[Sync]

I was wondering if someone could graph how the various headphones sound. I was thinking something along the lines of a normal x y graph everyone used in algebra but have some like all positive x values be labeled as colored, negative x values as neutral, positive y values as dark, negative y values as bright. I dont know you could label them anything you want but I was just trying to describe how the graph would look. I just think it would be a really interesting graph. I am not saying im going to do it, my wxperience is too limited, but maybe one of our uber-ridiculous head-fiers could do it. Anyone think it is a good or idea....or does anyone volunteer to do it?

 

[asbradbury]

Uber-ridiculous head-fiers? Sounds like Tyll and Headroom are a good bet!

Check this out:
http://graphs.headphone.com/

Check out the headroom forum at http://www5.head-fi.org/forums/forum...?s=&forumid=34 for more info about these measurements and what they mean.

 

[The_Mac]

Quote:

Originally posted by asbradbury Uber-ridiculous head-fiers? Sounds like Tyll and Headroom are a good bet! Check this out: http://graphs.headphone.com/ Check out the headroom forum at http://www5.head-fi.org/forums/forum...?s=&forumid=34 for more info about these measurements and what they mean.

As great as tyll's graphs are, and they are quite excellent, what Sync was suggesting is a different beast alltogether. Something with a lot less information, and different information at that.

What it would be is a large point graph. Each point on the graph would represent a headphone, and where it is on the graph would represent how it sounds.

Something as close to the origin as possible would be a very neutral, very flat headphone. But a headphone that's up high off the horizontal axis and out to the right side would be a very bright, very colored can. So it would be easier to determine which cans sound alike simply based on where they are on the graph, and it would be easy to eliminate cans that sound similar to ones that you disliked, just because they're close together.

 

[Sync]

At least someone got it, sort of. You got the general idea of what the graph would show, but apparantly I did not do a good enough job of explaining what it would look like. Not that it matters because no one seems to think this is a very interesting topic.

 

[WmAx]

Quote:

You got the general idea of what the graph would show, but apparantly I did not do a good enough job of explaining what it would look like. Not that it matters because no one seems to think this is a very interesting topic.

One problem(a major one) is that this graph, if actually showing a scale of perceptual accuracy to source signal, is that it would only be useful for picking out a headphone that performs this feat. Do not assume you would like the sound of this headphone! Their would not be the wide range of 'favorite' headphones sold/available that have different responses if this was true. So what to do? Graph subjective sound quality? How? Everyone has different preferences. Example: Some people love the HD-650..... some love the Grado 225..... some love the CD-3000, etc..

Maybe you intended something different from either of these examples. If so, please be as specific as possible.

-Chris

 

[halcyon]

A graph like that would be either A) utterly subjective (one person's opinion) or B) impossible to make.

WmAx wrote, people don't even agree on the definition of "neutral".

It would be next to impossible to make a set of variables that people agreed upon and then map each headphone to those variables.

Of course, it is possible to do a semi-blind listening test, which would be extremely cumbersome, but the results wouldn't necessary be very valid.

 

[LargeSock]

I've wondered lately why I can't find sample recordings of headphone output online. Initially, it sounds like a stupid idea, and maybe it really is, but it seems to have potential to me.

Though you couldn't actually tell exactly how any of the headphones would sound, you could tell how they sound relative to one another. In other words, hearing a recording of a DT770-Pro vs. an Ety ER-4S, you'd know immediately which parts of the sound are emphasized and colored by each phone by comparing the two recordings. In this way, you could see if a headphone you're considering sounds kind of like another you've auditioned before.

Of course, the ultimate downside to this is that it, at best, indicates frequency response; it seems as though it'd be either very difficult or theoretically impossible to compare levels of detail between phones that way.

 

[wallijonn]

that's a good idea, but it's best if you just ask people what they consider bassy, neutral and bright. of course you then end up comparing a $50 headphone to a $500 one; so then you'd end up with price catagories.

you may think that the KCS35 has prodigious bass but to me they sound thin and bright. so what good would that do?

So, overall it's best to just ask the rest of the community members for guidance. you'd whittle down your choices to a few headphones, audition them and then buy what you consider the best, to you.

halcyon,

Where you been, man? a few of us have missed you and I, for one, am glad that you're re-visiting us.