[guspasho]

I usually listen to music from my iPod or iPhone on Sony MDR-V6 or Etymotic MC3 headphones. I'm highly sensitive to sibilance and after switching to these headphones from the Apple earbuds I've noticed much more of it in many of my favorite tracks.
 
A few for reference:
Pigeons by The Hundred In The Hands (the most extreme example)
Tres Brujas by The Sword
Work by Hockey
 
Strangely, in Tres Brujas, the cymbals sound alright, but the vocals are sibilant. I'm guessing that's because the band has always used a lot of cymbal crashes but putting the vocals in the foreground is new for them.
 
I've come to the conclusion that the source is at fault, and not the headphones. Though my headphones are very good at exposing sibilance. A friend listened to Pigeons on CD with his Grado 225s and confirmed that the distortion in the source was terrible. These are some of my favorite tracks and I really enjoy them, especially through the MDR-V6s with their bright high ranges, except for the sibilance. I've tried the EQ settings on my iPod but the only one that works, Treble Reducer, reduces all the treble, and makes my headphones sound like the stock earbuds.
 
Now that I have these great earphones I hear much more sibilance in a lot of my mp3s, it's kind of everywhere, and in the examples above I've verified the CD sources are at fault. Expensive headphones like the Grado 225s don't try to hide the distortion in the source. But how can I clean up the source without ruining my experience ala the iPod EQ sledgehammer? I was hoping there would be an EQ setting that removed just sibilance, and on the fly. I've looked into de-essing a little but I know nothing about it and I'm a little nervous about remastering all my mp3s. Can anyone provide any suggestions? What can I do? Are there headphones in the pricerange of the MDR-V6s that will still sound as bright but eliminate sibilance? Am I going to have to do my own remastering or de-essing of my whole collection in bulk? Thanks in advance.

 

[Satellite_6]

Well if you had a custom EQ you could turn down frequencies around 8k. Most likely it's the headphones. . .

 

[infinitesymphony]

You've discovered that most music is mastered for the average consumer who is lucky to have two-way speakers in his car. That's simply the way a lot of things sound: clipped, peak-limited, and treble enhanced. You may get used to it over time or you might counteract the effect by going for darker gear.

 

[eucariote]

I think it might be a problem of your headphones and weak amplification.  I've had both MDR-V6 and SR225, and both were uncomfortably bright to my ears.  I've also found that the biggest sonic effect of amps is to increase and control the lower frequencies, making bright headphones sound warmer and better-proportioned.  So a combination of those headphones (especially the Sonys) and weak current just leaves the harsh highs.

 

[Divvy]

EQ it out.

 

[BlackbeardBen]

"De-essing"... lol

 

[infinitesymphony]

Quote:

"De-essing"... lol

That's a real term. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/De-essing

 

[BlackbeardBen]

Quote:

Quote:

"De-essing"... lol

That's a real term. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/De-essing

Well I'll be damned.

 

[tlniec]

Shucks, I thought de-essing was what the kids are always doing with their hand-held Nintendo thingamajigs.   

 

[RexAeterna]

you are correct. lot of recording in modern music due to the mainstream is either trigger happy with low-mid bass or treble or even both. it can cause some annoyance. only way to solve this annoyance is to eq it out or if your amp has tone controls turn the treble down a bit.
Quote:

You've discovered that most music is mastered for the average consumer who is lucky to have two-way speakers in his car. That's simply the way a lot of things sound: clipped, peak-limited, and treble enhanced. You may get used to it over time or you might counteract the effect by going for darker gear.

 

[guspasho]

Thanks for the informative responses. I've listened to the same tracks I mentioned earlier on my home stereo and while the sibilance is not really reduced, somehow the bass strength and maybe the wider sound stage helps to not really notice it or mind it as much.
 
I find it interesting that others find the MDR-V6s uncomfortably bright. What closed-ear headphones in a comparable price range would you recommend?
 
I'm also wondering if anyone believes that vinyl will sound any better, at least with those particular tracks?

 

[Br777]

buy the app called EQu from the itunes store.  it is a parametric eq for the ipod touch/iphone.   i use it as my primary music player instead of the stock ipod/iphone app.  
 
then get a sine wave file..  it should be the kind that slowly goes from 20hz to 20,000hz.  i tried to attach one but i dont have permission ;-(
 
then play the sine wave file through eah of your headphones.  a sine wave simply plays every frequency at the same volume.. but you will never hear it that way due to the imbalances in your headphones.
each headphones will have different "imbalances"  and you will surely hear big volume spikes in the upper mids/lower highs that are creating your sibilance issue..  most headphones.. in fact nearly every pair i have owned, have this issue.
 
carefully remove any spikes with the eq, and viola.. no more sibilance
 
you can save as many presets as necessary for each pair of headphones you want.
 
the app is pretty darn good, but has a few minor bugs which the creator is working on.
 
if you are  patient, and truly flatten all the valleys and spikes out of your headphones, you will be amazed at the improvement in quality of listening regardless of what headphones, or what albums you listen to.
 
good luck.. this process takes patience
 
 
 
 

 

[guspasho]

Thanks! I decided that going the de-essing route was too much work but that sounds fun enough on its own that I might as well try it. Can you point me to the right sine wave file that I should look for?