What determines headset/headphone quality?

[SuxoR]

What does a person watch out for? SPEC frequency response? Input Impedance?

Can someone break down these details? I'm getting a cheap headset and I wanna know what to look out for

Thanks guys

 

[Oreo]

Uhm. very hard to say.. it's hard to look at the specs and decide how good they are.

Generally, the larger the range of frequency response, the better.

But, for example. You may have one headset that has a frequency responce from 50hz to 16khz

and then a headset which are from 30hz to 22khz. But, the headset at 30hz may actually start rolling off around 65hz and 15khz, wereas the previous one may not start to rolloff untill it's specified figures.

The lower the ohms the easier it is to drive the headphones, if your using a PC to drive your headphones you would normally want less then 120Ohms, after this a headamp is reccomended.

40ohms and lower will work OK off a portable device.

The higher the input power, e.g. good headphones (expensive, too) are usually 1000mw or higher, so they accept and use more power and stay cleaner and go louder.

But to be honest, headphones sound entirely different to each other depending on the diaphram, size of the driver (the speaker) 4cm and above offer the best amounts of bass. But you will still find 53mm drivers with hardly any bass.

Unfortunately for you it is not as clean cut as looking at the specs, infact when you get to higher end headphones people ignore them, they just listen to them and buy a headphone amp.

 

[111sins]

With cheap headset you cannot reply on the specs at all, honestly, forget it.

All cheap **** claims fantastic frequency response 20Hz-20kHz and all, but you could not even wipe your *** off with these specs sheet, not even useful for that.

Try them on with an ipod and a tune that pumps a lot of bass. If it sounds weak or crackling do not get it.

Good luck

 

[rkf76]

What does a person watch out for? SPEC frequency response? Input Impedance?

Can someone break down these details? I'm getting a cheap headset and I wanna know what to look out for

Thanks guys

It's all subjective. Everyone's definition of "quality" is different and everyone's interpretation of sound is too. As far as what to "look out for", it all depends on the situation. For example, I was looking for a pair of cans for use with my Zune a while back; the Zune performs best when used with headphones with an impedance of 32ohms or less so the cans I tried on it that were 64ohms, while being high quality cans, just didn't sound good on it cause I had to crank the volume to max just to get it to play at an acceptable level, and even still it was barely acceptable.

So the main thing is to familiarize yourself with the equipment on which you'll be using them mainly cause while the 64ohm cans I tried would sound heavenly on my home theater receiver, they just wouldn't cut the mustard on my Zune.

 

[Oreo]

It's all subjective. Everyone's definition of "quality" is different and everyone's interpretation of sound is too. As far as what to "look out for", it all depends on the situation. For example, I was looking for a pair of cans for use with my Zune a while back; the Zune performs best when used with headphones with an impedance of 32ohms or less so the cans I tried on it that were 64ohms, while being high quality cans, just didn't sound good on it cause I had to crank the volume to max just to get it to play at an acceptable level, and even still it was barely acceptable.

So the main thing is to familiarize yourself with the equipment on which you'll be using them mainly cause while the 64ohm cans I tried would sound heavenly on my home theater receiver, they just wouldn't cut the mustard on my Zune.

This is why you by a portable headphone amplifier that outputs 1watt which would be able to drive 600ohm cans better than your zune does 60ohm

 

[Crysalis]

I explained all of this in the stickies at the top of this section.....

http://www.techist.com/forums/f12/sound-101-a-169733/

 

[rkf76]

This is why you by a portable headphone amplifier that outputs 1watt which would be able to drive 600ohm cans better than your zune does 60ohm

No thanks, the Zune is big enough by itself, let alone having to carry around a seperate amp for it. Not to mention how much those things cost.