Audiophile Series: E4 - Sound Signatures
Sound profile or sound signature is the audio
term used to describe how a specific headphone sounds, based
on which frequencies are more (or less) emphasized.
Since audio is largely subjective there is no
right or wrong answer. The signature you prefer almost completely depends on
which genres of music you usually listen to. And different
headphones have different sound profiles. So, it’s important to check sound
profile of headphone before you buy one else possibly you’ll be disappointed
after spending 500 bucks for your headphone. By the way, now-a-days there are
many high end headphones which have in built customizable sound profile
modifier or equalizer.
Audio Lingo
Before you realise the sound signatures, first
you need to know about bass, mid and treble. There are three main levels of
audio response in general.
Bass
Bass describes the low-end spectrum of frequency response and ranges
from 20Hz to 250Hz. Low bass describes
from 20-60 Hz. Kick drums and low frequency effects get their 'thump' from
this range. Mostly felt than heard.
Mid bass describes from 60-120 Hz. Melodic bass instruments
like bass guitars have most of their fundamental frequencies in this range.
This is where the 'body' and 'punch' of the bass sits. High bass describes from 120-250 Hz. Most instruments get
their warmth and full-ness from this range. When over-emphasized, mixes tend to
get muddy and boomy.
Mid
'Mids' describes the mid-range spectrum of frequency response and ranges
from 250Hz up to 2.5kHz. Most musical instruments and vocals have
their fundamental tones and lower harmonics in the mid-range.
Therefore, the bulk of audio we hear in music lies within this
spectrum - like warm notes, spoken words, string instruments, and
vocals.
Treble
Treble describes the high-range spectrum of
frequency response, which spans from 2.5kHz up to 20kHz. The high
tones are the sharper sounds you can hear in music. Hi-hats, cymbals,
sibilance, and the higher harmonics of other instruments (Violin) all lie
within this spectrum and add brightness to the audio.
Sound Signatures
Extra Bass/Bass Boosted
This one is exactly
what you thought when you read it. The low end is the obvious focus here while
the mids and highs are both laid back. Companies like Beats make some pretty heavily bass boosted headphones that are so
strong. They’re usually loud and aggressive, which sometimes results in
a slight loss of detail. If the bass is so powerful that you
can’t hear anything other than the loud thump, your music can start to sound
‘muddy’. This is why most audiophiles tend to avoid extremely bass-heavy cans.
Hip-Hop, rap, pop are most favourable genre for this sound profile.
V-Shaped
V-shaped headphones
are similar to bass boosted, except they have a strong bass (low end) with a
laid back mid and top heavy treble. They’re usually described as
sounding extremely ‘exciting’ or
‘engaging’.
Since the lows and
highs are both elevated, most music you listen to will sound much louder and more crisp. Certain
headphones do have a tendency to become so crisp that the treble can sound piercing, which is the main downside of this
signature. Hip-Hop, Rap, Pop, Rock are most
favoured genres to listen with this signature.
U-Shaped
U-shaped cans
produce a very similar response to v-shaped, except the mids aren’t
quite as dramatically lowered. Their response on a graph would look more
like an uppercase ‘U’, hence u-shaped.
Flat/Neutral
Flat or neutral
cans don’t necessarily sound ‘boring’ or ‘dull’ at all. In fact, they can
produce a different kind of excitement that others can’t. The lows,
mids, and highs are more well-balanced, which is a reason many audiophiles
and professionals strongly prefer a neutral response over v-shaped. A flat
signature is designed to sound more natural since it allows to hear every
single frequency in great detail. Any genre is favourable with this signature.
Bright
This profile elevates upper mid-range
and top-heavy treble and tend to cause ear fatigue during longer listening
sessions. There
is far less emphasis on the bass. Grado and Beyerdynamic are two of the most popular
brands that are well-known for producing brighter cans. Rock, Metal, Jazz,
Acoustic are the best genres to listen with this type.
Balanced
Balanced isn’t the same thing as flat or
neutral. While they do share a few similarities, they’re not
completely interchangeable. When you compare a balanced vs. flat headphone, all
3 levels are slightly more elevated on the balanced pair. Their
sound signature places them on the spectrum somewhere between bright and bass
heavy cans. The highs aren’t too sharp and the bass doesn’t overpower the mid-range.
Warm
A warm signature
features a heavy bass with prominent mids and noticeably recessed highs.
Although this might seem somewhat
similar to bass boosted, the slightly boosted mid is the main
difference between the two. The treble is noticeably weaker and
laid back, which is why you probably want to avoid warm headphones if you’re a
fan of metal, rock, or acoustic music. If you prefer a little extra bass and
don’t want to sacrifice vocals in the mid, you’d probably enjoy some warm cans.
Reference:
https://www.headphonezone.in/
