Just a couple of notes: 1. The measurement rig ears are developed from specific datasets and are typically going to be closer to one another than the differences you see from human to human. So it's likely that even with multiple rig ears we're still seeing less HpTF variation because the physical differences between those ears is fairly small. 2. The HUTUBS datasets shown in this video make use of the same HD 800 S across 30 listeners, so unit variation was not a factor. 3. I didn't even talk about acoustic impedance in this video, which is definitely something to consider and will cause variation not just at high frequencies. The HD 800 S example used in this video is extremely low acoustic Z and should therefore be considered a best case scenario. Most headphones are going to vary even more substantially. 4. Also, big shoutout to Dr. Craig Stark at UC Irvine for doing the MRIs! It may still be a bit before we can have the physical versions of our own ears done but we wouldn't be able to do that without Dr. Stark's help in this regard.
Fascinating but there a few large effect size variables that you have not even mentioned which I will summarize: 1. Training, what does "real" music sound like: Growing up listening to live musicians with live strings, horns, synthesizers, and percussion creates a certain expectation; the ear becomes trained on a certain "sound of reality". Corrolary: your brain AI is trained to a certain Database, that defines "reality". The user expectation must be met for a agreable outcome. The discriminatory users will usually be in the minority of all users. 2. Intention: I am listening to music for distraction, dancing, memorization, or analysis ? We are referring to a need to detail and resolution. Clearly this interacts with #1. 3. HpTF is affected by head and tongue position, and by extension the muscle tension in the head, these are hard variables to control but to attentive listeners is a real factor that every individual can experince for the themselves. Thank you for this very informative video. I would like to share more but nobody will read it XD.
Can't talk about sound quality of headphones or speakers without mentioning the variables that is the source material AND listener preferences for SPL. There is a little thing called Equal Loudness Contour which affects our perception of frequency response. So depending on how loud you listen to a pair of headphones as well as what the source material is, the perceived sound quality of a headphone may differ DRASTICALLY.
I'm a burn victim survivor and I lost my ears to the fire BUT the good news is I now have the worlds 1st modular ears. Much like pad swapping on a headphone I can swap my ear size and shape in and out as needed.
huh wow. a interesting side effect to an unfortunate experience. this all makes me wonder how differently someone with cauliflower ears hear vs everyone else
I'm very much a novice here (so correct me if I misunderstand) but another confounding factor is that our hearing adapts over time and exposure so our 'expectations' change,as is our ability to pick up on certain details. Back in the day this was known as 'breaking in' headphones, though the actual headphones didn't change. If you're a casual who has a daily driver your expectations are colored by being adapted to that specific profile where as someone doing it professionally is more used to isolating different sound characteristics, which is why all of the 'casuals can't tell the difference' content exists where as enthusiasts can notice significant ones. Another example might be how more casual spaces like reddit will claim the differences between dac/amps is mostly fake news where as a place like head-fi would be able to break down all of them. I suspect this effect may also play a role in why high end audio enthusiasts tend to end up 'chasing the dragon' as they try to keep up with their adaptations.
Good point, and also take note that earpads compress over time (like wearing-in a pair of shoes, for example), bringing the transducer closer to your ear, which your brain becomes accustomed to.
EQ is actually super helpful in this regard. It can function kind of like a reset - and when you're regularly making adjustments, toggling on/off, you really get a strong sense of where various colorations and FR features are. And many of the psychoacoustic effects people enjoy like soundstage and so-on can also be interpreted and understood subjectively as FR features at the eardrum once you really dig deep into EQ. I'm not saying people should need to do this, in fact they really shouldn't, but it has been highly influential in understanding what to listen for and how various FR regions impact the listening experience.
@@ResolveReviews >They really shoudn't Yeah, tinkering with EQ is a slippery slope xD At some point you are in constant need to adjust something, you confuse your hearing, etc. I'm personally settled at EQ-ing only when there is something very wrong, not slight coloring per se. And mostly by measurements. I think now I have the only earphones I've EQ-ed by ear just because they lack mid-range greatly, and when corrected - are perfect for me. I have studio monitors that have insane 8kHz peak that wasn't in their factory or reviewers measurements, but I can clearly hear and measure it and it is way too much for being just "coloring"... I thought maybe it is noise from something in electrical grid or from something connected to my PC, but couldn't find it and just... EQ-ed it out looking at FR readings until it disappears on the graph. And it is not local too, persisted in different listening spots and monitors positions.
Very glad to see this video, much appreciated! About 10 years ago when I brought this topic up on the Stereophile website, I was almost laughed off the comment section and most replies said there would be little difference if any. I had commented on speakers and headphones. Makes you wonder...
My brother went in to get his ears cleaned since he had a wax build up. And afterward he was shocked how tinny and shrill the world sounds, and found himself turning everything down and even covering his ears when vehicles went bar or a bus pulled up with squeaky brakes. He now listens to his music 20-30% quieter.
My dad ,90 needed new hearing aids. We took him and got some real nice new . Spent a long time with the audiologist getting adjusted. Few days later went back complaining about the crap sound. After readjusting to match his old junk, he was happy. The problem was he was hearing things he hadn't heard in 40 years.
@@chuckmaddison2924 hahaah that is a fun story. I myself feel almost jealous of my friends 10 years older than me that have hearing damage from wild clubbing and bar life, they can go to live jazz performances and enjoy it but I went once and had to leave due to how loud they were playing, the same for most movie theaters now, I swear everyone is 20% deaf these days but it is undiagnosed.
@harackmw About 3 weeks ago I went to the granddaughter's cheerleading/ dance school show, still cost $ 80 to get in. The wife complained I was checking out the sound system. Each side had 2 Electro voice speakers on top of each other up high. So we have 2 bass drivers and 2 compression drives each side with a timing error/ cancellation at listening position and a bloody horrible resonance at one point and if was fing loud and the amplifiers were starting to clip My hearing is down a bit, but those poor kids . The speakers were close to front of stage, so sound behind would be a bit less. The person controlling the sound should be in front, and then they know what is happening.
@@chuckmaddison2924 That is scary....for kids....But I seem to recall seeing, as a kid, the engineers in front of Metallica acting like nothing was wrong while the rest of us needed hearing protection. We brought ear plugs, but I can only assume the pros are wearing IEMs of some kind that block a lot, but then again who knows.
@harackmw same as nite clubs I went to years ago. All had foam plugs Even the roller rink they had plugs. Later on, they rearranged the speakers so all 4 were facing towards the side with the DJ booth which was open at the front . There is either a total lack of training or they don't care . Even classical orchestra have a conductor out from to tell them how to play.
That's why the Sundara is so special. Almost ideal starting point and low distortion so you can mess with it. I EQ it to match the HE-1 moreso like the subtle bass shelf.
I'm a musician and producer and have heard so many different headphones and speakers I've come to the conclusion that these are all perfectly analogous to clothes. Someone else's opinion and measurements will only take you so far, you don't need the expensive stuff except for some very niche situations, value for money fluctuates wildly, and psychology of the user is strongly at play.
@@danaillaysen7632 In the context of the clothing analogy and our consumerist society it is not. You will experience no true limitations in your life by only owning a median cost headphone just as you would by owning only a median cost jacket. However, if you are the rare person who regularly attends black tie events it would make sense to own a tuxedo (or several).
Your analogy hits the nail on the head. A lot of "audiophile" channels and supposedly golden ears commentators in these videos talk about only about their subjective experience. What I've requested is that this content creators take audiometry exams every quarter (coz you don't know they'd listening habits are) to see if they actually have what it takes to listen to certain frequencies, I think a lot of them would be surprised to find out that they have 60-year old ears 😂😂
Not my favorite analogy. In fashion there's no right and wrong. The only objective thing is the size chart. In audio it seems like the music producer is the designer while the audio company helps bring that sound to people of different shapes and sizes. As it stands a lot of the variety in audio systems is not dictated by the human anatomy but by "taste" or whatever. No crime having a preference but a lot of confusion about sound quality or fidelity seems to stem from that sentiment.
@@zaq9339 There is no "right" or "wrong" in headphone sound quality either. There is only better or worse for my ears and my use case, just as there are better or worse jeans for your legs and your use case. I'm not completely discrediting headphone reviewers and measurements, but reviews from folks like Resolve are about as useful as the Foot Locker employee telling you how good some new running shoe is. Such info could just as easily be helpful as it could be misleading, and if you heed my analogy it will be more the prior than the latter. Bottom line is you'll never really know until you try them on your unique head and ears, at your particular stage of life and hearing degradation, playing the music you want to listen to with your specific use case in mind.
Awesome video! I'm one of those subjects who can't detect almost any sibilances because I've lost all the high frequencies... Love bright headphones even knowing no-one else is going to like them.
I think Rtings still does this, but only for bass seal quality measurements. Obviously you can't just turn somebody's eardrum into a microphone... well... not ethically, so I assume you mean blocked canal graphs on humans here. As far as I know that's still valuable, but so is data from multiple measurement systems too, which I think is what Andrew calls HpTF?
@@metal571 Yeah and that was a good example of potential leakage effects on humans vs rigs. It's especially useful for closed-backs, where often the seal on the rig isn't as realistic as it is on a human (or harder to achieve).
@@metal571I know that Oluv's videos involving his reasonably deep insertion in ear microphones showed that he hears more treble and shout than most people, when I can compare the same headphone. Kind of fascinating. I can't say I agree with everything of his but he is damn good at EQ. He doesn't really agree with technicalities and while it's true our ears only tell frequency, distortions like harmonic and intermodulation change frequency response depending on other frequencies, and temporal effects like ringing or even echo per se, changing frequency response over the time domain. Electrostatic usually have massively good distortion and time domain properties but poorer tuning on average, and tuning is very important. But they also take well to EQ. Planar is a decent halfway point. So it's a toss up in a way. Easier to tune a dynamic driver with acoustic damping and the driver mechanical and electrical damping itself, but it'll have higher impedance and possibly vary more depending on your ears.
Fascinating! This explains why I often don’t agree with headphone reviews when I listen to those same headphones. I used to think that I was somehow defective in my hearing or listening skills but now I know that what we hear really can be very different. Thanks!
This is why retail stores and shows are important. You literally have to listen to things before buying. Its really dependent on person and personal choice.
@@haskell3702 well, it depends where you live. some asia country (like singapore or japan) had audio retail stores that you can try every cans you want (or being available on the store)
Sadly not many places got those listening booths. Also mood and other things may change how you evaluate a headphone. If you had a headache while listening, you would probably not like something bright for example.
No it doesnt, a good heaphone is a good heaphone. The HD600 is a good headphone, it doesnt matter whos put it on. The Arya Stealth is a fantastic heaphone just doesnt matter who you are.
10:26 Blaine is def not broken. I spoke to him quite a bit at CanJam SoCal 2024. His reasons for loving the HD800s are logical and I agree- Everyone should own an HD800(s)!
Would you be able to recount his reasoning? I have been on the fence about getting the HD800S for a long time now, also in competition with the HE1000SE, and am always happy to hear another opinion
"Everyone should own an HD800(s)!" Sure, if you want to buy everyone a pair then I'd agree, but if not sorry that is an ultra luxury item that most will never be able to afford. I'd take a pair for free, but I will likely never buy a pair, even if I had the extra cash. That pricing is nuts. I don't think any headset is worth buying for over a grand. You're just wasting money at that point for such minor improvements. I'd rather buy a cheaper headset and give the extra money to charity tbh than buy that headset. The only reason I'd want to get something that expensive is if it had to do with work, like if you're an audio/sound engineer, which I am not, and I'd probably still only get it if the job was paying for it or for some of it, or you actually NEEDED it that badly for the job.
@@MrRADicalOfficial I wouldn't buy it because I think the design is ugly. For over 1000€, not only does the sound have to be right, but the design has to be appropriate.
Cool, It sounds difficult. I have basically a normal hearing but with a "superpower". When many machines has the tiniest change of sound I notice it. I have done a setup test at work to really check if it is only me and so far only 1 of 40 have said that they can hear it (To clarify, this test was without headphones). We are talking about less then 1% change in sound between approx. 200-1000 Hz. So in that region I hear very good. I also think in general that all my Sennheiser sounds less distorted then most others I have tried. Great info and video =). Also EQ can solve some but not all of the distortion.
Best audiophile upload for a very long time. Interesting, relevant, and most importantly, very misunderstood. Great job, Resolve, at last the truth explained for everyone to learn.
Good video guys. Yeah, that's the way with the sound generally. For example with speakers is even more complicated... Take everything said in video plus the speakers, plus the room, etc, etc.... But there is one constant in the story... We all love soundwaves. Stay good....
It's crazy that we've come so far in learning what makes headphones good, but we're still miles away from actually understanding everything that is at play here. Something that I've taken to doing is just doing my own custom EQ based on what I hear myself. The more I do it, the better I get at identifying problem frequencies and dips in my own perception of a headphone, even in the 6hz+ range. One thing I've learned for myself is that, for something like "resolution" or "technical performance" specifically, it's all in the 10khz+ range. If a headphone lacks resolution, small bumps in that range often help with that, and because of the chaos of how that range responds, it often takes a lot of experimentation before I can hone in on an improved high treble without it becoming harsh. Hopefully, as we learn more about how all these things work, we can figure out ways to both improve headphones, but also ways to improve the individual experience. A future where you can buy an easily EQ'd planar with a standard response, and then just tune it to yourself to get that perfect sound.
@@ResolveReviews Out of curiosity what physical mods did you settle on with the Eris to tune it to your liking? I haven't modded mine yet but I am going to at some point and It'd be great to have a starting point. I saw some of your livestream but haven't had time to watch the whole thing.
@@Camride I mainly sealed it up with foam, swapped to different pads that evened out the mids and fixed the treble spikes. But then I also wanted to make it more unhinged and 'fun', so I added an electrical filter to boost the sub bass and make it even more slammy. Last thing I need to do still is reduce the ear gain slightly, but I may try to do that with a small PCB so I can add components into the system without shorting it by having things come into contact with one another in the cup.
@@ResolveReviews Nice! What pads did you settle on? I really like the comfort of the stock pads so the only other pads I've tried (just for fun) are some deep leather pads to make the bass more insane. Put it on an Ifi amp that has XBass for even more instanity, lol.
While subjective impressions of headphones can be helpful, the important thing is to try them yourselves to know if it's a good fit. If I read impressions from someone with similar preferences to me it can be "easier" to know if a headphone is for me or not, rather than random impressions. I did for example my ZMf Atrium purchase without hearing them and I couldn't be happier, based on reading impressions from people with similar sonic preferences to me.
Excellent work! Keeping an open mind is crucial, and for an individual who has always leaned towards the objective camp but still very strongly consider subjective preference I am pleased by the effort and publication. Interested to see where this will lead. Enjoy the music!
I find this very useful. Not living in an area that I can reliably audition these headphones, I have come to the idea that I will utilize the “ears” of several reviewers, and reviews of the device, to come to the point of whether or not a headphone is worth trying. I know what I like, and in a sense having tried several, and owning several, I find myself “calibrating “ the reviewer. So perhaps I am unconsciously calibrating my HRTF to theirs. Perhaps that is why the hobby is so interesting, because there is no “perfect” headphone. There are many that are very, very good. For me. and maybe for you.and there are headphones that are quite good at modest or even low prices. But then, there are some usually more expensive ones, that are, for lack of a better word, revelatory. I suppose meaning that they most closely mimic reality. Live music. I have mostly given up on loudspeakers because we now have HRTF issues, but now we have room resonance issues. That makes awesome sound almost impossible if you want to live in a shared space comfortably. So I settle for pretty good. Fascinating subject! Excellent video.
Yeah, I suspect I am one of those people who have a HRTF that deviates a lot from the normal. I found 800s to be very sibilant, so I decided to EQ where I thought the peaks were, but it didn't change much. So I made a shelf filter of -12dB at 6k and it was still sibilant, I assume there is a MASSIVE peak that I hear somewhere (should be able to find this relatively easy). But question I'm wondering, can a headphone be sibilant by design? It doesn't make too much sense, but that's the only other explanation I can think of.
Great video!. We headphones enthusiasts some times forget the these are consumer electronics devices. When we go deep on these technicalities we realized that all those nice frequency responses graphics are just a reference. At the end of the day is just a matter of taste based on those human differences either physical and even psychological. In industrial world (from when I come from). Normally manufacturers offers their outputs parameters certified at ISO conditions. It is the only way to compared apples to apples. As a engineers we know that ISO conditions are impossible to reach on the field. However is the only way to compare two or more systems during conceptual engineering or system design phase. As the old say said: In theory everything is possible on the real life. On the real life nope
Very interesting video, detailed yet easy to understand. I have one comment though on the interpretation of the subtraction of HRTF from HpTF... You mentioned that that removes the anatomical effects from the picture... I see it differently. I see the HRTF as anatomical effect due to far field sound source, whereas HpTF as anatomical effect due to nearfield source (headphone) + specific headphone interaction. By subtracting the 2 you are finding the differences between what is perceived due to the headphones vs what should be perceived if it came from speakers. To show just the headphone interactions, you'd have to subtract the individual Hd800s measurements from nearfield hrtf measurements(i.e. an ideal freestanding pointsource speaker placed at where the headphone driver would be), if that is even practically possible.
I am a headphone reviewer and I am a woman. I would love to see more women included in measurements. A simple example is how often I struggle to get a good fit because X manufacturer didn't include enough stops for someone with a smaller head to snug up where the earpads land on the ears. I literally had to wrap a sock around the headband of an otherwise elegant and much loved company's headphones to fairly evaluate how they sounded.
as someone with a small head, while many others complain that Airpods Max in particular clamp with way too much force, for me they feel comfortable. I imagine thats an oddity and most headphones run large to fit most ppl better.
As a guy with a small head I can't imagine how bad this must be for people with smaller ones. I have to max out the small size on most of em it seems, besides some like the HD600 that goes pretty small.
It's probably the same with people who have gigantic heads (not me). I saw someone on reddit selling his 660s2 because "can't get used to the clamp on my big head." It kinda made me sad, they're such a good pair.
Lets be realistic here... Most casual females, are probably choosing Pink Headphones, with cat ears. Something "Girly", that look "Pretty". Sound quality does not seem to be on the Priority list, for the majority of females. (that, or they just use ear buds) Having a very small head, is probably just about as bad as having a very large head. Its likely that its just impossible to make a system that adjust to both extremes... (and still be affordable). One of the reviewers I watch... often tries various ear pad swaps, on these headphones. This can change the sound, depending on the fit and material types... which at times, can actually improve the sound, as well as the comfort. Its possible that if you purchased a Thick enough ear pad set... that you might get a better fit for your smaller head size. There is one other option... but it could result in permanent damages. Many headphone also have a metal strip in the head-band... and this metal can also be bent, if you press on it past a certain degree (bending it severely) and holding it for a while. Basically, over-bending the spring, to form a tighter bend-angle. That said... you could accidentally snap the plastic... if its a bit too rigid. You should be able to tell, by feel To possibly prevent this... You could try Placing the headphones in a mount, and use some string to bend the band at a tighter angle... then use a heat gun on the band, and you might be able to permanently deform the plastic, so that it has a new "spring point", from this new tighter bend-percentage. Allow the thing to cool for at least 5 minutes... before removing the string, and trying it out. Ive never tried the heat gun thing... and depending on the plastic type they used, it might make things even worse. Other than that, you might need to use a 3D printer, to solve the mechanical issue (custom parts).
Found out recently that my eustachian on my right ear must be blocked and my hearing VASTLY improved just by chance of opening my mouth whilst listening through my headphones! Everyone should check this performing this simple procedure as what I thought was great headphone experience was dull until I opened my mouth. Cheers
Hello, I got sick some time ago and my ears got a little blocked. Then I went to the doctor and after a while it got better, but I could hear a whistling sound in my left ear. I went to the doctor and got an ear tape, and the chart showed that the hearing in my left ear has dropped at 3-4 KHz (in fact, it was the same as the whistling sound). Of course, the doctor said that this problem is related to the sound that you heard earlier and it was suddenly loud like an explosion. I wanted to say that people's hearing may be less in some frequencies because of their nerves.
At the end of the day, 'sound quality' is subject to factors that no formal testing can control for. My GENERAL advice, is to find a pair of headphones you already like, find he chart for their response curves, as well as impressions from multiple sources regarding their imaging and staging, then use that as your 'baseline' for evaluating your expectations of other headphones. I still use the DT770s as my 'baseline' comparison for how other headphones will sound, and the only time I've been caught off guard, was with regards to bass response, mainly because when people say something 'lacks bass' they usually mean it doesn't have artificially boosted bass that takes over the whole spectrum. I still remember the first time I put on those DT770s after seeing everyone say they have no bass, yet when doing some testing, I could feel the shiver clear down in my collarbones. It was just THERE instead of being shoved forward. I call it clean vs muddy/stinky bass. I've had the same experience with a number of other headphones, inears, and even earbuds that people spend a lot of time complaining about lacking base, when in reality it's just not taking over the mix. For in-ears in particular, the eartips can often totally change the tone on them, so that's something to consider if you have in-ears that feel a bit iffy or uncomfortable.
Great video. I love your objective measurements in your reviews. A Harman target definitely gets me in the right ball park and helps filter out a lot of headphones that are just not going to work. Looking forward to how these measurements progress. Will be great to be able to filter out stuff that isn't compatible with me.
That’s why I love my Hifiman HE6se V2 with a modded headband and some decent cables - for almost no money - and EQed over my beloved RME ADI 2 PRO FS R Black Edition. The problem for me is now that I just have no clue how this is „rated“ and how I therefore find out what my preferred sound signature is defined…
A great presentation, thank you. After much trial and error, auditioning and purchasing I found my best suited headphone in the Hifiman HE1000SE and, after having my hearing tested twice I found out why - my HRTF has the usual age related affect on treble and I have a lower HF peak in my hearing that is precisely balanced by the Hifiman dip in the same frequency range. So perfect EQ by the manufacturer.
About 30 years ago I needed two sets of headphones. I was thumbing through Consumer Report and they recommended Sony MDR-V6. My neighbor had a pair so I tried them and loved them. So I bought two pairs for under 70 dollars each. Later I found out that this was the preferred headphones for many audio engineers. They liked them for the same reasons I do. Great clarity of sound. Accurate tonal balance over the entire audio spectrum, comfortable, rugged. I still love them and wouldn't trade. They were so popular that there are fake knockoffs of them and those sound awful. There's a RUclips video that tells you how to tell the difference. Their only drawback is that over time the ear cushions flake and kind of fall apart. Replacements cost about 7 to 25 dollars a pair. I'd like to find one that's liquid filled rubber like my Koss Pro 4A had. They keep your ears cool and don't wear out. They're out of produvtion and used pairs are ridiculously expensive. If you see a pair cheap they're probably fake.
@asplmn Well they're out of production but they still sound great. Compared to today's high quality headphones they're cheap. I've read the successor, the 7506 sounds different. Several years ago I tested my hearing with them. I heard to 15 the. A similar design from Radio Shack delivered sound audible to me to 16 the. I tested myself recently using the speakers in my Galaxy S23 and heard to.14.5 khz. Not bad for 76 years old. I'll try a different transducer to see if I can hear higher.
That explains a lot.🤔😄 A friend of mine has the DT1990 Pro and he loves these headphones and he says they have a very pleasant sound. However, when I put it on, I found it extremely uncomfortable, very shrill and absolutely cold. On the other hand, when he wears my he1000 unveiled, he says: they sound adulterated and not pleasant
maybe hes just to adjusted to his dt1990. ofc he says it sound crappy. Let him sit with it for 1 week and then give him his old DT and he will say the same
3D spacial audio doesn't work well for me out of the box with my SUNDARA. I needed to use Peace Equalizer APO to go in and normalize the level at different frequencies. Breaking out the range into 15 (150-20000hz) sections and Left / Right I used their beep audio test to set the +/- to make it just one level below silent. After that the 3D spacial audio works much better. This fixed issues with either my left/right ears hearing better or worse and if the two L/R speakers didn't match closely enough. Each ear has its own custom EQ.
Don't forget the one thing that affects us all - age! Our sense of hearing peaks at a relatively young 18 to 25 years. After the age of 40, the loss of perception of higher frequencies becomes significant.
The other thing that may be contributing to this variance is the inductive magnetic coupling between the headphone and the in ear microphone when in close proximity to each-other. When you get into the higher frequency range approaching 20khz, the magnetic wave component will propagate wirelessly and potentially directly affect the microphone response.
A small correction to the illustration shown at 5:10. All of those effects originate from the outer ear, though I understand why you termed it like this. Nevertheless, the inner ear, that is, the cochlea and the vestibular system has nothing to do with what's shown on the image.
People keep telling me the HD800S is dead and not intimate. Meanwhile I have it hooked up to a Bi2/Jot2 stack and it sounds *amazing*. This video helps explain why--thanks for sharing!
Yes indeed the entire chain matters. Many purchasers hear it's a great headphone (we would agree) but connect it to a phone dongle, etc. We design them for an ecosystem that is as serious as the headphones themselves. Thx for chiming in!
How do you make a "perfect" microphone? In other words: how do know if e.g. a dip in the curve is due to the speaker or the microphone? Calibrating a mic seems to me like a chicken and egg problem.
I try to relate things back to vision. I thought, "Well we all see the same things." Then I corrected myself, "No we all see vastly different things, but we use glasses to compensate." Looking forward to all the work you're doing that'll enable us to create "glasses" for our ears that'll normalize what we hear from headphones. @sennheiser might create custom "resonators" using 3d ear scans that perform "impedance" matching. Exciting times!
Very good video that explains a lot in simple terms. Those who have been following you guys are probably familiar with most of this now, but it’s nice to have it all in one place.
Based on your presentation, the hearing differences between people start expanding at 1,000 Hz, which is the center of the midrange. This frequency affects everything except lower midrange and bass, where all preferences become personal.
As a music creator, I do both composing and mixing. A pair of headphones needs to enable me to match my music to reference mixes. It should give more detail than my monitors but not a tonal shift. e.g. when I work on headphones and take them off, I should be able to continue on my monitor speakers without adjusting my eq.
i wonder why the measured responses couldn't be normalized to a flat line from which variations would make more sense. with the usual HRTF curve, its like raw data from which we must visually imagine what flat is. i have learned how to interpret many different waveforms from test results like the square waves used to evaluate power amplifiers. musch of what I learned was from the testing done in AUDIO magazine of the past. Richard C. Heyser was one of the scientists that reported on loudspeakers who developed significant impulse testing with waterfall plots. Bascom King tested power amplifiers for them and that's where I learned to read the square waves displayed on an oscilloscope. it seems that a standard curve could be subtracted electronically to flatten the HRTF curves on test. am I wrong?
I'd like to hear if there's a link between headphones accuracy to reveal details and the human hearing. For instance, two headphones (different brand/model) can have almost identical response graph, but we all heard this saying "one headphone has more accurate /detailed sound for bass..... or mids" You look at the graph and the amount of bass is identical (frequency and shape) but someone would tell you that one headphones has more clear and detailed bass that doesn't step on the low mids. Is it the same, varying from a person to another, or this is not related to human hearing, some headphones just have more detailed sound?
May I add a further complication via another variable? I currently use a Beyerdynamics 700 Pro headphone and the sound quality changes simply through the orientation and placement of the fully-enclosed headphone cup placed further forward or backward, depending on how the band conforms to your head contours. This is a truly a dynamic and complex topic which may be devilishly difficult to assign scientific methods to in order to ascertain a fundamental truth. I wish you luck in this endeavour. ;o)
This is a great example of how science works: From anecdotal experiences and observations, theories are proposed, experiments are performed to test them and the scientific community discusses the results and their limitations. Great work, and I look forward to hearing more about what you discover in the future.
perceived sound from headphones varies wildly to different people because of differences to the ear penna and cannal does this mean in ears sound more consistent from person to person since youre no longer messing around with the penna, but only the cannal? or would in ears have even more variance since everyone's penna naturally accounts for/filters out the cannal? if so, could someone with in ears be able to train their penna to hear the sound normally, without applying the cannal filter?
I grew up with several sets of closed Pioneer cans in the early 1980s. Then Sony closed sound cancelling cans. I gifted myself with open back Focal Elacs for my retirement.(cold buy) Now I am aware of the amp noise and environmental noise. Shopping for a balanced amp and relegating myself to listening when the house is empty. Difficult transition.
So would it be far to say that in comparing IEM's, that they should sound more similar/transparent between people because all of the outer ear has been removed from the equation?
If there are "frequency accurate" microphones, couldn't they be used on the sound source and compare that to the headphones output? After a hearing test is conducted on a computer to determine how a specific individual hears the headphones, a "profile" of the frequency sensitivity could be generated. Then use software to compensate for the differences in that person's head/ear anatomy to produce a compensated reproduction of the sound source. This could also be a means to deliver "enjoyable" compensated sounds/music as well. I suspect the technology already exists to do this. Perhaps something like the technology used by musicians to Profile/Capture the combination of a Speaker and Mic used to record a Cabinet in an IR - Impulse Response, might be a useful approach.
Id like to see frequency response curves for different wave types like sine, saw, and triangle on each headphone to see if different sounds have different curves on the same headphones
So let me get this correct, you’re telling me according to all the research you guys have investigated, pretty much all data above 5 kHz is inaccurate and data below 100 Hz is inaccurate? And the correct bit in the middle is up for debate and has deviations there too?
@@TheHEADPHONEShow hmmm but you’re not measuring at the eardrum you’re using a simulator rig so my assessment is still correct, it’s vaguely accurate but not for a human but for a human like object? And obviously this is setting aside all the other aspect of problems we seem to be encountering on top of the narrative,
@@ConvinceMeAudio this can be alleviated by using multiple human HRTF samples. Then you'll understand how significant the acoustic impedance of the headphone is. From there it's easy because you already use the rig as a comparative measurement to your own findings with headphones you have heard. The rig already does that to an extent because it's a aggregated approximation. It is always a comparative measure because the sensitivity of the rig never changes. If you've never heard any headphone tested on that rug, THEN it's you have no relative baseline.
@@ConvinceMeAudio Well, you measure it in relation to the ear of the rig. If there wasn't a standard, then there wouldn't really be anything that proves that a two headphones actually sounds different, it may just as well be a difference in the rigs. I assume the future will be a way to easily measure a correct HRTF on a lot of people (1000 maybe?) and then average it out and create a molded ear that is represented as the average for all of those 1000 people's ears. Then you use that ear to measure headphones on a rig. But that still wouldn't be accurate for anyone who deviates a lot from the average and neither would it take into account for unit variation of headphones, pad wear and positioning. There are also companies trying to invent products that scans your ear and will give you a HRTF based on that, that will probably take quite some time to function well, but in 20 years from now it might be a lot more usable.
Does this kind of variance get reduced significantly with IEMs? Or does it just end up being variability that comes from the different shapes of ear canals?
Extremely interesting Analysis. I am thrilled HD 800S was used. I feel IEMs will not display as much wide variation, because the Anatomy Factor is simpler.
Can't talk about sound quality of headphones or speakers without mentioning the variables that is the source material AND listener preferences for SPL. There is a little thing called Equal Loudness Contour which affects our perception of frequency response. So depending on how loud you listen to a pair of headphones as well as what the source material is, the perceived sound quality of a headphone may differ DRASTICALLY.
our ears become room acoustics for the driver. can't not have a direct impact. and vice versa for the hp itself. what I seem to not have grasped towards the end was the variation on the 800s which I understood to have been accounted for both of these, hrtf and hptf, and so what's then affecting the behaviour of the hp, our auras? (still serious question though :) great work Andrew et al. cheers
The goal is to be able to fit ourselves into a certain category of squigs that we can relate to, right? So we just need more time to collect data, or are there more variables that we need to figure out?
Is this degree of difference in headphones something we would not see in floorstanding loudspeakers? In other words, is the variance that you've revealed with this research unique to headphones sitting on listeners' heads? Thanks for this -- it's fascinating
The central problem of headphone reproduction is that most recordings have been mastered for speakers and are in principal incompatible with headphone listening. The main reason is the way sound sources are panned just by shifting the volume of the two channels. This generates a signal that has the same phase and different volumes for the two ears. This is impossible in real life and is the main reason of the "in-head localization". So either use real binaural recodings or at lease use some emulations that at least generates the correct delays of a channel signal between the two channels - or even adding HRTFs to emulate listening to speakers. I believe using incompatible audio signals is much more important then the actual quality of the source.
Wow, OK. But yeah, I guess wild rHpTF variation makes sense if you think of every structure that impacts the sound along the way from the headphone driver to the eardrum as being like the walls, ceiling, floor and furniture of a listening room: every single surface and material matters. Coupling a headphone cup to a head with a pinna and ear canal is like assembling a listening room from two halves, one of which contains the speakers and the other the listener. Of course every such combination you can make from such a wide variety of "halves" available is going to produce a different, unique even, final response.
I just don't get it.... Maybe a sacrilegious/noob question, but why EQ is still out or this equation? Why comparing with EQ applied isn't a good approach to bypass several of these issues? Also reverse question following the "technicalities", should we expect all headphones to be perfectly similar with EQ applied?
I too enjoy heavy bass and the type you can feel but i also like being able to hear fine details in music, its kinda annoying since my closed back sound better to me (momentum 4) because of that but then im always told i need openbacks which lack bass, so i grabbed a budget pair (hd 599se) and sure they sound more open/wide and are fun for games but then they lose the “fun” factor for me. One day when i can afford to I’ll try some higher end openbacks with a dac/amp and see what im missing i guess. Or maybe ill find an audio store one day and plan a trip if they offer listening sessions
@ haha sadly my state is devoid of any events like that and the plane ticket cost would be better spent on upgrading my audio setup once i learn what i need, maybe one day in the future :P
maybe I'm slow on the uptake, but isn't point 2 and 3 just saying the same thing? why do we take anatomy into consideration? because it changes the way the headphone sounds to us.
Why do we measure headphones with dummy heads and speakers with microphones ? I think that we must decide in one method and I also think that this method must not take account of the ear canal.
Just got the JLAB epic lab earbuds and thats the sound quality I want. Soundstage. Balance. Simple to use. Dolby surround capable... DTS:X capable. Although, the best headsets probably don't need it but it still helps pick out very minute things you need in FPS.
@ResolveReviews, Do you guys know what's the curve for a well-treated recording studio with the GRAS and B&K HATS sitting at the sweet spot, listening to flatly tuned monitors? Can you take these rigs to a studio? Because as much as the free and the diffuse field curves are useful, that's not how a reference sound sounds like, if I understood it correctly.
There's less utility in this than you may think, in part because every room is different, and we don't want to bake in a specific room with a specific set of speakers to the baseline. But also in part because headphones are worn on the head and do not function like speakers at a distance. We use DF as the baseline because it matches the condition in which headphones are used, where the sound is coming from no specific direction. But coincidentally DF is also a good fit with the Harman in-room baseline, and matches that nearly identically with the same smoothing. Most of the misunderstanding around DF comes from considering it a target curve, but that's not what anyone is actually suggesting. Rather, it should be the baseline for headphone use and then have the appropriate filters applied (the same ones used by Harman if you like). The other key reason to use DF is that it allows measurements from different fixtures (and different people) to be compared, since this condition can be calculated for every head/ears.
![Seungmin "그렇게, 천천히, 우리(As we are)" | [Stray Kids : SKZ-PLAYER]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/kAzmhLHePqU/mqdefault.jpg)
Just a couple of notes:
1. The measurement rig ears are developed from specific datasets and are typically going to be closer to one another than the differences you see from human to human. So it's likely that even with multiple rig ears we're still seeing less HpTF variation because the physical differences between those ears is fairly small.
2. The HUTUBS datasets shown in this video make use of the same HD 800 S across 30 listeners, so unit variation was not a factor.
3. I didn't even talk about acoustic impedance in this video, which is definitely something to consider and will cause variation not just at high frequencies. The HD 800 S example used in this video is extremely low acoustic Z and should therefore be considered a best case scenario. Most headphones are going to vary even more substantially.
4. Also, big shoutout to Dr. Craig Stark at UC Irvine for doing the MRIs! It may still be a bit before we can have the physical versions of our own ears done but we wouldn't be able to do that without Dr. Stark's help in this regard.
Fascinating but there a few large effect size variables that you have not even mentioned which I will summarize:
1. Training, what does "real" music sound like: Growing up listening to live musicians with live strings, horns, synthesizers, and percussion creates a certain expectation; the ear becomes trained on a certain "sound of reality". Corrolary: your brain AI is trained to a certain Database, that defines "reality". The user expectation must be met for a agreable outcome. The discriminatory users will usually be in the minority of all users.
2. Intention: I am listening to music for distraction, dancing, memorization, or analysis ? We are referring to a need to detail and resolution. Clearly this interacts with #1.
3. HpTF is affected by head and tongue position, and by extension the muscle tension in the head, these are hard variables to control but to attentive listeners is a real factor that every individual can experince for the themselves.
Thank you for this very informative video. I would like to share more but nobody will read it XD.
Glad to help out and looking forward to the results!
Very insightful video! Great job fellas
Oh, nice to see Sennheiser here. When are we getting the new HE-2? 😁
Can't talk about sound quality of headphones or speakers without mentioning the variables that is the source material AND listener preferences for SPL. There is a little thing called Equal Loudness Contour which affects our perception of frequency response. So depending on how loud you listen to a pair of headphones as well as what the source material is, the perceived sound quality of a headphone may differ DRASTICALLY.
When are we getting the Sennheiser HD 800 S2 ?
@@thatchinaboi1 agreed.
When is ie1000😡 need an upgrade from 900
I'm a burn victim survivor and I lost my ears to the fire BUT the good news is I now have the worlds 1st modular ears. Much like pad swapping on a headphone I can swap my ear size and shape in and out as needed.
huh wow. a interesting side effect to an unfortunate experience. this all makes me wonder how differently someone with cauliflower ears hear vs everyone else
Very interesting! There might be a channel like this that would do a range of outer ear shapes and your relative opinion of the sound from each.
bro can change his biological frequency responce
If this isn't a joke, that's insanely interesting! For sound experience, are bigger always better?
This is super interesting. Do you mind sharing your experiences when swapping different shapes and sizes? I'd love to hear more.
I'm very much a novice here (so correct me if I misunderstand) but another confounding factor is that our hearing adapts over time and exposure so our 'expectations' change,as is our ability to pick up on certain details. Back in the day this was known as 'breaking in' headphones, though the actual headphones didn't change. If you're a casual who has a daily driver your expectations are colored by being adapted to that specific profile where as someone doing it professionally is more used to isolating different sound characteristics, which is why all of the 'casuals can't tell the difference' content exists where as enthusiasts can notice significant ones. Another example might be how more casual spaces like reddit will claim the differences between dac/amps is mostly fake news where as a place like head-fi would be able to break down all of them. I suspect this effect may also play a role in why high end audio enthusiasts tend to end up 'chasing the dragon' as they try to keep up with their adaptations.
Good point, and also take note that earpads compress over time (like wearing-in a pair of shoes, for example), bringing the transducer closer to your ear, which your brain becomes accustomed to.
EQ is actually super helpful in this regard. It can function kind of like a reset - and when you're regularly making adjustments, toggling on/off, you really get a strong sense of where various colorations and FR features are. And many of the psychoacoustic effects people enjoy like soundstage and so-on can also be interpreted and understood subjectively as FR features at the eardrum once you really dig deep into EQ. I'm not saying people should need to do this, in fact they really shouldn't, but it has been highly influential in understanding what to listen for and how various FR regions impact the listening experience.
@@ResolveReviews
>They really shoudn't
Yeah, tinkering with EQ is a slippery slope xD At some point you are in constant need to adjust something, you confuse your hearing, etc.
I'm personally settled at EQ-ing only when there is something very wrong, not slight coloring per se. And mostly by measurements. I think now I have the only earphones I've EQ-ed by ear just because they lack mid-range greatly, and when corrected - are perfect for me.
I have studio monitors that have insane 8kHz peak that wasn't in their factory or reviewers measurements, but I can clearly hear and measure it and it is way too much for being just "coloring"... I thought maybe it is noise from something in electrical grid or from something connected to my PC, but couldn't find it and just... EQ-ed it out looking at FR readings until it disappears on the graph. And it is not local too, persisted in different listening spots and monitors positions.
What an excellent video. Great way to explain often misunderstood concepts with clarity. Kudos to you Resolve
Very glad to see this video, much appreciated! About 10 years ago when I brought this topic up on the Stereophile website, I was almost laughed off the comment section and most replies said there would be little difference if any. I had commented on speakers and headphones. Makes you wonder...
My brother went in to get his ears cleaned since he had a wax build up. And afterward he was shocked how tinny and shrill the world sounds, and found himself turning everything down and even covering his ears when vehicles went bar or a bus pulled up with squeaky brakes. He now listens to his music 20-30% quieter.
My dad ,90 needed new hearing aids. We took him and got some real nice new . Spent a long time with the audiologist getting adjusted. Few days later went back complaining about the crap sound.
After readjusting to match his old junk, he was happy. The problem was he was hearing things he hadn't heard in 40 years.
@@chuckmaddison2924 hahaah that is a fun story. I myself feel almost jealous of my friends 10 years older than me that have hearing damage from wild clubbing and bar life, they can go to live jazz performances and enjoy it but I went once and had to leave due to how loud they were playing, the same for most movie theaters now, I swear everyone is 20% deaf these days but it is undiagnosed.
@harackmw About 3 weeks ago I went to the granddaughter's cheerleading/ dance school show, still cost $ 80 to get in. The wife complained I was checking out the sound system. Each side had 2 Electro voice speakers on top of each other up high. So we have 2 bass drivers and 2 compression drives each side with a timing error/ cancellation at listening position and a bloody horrible resonance at one point and if was fing loud and the amplifiers were starting to clip My hearing is down a bit, but those poor kids . The speakers were close to front of stage, so sound behind would be a bit less. The person controlling the sound should be in front, and then they know what is happening.
@@chuckmaddison2924 That is scary....for kids....But I seem to recall seeing, as a kid, the engineers in front of Metallica acting like nothing was wrong while the rest of us needed hearing protection. We brought ear plugs, but I can only assume the pros are wearing IEMs of some kind that block a lot, but then again who knows.
@harackmw same as nite clubs I went to years ago. All had foam plugs
Even the roller rink they had plugs.
Later on, they rearranged the speakers so all 4 were facing towards the side with the DJ booth which was open at the front . There is either a total lack of training or they don't care .
Even classical orchestra have a conductor out from to tell them how to play.
So the best headphone is .. with a highest flexibility to EQ tuning/customization?
Always has been.
That is truly an always has been momento
That's why the Sundara is so special. Almost ideal starting point and low distortion so you can mess with it. I EQ it to match the HE-1 moreso like the subtle bass shelf.
@@mikafoxx2717 To be honest, sundara,he560 and he6 are some of the best for this
I'm a musician and producer and have heard so many different headphones and speakers I've come to the conclusion that these are all perfectly analogous to clothes. Someone else's opinion and measurements will only take you so far, you don't need the expensive stuff except for some very niche situations, value for money fluctuates wildly, and psychology of the user is strongly at play.
"Don't need" is an anti intellectual argument, but I agree sighted and purchase bias plays a huge roll.
@@danaillaysen7632 In the context of the clothing analogy and our consumerist society it is not. You will experience no true limitations in your life by only owning a median cost headphone just as you would by owning only a median cost jacket. However, if you are the rare person who regularly attends black tie events it would make sense to own a tuxedo (or several).
Your analogy hits the nail on the head. A lot of "audiophile" channels and supposedly golden ears commentators in these videos talk about only about their subjective experience. What I've requested is that this content creators take audiometry exams every quarter (coz you don't know they'd listening habits are) to see if they actually have what it takes to listen to certain frequencies, I think a lot of them would be surprised to find out that they have 60-year old ears 😂😂
Not my favorite analogy. In fashion there's no right and wrong. The only objective thing is the size chart. In audio it seems like the music producer is the designer while the audio company helps bring that sound to people of different shapes and sizes. As it stands a lot of the variety in audio systems is not dictated by the human anatomy but by "taste" or whatever. No crime having a preference but a lot of confusion about sound quality or fidelity seems to stem from that sentiment.
@@zaq9339 There is no "right" or "wrong" in headphone sound quality either. There is only better or worse for my ears and my use case, just as there are better or worse jeans for your legs and your use case. I'm not completely discrediting headphone reviewers and measurements, but reviews from folks like Resolve are about as useful as the Foot Locker employee telling you how good some new running shoe is. Such info could just as easily be helpful as it could be misleading, and if you heed my analogy it will be more the prior than the latter. Bottom line is you'll never really know until you try them on your unique head and ears, at your particular stage of life and hearing degradation, playing the music you want to listen to with your specific use case in mind.
Awesome video! I'm one of those subjects who can't detect almost any sibilances because I've lost all the high frequencies... Love bright headphones even knowing no-one else is going to like them.
Wow. Well done, Resolve! The amount of information presented in a digestible way is remarkable. Thanks for sharing!
I would much rather see graphs of how a headphone measures on multiple people than on a single head simulator.
Probably very expensive and impractical but yes absolutely. Quite shocking to see as much as a 15db delta above 6k.
I think Rtings still does this, but only for bass seal quality measurements. Obviously you can't just turn somebody's eardrum into a microphone... well... not ethically, so I assume you mean blocked canal graphs on humans here. As far as I know that's still valuable, but so is data from multiple measurement systems too, which I think is what Andrew calls HpTF?
@@metal571 Yeah and that was a good example of potential leakage effects on humans vs rigs. It's especially useful for closed-backs, where often the seal on the rig isn't as realistic as it is on a human (or harder to achieve).
A standard is more useful, the trick is to know your personal offset
@@metal571I know that Oluv's videos involving his reasonably deep insertion in ear microphones showed that he hears more treble and shout than most people, when I can compare the same headphone. Kind of fascinating. I can't say I agree with everything of his but he is damn good at EQ. He doesn't really agree with technicalities and while it's true our ears only tell frequency, distortions like harmonic and intermodulation change frequency response depending on other frequencies, and temporal effects like ringing or even echo per se, changing frequency response over the time domain. Electrostatic usually have massively good distortion and time domain properties but poorer tuning on average, and tuning is very important. But they also take well to EQ. Planar is a decent halfway point. So it's a toss up in a way. Easier to tune a dynamic driver with acoustic damping and the driver mechanical and electrical damping itself, but it'll have higher impedance and possibly vary more depending on your ears.
Fascinating! This explains why I often don’t agree with headphone reviews when I listen to those same headphones. I used to think that I was somehow defective in my hearing or listening skills but now I know that what we hear really can be very different. Thanks!
This is why retail stores and shows are important. You literally have to listen to things before buying. Its really dependent on person and personal choice.
100%, but we don't have those showrooms nowdays
@@haskell3702 well, it depends where you live. some asia country (like singapore or japan) had audio retail stores that you can try every cans you want (or being available on the store)
Sadly not many places got those listening booths. Also mood and other things may change how you evaluate a headphone.
If you had a headache while listening, you would probably not like something bright for example.
No it doesnt, a good heaphone is a good heaphone. The HD600 is a good headphone, it doesnt matter whos put it on. The Arya Stealth is a fantastic heaphone just doesnt matter who you are.
@@CoffeeGameMovie just because its good doesnt mean ur going to like it.
10:26 Blaine is def not broken. I spoke to him quite a bit at CanJam SoCal 2024. His reasons for loving the HD800s are logical and I agree- Everyone should own an HD800(s)!
I mean, Blaine is definitely broken (love ya, buddy!) but just not in this way 🤣
Would you be able to recount his reasoning? I have been on the fence about getting the HD800S for a long time now, also in competition with the HE1000SE, and am always happy to hear another opinion
"Everyone should own an HD800(s)!"
Sure, if you want to buy everyone a pair then I'd agree, but if not sorry that is an ultra luxury item that most will never be able to afford. I'd take a pair for free, but I will likely never buy a pair, even if I had the extra cash. That pricing is nuts. I don't think any headset is worth buying for over a grand. You're just wasting money at that point for such minor improvements. I'd rather buy a cheaper headset and give the extra money to charity tbh than buy that headset. The only reason I'd want to get something that expensive is if it had to do with work, like if you're an audio/sound engineer, which I am not, and I'd probably still only get it if the job was paying for it or for some of it, or you actually NEEDED it that badly for the job.
@@MrRADicalOfficial I wouldn't buy it because I think the design is ugly. For over 1000€, not only does the sound have to be right, but the design has to be appropriate.
Cool, It sounds difficult. I have basically a normal hearing but with a "superpower". When many machines has the tiniest change of sound I notice it. I have done a setup test at work to really check if it is only me and so far only 1 of 40 have said that they can hear it (To clarify, this test was without headphones).
We are talking about less then 1% change in sound between approx. 200-1000 Hz. So in that region I hear very good. I also think in general that all my Sennheiser sounds less distorted then most others I have tried. Great info and video =). Also EQ can solve some but not all of the distortion.
That is some great work and gives some clarity what I have experienced as well. Keep the good work guys!
Best audiophile upload for a very long time. Interesting, relevant, and most importantly, very misunderstood. Great job, Resolve, at last the truth explained for everyone to learn.
Wow resolve, this is an incredibly informative and interesting video. I appreciate your hard work and analysis.
Thanks so much for taking the time to write/produce this very informative video. very instructive!
My lack of brain causes base boost and port noise at my nose whenever i listen to music, i enjoy it very much
Thank you
This validates the usefulness of EQuing
Good video guys. Yeah, that's the way with the sound generally. For example with speakers is even more complicated... Take everything said in video plus the speakers, plus the room, etc, etc.... But there is one constant in the story... We all love soundwaves. Stay good....
It's crazy that we've come so far in learning what makes headphones good, but we're still miles away from actually understanding everything that is at play here.
Something that I've taken to doing is just doing my own custom EQ based on what I hear myself. The more I do it, the better I get at identifying problem frequencies and dips in my own perception of a headphone, even in the 6hz+ range.
One thing I've learned for myself is that, for something like "resolution" or "technical performance" specifically, it's all in the 10khz+ range. If a headphone lacks resolution, small bumps in that range often help with that, and because of the chaos of how that range responds, it often takes a lot of experimentation before I can hone in on an improved high treble without it becoming harsh.
Hopefully, as we learn more about how all these things work, we can figure out ways to both improve headphones, but also ways to improve the individual experience. A future where you can buy an easily EQ'd planar with a standard response, and then just tune it to yourself to get that perfect sound.
8:12 rare footage of resolve enjoying the eris
That's is some S-tier prank right there
That's the Bleris... it's my daily driver.
@@ResolveReviews Out of curiosity what physical mods did you settle on with the Eris to tune it to your liking? I haven't modded mine yet but I am going to at some point and It'd be great to have a starting point. I saw some of your livestream but haven't had time to watch the whole thing.
@@Camride I mainly sealed it up with foam, swapped to different pads that evened out the mids and fixed the treble spikes. But then I also wanted to make it more unhinged and 'fun', so I added an electrical filter to boost the sub bass and make it even more slammy. Last thing I need to do still is reduce the ear gain slightly, but I may try to do that with a small PCB so I can add components into the system without shorting it by having things come into contact with one another in the cup.
@@ResolveReviews Nice! What pads did you settle on? I really like the comfort of the stock pads so the only other pads I've tried (just for fun) are some deep leather pads to make the bass more insane. Put it on an Ifi amp that has XBass for even more instanity, lol.
so what you're saying is... watching headphone reviewers talk about how a pair of headphones sound is pointless and your research proves it. got it.
'people are still going to believe what they believe'...yep...sad, but absolutely true...and applicable to our present global reality!
While subjective impressions of headphones can be helpful, the important thing is to try them yourselves to know if it's a good fit. If I read impressions from someone with similar preferences to me it can be "easier" to know if a headphone is for me or not, rather than random impressions. I did for example my ZMf Atrium purchase without hearing them and I couldn't be happier, based on reading impressions from people with similar sonic preferences to me.
Excellent work! Keeping an open mind is crucial, and for an individual who has always leaned towards the objective camp but still very strongly consider subjective preference I am pleased by the effort and publication. Interested to see where this will lead. Enjoy the music!
I find this very useful. Not living in an area that I can reliably audition these headphones, I have come to the idea that I will utilize the “ears” of several reviewers, and reviews of the device, to come to the point of whether or not a headphone is worth trying. I know what I like, and in a sense having tried several, and owning several, I find myself “calibrating “ the reviewer. So perhaps I am unconsciously calibrating my HRTF to theirs. Perhaps that is why the hobby is so interesting, because there is no “perfect” headphone. There are many that are very, very good. For me. and maybe for you.and there are headphones that are quite good at modest or even low prices. But then, there are some usually more expensive ones, that are, for lack of a better word, revelatory. I suppose meaning that they most closely mimic reality. Live music. I have mostly given up on loudspeakers because we now have HRTF issues, but now we have room resonance issues. That makes awesome sound almost impossible if you want to live in a shared space comfortably. So I settle for pretty good. Fascinating subject! Excellent video.
I find this video very deep and educational. Everyone listens to audio differently. Very good video Andrew.
Yeah, I suspect I am one of those people who have a HRTF that deviates a lot from the normal.
I found 800s to be very sibilant, so I decided to EQ where I thought the peaks were, but it didn't change much. So I made a shelf filter of -12dB at 6k and it was still sibilant, I assume there is a MASSIVE peak that I hear somewhere (should be able to find this relatively easy). But question I'm wondering, can a headphone be sibilant by design? It doesn't make too much sense, but that's the only other explanation I can think of.
Great video!. We headphones enthusiasts some times forget the these are consumer electronics devices. When we go deep on these technicalities we realized that all those nice frequency responses graphics are just a reference. At the end of the day is just a matter of taste based on those human differences either physical and even psychological. In industrial world (from when I come from). Normally manufacturers offers their outputs parameters certified at ISO conditions. It is the only way to compared apples to apples. As a engineers we know that ISO conditions are impossible to reach on the field. However is the only way to compare two or more systems during conceptual engineering or system design phase. As the old say said: In theory everything is possible on the real life. On the real life nope
Very interesting video, detailed yet easy to understand. I have one comment though on the interpretation of the subtraction of HRTF from HpTF... You mentioned that that removes the anatomical effects from the picture... I see it differently. I see the HRTF as anatomical effect due to far field sound source, whereas HpTF as anatomical effect due to nearfield source (headphone) + specific headphone interaction. By subtracting the 2 you are finding the differences between what is perceived due to the headphones vs what should be perceived if it came from speakers. To show just the headphone interactions, you'd have to subtract the individual Hd800s measurements from nearfield hrtf measurements(i.e. an ideal freestanding pointsource speaker placed at where the headphone driver would be), if that is even practically possible.
Excellent. Excellent. Excellent. This was one of the best and most informative things I have ever learnt with respect to Audio. Thank you.
I am a headphone reviewer and I am a woman. I would love to see more women included in measurements. A simple example is how often I struggle to get a good fit because X manufacturer didn't include enough stops for someone with a smaller head to snug up where the earpads land on the ears. I literally had to wrap a sock around the headband of an otherwise elegant and much loved company's headphones to fairly evaluate how they sounded.
As a man, it never occurred to me that some women have smaller heads. Headphone makers need to accommodate all head sizes!
as someone with a small head, while many others complain that Airpods Max in particular clamp with way too much force, for me they feel comfortable. I imagine thats an oddity and most headphones run large to fit most ppl better.
As a guy with a small head I can't imagine how bad this must be for people with smaller ones. I have to max out the small size on most of em it seems, besides some like the HD600 that goes pretty small.
It's probably the same with people who have gigantic heads (not me). I saw someone on reddit selling his 660s2 because "can't get used to the clamp on my big head." It kinda made me sad, they're such a good pair.
Lets be realistic here... Most casual females, are probably choosing Pink Headphones, with cat ears. Something "Girly", that look "Pretty". Sound quality does not seem to be on the Priority list, for the majority of females. (that, or they just use ear buds)
Having a very small head, is probably just about as bad as having a very large head. Its likely that its just impossible to make a system that adjust to both extremes... (and still be affordable).
One of the reviewers I watch... often tries various ear pad swaps, on these headphones. This can change the sound, depending on the fit and material types... which at times, can actually improve the sound, as well as the comfort. Its possible that if you purchased a Thick enough ear pad set... that you might get a better fit for your smaller head size.
There is one other option... but it could result in permanent damages.
Many headphone also have a metal strip in the head-band... and this metal can also be bent, if you press on it past a certain degree (bending it severely) and holding it for a while. Basically, over-bending the spring, to form a tighter bend-angle.
That said... you could accidentally snap the plastic... if its a bit too rigid. You should be able to tell, by feel
To possibly prevent this... You could try Placing the headphones in a mount, and use some string to bend the band at a tighter angle... then use a heat gun on the band, and you might be able to permanently deform the plastic, so that it has a new "spring point", from this new tighter bend-percentage.
Allow the thing to cool for at least 5 minutes... before removing the string, and trying it out.
Ive never tried the heat gun thing... and depending on the plastic type they used, it might make things even worse.
Other than that, you might need to use a 3D printer, to solve the mechanical issue (custom parts).
Found out recently that my eustachian on my right ear must be blocked and my hearing VASTLY improved just by chance of opening my mouth whilst listening through my headphones! Everyone should check this performing this simple procedure as what I thought was great headphone experience was dull until I opened my mouth. Cheers
Hello, I got sick some time ago and my ears got a little blocked. Then I went to the doctor and after a while it got better, but I could hear a whistling sound in my left ear. I went to the doctor and got an ear tape, and the chart showed that the hearing in my left ear has dropped at 3-4 KHz (in fact, it was the same as the whistling sound). Of course, the doctor said that this problem is related to the sound that you heard earlier and it was suddenly loud like an explosion. I wanted to say that people's hearing may be less in some frequencies because of their nerves.
At the end of the day, 'sound quality' is subject to factors that no formal testing can control for. My GENERAL advice, is to find a pair of headphones you already like, find he chart for their response curves, as well as impressions from multiple sources regarding their imaging and staging, then use that as your 'baseline' for evaluating your expectations of other headphones. I still use the DT770s as my 'baseline' comparison for how other headphones will sound, and the only time I've been caught off guard, was with regards to bass response, mainly because when people say something 'lacks bass' they usually mean it doesn't have artificially boosted bass that takes over the whole spectrum.
I still remember the first time I put on those DT770s after seeing everyone say they have no bass, yet when doing some testing, I could feel the shiver clear down in my collarbones. It was just THERE instead of being shoved forward. I call it clean vs muddy/stinky bass. I've had the same experience with a number of other headphones, inears, and even earbuds that people spend a lot of time complaining about lacking base, when in reality it's just not taking over the mix.
For in-ears in particular, the eartips can often totally change the tone on them, so that's something to consider if you have in-ears that feel a bit iffy or uncomfortable.
Great video. I love your objective measurements in your reviews. A Harman target definitely gets me in the right ball park and helps filter out a lot of headphones that are just not going to work. Looking forward to how these measurements progress. Will be great to be able to filter out stuff that isn't compatible with me.
Great video, looking forward to the next!
That’s why I love my Hifiman HE6se V2 with a modded headband and some decent cables - for almost no money - and EQed over my beloved RME ADI 2 PRO FS R Black Edition. The problem for me is now that I just have no clue how this is „rated“ and how I therefore find out what my preferred sound signature is defined…
A great presentation, thank you.
After much trial and error, auditioning and purchasing I found my best suited headphone in the Hifiman HE1000SE and, after having my hearing tested twice I found out why - my HRTF has the usual age related affect on treble and I have a lower HF peak in my hearing that is precisely balanced by the Hifiman dip in the same frequency range. So perfect EQ by the manufacturer.
So interesting. Thank you. Nothing beats having a listen to a set before buying them.
About 30 years ago I needed two sets of headphones. I was thumbing through Consumer Report and they recommended Sony MDR-V6. My neighbor had a pair so I tried them and loved them. So I bought two pairs for under 70 dollars each. Later I found out that this was the preferred headphones for many audio engineers. They liked them for the same reasons I do. Great clarity of sound. Accurate tonal balance over the entire audio spectrum, comfortable, rugged. I still love them and wouldn't trade. They were so popular that there are fake knockoffs of them and those sound awful. There's a RUclips video that tells you how to tell the difference. Their only drawback is that over time the ear cushions flake and kind of fall apart. Replacements cost about 7 to 25 dollars a pair. I'd like to find one that's liquid filled rubber like my Koss Pro 4A had. They keep your ears cool and don't wear out. They're out of produvtion and used pairs are ridiculously expensive. If you see a pair cheap they're probably fake.
These were my first pair and I still have them. Crazy to see how expensive they are now
@asplmn Well they're out of production but they still sound great. Compared to today's high quality headphones they're cheap. I've read the successor, the 7506 sounds different.
Several years ago I tested my hearing with them. I heard to 15 the. A similar design from Radio Shack delivered sound audible to me to 16 the. I tested myself recently using the speakers in my Galaxy S23 and heard to.14.5 khz. Not bad for 76 years old. I'll try a different transducer to see if I can hear higher.
What about transient response, and driver material, and stuff. If it matters in microphones, surely it matters with speakers as well
That explains a lot.🤔😄
A friend of mine has the DT1990 Pro and he loves these headphones and he says they have a very pleasant sound.
However, when I put it on, I found it extremely uncomfortable, very shrill and absolutely cold.
On the other hand, when he wears my he1000 unveiled, he says: they sound adulterated and not pleasant
maybe hes just to adjusted to his dt1990. ofc he says it sound crappy. Let him sit with it for 1 week and then give him his old DT and he will say the same
3D spacial audio doesn't work well for me out of the box with my SUNDARA. I needed to use Peace Equalizer APO to go in and normalize the level at different frequencies. Breaking out the range into 15 (150-20000hz) sections and Left / Right I used their beep audio test to set the +/- to make it just one level below silent. After that the 3D spacial audio works much better. This fixed issues with either my left/right ears hearing better or worse and if the two L/R speakers didn't match closely enough. Each ear has its own custom EQ.
Wow, I would like to try your method. Can I read more full manual somewhere?
Don't forget the one thing that affects us all - age! Our sense of hearing peaks at a relatively young 18 to 25 years. After the age of 40, the loss of perception of higher frequencies becomes significant.
That's another factor, yes. But fairly predictable
The other thing that may be contributing to this variance is the inductive magnetic coupling between the headphone and the in ear microphone when in close proximity to each-other. When you get into the higher frequency range approaching 20khz, the magnetic wave component will propagate wirelessly and potentially directly affect the microphone response.
A small correction to the illustration shown at 5:10. All of those effects originate from the outer ear, though I understand why you termed it like this. Nevertheless, the inner ear, that is, the cochlea and the vestibular system has nothing to do with what's shown on the image.
That's because we take the measurement at the eardrum, otherwise known as the drum reference point (DRP)
Very nice insights, thanks, guys!
This is super timely for me, as I am just about to purchase the Hifiman Audivina despite all the negative reviews.
People keep telling me the HD800S is dead and not intimate. Meanwhile I have it hooked up to a Bi2/Jot2 stack and it sounds *amazing*. This video helps explain why--thanks for sharing!
Yes indeed the entire chain matters. Many purchasers hear it's a great headphone (we would agree) but connect it to a phone dongle, etc. We design them for an ecosystem that is as serious as the headphones themselves. Thx for chiming in!
@@sennheiser I really hope that you aren't using the word "serious" as a metaphor for "expensive".
More so a decent dac and a clean and powerful enough amp and ideally with lossless audio. Not needed to be expensive but for sure can be.@@n0xt
@n0xt not necessarily price, they may simply be referring to performance (though there is, of course, a correlation between the two)
It's probably because of the bass response I bet
How do you make a "perfect" microphone? In other words: how do know if e.g. a dip in the curve is due to the speaker or the microphone? Calibrating a mic seems to me like a chicken and egg problem.
Fantastic! I would love to see more content like this.
Thank you.
Nice video. Interesting to see the body on knowledge on this topic developing.
I try to relate things back to vision. I thought, "Well we all see the same things." Then I corrected myself, "No we all see vastly different things, but we use glasses to compensate."
Looking forward to all the work you're doing that'll enable us to create "glasses" for our ears that'll normalize what we hear from headphones. @sennheiser might create custom "resonators" using 3d ear scans that perform "impedance" matching. Exciting times!
This video just confirmed my ideas, since 90's... It all matters to your ears, FIRST! And then the technicality, Secondly.
Amen.
Very good video that explains a lot in simple terms. Those who have been following you guys are probably familiar with most of this now, but it’s nice to have it all in one place.
Very exciting work!
Based on your presentation, the hearing differences between people start expanding at 1,000 Hz, which is the center of the midrange. This frequency affects everything except lower midrange and bass, where all preferences become personal.
good sound quality is when i am launching music and i'm vibing
As a music creator, I do both composing and mixing. A pair of headphones needs to enable me to match my music to reference mixes. It should give more detail than my monitors but not a tonal shift. e.g. when I work on headphones and take them off, I should be able to continue on my monitor speakers without adjusting my eq.
i wonder why the measured responses couldn't be normalized to a flat line from which variations would make more sense. with the usual HRTF curve, its like raw data from which we must visually imagine what flat is. i have learned how to interpret many different waveforms from test results like the square waves used to evaluate power amplifiers. musch of what I learned was from the testing done in AUDIO magazine of the past. Richard C. Heyser was one of the scientists that reported on loudspeakers who developed significant impulse testing with waterfall plots.
Bascom King tested power amplifiers for them and that's where I learned to read the square waves displayed on an oscilloscope. it seems that a standard curve could be subtracted electronically to flatten the HRTF curves on test.
am I wrong?
I'd like to hear if there's a link between headphones accuracy to reveal details and the human hearing.
For instance, two headphones (different brand/model) can have almost identical response graph, but we all heard this saying "one headphone has more accurate /detailed sound for bass..... or mids"
You look at the graph and the amount of bass is identical (frequency and shape) but someone would tell you that one headphones has more clear and detailed bass that doesn't step on the low mids.
Is it the same, varying from a person to another, or this is not related to human hearing, some headphones just have more detailed sound?
May I add a further complication via another variable? I currently use a Beyerdynamics 700 Pro headphone and the sound quality changes simply through the orientation and placement of the fully-enclosed headphone cup placed further forward or backward, depending on how the band conforms to your head contours. This is a truly a dynamic and complex topic which may be devilishly difficult to assign scientific methods to in order to ascertain a fundamental truth. I wish you luck in this endeavour. ;o)
This is well explained, Great insight.
This is a great example of how science works: From anecdotal experiences and observations, theories are proposed, experiments are performed to test them and the scientific community discusses the results and their limitations. Great work, and I look forward to hearing more about what you discover in the future.
perceived sound from headphones varies wildly to different people because of differences to the ear penna and cannal
does this mean in ears sound more consistent from person to person since youre no longer messing around with the penna, but only the cannal?
or would in ears have even more variance since everyone's penna naturally accounts for/filters out the cannal?
if so, could someone with in ears be able to train their penna to hear the sound normally, without applying the cannal filter?
10:33 yeeting a thousand dollar headphone is wild
I grew up with several sets of closed Pioneer cans in the early 1980s. Then Sony closed sound cancelling cans. I gifted myself with open back Focal Elacs for my retirement.(cold buy) Now I am aware of the amp noise and environmental noise. Shopping for a balanced amp and relegating myself to listening when the house is empty. Difficult transition.
So would it be far to say that in comparing IEM's, that they should sound more similar/transparent between people because all of the outer ear has been removed from the equation?
If there are "frequency accurate" microphones, couldn't they be used on the sound source and compare that to the headphones output? After a hearing test is conducted on a computer to determine how a specific individual hears the headphones, a "profile" of the frequency sensitivity could be generated. Then use software to compensate for the differences in that person's head/ear anatomy to produce a compensated reproduction of the sound source. This could also be a means to deliver "enjoyable" compensated sounds/music as well. I suspect the technology already exists to do this.
Perhaps something like the technology used by musicians to Profile/Capture the combination of a Speaker and Mic used to record a Cabinet in an IR - Impulse Response, might be a useful approach.
Id like to see frequency response curves for different wave types like sine, saw, and triangle on each headphone to see if different sounds have different curves on the same headphones
So let me get this correct, you’re telling me according to all the research you guys have investigated, pretty much all data above 5 kHz is inaccurate and data below 100 Hz is inaccurate?
And the correct bit in the middle is up for debate and has deviations there too?
Not 'inaccurate', variant. It's accurate for one head and ears, not all heads and ears.
@@TheHEADPHONEShow hmmm but you’re not measuring at the eardrum you’re using a simulator rig so my assessment is still correct, it’s vaguely accurate but not for a human but for a human like object?
And obviously this is setting aside all the other aspect of problems we seem to be encountering on top of the narrative,
@@ConvinceMeAudio this can be alleviated by using multiple human HRTF samples. Then you'll understand how significant the acoustic impedance of the headphone is. From there it's easy because you already use the rig as a comparative measurement to your own findings with headphones you have heard. The rig already does that to an extent because it's a aggregated approximation. It is always a comparative measure because the sensitivity of the rig never changes. If you've never heard any headphone tested on that rug, THEN it's you have no relative baseline.
@@ConvinceMeAudio Well, you measure it in relation to the ear of the rig. If there wasn't a standard, then there wouldn't really be anything that proves that a two headphones actually sounds different, it may just as well be a difference in the rigs.
I assume the future will be a way to easily measure a correct HRTF on a lot of people (1000 maybe?) and then average it out and create a molded ear that is represented as the average for all of those 1000 people's ears. Then you use that ear to measure headphones on a rig. But that still wouldn't be accurate for anyone who deviates a lot from the average and neither would it take into account for unit variation of headphones, pad wear and positioning. There are also companies trying to invent products that scans your ear and will give you a HRTF based on that, that will probably take quite some time to function well, but in 20 years from now it might be a lot more usable.
Does this kind of variance get reduced significantly with IEMs? Or does it just end up being variability that comes from the different shapes of ear canals?
Extremely interesting Analysis. I am thrilled HD 800S was used.
I feel IEMs will not display as much wide variation, because the Anatomy Factor is simpler.
They will. Ear canals "sound" very different from eachother, even your left from your right.
@@d0nj03 Very true. my right ear canal is quite bigger than the left.
Actually super interesting. I’m a music producer and just joined the audiophile crew XD
Can't talk about sound quality of headphones or speakers without mentioning the variables that is the source material AND listener preferences for SPL. There is a little thing called Equal Loudness Contour which affects our perception of frequency response. So depending on how loud you listen to a pair of headphones as well as what the source material is, the perceived sound quality of a headphone may differ DRASTICALLY.
our ears become room acoustics for the driver. can't not have a direct impact. and vice versa for the hp itself.
what I seem to not have grasped towards the end was the variation on the 800s which I understood to have been accounted for both of these, hrtf and hptf, and so what's then affecting the behaviour of the hp, our auras? (still serious question though :)
great work Andrew et al. cheers
The goal is to be able to fit ourselves into a certain category of squigs that we can relate to, right? So we just need more time to collect data, or are there more variables that we need to figure out?
Is this degree of difference in headphones something we would not see in floorstanding loudspeakers? In other words, is the variance that you've revealed with this research unique to headphones sitting on listeners' heads? Thanks for this -- it's fascinating
I have a hd6xx, what are the best dac and amp for it? Does it need them at all?
needs a noise floor discussion on the aftermath of this video
The central problem of headphone reproduction is that most recordings have been mastered for speakers and are in principal incompatible with headphone listening. The main reason is the way sound sources are panned just by shifting the volume of the two channels. This generates a signal that has the same phase and different volumes for the two ears. This is impossible in real life and is the main reason of the "in-head localization". So either use real binaural recodings or at lease use some emulations that at least generates the correct delays of a channel signal between the two channels - or even adding HRTFs to emulate listening to speakers.
I believe using incompatible audio signals is much more important then the actual quality of the source.
Wow, OK. But yeah, I guess wild rHpTF variation makes sense if you think of every structure that impacts the sound along the way from the headphone driver to the eardrum as being like the walls, ceiling, floor and furniture of a listening room: every single surface and material matters. Coupling a headphone cup to a head with a pinna and ear canal is like assembling a listening room from two halves, one of which contains the speakers and the other the listener. Of course every such combination you can make from such a wide variety of "halves" available is going to produce a different, unique even, final response.
I think the most important research topic is anatomy invariance, the universally good sound. Does it exist? Is it achievable in reality? How?
Great summary and analysis. Very difficult to buy headphones or recommend….
This guy just proved how good AirpodsMax are. Literally
This helps to explain why I hear the MDR-Z1R as "perfect" while others hear them as steaming trashphones.
Strong work here!
I just don't get it....
Maybe a sacrilegious/noob question, but why EQ is still out or this equation?
Why comparing with EQ applied isn't a good approach to bypass several of these issues?
Also reverse question following the "technicalities", should we expect all headphones to be perfectly similar with EQ applied?
I too enjoy heavy bass and the type you can feel but i also like being able to hear fine details in music, its kinda annoying since my closed back sound better to me (momentum 4) because of that but then im always told i need openbacks which lack bass, so i grabbed a budget pair (hd 599se) and sure they sound more open/wide and are fun for games but then they lose the “fun” factor for me. One day when i can afford to I’ll try some higher end openbacks with a dac/amp and see what im missing i guess. Or maybe ill find an audio store one day and plan a trip if they offer listening sessions
If you can make it to a CanJam, please do. You get to try 'em all 🏆
EQ more bass in if you could, it helps!
@ haha sadly my state is devoid of any events like that and the plane ticket cost would be better spent on upgrading my audio setup once i learn what i need, maybe one day in the future :P
You can EQ a closed back to sound more open, too. Go to squiglink and try modeling to the Focal Utopia but without the bass drop
maybe I'm slow on the uptake, but isn't point 2 and 3 just saying the same thing? why do we take anatomy into consideration? because it changes the way the headphone sounds to us.
Why do we measure headphones with dummy heads and speakers with microphones ? I think that we must decide in one method and I also think that this method must not take account of the ear canal.
Just got the JLAB epic lab earbuds and thats the sound quality I want.
Soundstage. Balance. Simple to use. Dolby surround capable... DTS:X capable. Although, the best headsets probably don't need it but it still helps pick out very minute things you need in FPS.
@ResolveReviews, Do you guys know what's the curve for a well-treated recording studio with the GRAS and B&K HATS sitting at the sweet spot, listening to flatly tuned monitors? Can you take these rigs to a studio? Because as much as the free and the diffuse field curves are useful, that's not how a reference sound sounds like, if I understood it correctly.
There's less utility in this than you may think, in part because every room is different, and we don't want to bake in a specific room with a specific set of speakers to the baseline. But also in part because headphones are worn on the head and do not function like speakers at a distance. We use DF as the baseline because it matches the condition in which headphones are used, where the sound is coming from no specific direction. But coincidentally DF is also a good fit with the Harman in-room baseline, and matches that nearly identically with the same smoothing. Most of the misunderstanding around DF comes from considering it a target curve, but that's not what anyone is actually suggesting. Rather, it should be the baseline for headphone use and then have the appropriate filters applied (the same ones used by Harman if you like). The other key reason to use DF is that it allows measurements from different fixtures (and different people) to be compared, since this condition can be calculated for every head/ears.
@@ResolveReviews Thanks for the detailed explanation!
This reminds me of Oluv’s Gadgets's video that talked about this topic. Sadly it has been deleted.
This was more interesting than the click bait title hinted at, please write what it actually is about and you might get more views!