Does every pair of headphones need a different cable to sound good?

Quote:

Originally Posted by TheDreamthinker 

Hi,

 

I heard that cables are very important for good music.

And i want would like know whether every set of headphones needs a different cable. Like with Amps, 

every pair of cans needs a different one to get the 100% potential out of it.

Is it the same with cables?

 

 

Thanks

This is a hotly debated topic.

There's no good scientific evidence to support that changing your headphone's cable will make a sonic difference.  No rigorously conducted blinded study has shown up anyone able to differentiate cables.  OTOH, there are those who will swear by their cable experiences and benefits, whether they be headphone cables or otherwise.  Those who trust in the science of it will put those differences heard by cable enthusiasts down to a phenomenon of expectations and placebo.  There's a lot of evidence to support the power of expectations and placebo where a listener hears differences between pieces of gear or cables when doing sited testing, and those same differences disappear once they try to differentiate them while blinded.  There have even been tests where a listener was unable to identify his own gear when blinded, thinking that his own favoured gear sounded unacceptably flawed.

Be that as it may, you'll find that most cable enthusiasts would advise that you consider cable rolling only when you've addressed all the other equipment in your chain and ensuring that you genuinely wish to go no further with upgrades.  

Your mileage will definitely vary and remember, science to date, will not support the validity of any differences you hear.  It's up to you now to decide to experiment and make up your own mind on the matter.   I'd advise a go look see only if you can make your cable at a much reduced cost than what they go for in the various audio outlets, or if you don't have to save or hesitate to foot the expense of purchasing aftermarket cables.  

I've personally had mixed experience and have my own reasons to be on the fence on this.  I do own multiple aftermarket cables and it has been a hit and miss.  A couple have made differences to my ears while others have not.

An aftermarket cable for headphones is in no way "needed" in the way a high impedance headphone needs an amplifier. It is proven, and even the average Joe will back you up on this, that high impedance headphones NEED amplification in order to get the best of them. Aftermarket headphone cables spark a giant debate in regards to whether they even do anything at all besides look pretty. Some say they make a difference, but a huge amount of people disagree. An aftermarket cable should be the last thing you are worrying about in regards to your audio set up.

This is of course a hotly debated issue as to whether the cables make any meaningful difference.

With the iPod and other successful portable devices a big market has opened up for people to sell cables which they claim alter or improve the reproduction in some way.

However I have found that for all headphones I've used the cable that works best has been the one they came with as stock.

I have only ever changed the cable to actually lengthen it and in this case I solder up my own.

I say - No! There are lots of headphones out there who sound good with their stock cable. An aftermarked cable may improve the sound, but that does not say they sound bad to begin with.

Quote:

Originally Posted by TheDreamthinker 

P.S.: If you don't mind could you please tell me briefly, whether Burn-In is only just a placebo effect or scientifically makes a real difference.

 

Thanks 

Yes, you're right and as to your other question.

Again, this is highly controversial.  While there is a lot of rational science and evidence that could be argued to apply to headphones in a sonically meaningful way, there is no strong objective evidence to support burn-in for headphones.

There is no doubt that as you listen to a pair of cans, your impressions of it will change over time as you adapt and grow accustomed to their sound.  This acclimatisation may be for the good or for the bad.  Highs that were initially harsh may now sound smoother with extended use.  Highs that were initially muffled may sound progressively clearer and more extended with use.  Some, like myself, put this all down to psychoacoustic acclimatisation and adaptation.  Others put a lot of it down to burn-in.  Run a search on the issue and you will see how hot the debate is.  I have my own personal experiences to go by.

I wouldn't get too concerned with either after-market cables or burn-in questions if I were you. i strongly doubt a 20 bucks after-market cable will be any better than the stock cable, at all. it's more complex, and expensive than that. just remember not to judge a HP on first impression; give it a chance. my first impression of most of the HP's i bought were pretty bad. however, after awhile they started to make more sense, sort of revealed themselves... and the magic happens  

let me put my flame suit on first: ... $500+ 

I paid $380.00 for my headphone cable but a hundred and twenty five of that was to dress it up and make it look per-ty; cable sleeving and fancy pants y-connector.

As to burn in, yes it makes a difference.  I can't give you all the science behind it but the basic rule of thumb is two-hundred hours of use.  My understanding is that it loosens up the headphones making them more responsive and something happens to the capacitors.  When it comes to burning a piece of gear in, I'll let somebody else weight-in on what's happening.

Quote:

Originally Posted by TheDreamthinker 

So u guys say that it is actually useless to change the cable for normal home and portable use.

At least it all depends on the listener himself. There is no scientific evidence for it.

 

And any way, I didn't want to spend more than 20 bucks on a new cable. I suppose that makes it even more useless. 

 

Am I right?

 

P.S.: If you don't mind could you please tell me briefly, whether Burn-In is only just a placebo effect or scientifically makes a real difference.

 

Thanks 

Hi Dreamthinker

I think that the cable which you got with your headphones is probably very well suited to its job and that replacing it will have no significant benefits.

I don't know if Burn In is auto-suggestion or not. It might well be that it is simply a period where the listener becomes acclimatised to the new equipment. I have recently acquired a pair of AKG 702 headphones which it is said require a long burn-in period. I have been experiencing that, but I am very well aware of the power of auto-suggestion and that I am subject to it as much as anyone else.

I think when you do buy some new hi fi thing you have a period of acclimatisation. This acclimatisation eclipses anything that may or may not be going on with the equipment. It is good to anticipate this acclimatisation and give any new hi fi thing a month or two before passing any judgement upon it.

Quote:

Originally Posted by p a t r i c k 

I think when you do buy some new hi fi thing you have a period of acclimatisation. This acclimatisation eclipses anything that may or may not be going on with the equipment. It is good to anticipate this acclimatisation and give any new hi fi thing a month or two before passing any judgement upon it.

Our senses acclimatize to any stimulus, hearing being only one of them.  You cannot tell what your final impression will be after only a short period of listening, especially when the new sound is significantly different to what you've been listening to for a long time.  Not to mention expectation.  Expectations can make you hear things that aren't there.  It will make you intolerant of things that there's no reason for you to be or tolerant of things that you have a lot of reason not to tolerate.  

I don't take meet impressions or short auditions seriously, whether they be positive or negative impressions.  Hasty impressions are hardly ever good ones.

you can do that thing where you EQ your music, accentuate certain frequencies and listen to some songs for say, an hour, then go back to no EQ...it will sound terrible, flat, almost like a phone line, but then you re-adjust  

I used to EQ but it got out of hand, i would endlessly faff with the EQ to 'freshen' the sound for my ears...and every time i messed with it, it would sound 'better'....ugh

I guess changing between two somewhat different headphones could have the same issues.

Hearing is an adaptive thing