Beautiful. Would love some gray-scale beats pros.
via Tumblr http://bit.ly/1SK4whX
Showing posts with label headphones. Show all posts
Showing posts with label headphones. Show all posts
Monday, January 11, 2016
Wednesday, November 4, 2015
Still the most used headphones in the world.
Still the most used headphones in the world.
via Tumblr http://bit.ly/1RUV34w
Thursday, December 4, 2014
The Beats by Dre Social Experiment Analysis
So, remember my post about how Beats Studio headphones are actually pretty good, even if they aren't the right fit for a true studio setting, as their name might imply? If not, it's linked above for your perusing.
In any case, while doing my normal YouTube watching routine, I happened upon this video, embedded below, which is I think worth your watching. The hosts of the show take to the streets and do blind and non-blind listening tests with random people.
It would seem as though the hosts expected people to like the Beats when they saw what headphones they were wearing, but dislike them in the blind test.
What they actually found? It turns out that in blind tests, people generally preferred the Beats headphones, while in the non-blind test they preferred the other headphones.
Now, in interest of full disclosure, the alternative headphones used, made by Philips, are not the model of perfect sound accepted by the audiophile community, or anything. They simply offer a relatively flat, studio sound, and are designed for mobile use and fashion. Because of this, they are reasonably similar to the Beats headphones, with the main differences being brand and sound signature.
The hosts want to chalk this up to the noise cancelling of the Beats headphones. While noise cancelling is certainly a factor for the average person, I think there are other factors to account for.
For one thing, the people in the test used their own audio sources, so this creates two different cases in which the Beats headphones would offer the "better" sound.
The first case is the obvious one, which is that the subjects chose to listen to pop or rap music. This isn't a far stretch, being that hip-hop/rap and pop make up nearly all of the modern top 40 music, so there's a statistically high chance that the subjects would be listening to that.
The second case is less obvious, but no less important. The subjects were very unlikely to be in possession of well-recorded lossless files, and were not using a high quality audio interface. They were likely playing lossy .mp3 files or streaming music at low bit-rate. More importantly, they were likely listening to modern music, which is increasingly mixed in compressed resolution, so that even lossless files do not sound "good" on high quality audio interfaces. The sound signature of the Beats headphones actually improves the sound of these low quality files by not pointing out the harshness like a flat, studio headphone does.
A final factor I would consider is the changing sound signature taste in America. Beats joined the subwoofer movement which began in cars (yes, that's right, Beats did not start the bass-head revolution) and brought it into pop culture. Because of this, many people expect more bass out of headphones, and bass is the defining criteria of "good" audio products.
These factors explain why people chose the Beats headphones as sounding better when they were blindfolded, but it doesn't explain why they thought the better headphones were the non-Beats alternative.
The reason behind this is likely that as much as pop culture pushes the Beats brand, pop culture also pushes that Beats sound like garbage. While this may have been true for the first generation Beats Studio headphones, the most recent Beats products have radically different sound signatures, and no longer sound "bad." The problem is, pop culture hasn't caught up with that change, because it's not easy to change the minds of the masses after they've formed an opinion. Beats have been equated with bad sound, and that's not going to be changed easily.
So, with this video in mind, are you willing to give Beats another shot? Do you own a pair of the new Studio or Solo 2 Beats headphones and take a lot of flack and have a hard time convincing people that they actually sound okay? Let me know in the comments.
In any case, while doing my normal YouTube watching routine, I happened upon this video, embedded below, which is I think worth your watching. The hosts of the show take to the streets and do blind and non-blind listening tests with random people.
It would seem as though the hosts expected people to like the Beats when they saw what headphones they were wearing, but dislike them in the blind test.
What they actually found? It turns out that in blind tests, people generally preferred the Beats headphones, while in the non-blind test they preferred the other headphones.
Now, in interest of full disclosure, the alternative headphones used, made by Philips, are not the model of perfect sound accepted by the audiophile community, or anything. They simply offer a relatively flat, studio sound, and are designed for mobile use and fashion. Because of this, they are reasonably similar to the Beats headphones, with the main differences being brand and sound signature.
The hosts want to chalk this up to the noise cancelling of the Beats headphones. While noise cancelling is certainly a factor for the average person, I think there are other factors to account for.
For one thing, the people in the test used their own audio sources, so this creates two different cases in which the Beats headphones would offer the "better" sound.
The first case is the obvious one, which is that the subjects chose to listen to pop or rap music. This isn't a far stretch, being that hip-hop/rap and pop make up nearly all of the modern top 40 music, so there's a statistically high chance that the subjects would be listening to that.
The second case is less obvious, but no less important. The subjects were very unlikely to be in possession of well-recorded lossless files, and were not using a high quality audio interface. They were likely playing lossy .mp3 files or streaming music at low bit-rate. More importantly, they were likely listening to modern music, which is increasingly mixed in compressed resolution, so that even lossless files do not sound "good" on high quality audio interfaces. The sound signature of the Beats headphones actually improves the sound of these low quality files by not pointing out the harshness like a flat, studio headphone does.
A final factor I would consider is the changing sound signature taste in America. Beats joined the subwoofer movement which began in cars (yes, that's right, Beats did not start the bass-head revolution) and brought it into pop culture. Because of this, many people expect more bass out of headphones, and bass is the defining criteria of "good" audio products.
These factors explain why people chose the Beats headphones as sounding better when they were blindfolded, but it doesn't explain why they thought the better headphones were the non-Beats alternative.
The reason behind this is likely that as much as pop culture pushes the Beats brand, pop culture also pushes that Beats sound like garbage. While this may have been true for the first generation Beats Studio headphones, the most recent Beats products have radically different sound signatures, and no longer sound "bad." The problem is, pop culture hasn't caught up with that change, because it's not easy to change the minds of the masses after they've formed an opinion. Beats have been equated with bad sound, and that's not going to be changed easily.
So, with this video in mind, are you willing to give Beats another shot? Do you own a pair of the new Studio or Solo 2 Beats headphones and take a lot of flack and have a hard time convincing people that they actually sound okay? Let me know in the comments.
Monday, August 11, 2014
Beats Studio Heaphones: Not for Studios, but Still Good
Audio snobbery aside, the equalizer on the Spotify app shows exactly why the new Beats Studio headphones are so popular, and actually not half bad.
To the right is an image that attempts to show the sound profile of these headphones. Understand that this is playing an actual song, so the sound signature isn't exactly like this, but it gives a pretty good idea. Note that this test is performed with the headphones on a microphone, so take that for what it's worth.
As you can see, the latest Studio's bump the bass, and raise the highs, leaving the mids to look a bit saggy. Audiophiles generally hate this kind of non-flat, studio, pure sound.
Let's take a quick look at the Spotify equalizer on the left, though. On the rock setting, we see this same type of sound altering, with an increase in bass and treble causing a "scooping" in the mids. Obviously, in the EQ settings, the curve is much more fluid, but it is still extremely similar to the curve we see in the headphone test. This "scooped" curve is also similar to what we see in other EQ settings like R&B, Hip-Hop, Electronic, and even Jazz and Classical to an extent.
Yes, you wouldn't want to use these to record and mix the music in a studio because they have nowhere close to flat sound, but that's not what consumer audio should do. Leonard from Kosmic Sound explains this point in the video below describing studio monitors. Watch from 0:50 to 0:58.
To sum up his point, consumer audio is about taking recorded tracks and making them sound better.
That's what Beats does with their new studios. And they also do it in style and comfort. Are they for everyone and every purpose? No. Are they expensive? Yes. But they are really good for most people and most uses.
 |
| Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GphNpU1V-zU#t=223 |
To the right is an image that attempts to show the sound profile of these headphones. Understand that this is playing an actual song, so the sound signature isn't exactly like this, but it gives a pretty good idea. Note that this test is performed with the headphones on a microphone, so take that for what it's worth.
As you can see, the latest Studio's bump the bass, and raise the highs, leaving the mids to look a bit saggy. Audiophiles generally hate this kind of non-flat, studio, pure sound.
 |
| Source: http://cdn.array.se/ files/2014/07/spotify_eq_ios_dump.jpg |
Let's take a quick look at the Spotify equalizer on the left, though. On the rock setting, we see this same type of sound altering, with an increase in bass and treble causing a "scooping" in the mids. Obviously, in the EQ settings, the curve is much more fluid, but it is still extremely similar to the curve we see in the headphone test. This "scooped" curve is also similar to what we see in other EQ settings like R&B, Hip-Hop, Electronic, and even Jazz and Classical to an extent.
Yes, you wouldn't want to use these to record and mix the music in a studio because they have nowhere close to flat sound, but that's not what consumer audio should do. Leonard from Kosmic Sound explains this point in the video below describing studio monitors. Watch from 0:50 to 0:58.
To sum up his point, consumer audio is about taking recorded tracks and making them sound better.
That's what Beats does with their new studios. And they also do it in style and comfort. Are they for everyone and every purpose? No. Are they expensive? Yes. But they are really good for most people and most uses.
Monday, June 23, 2014
Earbuds vs Headphones
Which listening device is best for you?
 |
| Source: http://i.imgur.com/iliib5K.jpg |
Within each of the two categories, there are further classifications that help to make this process further convoluted.
Earbuds come in in-ear and in-canal varieties. I will use the former to refer to earbuds that sit inside the outer-ear, but do not go into the ear canal. The later, then, refers to the variety that have a silicone nub that sits in the ear canal. Apple’s famous earbuds would be classified as in-ear models in this case. Beats urbeats would be referred to as in-canal devices.
Headphones come in on-ear and over-ear models which can be either open back or closed back. On ear headphones sit on top of the ear lobes, but don’t completely surround them. Think Beats Solo’s. Over-ear models, on the other hand, surround the ear completely, like the Beats Studio’s. Most headphones are closed back, meaning that they have enclosed drivers, only allowing sound out directed towards your ears.
Now that we have some background, we can evaluate each design option in terms of a couple important criteria. The elements I think are most important to consider in earbud/headphone choice are comfort, sound, and listening environment.
Comfort: You’re wearing these devices on your head, and might even be doing so for hours at a time. It should go without saying that headphone and/or earbuds should be comfortable. Comfort is something that will be different for everyone. With that being said, there are some general guidelines, in my opinion. If you are going to be putting in extensive listening sessions (greater than half an hour at a time), I would avoid on-ear headphones. The clamp force that they apply to your ears to stay on generally gets uncomfortable quickly. Over-ear and in-ear are most comfortable for me, and many swear by in-canal, though I dislike them.
Sound: These devices are meant to allow you to experience music; they should sound good. Generally, the best sound that you can get will be out of over-ear, open back headphones. They will leak sound, but this gives you an incredible soundstage, letting you hear the music as if it were all around you. For a more private session, in-canal and over-ear headphones will provide the best sound, generally.
Listening Environment: This is perhaps the most important consideration that actually differentiates earbuds from headphones, and the different styles within each category. Someone who uses their ‘phones on the bus to work will want something vastly different than someone who listens in their quiet home office. For noisy environments, or environments with lots of ambient noise like a bus, a train, a car, an airplane, etc, you really want to chose a design with noise isolation. Generally, then, you will want to chose a closed back, over-ear headphone. This will give you the best seal against outside noise. In-canal headphones, if fitted properly, can do this as well, if not better, but again, it requires a near-custom proper fit. Earbuds take up far less space than over-ear headphones, so it might be a better choice for the traveler with limited room in their bag. For quiet environments, I recommend open-back over-ear headphones, as long as you can afford the sound leakage.
So, headphones versus earbuds? I guess the answer is generally headphones for me. That being said, there are definitely advantage to earbuds. Just do yourself a favor and replace the earbuds that came with your phone with some halfway decent sounding “real” earbuds/headphones.
via Medium
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)