[bcwang]

How many of you find it much easier to pinpoint differences between sources using speakers rather than headphones? I know headphones are supposed to be more revealing of detail compared to speakers. But for me, usually if I can hear a small difference between two sources on headphones, it turns out to be a more significant difference on speakers. And if the difference of some aspect of two sources is only a bit on speakers, I sometimes cannot tell at all using headphones.

I don't know if it's the years of training our brains have with hearing sounds around you using the entire ear, compared to the relatively short time of our lives one spends with headphones. The lack of any substantial soundstage I can actually create in my head might be the cause of this. Maybe some of you are able to see the same soundstage with headphones as they would with speakers, and thus can tell source differences much more easily with headphones. But for me, speakers are much more revealing of source quality differences than headphones.

Maybe there is some sort of soundstage training regimen to help the brain recreate a similar convincing soundstage using headphones.

 

[beamthegreat]

I hear some more minor details from headphones than speakers but I can easily locate them when Im listening to speakers imo, but it depends on what speakers/headphones you're listening to.