[v98235]

Quote:

I don't know if someone else has said this already, but I for one am not hearing any sudden increase in volume when doing that. Quite the opposite, in fact. I'm hearing a gradual decrease in volume, followed by a gradual return. This happens two times. First, between 5700hz and 6500hz, and the second time, between 7900hz and 9000hz. What's going on here?
 
If it's any indication, I'm using a pair of Sennheiser HD202's.

 
Doesn't this just mean that your headphones have a massive dip at those frequencies extreme enough to not even resonate? Just a thought, I'm no expert. The tuning process worked very well for me.

 

[ComfyGrados]

Thank you for this thread, OP.
 
After a lot of time playing around with Electri-Q, Sinegen, and pink noise, looking at raw measurement graphs of headphones on the Internet, and comparing them to what my own ears hear, I have come to the conclusion that the only way to achieve true sonic neutrality while listening to headphones is through the use of a parametric equalizer.
 
What I've found is that my ears hear peaks at different places than various dummy heads around the Internet do. I'm sure other members here will report the same thing.
 
This means that it's impossible to create a headphone that will be sonically neutral for every human listener. The shape of the ear seems to affect the perceived sound of headphones a great deal.
 
I'm sure my Electri-Q presets could possibly sound very, very off to other listeners with differently shaped ears.
 
The revelation that a parametric equalizer is the only way to achieve sonic neutrality while listening to headphones highlights a hole in the marketplace for a product which does not exist: a portable digital parametric equalizer.
 
Someone needs to make a portable digital parametric equalizer for headphones, stat.

 

[Matt head 777]

you mean a portable hardware eq? well size and weight play a part. I already have a parametric eq in my phone - Neutron media player.
 
I agree that parametric, not the limited graphic eq is the way to go, even small changes can have effect for better! For people to assume that with design constraints of headphones that they can get everything right without eq seems silly. I think their maybe many who don't have a technical background and don't realise how hard it can be make things work right. They have a mentality that it should just work if spend enough money. Spending money on things like cables...
 

 

[ComfyGrados]

Also, I thought I should mention this in this thread as it's very relevant: http://www.head-fi.org/products/beyerdynamic-dt-770-pro-closed-studio-headphones-250-ohms/reviews/5928
 
That thread has very helpful instructions on how to do system-wide EQ'ing via VST plugin in Windows. That means your music players, video players and games will all go through the EQ. Instructions are confirmed working right now.

 

[jerg]

True personalized neutrality might not be the best for everyone though; e.g. for me I like to remove peaks and valleys via param EQing, then do broadscale adjustments so that I get maximum top and bottom end extension, a slight (+2 dB) overall bass boost, a slight lower treble drop (to remove traces of sibilance) and upper treble boost (sparkle).

 

[ComfyGrados]

Quote:

True personalized neutrality might not be the best for everyone though; e.g. for me I like to remove peaks and valleys via param EQing, then do broadscale adjustments so that I get maximum top and bottom end extension, a slight (+2 dB) overall bass boost, a slight lower treble drop (to remove traces of sibilance) and upper treble boost (sparkle).

"EQ to neutral then adjust to taste" sounds like a perfectly valid, logical procedure.

 

[Maciek1988]

I keep looking for a certain audio equalization website but I cannot find it. Still, it's probably well known so I thought about describing it here and then maybe someone can give me the link to it:
 
- it was a regular guide to equalizing, nothing unusual
- it was a single page that was almost definitely put on a college or university server (I remember the main part of the adress having the .edu suffix)
- there was an equalizer put on the page that was basically a grid of small orange rectangles arranged into rows with sounds having the same volume and columns of sounds of the same tone. You were supposed to begin in the middle of the left column (the left columns had bass sounds and those at the top were very loud while those at the bottom of the columns were quiet) and click on one of the rectangles. Then you had to go to the next column and find a higher sound with the same volume. Then you went to the next column and did the same thing until you found sounds of different frequency but the same volume for all the columns. Then you could use these results to equalize your headphones in a software or hardware equalizer.
 
Does anybody know which webpage I'm talking about?

 

[SanjiWatsuki]

This isn't an .edu domain, but it sounds like this.

 

[Maciek1988]

The one you gave is pretty good but that's not it. The page I'm looking for had buttons (these are the rectangles I meant) that played a certain tone at a certain volume. If you clicked one it became highlighted and at the end (after choosing one button/rectangle in each column) you had what you could then replicate in a normal equalizer - a curve made of highlighted rectangles representing the same volume. Thanks anyway.

 

[MaciekN]

After measuring my Alessandro Ms-1i I ended up with the following EQ setting:

The first filter is at 2kHz with BW of 0.4 and gain of -4,6 dB
The seond one is at 5630 Hz with BW of 03 and gain of -4,1 dB
 
It does not take away all the energy these headphone have but lowers it to levels that are not bothersome on longer lessions. For more neutrality one can set the filters at least 2 or 3 dB lower.
 
Measurements upon which I based this setting are uploaded in my profile pictures.

 

[vlach]

Hi, how can i use these programs on a Mac?

 

[Norml]

Also an interested mac user. Any suggestions would be appreciated.
 

 

[pagmorrison]

Sounds like this one
 
http://www.phys.unsw.edu.au/jw/hearing.html

 

[Maciek1988]

Yes! thank you very much!

 

[Joe Bloggs]

Mac users rejoice!  You can equalize system sounds using AU plugins (Mac's equivalent to VST plugins) too!
 
Using Soundflower (equivalent to Virtual Audio Cable) and AU Lab (equivalent to VSTHost)
http://www.dctrwatson.com/2011/06/os-x-system-equalizer/
 
Now to find something equivalent to Sinegen: how about this?  I don't know if you can use it for free though
http://www.macupdate.com/app/mac/12333/signalsuite
 
And an AU parametric equalizer... *throws up hands on this one* but there's sure to be *something* available...