What makes this hobby special?

[Resolve]

Now for a moment of reflection…

Everyone has a unique path or journey into this hobby, along with what I imagine are varied perspectives when it comes to what we’re looking to get out of it.

Deeply consider what motivates you to chase the dragon, or continue chasing it, and discuss that here.

• Is it the excitement of new gear? New experiences with some special kind of presentation a new headphone can give you?
• Is it the chase of some notion of fidelity or “correctness”?
• Is it the pursuit of something particularly emotionally resonant with the music that a given headphone is able to elicit?

There’s also a range of sub-hobbies within this stuff that many of us have adopted, like the interest in audio science, listener preferences, how the technology works…

All of this is part of a broader question I’d like to ask our community, and that’s ultimately… why headphones? I have my reasons, but what are yours.

[Luke]

1. Curiosity about the extremely high prices of some headphones and if they actually sound amazing
2. Learning about the methodology and motivations for testing and designs
3. Answering the question of “If I could EQ to any extremes that I want, which headphones would actually be my favorite and sound the best?”
4. Watching @Resolve get better with his humor with every new video
5. Occasionally listen to music and be blown away by how amazing they could sound on my favorite setup

And finally, and just being real here, if I had the money, space, and privacy I’d probably go with speakers instead, it’s just more natural, comfortable and ultimately sounds better than headphones to me, given a great sound system of course.

[GoldenSound]

For me, I got into audio because I enjoyed the experience of listening to music better. Better sounding music makes me happy, and that’s both the core thing that got me into it in the first place and keeps me interested now.

But after a while, the community and friends in the hobby I’ve made, as well as just being able to talk and debate about a shared interest with people (one which is also constantly evolving and there’s never a shortage of topics to discuss) is really nice.

And then there’s also the engineering and academic interest. I love learning about engineering and getting a better practical understanding of things, and so learning more and more about the field, from what the hell is an HRTF to how do you get analog from 1’s and 0’s, is also a constant driving factor.

Music is always the core, but with several other factors also feeding into it in a big way.

[SSN757]

To me, the single biggest advantage with headphone listening is that one can achieve reference level sound at a signifigant cost reduction over a high end loudspeaker setup.

Also, favorite recording take on a whole new level of enjoyment, as more details are exposed. Its easier to judge the quality of the recording with headphones.

The one thing one has to guard against is not to stop listening to ones favorite music, even if the recording quality is not first rate. The music is why we are in this hobby, not the gear.

[AudioTool]

I’m a huge film buff so I’ve had a home theater for a very long time. However I’ve never been very happy with the sound quality of music through my home theater system. Movie soundtracks sounded great, but Apple Music was very hit-or-miss. When I upgraded my home theater speakers, I took the old speakers and made a 2.1 system in my office. But I still wasn’t really happy with the sound. I’m really into the power and dynamics (probably because I’m a drummer) and I just couldn’t get it out of those speakers even though it never seemed missing from movies.

Somehow I found oratory1990 and started learning about headphone EQ. I was already using the Audyssey system to EQ my home theater, so using EQ on headphones made a lot of sense. The results got me hooked on music again! Like I listened to music, but usually when I was doing something else. For the first time since college, I started just focused listening to music again.

My pursuit is the emotional experiences that headphones can give me. I don’t focus on fidelity or “correctness”, but I don’t dismiss them either. I love how deep this hobby is. There’s all of the technical knowledge of the gear. The science (and pseudoscience and conjecture) behind what makes headphones sound the way they do. And the objective/subjective conflict that just isn’t present in most other hobbies. I love it all. There’s always something new to try or learn.

Like @Luke and many others here, I’d probably prefer to be pursuing the ultimate speaker setup. However that would be far more expensive and take up too much space. So I am content to stay with headphones (I sold that 2.1 setup).

[generic]

I like headphones because:

1. Stable soundstage. While headphones put the stage in the middle of your head and speakers are more realistic in reproducing live performances, speakers require excess commitment. This involves careful placement, custom room treatment, and sitting in the sweet spot “throne chair.” Without setting up a perfect triangle and sitting on the throne, speakers tend to bug me. I’ve literally witnessed this issue with $1M speaker setups. They can have ONE great demo seat in the middle of a big 20’ x 30’ room, plus a “decent sounding” salesman chair just behind it.

2. Multitasking. The size and wearability of headphones lets me do other stuff as I listen, and keep the same level of performance. I get bored sometimes and want to get off the throne sometimes.

3. Social flexibility. We don’t all share the same musical taste, nor the same volume preferences. Happy wife, happy life.

4. Headphones are controlled enough to allow one to determine the actual character and value of new gear. Per #1 above, speakers are half about the room size, carpet, walls, and drapes, and half about their own performance. I’ve demoed hundreds of speaker setups at stores and audio shows, but frankly, many $20K speaker setups compete well against those costing 10x or 20x more. I’d surely fail blind tests. As such, speaker tech holds my interest only until it reaches “room realistic” quality.

[MTUK]

Great question! For me, I think it’s twofold:

1. It’s about the immersive experience great headphones can bring and how they have transformed my appreciation of music as a whole. Until I got into this hobby I enjoyed music, but never appreciated the complexity and layers of a great recording. The best analogy I can think of (bear with me) is an archaeological dig. I got to experience the first surface layers for years, but am now digging deeper and discovering so much more. For example, I always liked Prince. Now I really appreciate the production of those recordings and it’s like I’m listening to new undiscovered music. Same for Quincy Jones production and for classical.

2. The love of great product design is a key part of the appeal. I really enjoy the overall product design, presentation, technical details, and craftsmanship. Meze and Focal are wonderful at this and the joy they bring to me, before even switching them on, is a huge part of the experience. Of course, it’s also why Hifiman is such a challenge for me. They meet my first criteria so well but fall down on the second.

For me, headphones (over IEMs) combine these attributes so well. They are the ultimate escape within the confines of your own home. The joy they bring is intoxicating and of course that brings with it the addiction for more and the expense!

I love the philosophical question, Resolve. Thanks for provoking the discussion.

[pennstac]

I think one factor for me is the non-scientific aspect of acoustics. From live music to speakers to headphones how each method of production or reproduction influences how you listen and what you perceive.

And if some think that non-scientific unmeasurable may not be real, just listen to an intimate female vocal live on stage and compare it to the private presentation of that vocal in your ear on headphones.

[Argha]

My relationship with Audio is completely transactional.

I suffered from Severe ADHD since childhood, never treated it & medications like Adderall is banned here. So I started to taking and almost destroyed myself in the process.

Then one day someone asked me to keep his 800S setup. I accidently listened to it and somehow it made my head is calm. It felt like a paradigm shift in reality. It gave me the relief that nothing gave me before. But wait, " I loved music since childhood and I used a lot of earphones but why this music is different ? ". The details, imaging always kept my head occupied.

I started exploring Soundstage/Imaging. Then the snowball effect took over the control and it never stopped. Something or the other always fed the curiosity and now I share my experience because nothing gives me more joy than expressing my understanding of an equipment.

[ADU]

The well doesn’t run very deep here, I’m afraid. I like watching movies and listening to music. And have been involved in making some. And wanted to know how audio worked, and how to correctly put different gear together. I have some future applications in mind that require critical listening as well, related to both audio and video production.

I also prefer speakers to headphones. But went primarily to the latter when I moved to an apartment (with very thin walls) in the 2000’s. I am currently working on a new 2-channel speaker setup though.

What makes this hobby special imo is the blend of art, science, and technology. And some of the personalities.

[bassididdle]

Came to the hobby by accident, really.

Having been a drummer for 34 years, I recently got a electronic drum kit. Had a pair of Momentum 4s (I know, I know…) for my calls which had ANC, so I could use them in the kit.

Still, the sound was muddy and felt lacking. So, I went looking a better pair. And saw @Resolve 's review on the FT1 and Ft1 Pro. And heard about DACs and Amps.

I bought both and a K11 R2R, after some Youtube rabbit holing (?) . Then I subscribed Headphones.com channels and got really curious.

@Resolve 's and @GoldenSound 's reviews were so amazing that I got a pair of Arya Steath’s. And then I really saw what I had been lacking! I’m a newbie but a very happy one.

I love the details I never heard before, the layering of the songs, the placing of the instruments. Really beautiful stuff!

Am excited for my next tear of headphones, DACs and Amps. I don’t listen to speakers. I like the intimate music listening.

So thank you, guys! Really discovering a new world I had never heard!

[Rael67]

In my earlier days I have never spent a lot of time with headphones. 30 years ago I bought the Koss Porta Pro for using it, when I had no chance to listen to loudspeakers. 16 years ago I met my lovely wife which did not share my music taste and has a cable allergy. There was no chance to set up a nice 5.1 system in our living room. So the theme headphones became more and more interesting for me. Starting with the Airpods Max and the B&O H95 I watched a lot of youtube videos about headphones and decided to try wired headphones. There was a funny canadian guy with red beard and hair (at least at that time) creating good video content and that guy even smiled if you subscribed his channel. So I went forward more and more to wired open backs with the Empyrean II being my endgame headphone at the moment. Thanks for your input and tons of knowledge about Headphone, EQ, DACs, Amps, even if I do not understand everything because I am not a native english speaker.

[04gto]

Since my late teens I had a few cars with really nice custom audio systems installed (by me and friends). These were good enough for most any genre, but obviously I could only listen to these systems in my car. I have also had several very nice surround set ups for movies and gaming. But like @AudioTool , I have always found these systems lacking for music enjoyment.

For a long time I only listened to music casually in my car or at work for the most part. Then about 6 years ago, my then 12 year old son came home asking very good questions about music like “have you ever heard Eleanor Rigby by the Beatles?” . So, for a while he would go to school and talk about music with his friends and often at night we would talk about music. This totally re-engaged me in music. I started digging out my old CD’s and playing them…mostly on my surround sound system. Which was, again, disappointing.

Around that same time I started travelling for work. Which led me to start researching headphones. I figured if was going to travel a lot for work, I should be able to listen to music the best way possible. I have always been a technophile, comfortable with all tech and gear, so I really jumped right in with both feet.

Which brings me to the most special things about this hobby:

1. Being able to have the best sound possible (or pretty close to it) anywhere I go. Music is such a stress reliever for me, I cannot imagine how life would be without it.
2. Connecting with others, or with my sons and family specifically. Our whole house is often busy with everyone doing their own thing, but when we get in the car we almost always talk about music and what we like, or don’t like, taking turns picking the next song in the que on Tidal (I have the family package, so we all have our own account).Music is kind of like food, a bunch of people who don’t even speak the same language can sit around a table and become fast friends, just listening to music.

In closing I would just add that I LOVE live music and a good speaker system, but since I have gone through and listened to some of the finest headphones in the world and been to audio shows with some of the finest speaker systems in the world, the financial upside to headphones cannot be denied or dismissed. Just comparing to my current set up at my desk (RME ADI-2 PRO FS R and Audeze LCD-XC), any of the systems that I have heard that equal or best it in sound quality have cost upwards of $60K, not including the room and treatments.

[taronlissimore]

The people.

I think this is probably the case with most niche hobbies but meeting people who are deeply passionate about the same thing as you is such a cool experience because everyone comes from so many different walks of life.

Whether you are here because it’s your job, you want to create, you’re purchasing, or something else, there’s something deeply special about the enjoyment of music and getting the most fidelity out of your gear.

I’ve been doing this long enough with enough gear crossing my desk that the new toy syndrome doesn’t capture me as much as it used to but I find I actually get more joy with sharing those new toys with people that aren’t fully immersed in this hobby yet. Seeing them hear that part of the song that they never heard before or experience music in a way that they’ve never experienced before is always an incredible time and a great reminder of why we do what we do.

[pennstac]

Well hearing a couple of really good classical guitarists enjoying each other’s company after an early dinner, just playing Houser and Ramirez guitars in the living room, comparing notes ( pun intended) was an acoustic treat I’ll remember my whole life.

No sound system needed.

I was about 13. Mom was an advanced classical guitar student and two of her teachers were visiting.

[Torq]

@taronlissimore

The people.

This.

EVERY meet I’ve ever hosted (and there’s been more than a few …), the “listening” happens frantically in the last 30 minutes … after everyone has spent 3-4 hours (or more) enthusiastically, engagingly, enjoyably talking with each other.

---

And as for more commercial meets:

CanJam 2018, in CO …

Talked with Tyll (yes, that one) … was supposed to be a quick “Fantastic to finally meet you!” … turned into 45 minutes of reminiscence, gear chat, and checking out his self-built touring step-van.

Talked with Jason and Mike (of Schitt) … was supposed to be a quick “Awesome to finally meet you!” … 90 minutes later, we were still gabbing about audio past and present.

And lunch with Taron and Andrew (and others), which meant skipping the SBAF lunch (but that was okay), and more “Great to see you guys again!” …

Yeah … definitely the people …

[donjoe0]

Why headphones… I suppose it’s most often about how we started, what made them a topic in the first place.

For me it started with discovering the Superlux HD-668B and realizing that not only do headphones not have to be closed-back (seemed the only thing they were appropriate for, otherwise why have them built to cover the whole ear, right?), they can present music in much more detail and closer to a live just-for-you performance than I had thought possible. That was it right there - another detail freak, open-back suprematist and treble fan was born that day.

The continuing mission is still toward supreme detail and full realism, but in recent years it’s become more focused as a hunt for HRTF-correctness/neutrality just because my first forays into that gave me such a level-up in realism, I could no longer see what else could be worth any continued effort or expense. OK, except the mythical electrostatics, just because of how much gushing over their level of detail I’d heard from reviewers. But that goal is also achieved since I got the ESP/95X in 2023 (mmmostly achieved - hearing Stax Lambdas someday is still on the bucket list).

Now it’s all about what can be done with EQ/DSP and what source device quality is the minimum acceptable so the source itself doesn’t have to be yet another non-neutral component draining my energy on additional efforts to EQ. And I guess as these explorations converge asymptotically on “the perfect setup”, one naturally starts asking more about the limits of audibility, what research do we have on that, what quality of evidence is behind the most oft-repeated statements about such limits etc. This has been my area of interest lately: what source quality is good enough that it’s not a drain on my EQ efforts / what FR imperfections are really beyond human audibility.

(No meetups in my case, none being organized within “affordable distance”, that I know of, so discussing audio is a 100% online thing for me.)

[Bearcat_Sandor]

This is a bit of an echo of what others have said already, but from a different perspective. I’m about to graduate as an audio engineer at 53. Go me. My passion is spacial audio and detailed mastering.

If i obtained my ultimate set-up of Subtonic Storm IEMs, a realizer, and personal HRTF, it would be close to about $10k, and still be a drop in the bucket compared to a 24 channel Genelec system, or a Wilson Audio system with associated amps.

Moreover, I can simulate different speaker systems and rooms for mixing and mastering, and I can take my studio with me for field work if I don’t need Atmos. I can create my own sofa impulse files and carry multiple studios in my pocket with a portable headphone amp. If I want to share with someone, I can just plug in another headphone. Sure, it’s not as social, but there are ways around that with intercom systems if need be.

[ADU]

Encouraging and educating others in the proper/better use of their gear is also an important component of this hobby to me. Part of that is selfish. Because I figure if people understand what good/better sound is, that will eventually trickle down to me in the form of better gear and music to listen to.

I believe that knowledge should be shared though, and not always kept behind a paywall.

@Resolve

All of this is part of a broader question I’d like to ask our community, and that’s ultimately… why headphones? I have my reasons, but what are yours.

What are your reasons (if I may be so bold as to ask)?

[Lothar_Wolf]

What makes this hobby special?

—— A very good question! ——

As a music lover who has been involved in this hobby for at least 50-55 years, this question is actually quite easy for me to answer.

It’s the complete independence from location, time, space, and organizational constraints.

Whether I’m on the go,

working,

pursuing other hobbies,

wanting to enjoy music in peace at night,

or relaxing on the patio,

I can enjoy my beloved music anywhere with headphones or in-ear headphones of my choice.

On top of that, I’m very picky when it comes to the sound reproduction of different music genres.

I quickly realized that speakers are difficult to position and tune, take up a lot of space, and are less versatile.

To have the same variation options, I would need at least three different types of speakers, the corresponding DACs/amps, and a lot of space.

………Plus, I would be tied to one location and would have to invest a small fortune.

Therefore, choosing to use headphones to enjoy my hobby has never been difficult for me, as the advantages are obvious.

The market now offers a suitable headphone model for virtually every occasion, music genre, and comfort requirement.