specification and sonic differences can be linked to the different enclosures. The E1 uses plastic while the E2m employs two-piece sealed aluminum. The E3m has a solid one-piece aluminum housing.

Paradigm claims that each of the three earphones in the Shift stable is modeled after a particular series or line of Paradigm speakers. The E1s are based on the Monitor Series 7, the E2ms are based on the Studio Series and the E3ms are based on the Signature Series of loudspeakers. While I suspect this is as much about marketing as virtual modeling, it does raise questions, unanswered in their product literature about how this was accomplished.

Of the three earphones E-series, the least expensive $49.95 E1 will be the biggest hit with athletes or anyone who wears their earbuds with the cables routed above their ears and down their backs. The E1 are also had more bass than most in-ears I’ve heard. Paradigm’s top-of-the-line E3ms are aimed squarely at listeners who want bass, more bass, and for variation, a little more bass. The E2ms are for more temperate, but they’re still for listeners who like bass a lot.

FEATURES

E1

•Critically tuned for a sound said to be similar to that of Paradigms’ Monitor Series 7 loudspeakers.
•Fundamentals:

oDrivers: 8mm dynamic driver fitted with super-neodymium magnets.
oSensitivity: 103 dB
oFrequency Response: 10 Hz – 18kHz
oCord: Tangle-resistant 1.2 m cord
oPlug: 3.5 mm

•Include 3 sizes of ear tips:

oTrue ergonomic ear tip shape for maximum comfort.
oDesigned for an airtight seal for optimum noise isolation.

•Comes with padded travel case.

E2m

•Critically tuned for a sound said to be similar to that of Paradigms’ Studio Series loudspeakers.
•Built-in microphone with smart phone functionality.
•2-piece sealed construction.
•Fundamentals:

Drivers: 8mm dynamic driver fitted with super-neodymium magnets.
Sensitivity: 104 dB
Frequency Response: 10 Hz – 19kHz
Cord: Tangle-resistant 1.2 m cord
Plug: 3.5 mm

•Include 3 sizes of ear tips:

Designed for comfort with a true ergonomic ear tip shape.
Designed for an airtight seal for superb noise isolation.

•Comes with padded travel case

E3m

•Critically tuned for a sound said to be similar to that of Paradigm’s Signature Series loudspeakers.
•Built-in microphone with smart phone functionality.
•1-piece CNC precision-machined aluminum housing.
•Fundamentals:

Drivers: 8mm dynamic driver fitted with super-neodymium magnets.
Sensitivity: 104 dB
Frequency Response: 8 Hz – 19kHz
Cord: Tangle-resistant 1.2 m cord
Plug: 3.5 mm

•Include 3 sizes of ear tips:

o Designed for comfort with a true ergonomic ear tip shape.
o Designed for an airtight seal for superb noise isolation.

ERGONOMICS

High Points

An impressively high level of fit and finish extends throughout the Shift line. Even the lowly E1 looked as if it cost at least twice its asking price based purely on physical quality alone. From the design of its stereo mini-jack to the angled earbud enclosures, the E1 feels like a well-made tool, not a throwaway consumable. The fit and finish on the E2m and E3m is even more impressive with their elegantly shaped satin-finished aluminum enclosures and rugged zippered travel case.

The E1, E2m, and E3m are all available in two colors, black or white. But the difference between black and while is far more pronounced on the E1, where the whole earbud enclosure is either white or black plastic. For the E2m or E3 the difference between black and white only affects a small area at the back half of the earphone.

All three of the E-series earphones use the same ear tip design. Paradigm supplies three pairs: small, medium, and large. According to Paradigm Shift’s sales literature, the tips were audiologist-approved. I ended up using the largest set of tips, which made a comfortable seal in my outer ear canal. When the cables hung straight down I did have to periodically re-adjust the earphones to retain an optimum seal. When I ran the cables above my ears and behind my head the E1s stayed in place without needing further adjustment even during an active workout.

Not-so-high Points

I was somewhat disappointed by the paucity of eartip style choices with the Paradigm Shifts. Since all three eartips are the same soft outer ear canal design, if this style doesn’t work for you there aren’t any other manufacturer-supplied options. I would have liked to see expansion-foam, flanged, and foam-reinforced tips so there would be more choices for those users. As with most popular earbuds, you could try a third-party option, such as the Comply brand of compression foam tips available on Amazon.

I’ve often complained about how poorly marked the left and right indicators are with some earphones. The E-series gets high marks for right left differentiation: the right hand eartip has a big red center section while the left hand tip’s center is white. Even a colorblind audiophile should be able to tell which tip goes where from five feet away. And if you happen to remove both tips, the E1s have an “R” in tiny 2-point type on their right earpiece housing. On the E2m and E3m earphones there are no channel markings on the earphones themselves, so I recommend NOT taking off both tips simultaneously unless you relish a 50/50 opportunity to reverse your channels, or until you’ve marked them first.
While all three earbuds have a sliding adjuster you can use to snug the headphone cables when they are behind your head, only the E1’s adjuster could slide high enough to make a good fit. With the E2m and E3m the sliding piece can only go partially up the cable before reaching the volume/mute smartphone adjustment module which prevents the slider from going any further.

The permanently attached E-series cables are fairly microphonic, especially for the first twelve inches from the earphone itself. If you wear the earphones with the cabling hanging straight down this could be an issue, but if you wear your earphones with the cables over your ears and down your back the cable’s microphonics will be well damped by your head. The cable itself is soft and flexible, covered by a cloth outer layer that slides easily.

SONIC CHARACTER

•Big bass.
•Smooth but recessed midrange.
•Sweet but hooded high-end.
•Good imaging specificity.
•Fair dynamic contrast.

If you look at the specifications for the three Paradigm Shift earphones, they appear to be very similar. Except for a bit more sensitivity and a slightly extended low frequency response from the E2m and E3m, they don’t change much. The specifications do not indicate that the three earbuds offer different harmonic balances and amounts of bass, but in the field the three were certainly different from each other.

Of the three earphones in the E-series, the least expensive E1s were the pair that came closest to being harmonically neutral. Yet compared to my reference in-ears, the admittedly much more costly Etymotic ER-4P ($299) and Ultimate Ears In-Ear Reference Monitors ($999), even the E1 had a warm harmonic balance with an over endowment of upper and mid-bass energy coupled with a noticeably hooded upper range. Except for the extra dollop of bass, most of the E1’s colorations were subtractive rather than additive. The top-end roll-off meant that cymbals lacked their last bit of top-end sizzle and on live recordings room ambience cues were harder to hear.

Moving up the Shift line, the principal harmonic change was more bass. Low frequencies through the E2m and E3m were big, bodacious, and in the case of the E3m, sometimes completely over-the-top. Bass-heads will enjoy the power and impact of the E3m’s, but this basscentric performance comes at the expense of both pitch control and definition. On some songs, as the bass notes go lower, they got louder, which was NOT the intention of the original mixer. Compared with the bass performance from the Audio Technica ATH-W3000ANV over-ear headphones, the E3ms had a greater quantity of bass energy, but low-frequency energy that was delivered with less precision and control.

Overall definition and inner detail through the E-series earbuds was average. I found the E1 offered the most low-level information, detail, and resolution because it had the least amount of masking from excess low-frequency energy. With the E3m, the loudest passages with lots of bass got untidy in direct relation to how loudly they were played back through the earphones. At the highest volumes the overall definition of the E3m’s was severely impacted by its bass overpowering everything else.

If a pair of earphones lacks upper frequency extension the imaging suffers because most locational cues come from upper frequency phase information. As expected, the Shifts were not among the most precise earphones I’ve heard in terms of image specificity. I found the E3m’s had the best imaging, followed by the E2ms. The E1s imaging was on a par with the Ultimate Ear UE200s and only slightly less focused than the Shure SE215 earbuds.

MUSICAL EXAMPLES

On the Beatles, “The End” from Abbey Road [Capitol], Ringo’s mini drum solo that begins at 00:21 served as an excellent tool for comparing the differences between the various Shift models’ bass response. Through my reference Etymotic Research ER-4P ‘phones it was easy to hear that each of the three toms had a different pitch, volume level, and location in the sound stage. Also through the ER-4Ps I could easily tell when the cymbals and high-hat came in at 00:36. Switching to the Paradigm E1s I was immediately aware of the abundance of upper and midbass energy. The centrally located tom was much louder than the other two, and after each hit it excited some low-level sympathetic vibrations that hung over after the notes stopped. The vibrations were definitely pitch-related because the kick-drum, which is equally prominent in the mix, didn’t cause a similar effect. The cymbal and high-hat entry at 00:36 was just as easy to pick up through the E1s as the Etymotics, but some of air and sparkle was missing (though in fairness it is important to remember that the Etymotics sell for roughly six times the price of the E1s). Moving up to the E2m’s from the E1s, the primary difference was slightly more and better-controlled bass. The central tom didn’t generate any additional resonances but the top end was no more open or extended than through the E1s.

Listening to Ringo’s solo through the E3m’s I heard even more bass energy than from the E2m’s, but it was well controlled. When the bass and central tom were playing together the E3m’s didn’t come unglued but they did get slightly untidy and a bit hazy on dynamic peaks.

Listening to Mahler: Lieder Eines Fahrenden Gesellen – Wenn Mein Schatz Hochzeit Macht performed by Benjamin Zander, Christopher Maltman, and the Philharmonia Orchestra on Telarc was also enlightening. All three of the E- series models did a good job of making the tenor soloist’s voice sound seductively rich, but on the dynamic peaks the bass energy tended to overpower and obscure subtle midrange and upper frequency details. In some ways the E1s suffered the least problems with bass obscuring the lower midrange, but they were not as detailed in the bass or treble nor did they image as precisely as their more expensive siblings.

CONCLUSION

Consider Paradigm Shift’s E-series earphones if:

•You want earphones with a comfortable outer ear canal fit.
•You prefer earphones that, as a rule, offer very strong bass response (more than strict sonic neutrality would require).
•You need efficient earphones that can be driven by virtually anything.

Look further if:

•You need or want earphones that come with a multitude ear tip types to give you a broad range of fit options.
•You prefer earphones with even, neutral tonal balance (this in area where Paradigm loudspeakers are very strong performers, but unfortunately this aspect of Paradigm design “DNA” did not entirely carry over into the Paradigm Shift earphone lineup).
•You prefer or require earphones with user-replaceable signal cables.

Ratings (relative to comparably-priced earphones)

•Tonal Balance:

oE1: 8
oE2m: 7
oE3m: 7

•Frequency Extremes: 7(Bass)/7(Treble)
•Clarity: 6
•Dynamics: 7
•Comfort/Fit: 8
•Sensitivity: 9
•Value: 7 (but higher for the very affordable E1)

BOTTOM LINE

Paradigm made its reputation by building serious audiophile-quality speakers at affordable consumer-friendly prices. The firm’s Paradigm Shift E-series earphones attempt to accomplish a similar feat, but in a personal audio context—a goal the E-series ‘phones reach toward with partial, but not complete, success.

Our favorite of the three models was the least expensive one, the E1. It proved to be an excellent “sport earbud” for athletes and active users. The E2m and E-m3 have more bass, but in some respects can be less musically satisfying than the E1 because their bass response gets in the way of their midrange clarity.

If you are looking for a nicely made and comfortable earbud for under $50, I think you’ll find the Paradigm Shift E1 hard to beat. And if you want earbuds with rich, warm tonality and a ton of midbass the $129.99 E3ms should be on your radar.

SPECS & PRICING

Paradigm Shift E-series Earphones

E1
•Drivers: 8mm dynamic drivers fitted with super-neodymium magnets.
•Sensitivity: 103 dB
•Frequency Response: 10 Hz – 18kHz
•Cord: Tangle-resistant 1.2 m cord
•Plug: 3.5 mm
•Price: $49.99

E2m
•Drivers: 8mm dynamic drivers fitted with super-neodymium magnets.
•Sensitivity: 104 dB
•Frequency Response: 10 Hz – 19kHz
•Cord: Tangle-resistant 1.2 m cord
•Plug: 3.5 mm
•Price: $99.99

E3m
•Drivers: 8mm dynamic drivers fitted with super-neodymium magnets.
•Sensitivity: 105 dB
•Frequency Response: 8 Hz – 19kHz
•Cord: Tangle-resistant 1.2 m cord
•Plug: 3.5 mm
•Price: $129.99

Manufacturer Information
Paradigm Electronics Inc.
(905) 564-1994
www.paradigm.com/shift/
shift@paradigm.com