We take a look at Shure’s amazing on-ear headphones, winner of this year’s What Hi-Fi? Award for Best home over-ear headphones £300+…
Shure are a name that will be familiar with anyone who’s involved in live or studio music. They have a vast array of trusted microphones, in-ear monitors, monitor speakers, mixers and many accessories that can be found in many music shops, not to mention professional recording spaces.
But what about for the average consumer who enjoys their music and values the quality of the sound they get from their system? Shure’s range of headphones has long been held in high esteem and the SRH1540’s recent 2015 What Hi-Fi? award is the second year in a row that they’ve been crowned top of the class.
“Another success story for Shure, the SHR1540s are 100 per cent worthy of their price – and your attention.” – What Hi-Fi?
The SRH1540s are a classy looking bit of kit, the subtle layering of carbon fibre on the back of the closed cups is discreet but very cool looking. What is also very apparent are the thick pads that are designed to hug your ears without squeezing them – they look so comfortable even before you place them on your head. Thankfully, they aren’t all about the looks and the moment you try them on you know that they aren’t going to cause a problem for long term listening.
They envelop your ears just enough to naturally block out ambient noise but still feel light enough for you to almost forget you’re wearing them. Also included in the box is a Y-shaped cable that attaches to each ear cup with 3.5mm jacks (and also a spare), a stiff travel case and some extra pads for the ear cups should you wear them so much that they wear out. All things considered, there’s excellent value for money to be had in the SRH1540.
Starting off with Andy McKee’s Dreamcatcher, the acoustic guitar is sweet and rich which, combined with the airy openness of the cups, makes you feel that you’re sat in the studio with the maestro watching him play. You can feel the resonance from the room the track is recorded in and it makes you appreciate the beauty of instrumental music. Taking things up a gear with Runaway Baby by Bruno Mars and the drums are deep, punchy and attacking without ever feeling that they’re going to become brash with some extra volume.
Bass guitar is nicely controlled but full of body and the separation of the instruments as a whole is excellent whilst giving the music a cohesive feel. If you’re feeling particularly raucous and want to listen to something heavier you needn’t think that the Shure’s are just for enjoying mellow to mid volume genres. Even the heaviest tunes that my collection could throw at these headphones were dealt with gracefully to the point where I was hearing things on the recording that I hadn’t heard before!
All things considered, there really isn’t a bad thing to say about these headphones. They’re light without being flimsy, good looking without sacrificing sound quality, comfortable without forgetting about style and they come with everything you might ever need. You can’t always have your speakers running at the volumes you need to appreciate your music and when that’s the case you’ll be glad that you’ve got the SRH1540s waiting to be plugged in to save the day.
To find out more about Shure SRH1540, click here.
Author – Steve, Bristol store
