Jump to content
IGNORED

Headphones vs Speakers.....Go!


Recommended Posts

so I searched before creating this thread, and just learned the search function is broken.  So yeah, a topic that's probably been done a thousand times and I started anew!  Thx @semente.  

 

Headphones

Pros - incredible detail, linear bass with no standing wavs, binaural recordings, neighbor friendly.

Cons - nasty treble reflections that need to be notched out surgically using EQ, no frontal stage (in head sound), potentially uncomfortable

 

Speakers

Pros - most natural treble, true HRTF response, frontal stage, most music mixed with speakers in mind

Cons - always fighting the room, have to be in sweet spot, detail lost due to early reflections, bass management a PITA, phase and crossover headaches (2.1 or surround), EXPENSIVE

Link to comment
15 hours ago, hdo said:

Actually it's wrong to blame headphones for being artificial. The truth is with studio recording quality! Headphones are so detailed, you can hear artificialness of studio recorded music, manufactured by adding tracks with sound cutouts using equalizers. I don't like studio recorded music as they sound manufactured. I prefer live concert DVD music. Speakers cannot produce detailed sound. So you cannot hear manufactured-ness of sound from speakers. It's all with recording techniques.

 

IMO, headphones won't sound as natural as speakers simply because they are not in "free field" and you therefore miss out on your HRTF (which is really what natural sounds like).  But you can get close if you know how to EQ correctly.  Especially the treble needs EQ to notch out the spikes and bring up the nulls created by standing wavs.  

 

2 hours ago, hdo said:

There is no "high resolution" speakers! Laws of physics does not allow large sized drivers move fast to produce detailed sound without distortion. Speaker sound you are hearing are blurred wobbly distorted sound. I found planar magnetic headphones are the real high resolution headphones.

 

Of course speakers can provide a high level of resolution.  I'm not sure how else to respond as the assertion is empirically false.  Perhaps they can't match the transient speed at all frequencies, but that doesn't mean they aren't capable of high resolution.  Actually, some speakers can play up to 50khz easily, but I don't know of many or any headphones that can.

 

And I have to call you out on the planar comment.  Planars can be excellent, especially the super thin membranes.  But I find that they always have more reflections and nastier treble spikes for some reason I'm sure physics could explain.  TOTL Planars and TOTL dynamics are roughly equal with the amount of detail they can resolve.  Now electrostatics are a different tech and many claim they can do detail a tad better than even TOTL cans.  But I've never heard any electrostats.  

Link to comment

I think we can agree on this much:  speakers do some things better than headphones and vice versa.  

 

To make any claims about absolute superiority really isn't the point of this post (despite my stupidly antagonistic click-bait title).  

 

As a headphone and earphone enthusiast, I have to cede that good speakers in an acoustically treated room are more 'natural' sounding.  This is what our hearing system is used to.  We hear sounds from various distances and that sound wave is amplified at certain frequencies by our body as it approaches our ears.  It's no phenomenon, but a very well understood response called the 'head related transfer function'.  While many headphones compensate for this with their response curves, they can't model your specific response.  

 

Also, localization and placement of instruments in a field are generally mixed with 2 channel speakers being the delivery system in mind.  Not all, but most.  Despite using advanced cross-feed, my headphones still can't quite match the realness of speakers with this regard.  

 

I have pretty respectable headfi setups - home and mobile - both of which cost some decent coin.  I can defend my preference all day long, but I can't claim that headphones sound more natural.  That goes to the speakers.

 

I do think headphones sound more coherent, especially if only one transducer is doing the work per channel.  To me, they are more enjoyable because the sound is not only "in head" but comes to you at extreme angles.  This makes for a very engaging listening session.

 

I also think the bass is more accurate, though you miss out somewhat on the physical feel of the music.  But the highs don't hold a candle to speakers in terms of naturalness.  Not because they can't reproduce the frequencies, but because we're not used to hearing the effects of high frequency energy bouncing around a small cavity.  Even open back headphones and yes, even earphones have at least one node in their acoustic environment.  

 

Waveforms with long wavelengths (bass) are a problem for large acoustic environments (rooms).  

 

Waveforms with short wavelengths (treble) are a problem for small acoustic environments (ear cups, or ear canals).

 

Room nodes, standing wavs, comb filtering.  Unless you can plug a digital signal into your brain and have it to DA conversion, you're going to have to fight these with room correction software or EQ. 

 

If I could take the natural highs of speakers and mix that with the super linear lows of headphones, I'd be an advertiser on CA and not driving a 10 year old accord.

 

Link to comment
38 minutes ago, Bubica said:

The antisocial bug in me is making me say headphones. I agree you get a better quality audio when you use speakers. But I like making my brain shake from all the noise right on my ears ?

 

That's what some folks here on CA would have you believe.  That headphones turn music into noise  :ph34r:

 

It's hard to find a set that works well with one's ear anatomy, let alone work well at all.  What I mean by well is :

  • technically proficient
  • hit's the right timbre
  • is COMFORTABLE

I believe that many speaker die-hards wouldn't be as negative about headphones if they could more universally deliver on these three fronts.  But the format doesn't lend itself to easy results. Every headphone I've ever heard I found something wrong with.  The ones I still own, I was able to acclimate to them or correct them with EQ.  

 

I've put about 5 hours into perfecting my equal loudness contours for my focal elear and my auditory system.  The result is out of this world.  The timbre of natural speakers without the room problems and sound that engulfs you entirely.  

Link to comment
  • 2 weeks later...
7 hours ago, semente said:

 

It's undeniable that head' and earphones are a great way to enjoy music on the move.

I haven't had a portable player since my Sony Minidisc broke down in late nineties. I used it mostly in train or coach or plane journeys. Perhaps I should get a nice pair of earphones...

My o my, have things come a long ways with earphones, especially since multi ba tech was proficiently implemented. 

 

I think youd you’d be pleasantly surprised. Delighted even. A low output impedance source with finely tuned universal ba monitors and foam tips to absorb treble reflections are truly impressive. 

Link to comment
  • 4 weeks later...
7 hours ago, zoom25 said:

The one thing that headphones struggle with is the presentation of the plane and soundstage. It never quite translates like with speakers.

 

agree - artificially wide sound field that travels along a rod, as if it impaled both ears.  Though with a good delay modeling cross-feed (like Canopener Studio) you can pull the sound further "out of your head" - further above and out to the sides.  Still no speaker experience with a frontal sound presentation, but a nice relaxed changeup. 

 

but not only have I become accustomed to the sound field presentation of headphones/earphones, I actually prefer it because........

 

6 hours ago, Daverz said:

you can't beat headphones for hearing everything on a recording.

 

the detail, the resolution!  Especially if you can smooth out the treble peaks using a good EQ software that avoids phase distortion. 

Link to comment
  • 3 months later...
On 8/9/2018 at 10:14 PM, Whitigir said:

The only differences is that the speakers are much further away than a Headphones would be,

And that sounds coming from each speaker would still reach both ears.  This doesn't happen with headphones.  It would be a similar sound stage still, I'm betting.  Never done it, have you?

Link to comment
  • 4 months later...
  • 3 weeks later...

hey @AMR/iFi audio - I'm surprised you haven't posted about the crossfeed capabilities of your guys' PRO amps and how that can sorta bridge the gap between 2ch and head-fi.  Maybe this is a way for a 2ch person to 'dip his toe' so to speak.  But I have been curious about the ican pro and how the 3D setting works.

 

Personally, I use Canopener Studio AU plugin every now and then for spectral delay modeling.  it's one of the only crossfeed methods I can tolerate because all processing is done in 32 bit float (minimum).  All the quality seems to be preserved.  It reduces fatigue by centering the bass more, yet because of the slight delay in the HFs actually pulls the instruments further out at the same time!

 

When you post are you the same person, or do you guys at iFi take turns on this login?  It would be great to get to know the person behind the trade account and inquire about preferences.  IE, how do you listen?  tell us about your personal chain if you're so inclined?

Link to comment

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now



×
×
  • Create New...