Our lives are busy and it can be overwhelming. At times like this, the one thing that is music to our ears is well, music to our ears. Earphones and headphones are where most of us started our foray into audio. We are all guilty of purchasing really cheap earphones and headphones just so we could listen to music. We have used these products while traveling to work or college, or while watching movies at home, or playing games on our laptops and PCs. There is a world of good sound that might have passed us by, and through this feature, we hope to have you that explore it.
The science behind sound
Sound is all about vibrations and waves traveling through the air which are picked up by our ears. Our ears work pretty well but the earphones and headphones meant to replicate the waves accurately, don’t necessarily do a good enough job. Artists and sound engineers record and compile all the sounds in recording studios. They use incredibly high-quality microphones, instruments and mixing equipment in an effort to record with the best quality possible. It’s up to the earphones and headphones to play this back as accurately as possible. Cheap audio products are designed to function, not to reproduce this level of detail. If you’re not listening to good detail, you’re probably not enjoying the music to its fullest. Words can’t quite describe what you might be missing out.
You’ve not heard music till you’ve heard quality audio
One of the things that makes music great, besides its emotional connect, is the detail, its quality. A terrible pair of earphones will never reveal this detail and you’re missing out on a lot. Every time audio enthusiasts who spend a bit more, upgrade to newer, better equipment, most of these individuals will navigate and play their collection of music, genres and artists, favourite songs, discovering new details and tones, things they never heard before. Of course, there are diminishing returns to investments, when you cross a certain price range. Earphones priced at Rs. 500 can be terrible but it’s only when you upgrade to earphones between Rs. 2,500 to Rs. 5,000 earphones that you notice the big difference. Beyond that price, there is more to gain but that gain isn’t proportionate to the price of hardware. It depends on how much you’re willing to spend and how particular you are.
Good equipment lasts longer, costs you less in the long run
Quality is the biggest reason to upgrade to better earphones but there is more to them. More expensive, high-end earphones and headphones are also for reliability. We’ve all experienced products where one earphone stops working, or the cable gets cut or there is some sort of loose connection on one end. While most cheap earphones and headphones crack and snap in weeks and months, more premium products are likelier to last and withstand some everyday abuse. These models may have thicker, stronger cables, better shielding, better quality housings and connectors. Some models are even designed to be used while exercising, so they’re even water and sweat resistant. So if you were to keep replacing pairs of earphones over two years, spending in excess of Rs. 2,000, you could have very well just spent on a pair of really good quality earphones or headphones instead. They might last much longer and you would experience good audio for a longer period of time.
Expensive earphones can have better features
While there aren’t hundreds of features to sort through while shopping for earphones, you are likely to find some of these very useful. Noise-cancellation is an important one and we recently wrote a feature on whether noise cancellation earphones make sense or not. Imagine being able to cancel out all audible noise, with the flip of a switch, whether or not you play any music! It’s magical when you experience it so it’s hard to explain. At higher price ranges, you are also likely to find earphones with superior quality microphones and build. Some models offer accessories, carry bags while others come with extra earbuds and earpads.
What else exists in this realms of good audio?
The world of earphones and headphones don’t end at just these products. There are a bunch of quality-enhancing add-ons that are worth your attention. Hobbyists will tweak everything from the kind of buds and pads used on earphones and headphones to better seal the gaps, to eliminate external noise. Some will re-wire their headphones or convert them into detachable options so they can switch cables easily. This can be improve quality in some cases, in some others make them more functional and funky to look at. Some headphones are designed to be open where the drivers are exposed on the outside, and some enthusiasts will pad these vents with foam to tweak the sound signature of the headphones. 
Some of the more critical changes are made to the source. Mobile phones may not offer the ultimate sound quality, so enthusiasts look to premium sound cards and DACs (digital-to-audio converters). These devices sit in between the source and earphones. Such users aren’t streaming low-quality music either, instead they subscribe to services that stream high quality music or FLAC files. In the same way speakers have amplifiers, there are even low-powered amplifiers designed to power headphones and earphones. That’s an entirely different world that awaits exploration.
Why is all this important? When you purchase a high-end headphone or earphones, it’s not only about the sound you now get, you also open up yourself to this world of customization and improvement in pursuit of quality audio. It’s a hobby and it’s a massive community. Once you’ve experienced it, you’re never going back to average sound.
What should you listen to?
What should you listen to once you’ve taken this leap? Start off by listening to high-quality music, artists and tracks that you’ve heard on your last pair of headphones. You’ll be amazed by the improvement and how much nicer music and movies sound. You can also subscribe to Apple Music or Google Play Music. Both these services are available on all platforms – Android, iOS and laptops and PCs, for a very nominal fee. There is also JioMusic which streams high-quality 320kbps music and it’s free if you’re a Jio user.
If you’re looking for new artists, check out the service called Last.fm. It lets you automatically track music you’re listening to, also discover new music artists and genres on the way. Head-fi.org is one of the most popular discussion boards that only talks headphones, earphones, amplifiers and DACs. You will find like-minded folk to discuss your hardware and see what people are doing.
Podcasts are a returning craze. Google now has a free Podcast app, and Apple too has a dedicated Podcasts app for their devices. Subscribe to a couple of popular podcasts and they’re particularly good fun to listen to when you’re travelling to work and back.
If you have a question on headphones and earphones, or have suggestions for sites, services, music or podcasts we ought to check out, drop us a comment!
