[Sean_MR]

I always hear people describe how TOTL headphones can be ruthlessly revealing because they’re so detailed they’ll reveal all the flaws (like clips and pops) in a recording. But are there other factors that affect this as well?

I ask because I recently owned a ZMF Verite Open, and WOW I heard so many clips and pops that I’d never heard before in recordings that I’d listened to a thousand times. But the I upgraded to the LCD-5, which should be noticeably more resolving than the Verite. With the LCD-5 on the same chain, those clips and pops are significantly harder to hear. This isn’t a small difference either, it’s night and day. If the clips previously with the Verite were an 8/10 for ease of hearing, they’re now like a 3/10. I honestly don’t think I’d even be able to pick up on them if I didn’t already know they were there.

Is there something else at play here? Could the way a headphone stages and places components of a song influence the perceptibility of pops and clicks?

Thank you for any help!

 

[chesebert]

Let me get this right: you equate clips and pops with "ease of hearing"? Damn, I guess we all want different things in audio reproduction.

 

[Sean_MR]

Let me get this right: you equate clips and pops with "ease of hearing"? Damn, I guess we all want different things in audio reproduction.

I'm not sure if you understood my post. I don't equate those with ease of hearing; rather, I use them as a litmus test of sorts to gauge the detail retrieval of a headphone. Or that's what I'm not sure of and was asking for help of in the forum. Since if true, the LCD-5 would seem to be quite un-detailed in this example.

 

[earmonger]

Maybe the ZMF has a peak in the same frequency range as the pops and clicks, and the LCD-5 doesn't.

You could try some of the sine sweeps at audiocheck.net to see where the peaks and dips of your 'phones are.
https://www.audiocheck.net/testtones_perceptualsinesweep.php

 

[dunring]

It depends on the whole chain as well as the headphones. What amp/DAC are you plugging it into?

 

[Sean_MR]

It depends on the whole chain as well as the headphones. What amp/DAC are you plugging it into?

My amp is the Burson Soloist 3XP and my DAC is the Yggdrasil OG A2. My chain has remained the same though for both headphones, which is why it’s so strange.

 

[Sean_MR]

Maybe the ZMF has a peak in the same frequency range as the pops and clicks, and the LCD-5 doesn't.

You could try some of the sine sweeps at audiocheck.net to see where the peaks and dips of your 'phones are.
https://www.audiocheck.net/testtones_perceptualsinesweep.php

I will definitely try that tomorrow. Even if it is related to FR though, it still seems to be more than just that (at least to me). I can’t quite describe it, but the clicks/pops aren’t just “elevated” or louder due to possible FR, they’re more clearly defined and sculpted as well.