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Headphone Driver Balance? (Single Driver)

Hi everyone! Im a new member here and I was just wondering if my theory is right. Ive owned a few in-ear headphones and something I noticed is tuning. From what I gathered, Headphones with very good highs and mids often dont have as strong lows and with headphones orientated for bass dont have good highs or does not sound "Clean" or "Bright" I own LG Tone Ultra (HBS-820) and LG Tone Pro (HBS-720?) and they do sound really good but dont have much bass. If you use an EQ they can throw out alot of bass but the highs get drowned out when a song has a lot of bass. If you use something like Beats (Yes, I know they are not quality) they have a lot of good sounding bass but sacrifice the higs. Am I right with this assumption? Does drivers with good higs and mids not produce good lows? Is this a driver limitation?
tylorert
spatialking's avatar
spatialking
610 posts
 
There are several issues with headphone design - they have to be lightweight, they have a tiny area to fill with sound, so those long wavelengths have trouble developing in that tiny space, and most buyers choose headphones based on cost.   In addition, close back headphones can be more fatiguing than open air but open air headphones have even greater problems developing deep bass.   So, in a very general sense, you do get something for your money when buying a more expensive pair of headphones. 

I have an old pair of Stax electrostatics headphones with the Stax amplifier to drive them.  They do sound spectacularly clean with awesome definition, but deep, subwoofer style bass is not their strong point.  One engineer I know used to use high quality headphones and left only the subwoofers powered on in his system.     It worked for him, just no one else! 
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tonykay
1,301 posts
 
I can’t comment on headphone driver technology because I’m not an engineer, but I’m very familiar with headphones. Like you, I have always liked the balance my Stax phones (009s) deliver. You probably know that there are several styles of headphones; open back, closed back, electrostatic, etc. If you are just looking for lots of bass, then those Beats are probably for you. In general, as you move up the line in price, you get better overall balance. If it were me, I would try to listen to many brands and styles of phones before making your long-term buying decision. Consider buying used as many audiophiles change headphones like they change their speakers. At least listen to one pair of Stax before you buy.
tylorert OP
1 posts
 
Thank you! I like more Rap/EDM type music. I do like the Beats for the bass but the highs just arnt there. My go-to's are my LG Tone Ultra (HBS-820) They sound very good in my opinion. I know with an EQ they can push very good bass while keeping the highs. I also know they arnt audiophile grade but they do sound very good for what they are. (Blutooth Apt-X) Does anyone know of any good low price "bang for your buck" IEM's? I was looking at ones from Tin(?)
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