[rgoodnight]

Headphones usually get a bad rap for being more damaging to one's hearing, but I am finding that a good headphone allows you to listen at far lower levels without sacrificing quality. Let me explain.

Since I do most of my listening early AM or late at night, while the rest of my family is sleeping, I've been doing most of my listening at very low-levels (<65dbs).

Now, on my speakers (Quad 22Ls) at 65db or less I am getting very little bass and the sound is thin, anemic, un-involving - makes me wish for one of those "loudness" controls that are no longer used. On my K1000s, driven by a PrimaLuna Prologue One, I am getting fantastic rich sound at 60dbs. The bass is there, the highs are there, there's nothing missing.

Can someone explain why that is?

My theory is that the flat frequency response published for speakers is typically measured at 1 watt / 1 meter and at that level the speaker is typically pumping out 90+dbs. At lover levels, the cross-overs are sucking up energy and not behaving linearly which results in less bass and highs and a thin sound.

Since headphones are single-drivers and have no cross-over they have a flat and more realistic sound even at far lower sound levels.

Am I right, or is there some other reason?

Anyhow, I believe there's a case to be made for (high-quality) headphones actually being ear savers rather than ear destroyers because they can give you more satisfying and richer sound at lower levels than speakers.

Randy

 

[spinali]

Gee, I'm not too much of an expert on these things, but when you listen with your floor speakers (should you have any) most of the sound dissipates in the air, and unless you're listening at high levels in a small room, the chances of hearing loss seems remote.

With headphones, even inefficient open ones with lots of foam, much more of the sound hits your ear. After all, the drivers are only half an inch away or so. But I've noticed the other things you've mentioned. I imagine a lot depends on your listening habits.

 

[dknightd]

Are you actually measuring your db numbers at your ear?

 

[J-Pak]

A lot of hifi speakers without dedicated woofers will roll off at around 80 Hz, meaning you have to turn them up louder than normal to get adequate low bass.

I listen a lot lower with my K1000 as well since it's the only headphone I've owned that has decent bass slam even at low volumes.

 

[rgoodnight]

Quote:

Originally Posted by dknightd Are you actually measuring your db numbers at your ear?

For reference, I am measuring both speaker and headphone level at the point where my ears are.

With the speakers I put the SPL meter at my listening position on the couch (i.e. where my head is), obviously the SPL gets louder as I move it closer to the speakers.

With the headphone I measure the SPL at ~1" from the driver since that's where my ear is.

Randy

 

[Sleestack]

One of the main reasons for this is that sound perception is level dependent. Generally speaking, as volumes get higher, you need to attenuate bass and treble relative to midrange to maintain the proper tonal balance across the frequency range. As volumes get lower you need to boost bass and treble relative to midrange to maintain proper tonal balance. Fletcher-munson curves (atlhough there are other curves) demonstrate and attempt to address level dependency. In the latest generation of TACT gear, they incorporate a second level of correction that layers fletcher-munson derived curves on top of the user defined target curves. It significantly improved my speaker setups and has helped me further understand the overwhelminmg importance of level matching. It also helped me instantly hear how bad non adjusted systems sound at low volumes... just as you observed, no bass and the sound gets thin. In headphone setups, fletcher-munson type principles continue to apply, however less agressive curves would be applied, as the microscopic nature of headphones affects level perception differently than speakers.

If you take a look at headroom's description of the GS-1000, you will see that they address fletcher-munson issues, although in a slightly different context.

 

[rgoodnight]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sleestack If you take a look at headroom's description of the GS-1000, you will see that they address fletcher-munson issues, although in a slightly different context.

Thank you for the GS-1000 pointer. I read the description on headroom and will definitely investigate it further since low-level listening is VERY important to me.

 

[Sleestack]

Quote:

Originally Posted by rgoodnight Thank you for the GS-1000 pointer. I read the description on headroom and will definitely investigate it further since low-level listening is VERY important to me.

The issue of level dependent effects on perception is rarely discussed here, which surprises me. I think some people's perceptions of headphones get severely skewed because they either fail to level match or test at their own "reference" level, which may or may not be the ideal level for a set of cans. The GS-1000 is an interesting example, as the U shaped cruve would be expected to be better at low volumes, yet might lead to high end faitgue or sibilance at louder levels. Other cans which have rolloff on the high and low end might be perceived to be thin at low volumes, yet give a more balanced presentation at louder volumes. I don't get too wrapped up in headphone freq. response chatrts for that very reason. Knowing that I generally like my music a bit loud, I stay away from headphones that are too close to being flat or have boosted treble or bass, because they ten to sound sibilant at my listening volumes.