Suggest audio-related topics for us to cover on our podcast, The Noise Floor!

[listener]

@Rael67

How about Music formats Dolby Atmos or Spatial Audio. In my opinion there are big differences, some albums sound great in Dolby Atmos (Rush: Moving Pictures) others are terrible (Dire Straits: Money for nothing (Remastered 2022)).

I’m not sure how often any of us use Spatial Audio so I’m not sure we’d be equipped to discuss it, but thanks for the suggestion!

@Twinguin

You can make it like a short section, where everybody introduces a single piece / song and why this particular one. Not only from a HiFi perspective, but also from a ‘what moved you’ view.

I think in general there are many ways we can incorporate more of our love for music itself into the streams, and this seems like a great way to. Thanks!

@gzost

If you have any experience with them, I’d love to hear about the products that try to deal with HRTF simulation and creating actual out-of-head soundstage. (The ones I know about are the Smyth Realizer, BACCH and the open source Impulcifier.)

@Mad_Economist would probably love to talk about this. Thanks!

@gzost

Also, since I am a lazy bastard, best headphones for using EQ presets, i.e. in your experience which have the least unit variation and differences in FR between user’s heads (anything else?)

Comes a bit too close to purchase advice, so we’re unlikely to discuss on the stream except maybe briefly. That said, I’d say headphones that are fully open and deform the pinna minimally are likely best for this. I like HD 800, HD 490 Pro with Producer pads, and the Hifiman eggphones for this. Honorable mention to the Sony MDR-MV1, but it deforms the pinna a bit.

@robinsyl

I have talked about this multiple times, but I’d like to hear more about amp power measurements, how different amps perform under high loads, etc., because I still feel this is an area where using price as a proxy creeps in

I’ll add it to the list, but we actually have a closely-related topic for the stream next week so we might just fold it into that. Thanks!

@pk500

What headphones that you’ve heard are PERFECT matches for certain genres of music, in your opinion? Various price points, various driver types.

Could be fun but also I think a lot of the answers are kind of common knowledge. HD 800/Hifiman eggphones are great for classical, Audezes are great for electronic music, etc. However, I’ve added it in case any of the other co-hosts/participants have an idea for how to maybe make it a bit more novel. Thanks!

@AudioTool

How do you compare audio equipment, both headphones and electronics? Things like level matching, A/B, blind vs sighted, long vs short listening between switching, evaluation music, etc.

Do solid state amplifiers that “measure well” (I’m being purposefully vague) sound different? If so, in what way and are there measurements that can show this?

Good topics, more interested in the first since we’ve definitely talked about the second before, but we’ll likely touch on both at some point. Thanks!

[HapaxLegomenon]

Changed my mind on pricing (Hey, there are only TWENTY-FIVE IN THE WHOLE WORLD). Retail = $4,999.00
No discounts, ever.

[AudioTool]

@listener

we’ve definitely talked about the second before

If you have a chance, could you (or anyone who happens to know) tell me which video has this discussion? I’ve only recently started watching the live streams because, as you say in the first post, you guys are organizing them better. Keep it up! I really appreciate it!

[listener]

I would assume the one with Cameron and Blaine in the silly thumbnail, let me find it real quick.

EDIT: https://www.youtube.com/live/wCFQ6pEmLtE

[AudioTool]

Oh wow it’s right there in the title! Apologies, not sure how I missed this one! Thanks!

[pennstac]

Underwater Audio

How to listen to music while swimming. Do you need wires? How deep can you dive before pushing IEMs into your eardrums? Did the kid build a sandcastle over my ZMFs? Speaking of which, are there sandproof headphones?

Sound Effects or Sound Defects?

Using all of those options on a computer or DAC. If they don’t give you EQ, what do the settings for Normal, Classical, Jazz, Rock, etc do? What about settings for speakers or room size? What is the actual effect of “auditorium”, echo, or other common “settings”?

[Pr0Xy]

Id be interested in a discussion whether a driver type does/could have any inherent advantages over a different one

[Twinguin]

Maybe you like to discuss the quality or methods of music productions / mastering over time and for different media (vinyl, tapes, CD, streaming, etc.). E.g. I still think that CDs from the early CD-times sound the best - but maybe I am just biased towards 80ies rock/pop.

[AudioTool]

I’d be interested to know more about the team’s backgrounds. How did you get into audio? How did you get into headphones? How did you learn so much about headphones? What specific areas of this hobby interest you the most? Etc.

Even if this has been covered before, if you are going to relaunch as The Noise Floor it might still be a good topic for one of the early episodes.

[listener]

@Pr0Xy

Id be interested in a discussion whether a driver type does/could have any inherent advantages over a different one

Added!

@Twinguin

Maybe you like to discuss the quality or methods of music productions / mastering over time and for different media (vinyl, tapes, CD, streaming, etc.). E.g. I still think that CDs from the early CD-times sound the best - but maybe I am just biased towards 80ies rock/pop.

Added!

@AudioTool

I’d be interested to know more about the team’s backgrounds. How did you get into audio? How did you get into headphones? How did you learn so much about headphones? What specific areas of this hobby interest you the most? Etc.

Was already mentioned by someone else; has been added!

[AudioTool]

@listener

@AudioTool

I’d be interested to know more about the team’s backgrounds. How did you get into audio? How did you get into headphones? How did you learn so much about headphones? What specific areas of this hobby interest you the most? Etc.

Was already mentioned by someone else; has been added!

True but I was trying to come up with a nicer way of asking “why should I listen to what you have to say about headphones and audio equipment?” rather than the personal journey into the headphone hobby. More like a résumé. Although both topics could definitely be covered in the same discussion since there is a lot of overlap.

[listener]

Ahhhh okay! I think a “Why Should Readers Listen to Us” section is a good idea, added!

[generic]

Most of the technical topics in audio have been covered extensively – to include the standard electrical measurements, HRTF, EQ profiles, etc., etc. etc. Audio is a very mature industry in the grand scheme of things. Hardware and recordings from the 1970s still sound really good.

The most impactful opportunities that remain will requires hard, multi-factor research methods (hardware + perception science). This can nibble on the edges of what are now often lumped into “subjective” opinions. What I’m talking about includes, for example:

• Causes of (often embarrassing) blind ABX test failures: Sighted expectations versus rapid auditory system habituation
• Experience and learning: Rating accuracy and discriminatory potential of new versus long-term audio users (controlling for age and hearing loss)
• Measurements across time – music not test signals: Perceived temporal integration and cohesiveness regardless of “better” numbers (e.g., tube amps vs. solid state)
• Measurements across time more broadly: Perceived fatigue vs. clarity vs. edges vs. noise

[pk500]

Another idea: You cats have been to a ton of headphone/audio shows, such as CanJam, Munich, etc.

For headphone/audio show noobs (like me), what’s the best way to make the most of your listening time at shows? Are the seminars worth it? Any other show tips?

[senorx12562]

I would be interested in a discussion of the effects of hardware vs firmware/software on sound. Should only take a few years. I know it seems as if i am being facetious, but this is the the kind of shit i think about.

[Lothar_Wolf]

The question I keep asking myself is:

@Resolve, @listener (and your grumbling, hat-wearing buddy )

How accurate can a frequency measurement be with headphones and what exactly do they do for me in my environment?

Let’s take the HD 800s as an example, a pair of headphones with a generally good reputation that most of us are familiar with.

To take a measurement I need a playback device, the headphones and a measuring device.

The only constant in this combination are „the headphones“.

Both the measuring device and the drive source are variable.

Is the measurement different with different drive sources?

If yes……… how on earth can I trust the respective measurements?

And if sound chain, ear pads, humidity, altitude, personal mood…………. etc. makes a difference, how can I trust a reviewer, or any person, or anything…….

—————

In practical terms, this has an effect on the sound behavior.

No matter which amplifier and/or DAC I use to drive the HD 800s, it sometimes sounds more, sometimes less………… different.

All of this is clearly audible to me, so I ask myself:

Even if the measuring device works in a standardized way, what about the playback source?

And why should I be interested in a measurement when the same headphones sometimes sound drastically different in all frequency ranges?

HD 800s - ESS DAC - THX Amp = cool, thin, highs emphasized, bass poor. (which can sound quite positive with darker-tuned headphones)

HD 800s - R2R DAC - Class A Amp = warm, balanced, with appealing, solid bass.

HD 800 - AKM DAC - Tube Amp = very natural, silky sound with neutral but precise, solid bass.

Just three short examples that can be expanded on endlessly and make me ask myself, why can you judge headphones based on measurement criteria when they react so differently to various sources?

And anyone who has not yet heard Grado headphones , which implement all of the above criteria in a much more extreme way, in combination with Class A or a Feliks Audio Euforia, for example, should not be giving a rating on products from this company. (I guess)

I think this is called synergy, and at least in my experience, this is much more decisive for the sound of a device than any measurements that at best serves me, to check whether a pair of headphones is defective or which sound chain might be suitable for the respective headphones.

Is this a spicy take?

Or just experience?

[somafunk]

1 : What is the earliest memory you can recollect of hearing music and emotionally engaging with it, what age were you?, what was the song?.

2 : What is the first album/cassette/CD that you physically bought with your own money, when did you buy it, where did you buy it, what did you play it back on.

1 : I must have around been around the age of 6/7 when the song “The Wee Kirkcudbright Centipede” (it’s on YouTube
) was released in 1979, my gran bought the single and I loved playing it as a kid after school on her big sideboard record player/radio thingy, I can still remember that feeling of staring out the school window in the afternoon thinking of cycling to her house just outside of town and the excitement of playing it, again……again….again. (Still live in kirkcudbright)

2 : Iron Maiden - Number of the Beast on cassette from Woolworths (defunct uk small dept store) as I had just got my first Walkman, actually a silver/blue aiwa cassette player/fm/am radio with orange foam headphones, for my 12th birthday in 1984 so I needed music, had no real idea what I wanted but the cover looked the best on the shelf so bought it, thus started a 5 yr love for heavy metal/rock music, till rave/dance music hit in 1989/90.

[DJ_Hastings]

Topic suggestions:

• The problem of individualization in headphones, and possible solutions i.e. anatomical measurements, DSP, custom ordered headphones etc.

• are dynamics and “punch” entirely characterized by frequency response, or is there something about particular drivers (dynamic vs planar) that isn’t captured in the measurements?

• a discussion on coupling between the driver and the eardrum, how important it is, and the degree to which various designs meet this criteria.

• DSP and sound quality - how much does it affect it, if it does how audible is it?

[listener]

Lots of amazing ideas! Added a good few, thanks.

Keep em coming!

[Lindholdt]

A few suggestions:

-Any thoughts on Hiby’s MSEB system? Is it helpful to make people understand how EQ works, or does it just make people get in an incorrect feel of what EQ is?

• With the recent cases about manufactures threatening reviewers, I would like to hear your guys thoughts on the reverse situation? When reviewers do similar things to, especially smaller brands/companies, that are very reliant on reviews, and the reviews take advantage of a situation like this.
  As someone who works in the HiFi business, I think it would be very interesting to hear how you guys think a small company should handle such a situation? Because they do happen.