2. headphones
  3. 168196-159850

So how much do you think the placebo effect impacts our listening preferences?

My hypothesis is that for ~%97 of us, the more a headphone costs the more we will enjoy the headphone.

My secondary hypothesis is that the more I told consumers a headset cost, the more they would enjoy the phones. i.e. a $30 headphone < $300 headphone < $3,000 headphones <<< $30,000 headphones.

I’m willing to bet that if I put the kph 30i drivers in the focal utopia’s chassis and told participants in this fake study that the phones cost $4k.... Everyone except for the 3%ers would never guess something was up. The remaining 97% would have no clue and report that it was the best set they ever heard.

Then if I gave them the kph30i and explained it was $30. 97% of people would crap on them after hearing the same driver in a different chassis.

My ultimate hypothesis is that build quality and price are the two most important factors in determining if people will enjoy a set of headphones. This how I rationalize the HD8XX getting crap on when only 3 people have heard it and publicly provided their opinion lol. "It’s a cheaper 800s, of course it’s going to sound worse!"

mikedangelo
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soix
9,667 posts
 
Oh man, Reddit needs you. They love inexperienced, ignorant, overconfident people over there. And since professors don’t answer to principals, I’ll just stay right here thanks. I’ve seen your other posts, and if you continue shamelessly flaunting your ignorance here, believe me I won’t be the only one calling you out. Reddit is your friend — it’s a much better fit for you.
mahgister's avatar
mahgister
13,190 posts
 
It is not necessary to create wars....

Most people even with top headphones or top speakers and top electronics have no idea what their audio system can optimally do when rightfully controlled...

The reason is simple : embeddings working dimensions controls...Mechanical, electrical but ESPECIALLY acoustical...

Most people who own a small square room or with an imbalanced acoustic, geometrically, topologically or in acoustical content, dont know how to treat the room.... And when they know they think about the usual PASSIVE material treatment mainly.... But for small room with acoustic imbalance, passive treatment will not be enough nor optimal... Adressing the speakers/room by activation of the relation between speakers and room with Helhmotz resonators AND diffusers will complete the job of the usual passive treatment and put it on another level...(there exist also secondary unorthodox means i will not describe here to not create useless debates)

A room is not a set of passive walls waiting the sound waves to bounce on them ( this image validity is linked to Hall or theater big space).... Most people had this image... A small room by contrast is more a dynamical organism which metabolism is constituted by small pressures zones of different densities living in TIME not only in space....And Helmholtz resonators and diffusers are NEW CELLS added to this organism controlled by your EARS, helped if you want by some measuring apparatus... But a room COULD be TUNED like a piano can be tuned by human ears....

Room relatively large could be well tamed sometimes or seems to be so with only usual passive treatment BUT to optimalize the speakers/room relation i think Helmholtz resonators and diffusers grid will increase big time all acoustic experience factors...

An audio room ideally cannot be a living room.... Sorry.....my audio room cannot be recreated in a living room... But some aspects can be used in a living room.... It is not necessary to install a grid of 40 Helmhotz resonators and diffusers like me to obtain very good results.... Very precise small sets of resonators and aesthetically designed can do ( i am not crafty )....I use sometimes "toilet paper rolls" but you can use more sexy material for a living room.... Anyway acoustic ratio sometimes dont give a damn about the specific material save for their acoustic properties....Use what you want if the acoustic ratio is right...


By the way i am not an acoustician, nor an audio pro, only an average dude with no money who decided one day to create his own audio system at peanuts costs if necessary because i could not afford costly gear i was dreaming about anyway....

You dont have to believe me.... Only to think about some simple concepts and experiences i suggest at no cost or very low cost... Thats all...

We are here to partake concepts and experiences first, opinions second, and politely argue about....






I am not interested to prove anything, only that one dude exist here that is not impress by costly marketting of electronic pieces hype upgrading obsession, why? (Not because a better electronic gear is useless, if i could i woul buy better audio system....But my 500 bucks one is relatively very satisfying now....) Then why?

Because if Acoustic science is the sleeping princess, and any tweak or piece of gear are one the 7 working dwarves, guess who is the prince ?

You own creativity is the prince....

Trust yourself....
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troidelover1499
253 posts
 
I have read this discussion with some interest as I am considering upgrading headphones from my older Beyerdynamics model fairly soon, and I must say, @soix seems to be pretty much on the mark with his comments, which are more even handed and also in line with my own experiences with headphones versus proper loudspeaker driven in room stereo systems.
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