headphones - RD Physics

Math Audio preset files for Porta Pro and HD800S headphones

Here’s the preset file to be used in the Math Audio plug-in when listening to Koss Porta Pro headphones. It’s based on Oratory1990’s EQ profile.

EQ for Koss Porta Pro based on Oratory1990’s measurements

We found the equalizing curve for Sennheiser HD800S to be too harsh, brightening up the sound too much. Therefore, the gains of the peaking EQ were halved and entered into the Math Audio plug-in. You can download it here:

Modified Sennheiser HD800S EQ

We have got to remember that the EQ files found online are obtained using a measurement head and aiming at a flat frequency response. However, each individual has physically different ears
and a flat frequency response may not be what we actually want. The recordings that we listen to vary and the type of music varies. The presets are a good starting point, but they should be tweaked to make sure the sound is to your liking. Are there any downsides to processing the signal? There could be some artifacts from filtering such as pre-echo and you could get added distortion from excessive bass boost, but as long as it sounds better to you then that’s all that matters. Give it a try!

The argument for headphones instead of loudspeaker as your main sound system is one that you don’t hear too often. Which is why we think it’s important to make it here. It all boils down to one root cause, and that root cause is the room. Let’s divide the consequences of the room into two categories: cost and sound.

Cost

First, speakers are played in a room you need more power. Power means power amplifiers. You need to buy expensive amps to power your loudspeakers. Second, you need to place those loudspeakers somewhere, so you need to buy stands. Or if they are floor-standing speakers you need to buy feet. You need to connect them with cables and buy other accessories. Third, you need to acoustically treat your room, so you need to buy acoustic panels, diffusers, bass traps etc. Fourth, you need to buy presents to your spouse because you’re placing the speakers in the middle of the room.

Sound

You can buy good loudspeakers and ruin them by placing them in a bad listening environment. Optimally, you would have the loudspeakers and the listening position at least two meters away from the nearest wall. However, that is seldom even possible in the available space. You would need a large room. And with this kind of placement, a livingroom quickly becomes a listening room only. Headphones, on the other hand, have multiple benefits compared to loudspeakers:

Single point source
No crossovers
No sweet spot or particular listening position
No room effects
Tonal balance can be fixed using only DSP

Some of the drawbacks often stated include poor sound stage or imaging. People say that it sounds like the sound is coming from inside one’s head and it doesn’t feel like you’re at a concert. It is a matter of personal preference, but we suggest looking at headphone listening as something separate and different from live events or loudspeaker listening. It is our subjective opinion that crossfeed will not correct for this phenomena and only makes the sound worse. Another common argument is that there’s no physical sensation of bass. While that is true, the pros outweigh the cons.

Recommended hardware

Which ever headphones you use, applying equalizing with the help of DSP is definitely worth considering. Check out our post on the topic:

Sennheiser HD800S open headphones.

Enthusiast level:

Sennheiser HD800S, https://sennheiser.com/hd-800-s
Sennheiser HDV820
DSP at signal source

Hobby level:

Sennheiser HD650
DAC/amp in price range 200-300€
DSP at signal source

Budget level:

Koss Porta Pro
Analog jack or DAC/amp in 100-150€ price class (get one second-hand, for example)
DSP at signal source

Video

The contents of this post can be found in video format