[JMS]

At CES 2015 Harman announced their new AKG90Q, with an intriguing, perhaps revolutionary, feature:
 

Auto Calibration: The Auto Calibration solution uses two microphones in each ear cup to measure the frequency response while you are wearing the headphone, and generates an accurate correction filter, all within a second.By analyzing sound pressure distribution, the technology inside the N90Q is able to adjust the sound according to the shape of your ear, minimizing distortion and delivering truly accurate sound.

 
Given the recent research Harman has been doing in headphone target frequency response curves, my guess is that the system will actively apply DSP to equalize the target response (to one of the target curves discussed in the papers) after canceling effects from external noise. Thereby both equalization and noise cancellation are handled in one process.
 
I suspect the "two microphones in each ear cup" are meant to get some kind of personal HRTF measurement, but I'm wondering if that can be approximated with microphones in the earcups rather than at the eardrum like in the GRAS simulators.

 

[marcswede]

It will for sure be interesting to see how well AKG/Harman accomplishes this task of double noise-cancellation.
 
As you pointed out, the microphones in the ear cups won't be as accurate as an individual measurement in the ear canal, but they still might be accurate enough to improve on the sound.
 
Since it's AKG (and QJ) I'm positively sceptical, or sceptically positive 

 

 

[castleofargh]

very curious to put my ears into something like that. not really an akg fan, but gutsy innovations are just too intriguing ^_^. if as a bonus we end up with the compensated flat FR harman developed for headphones, then I'm sold.

 

[Head Injury]

Interesting idea, and if it works well this could be a great step forward for headphone listening. And it may help dispel the stigma against EQ and DSP in the community. The design is gaudy though.
 
I recently expanded on the subtle EQ I'd been applying, using tones and sweeps to get each frequency as balanced as realistically possible, but most importantly to eliminate major peaks and dips caused by both the headphone and my ears. It's been possibly my most ear-opening experience in the hobby so far, and improved my sound tremendously. If a headphone is capable of EQing itself in this way to some degree of accuracy, it should sound fantastic.

 

[JMS]

They did mention the "TruNote" technology will appear in other headphones to come later this year.
 
I would guess the microphones can measure the person's specific ear canal resonance to compensate at high frequencies, and size and leakage of the enclosure formed between headphones and face to compensate at low frequencies.

 

[castleofargh]

  They did mention the "TruNote" technology will appear in other headphones to come later this year.
 
I would guess the microphones can measure the person's specific ear canal resonance to compensate at high frequencies, and size and leakage of the enclosure formed between headphones and face to compensate at low frequencies.

yes I also expect the possible impact to be most effective in the mid/low. just like noise canceling, I don't expect the high freqs to be compensated very accurately. but better is still better right ^_^.

 

[vid]

  They did mention the "TruNote" technology will appear in other headphones to come later this year.

 
Right, the solution to get audiophiles to accept EQ is to call it "TruNote technology".