5 ms·

Regardless of how the bass response is tuned, higher total harmonic distortion is objectively worse than less total harmonic distortion. Headphones are a tool t

Regardless of how the bass response is tuned, higher total harmonic distortion is objectively worse than less total harmonic distortion. Headphones are a tool to enjoy audio experiences, and a good tool should get out of the way of said experiences.

dagw 6y ago
Headphones are a tool to enjoy audio experiences Yes, and the truth is that many people seem to enjoy the experience of listening to Beats headphones and enjoy that audio more than the audio from many 'better' headphones.
compiler-guy 6y ago
Higher total harmonic distortion is an objectively less accurate reproduction of the original sound. But people can have a preference for less accuracy and that is not objectively “worse” except on one single scale that the consumer may not value. Just like sepia toned prints are objectively worse reproductions of the original picture.
- stouset 6y ago
  Hell, every photo filter is a less-accurate representation of the original. And filters are wildly popular.
  - eptcyka 6y ago
    Yet, all of Apples devices are equipped with screens that have best in class color accuracy.
  - whatevertrevor 6y ago
    That's a terrible analogy, would you buy a screen that has a fixed perma-filter applied to every input? The whole point of buying headphones that are neutral and accurate in their frequency response is that you can enjoy different pieces the way you want. You can apply any "filter" you want to color an accurate and versatile speaker, but you can't get a pair of beats to clear up the mids or make the bass less boomy.
    - compiler-guy 6y ago
      But if you don't need them to be less boomy or clear up the mids, and that is the filter that you want, then there is no problem.
      - whatevertrevor 6y ago
        Hey I wouldn't pay extra for reduced functionality, but you do you.
        compiler-guy 6y ago
        You seem to be confusing my point that people have different preferences with my own preferences. People like the sound they get with these headphones, accurate or not. That isn't a personal failing.
        whatevertrevor 6y ago
        I said nothing about your preferences, that was the generic "you". My point is good headphones are neutral and versatile enough that they can do both, just like a good screen can make all sorts of different pictures look good. It's about versatility and quality in different dimensions, and headphones/speaker that impart too much color to music tend to be very one-dimensional which would limit what you can do with them.
sosborn 6y ago
Numbers being objectively worse doesn't mean that the experience as a whole is objectively worse. If that was true no one would buy vinyl and the iPod never would have succeeded. Sound is like food. People like different flavors and that is OK.
slfnflctd 6y ago
Reminds me of the 'bass boost' feature on a lot of consumer audio stuff going back to the 90s (or earlier)-- most of the time, it obfuscates & distorts the original mix and sounds muddier as a result, but people adapt to it and it sounds normal to them. There's also the confounding effects of different volume levels producing wildly different mixes, of people's ears/brains responding to frequency ranges differently, and of different music types revealing shortcomings more than others (as anyone who's flinched at pixelated cymbals can attest). All of which make it seem like a more subjective thing because of the complexity of interacting variables. Regardless, true audio fidelity is something that can be measured to a fairly detailed extent. The fact is, most speakers at most volume levels aren't great at it, just 'good enough'. It mostly boils down to: how much can you tell the difference? Just like with finding that optimal mp3 encoding rate to avoid those damn pixelated cymbals.
UncleMeat 6y ago
> Regardless of how the bass response is tuned, higher total harmonic distortion is objectively worse than less total harmonic distortion. Headphones are a tool to enjoy audio experiences, and a good tool should get out of the way of said experiences. This is why nobody buys tube amps for their guitars. Everybody just wants flawless clean sound with no breakup. Being "objectively better" on some metric does not mean that the metric matters at all to the target audience.
ubercow13 6y ago
Uh no. I sometimes use a DSP to introduce harmonic distortion when listening to music. There is also a good chance the producer of the music has also introduced a great deal of intentional harmonic distortion already.

dagw 6y ago

Headphones are a tool to enjoy audio experiences Yes, and the truth is that many people seem to enjoy the experience of listening to Beats headphones and enjoy that audio more than the audio from many 'better' headphones.

compiler-guy 6y ago

Higher total harmonic distortion is an objectively less accurate reproduction of the original sound. But people can have a preference for less accuracy and that is not objectively “worse” except on one single scale that the consumer may not value. Just like sepia toned prints are objectively worse reproductions of the original picture.

stouset 6y ago
Hell, every photo filter is a less-accurate representation of the original. And filters are wildly popular.
- eptcyka 6y ago
  Yet, all of Apples devices are equipped with screens that have best in class color accuracy.
- whatevertrevor 6y ago
  That's a terrible analogy, would you buy a screen that has a fixed perma-filter applied to every input? The whole point of buying headphones that are neutral and accurate in their frequency response is that you can enjoy different pieces the way you want. You can apply any "filter" you want to color an accurate and versatile speaker, but you can't get a pair of beats to clear up the mids or make the bass less boomy.
  - compiler-guy 6y ago
    But if you don't need them to be less boomy or clear up the mids, and that is the filter that you want, then there is no problem.
    - whatevertrevor 6y ago
      Hey I wouldn't pay extra for reduced functionality, but you do you.
      - compiler-guy 6y ago
        You seem to be confusing my point that people have different preferences with my own preferences. People like the sound they get with these headphones, accurate or not. That isn't a personal failing.
        whatevertrevor 6y ago
        I said nothing about your preferences, that was the generic "you". My point is good headphones are neutral and versatile enough that they can do both, just like a good screen can make all sorts of different pictures look good. It's about versatility and quality in different dimensions, and headphones/speaker that impart too much color to music tend to be very one-dimensional which would limit what you can do with them.

sosborn 6y ago

Numbers being objectively worse doesn't mean that the experience as a whole is objectively worse. If that was true no one would buy vinyl and the iPod never would have succeeded. Sound is like food. People like different flavors and that is OK.

slfnflctd 6y ago

Reminds me of the 'bass boost' feature on a lot of consumer audio stuff going back to the 90s (or earlier)-- most of the time, it obfuscates & distorts the original mix and sounds muddier as a result, but people adapt to it and it sounds normal to them. There's also the confounding effects of different volume levels producing wildly different mixes, of people's ears/brains responding to frequency ranges differently, and of different music types revealing shortcomings more than others (as anyone who's flinched at pixelated cymbals can attest). All of which make it seem like a more subjective thing because of the complexity of interacting variables. Regardless, true audio fidelity is something that can be measured to a fairly detailed extent. The fact is, most speakers at most volume levels aren't great at it, just 'good enough'. It mostly boils down to: how much can you tell the difference? Just like with finding that optimal mp3 encoding rate to avoid those damn pixelated cymbals.

UncleMeat 6y ago

> Regardless of how the bass response is tuned, higher total harmonic distortion is objectively worse than less total harmonic distortion. Headphones are a tool to enjoy audio experiences, and a good tool should get out of the way of said experiences. This is why nobody buys tube amps for their guitars. Everybody just wants flawless clean sound with no breakup. Being "objectively better" on some metric does not mean that the metric matters at all to the target audience.

ubercow13 6y ago

Uh no. I sometimes use a DSP to introduce harmonic distortion when listening to music. There is also a good chance the producer of the music has also introduced a great deal of intentional harmonic distortion already.