One side bass, one side treble?

[ghostcell]

I'm a novice at headphones. I recently bought the V-Moda Bass Frequency headphones, my first pair of in-ear headphones ever. When I have both sides plugged in my ear the music sounds good, but when I only have one side in my ear:
- the left side has more bass (and lesser bass than other side)
- the right side has more treble (and almost no bass)
(I've tried switching between my ears but it's still the same)

Is this normal for in-ear headphones? or should I return them to get something else? I'm thinking the Sennheiser CX300 (I'm on a low budget, I bought the V Moda at $34, any recommendations for <$70? )

[IPodPJ]

Originally Posted by ghostcell

I'm a novice at headphones. I recently bought the V-Moda Bass Frequency headphones, my first pair of in-ear headphones ever. When I have both sides plugged in my ear the music sounds good, but when I only have one side in my ear:
- the left side has more bass (and lesser bass than other side)
- the right side has more treble (and almost no bass)
(I've tried switching between my ears but it's still the same)

Is this normal for in-ear headphones? or should I return them to get something else? I'm thinking the Sennheiser CX300 (I'm on a low budget, I bought the V Moda at $34, any recommendations for <$70? )

Super.Fi 3 "Live" version only... NOT the Studio
or wait a little longer for the UE Metro.Fi 2

[ghostcell]

Thanks for your reply IPodPJ. But do you know if having more bass from one ear and more treble in the other is normal for the in-ear noise-isolating earphones?

Thanks.

[awptickes]

No, something is wrong with your pair.

[JohanK]

If this occurs consistently on different recordings, somethings is indeed wrong with your earphones. The balance between the channels might differ between recordings though. If , for example, one bass guitar (which is rare but might happen) is only heard in one channel, then the two earphones might appear to have a different balance between bass and treble.

[epithetless]

Originally Posted by IPodPJ

Super.Fi 3 "Live" version only... NOT the Studio
or wait a little longer for the UE Metro.Fi 2

Again, IPodPJ, where did you find a comparison between the super.fi 3 Live and super.fi 3 Studio?

[El Condor]

Originally Posted by ghostcell

I'm a novice at headphones. I recently bought the V-Moda Bass Frequency headphones, my first pair of in-ear headphones ever. When I have both sides plugged in my ear the music sounds good, but when I only have one side in my ear:
- the left side has more bass (and lesser bass than other side)
- the right side has more treble (and almost no bass)
(I've tried switching between my ears but it's still the same)

What do you mean it's still the same? You mean that you perceive the same problem unchanged or the problem changes when you change ears. If the problem changes when you change ear then there is a problem with the headphones or setup between your headphones and the music (can be the source, DSP, etc.)

If the problem stays "localized" no matter if you change your headphone side, then you might want to consider your ears . Not that they are in bad shape but our brain alway prioritizes one side over the other. If you have a favorite side for listening to a conversation on the phone, there's a good chance that side will feel more detailed and more pleasant to listen to in the headphones (given that nothing bad happened to your hearing abilities)

Originally Posted by ghostcell

Is this normal for in-ear headphones? or should I return them to get something else? I'm thinking the Sennheiser CX300 (I'm on a low budget, I bought the V Moda at $34, any recommendations for <$70? )

You might also want to consider the music. You are obviously listening to stereo music, so if the channels are not crossfeeding, then it's not entirely strange that you would hear different things in a different ear. You could test by sending the same signal to both ears to have an common testing ground. Then you could play with you source/in between setup to determine if the problem isn't coming from somewhere other than your headphones. It might be something as silly as the balance being off. What is your source/setup? Try different headphones to see if the problem persists. Try a different source with the same headphones with no DSP in between the source and your headphones, etc.

[ghostcell]

Thanks for your reply,

Originally Posted by El Condor

What do you mean it's still the same? You mean that you perceive the same problem unchanged or the problem changes when you change ears. If the problem changes when you change ear then there is a problem with the headphones or setup between your headphones and the music (can be the source, DSP, etc.)

If the problem stays "localized" no matter if you change your headphone side, then you might want to consider your ears . Not that they are in bad shape but our brain alway prioritizes one side over the other. If you have a favorite side for listening to a conversation on the phone, there's a good chance that side will feel more detailed and more pleasant to listen to in the headphones (given that nothing bad happened to your hearing abilities)

Well, the right earpiece has less bass and the sound is "sharper" (excuse my layman terms), and that stays the same whether I put it in my left ear or right ear. And the left earpiece has more bass and the sound is not as "sharp/clear" as the right earpiece and again that stays the same whether I put the left earpiece in my left or right ear.

Originally Posted by El Condor

You might also want to consider the music. You are obviously listening to stereo music, so if the channels are not crossfeeding, then it's not entirely strange that you would hear different things in a different ear. You could test by sending the same signal to both ears to have an common testing ground. Then you could play with you source/in between setup to determine if the problem isn't coming from somewhere other than your headphones. It might be something as silly as the balance being off. What is your source/setup? Try different headphones to see if the problem persists. Try a different source with the same headphones with no DSP in between the source and your headphones, etc.

I'm listening to both the radio and mp3's, I tried it on 2 different mp3 players and my laptop (all my balances are in the middle). The problem remains the same whichever source I use it on. And the earphones I've had before this did not have this problem.
I'm starting to think that I have a defective unit.

[TimmyMac]

Check the seal..

[ghostcell]

Originally Posted by TimmyMac

Check the seal..

Thanks for your reply, can you specify "seal"? you mean how snug the earpiece fits in my ear? I pushed it in and I can't hear much/any of the noisy environment I'm in.

[ghostcell]

I'm thinking of returning this and getting the Sennheiser cx300 (it's more within my budget). For the most part, I've been reading that people are happy with it for the price.

[ghostcell]

I'm impressed, I wrote a message at the v moda website 3 hours ago and I've already received an email that they plan to send me a replacement!