[jasonb]

A couple compensated plots of the K371, HD600 and HD650 for comparison...

Harman Compensated:



Diffuse Field Compensated:

So they are close between 180hz up to about 2500hz.

 

[ADUHF]

So they are close between 180hz up to about 2500hz.

I haven't listened to the HD600 or HD650. At least not recently. But they appear to have a similar response in most of the midrange and upper bass, as you noted. The K371 appears brighter between 5 and 8 kHz in the low treble. And not as bright between 3 and 5k, and above about 15k. At least on Oratory's plots.

 

[529128]

Closed over-ear headphones can only do so much unfortunately. If you want true (passive) isolation it's normally best to run to IEMs. If you want to stick to over-ear headphones, you'd likely have to run to ANC to get any meaningful gain in sound isolation.

@henrikgadegaard The JBL Club One is a Harman-tuned headphone with noise cancelling. It's tuned very similarly to the K371 in my experience, with a touch more bass and less forward upper mids. They're a bit heavy at 380g but could be a great option if you need isolation. I tried them briefly and found them comfortable while also being an extremely sturdy build using mostly metal.

The Shure SRH440 is also tuned to the target (supposedly even more accurately than the K371) and I found it to have good isolation. It's cheaper, all plastic and only comes with a coiled cable, but it might be a good cheap "out and about" headphone that isn't too costly to replace if it breaks.

Thanks @tinyman392 and @WickedInsignia. I have tried a handful of different IEMs, mostly chi-fi, and IEMs isn't really my thing it seems. I haven't really come across one with my desired tuning. It might be a premature conclusion, however, so maybe I should just try out some of the refined options or give the Shure or JBL Club One a chance...

 

[WickedInsignia]

I haven't really come across one with my desired tuning.

I find it helps to be very open to different signatures.
There is something to love in every headphone, and I find that everything has a "spice". We can't assume we know what we're going to like best, because the spectrum of available sound is so vast.

I know that I personally enjoy the Harman target, but I also found myself not hating the Beats Studio 3 when I used that. It was just a lot of fun.
Excuse the off-topic spiel and I hope you find something you love

 

[nabuhodonozor]

@henrikgadegaard The JBL Club One is a Harman-tuned headphone with noise cancelling. It's tuned very similarly to the K371 in my experience, with a touch more bass and less forward upper mids. They're a bit heavy at 380g but could be a great option if you need isolation. I tried them briefly and found them comfortable while also being an extremely sturdy build using mostly metal.

The Shure SRH440 is also tuned to the target (supposedly even more accurately than the K371) and I found it to have good isolation. It's cheaper, all plastic and only comes with a coiled cable, but it might be a good cheap "out and about" headphone that isn't too costly to replace if it breaks.

Shure SRH440 or 840 ?

 

[WickedInsignia]

Shure SRH440 or 840 ?

The SRH440 is tuned to the Harman target. I found the SRH840 to have exaggerated midbass and upper mids/lower treble. It sounded like an M50x clone to me.

 

[tinyman392]

Thanks @tinyman392 and @WickedInsignia. I have tried a handful of different IEMs, mostly chi-fi, and IEMs isn't really my thing it seems. I haven't really come across one with my desired tuning. It might be a premature conclusion, however, so maybe I should just try out some of the refined options or give the Shure or JBL Club One a chance...

So there's the Harman Curve and the Harman Curve for IEMs which added a 5 dB bump over the standard Harman Curve. So there is some oddities there, though I don't quite agree with it. That said, without the 5dB bump an Etymotic ER2 with filters might work, as would the Drop Plus IEM (Drop is probably a better fit). The Shure SE215 is closer to the new Harman Target, though historically has always been described as having a bit of a V-shaped signature. Ditto for the Yamaha EPH-100. Oddly enough, every time the Harman Target gets updated, it tends to get more and more bassier

 

[markanini]

I don't like the Harman targets for IEMs myself. I later discovered the USound target which sounds more realistic to me.

 

[tinyman392]

I don't like the Harman targets for IEMs myself. I later discovered the USound target which sounds more realistic to me.

I've always preferred a DF signature, though I don't mind a modest bass bump.

 

[ADUHF]

Bass measurements on the current 711 measuring systems should always be taken with a grain of salt. Because they weren't really designed for accurate low and high frequency measurements. As Jude explains here, there is some strong evidence to suggest that higher bass measurements on IEMs could simply be an artifact of the less accurate ear canal simulators used on most 711 measurement systems...

 

[jasonb]

I've always preferred a DF signature, though I don't mind a modest bass bump.

For IEM’s, I like whatever the AirPods Pro is on the “balanced tone” setting inside the Headphone Accommodations menu. To me it sounds kind of like a Harman tuning but with maybe less upper mids, but more treble sparkle.

 

[tinyman392]

For IEM’s, I like whatever the AirPods Pro is on the “balanced tone” setting inside the Headphone Accommodations menu. To me it sounds kind of like a Harman tuning but with maybe less upper mids, but more treble sparkle.

If you look at the RTings the stock APP is very close to DF neutral (like +/- 2-3 dB from it for the most part). Crinacle kind of shows this as well with his plots (right shows +/- 2-3 dB though left shows +/- 3-4 dB). I forget what the balanced tone ended up doing though. If it boosts just bass, then you’ll likely get something very close to Harman Target. If it boosts bass and treble you’ll likely end up with either a V or U shaped curve. If it boosts midrange you’ll end up with a midrange heavy sound signature (those tend to not be super popular).

 

[jasonb]

If you look at the RTings the stock APP is very close to DF neutral (like +/- 2-3 dB from it for the most part). Crinacle kind of shows this as well with his plots (right shows +/- 2-3 dB though left shows +/- 3-4 dB). I forget what the balanced tone ended up doing though. If it boosts just bass, then you’ll likely get something very close to Harman Target. If it boosts bass and treble you’ll likely end up with either a V or U shaped curve. If it boosts midrange you’ll end up with a midrange heavy sound signature (those tend to not be super popular).

It seems to boost every above somewhere around the 2khz area. Playing test tones and switching it on and off I only hear a difference playing tones above 2khz. It does nothing at all to the frequencies under 2khz. So it seems like a mild upper mid and treble boost. The AirPods Pro stock tuning for me is a little dark. I prefer things a bit more bright.

 

[SilverEars]

It seems to boost every above somewhere around the 2khz area. Playing test tones and switching it on and off I only hear a difference playing tones above 2khz. It does nothing at all to the frequencies under 2khz. So it seems like a mild upper mid and treble boost. The AirPods Pro stock tuning for me is a little dark. I prefer things a bit more bright.

Same here, although I prefer it's smoothness over too bright like MTW(1 and 2), any M&D, and Samsung Galaxy buds plus and Pro. I prefer to protect my hearing than ruin it. Can I get an inbetween high response? Also, there are better bass than APP like QC buds or Galaxy buds Pro. I use APP for the practicality as I like the ANC and just the ease of usage and compact formfactor.

 

[jasonb]

Same here, although I prefer it's smoothness over too bright like MTW(1 and 2), any M&D, and Samsung Galaxy buds plus and Pro. I prefer to protect my hearing than ruin it. Can I get an inbetween high response? Also, there are better bass than APP like QC buds or Galaxy buds Pro. I use APP for the practicality as I like the ANC and just the ease of usage and compact formfactor.

I actually really enjoy the AirPods Pro with the “balanced tone” setting with the Comply foam tips. Bass, mids, and treble are all where I’d like them to be. I have no complaints about their sound at all with this setup. The comfort is great, the ANC and transparency mode is awesome, and they are just super convenient. I’ve used a decent amount of true wireless earbuds and I prefer these over all the ones I’ve tried so far.

The Apple health app tells me my daily average listening volume is between 61 and 71dB. So I don’t listen all that loudly which may be why I prefer some added brightness.

These actually sound similar enough to my K371 with the small amount of EQ I use on them. Anyway... back to the K371 discussion.