Submitted by Apprehensive_Row_372 t3_y9z7yk in headphones
I never understood why people preferred headphones over earphones? Earphones are light, extremely portable, and cheaper. As far as sound quality, at the end of the day, sound is sound. Can the human ear really tell a significant difference between $50 earphones and $300 headphones.. probably not?
Btw Idk why I love to rant about pointless topics that annoy me.
For me the biggest difference between headphones and earphones is the interaction with your pinna and HRTF. Headphones directly have the sound interact with your pinna and changes the Frequency response to how you're used to hearing, where as IEMs Bypass your pinna and use an approximation of an average pinna gain.
That said, yes earphones are very good, and there is a very noticeable difference between a $50 pair and a $300 pair.
My wired IEM earphones are $320 and there's quite a difference in sound presentation with that and a pair of over ear headphones that cost the same. Both excell in their own ways.
Our perception of sound is also heavily influenced by other factors. Fit, space, how much sound is let through. There's so many factors that change not only the frequency response, but also our perception of sound, which makes no pair of headphones, even of the same model sound exactly the same
It doesn't stay well placed. Plus here it's often cold and the chord keeps rubbing on the coat's collar and it makes a terrible noise in the long run. So I went with wireless overear, cause three years ago it was "cheaper" than truly wireless and the battery lasted way longer.
>As far as sound quality, at the end of the day, sound is sound. Can the human ear really tell a significant difference between $50 earphones and $300 headphones.. probably not?
Clearly you haven't heard any really good ones. The difference to my ears can be dramatic, as extreme as some devices revealing content that others can't. And it's not my imagination. you'd know if you've heard it, and I have.
This could just as easily be reversed. I don't find in ear as comfortable so I don't really use them.
When you are talking about "earphones," are you talking about an actual earphones like the apple earpod or an IEM? If an actual "earphone," then there is a BIG difference. First, you just can't get the low end through an earphone, no matter how good it is. This is just physics.
If you are talking about an IEM, I think you might have a point. But I can definitely tell a difference between my B2Dusk and my Focal Clear og.
I’m surprised at the details in everyone’s answer. This was more so a troll post but besides wearing beats when I was 13, Ive never felt the price tag for good headphones was worth it enough to try. Ive always owned much cheaper earphones that met my basic needs. Or I used speakers if I wanted to feel the vibrations of the music
I mean like AirPods. Idk what IEMs are haha
So an IEM is an In Ear Monitor, which is like an earbud but it seals off the ear canal. This was originally intended to be used by musicians onstage but audiophiles have found them, they’re quite great
Yeah over ears tend to sound better(if you just think that sound is sound then you are either not educated or have damaged hearing). High end headphones sound like the music is coming from speakers instead of headphones. Truly an exceptional experience
That makes sense, since Beats are not good headphones.
I have to admit, it was very brave to ask a question like that here. And even braver to add your opinion afterward.
Phrases like "sound is sound" and "difference between $50 and $300" both confidently display a level of ignorance most people would be deeply ashamed of
bruh beats are $70 sound with a $230 letter 'b' on the side. they are more of a scam than the cheaper knock-offs
"you wear overears for sound. i wear them to feel cozy. we are not the same." -overear enjoyer
Lol way to come into a group concerning subject matter that you know nothing about to post cringe. Don't really know what kind of response you were expecting.
It would be pretty funny to see a long angry msg tbh. But educational comments from the Reddit headphone experts is good too I guess, definitely learned some good recommendations
Interesting.. thanks for the fun fact
Thank you, you won’t learn anything if u don’t make someone mad enough to explain it to you in detail
No way that word was in English
Oh shit, did I accidentally post that?
I mean, uh, soundstage! Resolution! Right, my audiofellows? Please don't ban me guy, I love silver cables insulated with panda eyelids, it totally makes treble go tch-tch instead of tsh-tsh.
(Mmm, socially acceptable adult earmuffs...)
Please tell all romantic partners about this philosophy of yours on the first date.
yeah bro i’m sure the people making headphones were just completely oblivious to the fact the Obviously superior earphones exist and they’ve been spending all this time money and effort for nothing because they’re so stewpid they never stopped to consider Oh Golly Gee those earphones are just Better!
Ignorance thrive when you at the bottom of dunning-kruger chart
Many simply dislike wearing IEMs. They haven't been particularly good until relatively recently and the user base is growing. Headphones need EQ most of the time compared to IEM's, but still I prefer the feel, soundstage and openness of headphones for many use cases. If budget is very limited then IEMs are often certainly the better option for sound quality.
While most people prefer IEM’s, headphones gives you more soundstage, because there’s a gap betwen your ears and your headphones speakers! IEM’s trying to replicate the “treble boost” what we hear as “flat”, while headphones usually trying to replicate good bass frequency response! It doesn’t mean that IEM’s are better at doing bass frequency, but it’s way more smoother, and It’s easy to tune by manufactures! Headphones are good for comfort, soundstage, sound quality, and a more “natural” sound profile! While IEM’s are good as well, but It’s more focused on Sound Imaging, and portability! If you use closed back headphones, the sound you will hear is gonna be different, because our ears are always different from each other! While IEM’s are very consistent, even if It’s closed in, but that will ruin the soundstage of the IEM’s! I personally prefer only headphones for home uses, while if you go to work or a trip outside, I prefer IEM’s / Earphones because of the portability! Headphones for music / games and music production is way better, while IEM’s are, just good sounding, but It will not gonna make you go wild with it! I hope you will understand this, and I hope I tell you some info’s from both things! :)
Yeah, that’s one of the things that pulls people to headphones. Comfort is also a factor. Also a good set of headphones just feels so much more substantial than a pair of in ears
$70 is WAY too generous, especially if we're taking about old beats lmao
wiggan1989 t1_it8939t wrote
I have both IEMs and a pair of Headphones. They are a for different use cases. I use the Headphones when I'm working from home and working, the reason I prefer headphones for this reason is that it's more immrersive imo to IEMs and the soundstage/imaging is so much better, and since the inflation of energy bills, they keep my ears warm so helps with not turning the heating on. With IEMs, they are great for portibility and do not leak any sound when listening at loud volumes. So my advice is to own both if you can.