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Shure’s $99 USB Type-C headphone cable is basically a dongle
August 13, 2025
I haven’t personally owned a pair of Shure headphones, but the brand seemingly makes solid in-ear monitors, which range from somewhat-affordable to wallet-tearing prices. Because of that, it might make sense to pick up Shure’s $99 USB Type-C replacement cable.
More and more devices equipped with USB Type-C are coming to market, and many solely rely on the still-blossoming USB standard for audio output. With how much some headphones go for, picking up this dongle might be a good bet.
Notice how I said “dongle.” That wasn’t a mistake — that’s basically what this is. It uses an MMCX connector, which attaches the cable to the earphones, as well as a Cirrus Logic digital-to-analog converter, but at the end of the day, It’s still a dongle.
That is what annoys me about Shure’s cable. Phones like thePixel 2andHTC U11ditched the headphone jack, which forces people to spend as much money as if they just purchased headphones and called it a day.
In other words, the cable perpetuates the idea that folks need to spend a significant amount of money to get back functionality they lost when buying a new phone. After all, $99 is not a drop in the bucket.
At least Shure’s USB Type-C cable appears to be well-made and seems to maintain sound quality. If your headphones are made by a different company, you can also use them with this cable, so long as they are MMCX-compatible.
That being said, it’s a $99 dongle. Whether it’s worth the cost ultimately depends on how much you want to use your Shure headphones with your Pixel 2.
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