Can They Tell the difference? Normal People Try YOUR Favorite Headphones!

[@auro8649]

The impressions on the 800s KILLED ME 😂 PLEASE keep up such content its super enjoyable and fascinating.

[@zackj997]

When I got my HD595 and first got into hifi audio it was the same way for me. I couldn't hear how it was better until I listened for long enough then went to something else and realized how mediocre most other headphones actually sound. Then I got HD600 and was able to immediately tell how much better that was.

[@Vishika-h2o]

Well they played dua lipa's levitating with it. Of course it was gonna leave a mid impression.

[@a2raya772]

Typical sennheiser.. overpriced and overrated

[@zackj997]

@@a2raya772 seriously? the HD600s are the best value of headphones for over 25 years lol

[@lemmmakestunes8312]

@@a2raya772 senny overpriced???? lmao I love shitting on big companies but i would not say sennheiser are overpriced

[@strika52]

i think next time you should test these vs common consumer headphones like beats, sony mdr, audio technica 50x, skullcrusher etc... I think this would give a better perspective on where these headphones land and I think they would understand the differences better.

[@starkid9736]

smart!!

[@casedistorted]

@@starkid9736 I was surprised he did not do that tbh

[@gizzy2403]

I think they'd choose th cheaper headphones in that case. People like th boosted bass, & It's what they're used to

[@kevingest5452]

I would bet on Koss killing everyone in that category...if they couldn't feel them.

[@gizzy2403]

@@kevingest5452 you're probably right! Th m50x would probably be 2nd place if they couldn't feel th clamp force

[@adrianborosa3560]

7:50 - "So what did you like most about them, what was really working for you?" "The sound." This man is a genius

[@zorilla0]

I mean, I just sold a pair of Sundaras because they sounded wonderful, but didn't fit me well and were too heavy for all-day desk use. Comfort can be a major factor as well.

[@SaberknightX]

What's funny to me, is that they said: "it sounds like you are in your car" that's actually a complement 😂 they make you feel like your listening to stereo in an open frame? That is good staging! This was fun, I hope they have fun

[@opposite342]

Yeah I think they meant the sub bass for the "farting" sound comment

[@HhbJjb-d9u]

@@opposite342 Lmao

[@fbaraky660]

no, they mean when the speakers can't keep up with the volume.

[@privacyhelp]

The car is the worst place to listen to music.

[@intothevoid9831]

What? Soundstaging doesn't exist in a car. That's a major diss lol.

[@_jerieljan]

Some suggestions: - It'd be great to know what tracks they listened to. - At the end and before the reveal, make them rank their picks, individually. - Not sure if it'll help, but perhaps show them a list of common positive and negative adjectives/descriptors while they describe the headphones (or even at the end when the blindfolds are off). Regardless, this is a fantastic video.

[@wuhanclan]

I think the track quality can make or break headphone tests. I have decent speakers and headphones and poorly mastered tracks or bad recordings sound extra shitty on headphones but not as offensive through speakers.

[@winnieid2727]

Some track / genre is better at one headphone vs another so yeah more info is better

[@daveo556]

Great series! Might be interesting to have them bring their own headphones in and compare straight after. Who knows, the comments could be even more savage

[@divinecurrent9053]

I will say the 800S lack of tight extended bass was a deal breaker for me, even with its incredible soundstage. But that car speaker comparison got me lol. I would take the Sundara over it for my preferences.

[@gestron99]

Me too. I chose Hifiman HE1000se over 800S because of 800s lack of bass.

[@ElvenSpellmaker]

​@@IIlIlIllllIIIlTHIS. With a decent EQ they slam deep and hard, like using a Mojo 2 with high bass EQ (there are two on the Mojo)

[@gestron99]

​@residentzero I do not have HD650. My headphone was HD700 for few years. Then I want to upgrade and purchased HD800 but after a few weeks I sold it and purchased Hifiman HE1000se. I listen to Kpop songs most of the time.

[@dtz1000]

The people in this video are a lot more honest than most KZbin reviewers. KZbin reviewers often tell us what they think we want to hear. Just because it's expensive, doesn't necessarily mean that it's any good.

[@jeffb8217]

I think a "Normal people try expensive speakers" type of video would be pretty interesting, because then they only get the sound. When wearing headphones you feel how heavy they are, how much they clamp etc which will influence their decisions

[@TheHammerofDissidence]

Josh V. did this with one of his family members and she was much more impressed with hifi speakers than the headphone setup. Speakers just present music in a more impressive way imo. The problem is that even budget speakers can be so good now that finding a crummy reference isn't the easiest task. Won't stop the price tags of the upper end from shocking anyone though..

[@jamesmay1322]

They'd obviously still have to be blindfolded though, else they'd be heavily influenced by the size/number of drivers etc But yes that would be an interesting comparison.

[@billybunter3753]

I find that most "normies" expect my hi-end system to "blow away" anything they've ever heard before. They expect massive booms! Then they get confused when I explain it's about sound quality not quantity!

[@legitcrack6438]

Audiophiles hate this one trick

[@Armbrust210]

I feel like the first Headphone tried will always be at a disadvantage, as they don't have something to compare them to yet. It would've been interesting to have put them on their head again as the last headphone, without telling them it's the same again. Lastly, my god, all of these headphones got critiqued really harshly 😅 But i appreciate the honesty

[@Kuzushi42]

Yeah it would be interesting if they brought their own headphones/iems to ground themselves before listening to the others.

[@CatnamedMittens]

The way around it is to just spoil what the first headphones are or use something super common.

[@Greg.Siucrazyforaudio2016]

Ears and mind needs to be trained. It takes time to tell how good they are in which area. Over time audiophile will look for better clarity sound stage separation, micro details, smoothness all that counts, at the end is what type of music that you are into will affect your decisions to buy , when young will go punch hard slamming , over time will look for details when older would look for lush sweet sounding headphones. A journey for headphone hobby and at the end. You get terrible tinitus or loss hearing. So be advised not to play super loud 😢 but hobby is hobby hard to change 😇😀be happy Cheers Everyone 😊....

[@kato2395]

7:57 I love how he poses for every snobby audiophile term that he is about to spout out.

[@kenneyt9]

then gets it completely wrong each time :p

[@MitchellTowell]

i wasn't a fan of that guy ngl

[@pooppp6865]

​@@MitchellTowellits satire bro. cmon

[@MitchellTowell]

@@pooppp6865 i realise that but i just didn't find it funny. i dont hate the guy or anything just not a fan. (just to clarify im not a headphone guy i just found this video)

[@pooppp6865]

@@MitchellTowell ay you actually chill abt it yea i can see how someone can find it a bit annoying

[@stevenlamontagne526]

I am surprised by this outcome. When I first got my hd800s' I was very impressed with the technological performance, mainly the instrument separation, the detail, and the soundstage of course. They were my first expensive headphones. It was funny to see their reaction when they took the blindfold off. I would like to see a version of this with gammers.

[@wyx5854]

I think those who arent familiar with hifi headphones, i believe they focus more on mid and bass than separation, imaging and soundstage

[@dtz1000]

Are they anything like the hd800? Because I had those and they were one of the worst headphones I ever owned. All treble and no bass. Yet people were raving about them. Hd600 and sundara are much better.

[@Morsella]

bass roll off and 6kghz peak

[@magnus9316]

Haha they have no idea. The sennheisers really stand out the most in soundstage imo. When you are really comparing side by side some other high end headphones like audeze could sound a little more detailed but they come no where near the soundstage of the sennheiser. And tbh that together with comfort is really almost the only thing i care about and creates most the illusion you are in the moment instead of just wearing headphones

[@jeremysumpter8939]

I get it...When I first got into headphones I had COMPLETELY different taste...I just wanted bass...but, after awhile, the more genres I got into, the more I learned about music and what to listen for, what nuances to appreciate. Now I have completely different tastes in sound signature. I still like bass, but clean, tight bass, no longer that boomy muddy crap. I used to hate treble but now I love hearing those crips details in music. IDK, to each their own but normally after someone starts to really delve into music and not just casually listen they start to appreciate higher end audio

[@eekeek1451]

Bro this is literally me. I used to crank the bass slider to the max in any car stereo I had, but now I put it at about a third of the way and then turn up the treble quite a bit.

[@marestgondev]

@@eekeek1451 that´s was me long time ago and my brother is that kind of consumer right now "OMG BASS SO BASSY :O" and don´t care any more.

[@evilvirtuoso9408]

Your point about "the other person's opinion influences one's own" is spot on... the same is true with audiophiles. That's why there's a lot of "audiophile memes" picked up from reviews, reddit, head-fi and the other usual places.

[@marksr12]

Completely mind-blowing. Our ears don't hear price , they only hear sound and they will always tell you what you like. Then our eyes take over and that's when we see a different interpretation. Great video!

[@Kagemusha7]

Yeah, it has less to do with that and more to do with conditioning. People are told constantly in consumer headphone reviews that more bass = good and less bass = bad, and nothing else matters, so they don't even know to listen to anything else. The HD800s doesn't sound like what reviewers say a good headphone sounds like, it has a completely unique quality, so they just dismiss it without actually listening to it beyond the most reductive aspects. I guarantee that is what is happening. They are objectively orders of magnitude better than most headphones, but you also have to know what quality is.

[@legitcrack6438]

@@Kagemusha7 aha, cause all the people in video constantly read headphone reviews. This is a great test and shows how biased consumers are, cause despite lack of experience from people featured above a set that costs 5x as much should stand out to them (i guess it did lol)

[@maxwellwallace8553]

I love how they're all saying "we're gonna get cooked" after they just got done roasting us all alive for our bad spending habits LMAO

[@JennyDarukat]

I think a big difference between us nerds and more "normal" people is the value that's placed on soundstage. To audiophiles, a wide stage is great and allows for more nuance in terms of imaging etc whereas a more average consumer will just interpret it as distant and less involved. A snaller stage makes things like detail and dynamics more immediately apparent - think of it like tasting a delicate dish with many small nuances vs strongly flavoured condiments like hot sauce. Or a pour-over, single origin brewed black coffee vs a syrup flavoured latte from a chain.

[@governordog]

good and interesting take

[@pillowboy7995]

Interesting soundstage was the best thing for me getting into the hobby because it made music far more immersive.

[@dbean5174]

@@pillowboy7995 I agree haha. I first bought some IEMs but it never led to me being shocked in every song I listened to though it’s soundstage and imaging was still much better than “commercial TWS ear buds.” Hence I bought some open back Planar Magnetic’s and the soundstage and directional and separation of instruments was much better. The thing to realize though is that soundstage can be a bit overblown by many audiophiles. For example, when I listened to my IEMs, sounds came from a distance of about 1-1.5 feet where as in Headphones, sounds come from a distance of about 2-2.5 feet. For reference, I’m using the HEKV2 which is noted to have a very very large soundstage albeit not as wide as the HD800S but much more “realistic” in its approach. Hence, I think many audiophiles overblow the “technicalities” that headphones have along with IEMs compared to each other.

[@tadokorovsky9746]

Headphones or iems soundstages are not that impressive to me even as an audiophile because they are all kind of small and doesn't make some much of an impact compares to other factors. I remember people talking about HD800 having speaker like huge soundstage and after I tried it I was like "that's it?" It's still an obvious headphone soundstage just slightly wider than other headphones, still nowhere near an actual speaker system or live music hall or even movie theater. Headphones or iems have their own strengths compare to speaker system, HD800 is an example of throw away your biggest strength and trying to improve your biggest weakness. I do appreciate that since it does provide some unique experience within all the other headphones, but I won't call it a superb headphone either and there are some nice alternatives with much cheaper price if you only care about wide soundstage.

[@Viewer13128]

The technical abilities of many headphones/IEMs with equal or less than Arya's soundstage are highly praised by the audio community. As Tadokorovsky said, the soundstage of headphones/IEMs isn't that impressive, and as Dbean51 said, soundstage can be a bit overblown by audiophiles. In fact, the earbud with the widest soundstage claimed by audiophiles has questionable tuning that is audibly apparent. Imo, using soundstage to justify why they disliked the HD800S is a bit forcing it. I feel like these non-audiophile guests were basing their preference on the tuning more.

[@JKHYT]

I really love these videos. It proves once again that, basically, the entire headphone hobby is kind of a joke. I hate to sound so harsh but it is what it is, spending more money does not equal better. I see SOOO many people convince themselves they like a headphone or that it sounds better than another because they spent a bunch of money on it.

[@maegnificant]

OR people that spend so much money do not like the sound signature that most people prefer

[@En_Joshi-Godrez]

These videos prove absolutely nothing. You are a genuine dunce for believing any objectivity here.

[@auro8649]

​@@maegnificant this. Most people never get used to a "highend" sound, on headphones and also speakers. When u hear just weird ass V curve sounds your whole life what would you do? I guess it's not far away

[@bstar777777]

I think most people don't care about how accurate or detailed their music sounds. As long as it has the vibe and a good beat, that's all that's important.

[@En_Joshi-Godrez]

@@bstar777777 when you know what an instrument sounds like, or the human voice, you will care more. Also massively depends on the music you listen to. There are plenty of compositionally complex music that now is very unenjoyable on headphone like the hd650.

[@Robert-iu2ou]

Love this series! I think maybe do 5 headphones per video, that way there is more to compare to. Even outside of the science, hearing your friends opinions on a range of sounds people describe online is very interesting.

[@carminedesanto6746]

No matter what level of expertise..the Sen’s 800s…LACK OF BASS PUNCH AND SLAM at nearly $2k is a deal breaker ..tho wide soundstage is great ..no one even noticed 🤦‍♂️ Great video 🍕☕️👍

[@squirts1]

Some of that could be song choice, but also might help to give people a primer of things to listen for. Sending people in blind (pun not intended) is mildly entertaining, but frankly not exactly informative or useful.

[@Jamie-666]

The 800S has great slam, weak bass.

[@kenneyt9]

Put them on tubes...

[@MultiZymethSK]

I use oratory's EQ preset for HD800 and further boost the 100Hz shelf and they are quite fun to listen to.

[@squirts1]

@@neandrewthal and I literally just said sending people in blind is not useful. It provides you zero information. It's a waste of time. Congrats on poor comprehension.

[@franciscolaguna81]

Firstly: Cute Sleepmasks ❤! Secondly: Your friends seem like a tough crowd 😅. And lastly: Gotta love James‘ „Audiophile Parody Routine“. It is pretty much perfect. Or, high fidelity, if you like (SCNR)

[@NightAndDay247]

Such a guilty pleasure. I love this series. Please keep it up!!

[@JohnSmith-pn2vl]

love this series, what i would like to see is 3 music producers to do such a blind test, and more models, like 5-6 ?

[@Dampfaeus]

Love the Sennheiser HD 800S for the clarity and sound stage. But they do really lack the "oompf" in the bass region, no argument there. It surprised me that the lacking "oompf" was the thing that stood out the most. Maybe if the Sennheiser had come last, the clarity and sound stage would have stood out among the three.

[@Kagemusha7]

Over time, I understood that the HD800s actually do have a lot of oompf, it's just not in one place. The whole sound spectrum has it, so you don't notice the bass standing out as much relatively speaking. It's a very evenly tuned headphone with a sense of enormity to the sound, more than merely width which a lot of people focus on.

[@bwplearntech1052]

Like someone else said, what they were listening to is crucial to the viewers. Also, assuming that they were listening to the same song, maybe let them listen through the same headphone group another round of times to make sure they could properly compare them to one-another and also had the same reaction after hearing all the other options. But great video. Very fun. Not sure if any of the manufacturers will like you after this though. 😅

[@d0nj03]

Their HRTFs vs. the headphone response curves are crucial, just about as much, but I would say even more than the music being played.

[@JesusGreenBL]

I really wish every headphone review did this in addition to their review - got say 3-4 random non-audiophiles to try the headphone and describe the sound using normal language. I feel like when you remove existing knowledge and expectations, you quickly get to which aspects about the sound really stand out because they aren't going in looking for [x] and [y] that they read about in other reviews before their purchase. Looking forward to seeing the IEM follow-up.

[@LeggoMaEggo17]

I didn’t expect anybody to be blown away by non eq’d hd800s. They’re absolutely not going to blow away any normies with their stock tuning. As a matter of fact, the more clinical sound is what likely drove them away from enjoying them altogether. Get them properly eq’d and I’d wager their minds will be blown. Maybe an idea for the next video? Try out these headphones again but eq out all the peaks and maybe add a small bass shelf? It might also help encourage people do the same if they’re not a fan of a headphone’s stock sound and want to continue enjoying them with their technicalities

[@dagnisnierlins188]

I use auto eq project database.

[@allydea]

I cried the first time I tried them! I knew a little bit about the audio industry (with an emphasis on "little") so I knew they were expensive and Sennheiser's top of the line, but the tears were genuine. Maybe even more surprising is that the song that was available in that store was _"Please Don't Stop The Music."_

[@kuzia1984]

I have a friend who listens, mainly, to "soft" music (Enigma, Enio Morricone, Vangelis, etc.; basically, orchestral rendering of soundtracks, atmospheric music, etc.) while i'm a die-hard trancer which enjoys almost all the genres out there. I do have a decent collection of high-end headphones but when i invited my friend here and placed the HD800S on her head and played Maurie Jarre's orchestral rendering of Unchained Melody, she burst into tears. I admit, she does love the movie a lot (along with its soundtrack) but i have never seen someone like i've seen her enjoy the music. She asked me if she could listen to the song for a few more times and i obliged. She never knew the price of the headphones nor did i hint at them being expensive. When i told her how much they cost, she admitted that she thought they were around 1000 EURO but at the end, her final judgement was that for the money i paid for them (1200 EURO, new from the dealer) and for someone who truly enjoys music, they are a low price to pay. I love them but they're not my favorite headphones yet, i couldn't live without them. This is for all those who keep writing that "normies" would never be blown away by "un-EQ-ed" HD800S. No, boys and girls, they will be blown off but it's a matter of musical taste. Place them on the head of a bass head who listens to hardcore / techno and yes, they'll be a "meh" pair of headphones.

[@kunimitsune177]

That friend you described isn't a normie though. Normies, musically speaking, are the masses, who listen mostly or exclusively to bass-forward genres and pop.

[@BeeDotEee]

I had HE-500's and an Audio GD DAC and amp on my desk in a large IT office and encouraged everyone to try them. It was quite an intimidating looking setup looking back which is probably why I didn't get many takers and from the ones who did it was a very male vs female outcome. We had a near 1-to-1 male to female ratio and the result of my "research" cough, was that audio reproduction is not a priority for women when listening to music. The gist being that they were clear but didn't see any advantage over what they already had to enjoy music. Males were more engaged and quite a few upgraded as a result. One guy bought my old K702 Audio GD DAC and amp and had it set up at his desk. The one outlier was the lady who sat opposite me who fell in love with the sound and used them more than me with the cable draped over the desk partition :)

[@jk9436]

Would be interesting to know if your friends have headphones (e.g. True Wireless, or others) on their own and if they do, if the like them. Those could be included in the blind test. It would be interesting to hear from them, how they would rate each others/their own headphones blind.

[@PhuHung.Nguyen]

Great series! Just some comments from my observation: - I see some people wear headphones over their hair, which can significantly influence the sound: + Imperfect seal will cause the Arya and Sundara to have a resonance peak in the bass region, while the HD 800 S rolls off even more. I'd assume that they experienced significantly less bass on the HD 800 S than it actually has, especially compared to planars which benefit from this effect. + Having material like hair between the driver and pinna will cause a dampening-like effect, down-tilting the FR and taming treble peaks in many cases. Again, the already-warm HD 800 S will get even warmer, while the other two will down-tilt to a more desirable slope and be less shouty. - Without visual cue, weight is the main factor when it comes to perception of quality. I don't know to what degree does this effect comes in to play, but might be interesting to note in the future. For those of you who's interested, the HD 800 S was the top performing open-back headphones in the 2018 Harman Research, just slightly behind the Harman Target and Harman-like closed-back headphones. Which is to say, a lot of people really liked it, surprisingly. I don't doubt the Hifimans would do better, but they wouldn't do significantly better since there's little gap between the HD 800 S and the absolute best.

[@MykeBinaryMan]

3 iems I would like to see would be the 1.P1 max (budget friendly and relaxed sound) 2. Mangird Xenns Top (mid range dynamic sound) 3. Sony IER-M9 (1k killer with good bass)

[@djthamlas_tbs]

This honestly just proves that there isn't a massive gap in audio quality

[@Kagemusha7]

There is a massive gap in audio quality. It's just that people are conditioned to think more bass = good and less = bad, and anything that deviates from the standard commercial headphone sound = weird. That's about the level of their comments. Actually listen to a pair of HD800s headphones. They make the sound seem enormous and 3 dimensional, with beautifully natural timbre, great separation between instruments, ultra clear vocals with a lot of airiness and absolutely no flaws whatsoever. Their descriptions of the sound are simply nonsensical and reductive in a way that makes me question whether they were told to say stupid shit for engagement. I've never had anyone be anything other than blown away when trying my pair.

[@djthamlas_tbs]

@@Kagemusha7 oh yeah at first people don’t understand neutral

[@gatoiel]

no, the difference between headphones is real. The only thing missing from this video was a bit of the music they were listening to in the background to get a feel for it. Nowadays, iems under 100$ have a great tone, but when you put them on a technically demanding piece of music, they blur or have no resolution.

[@Ca11mero]

I think the "problem" here is that most people don't understand that getting a pair of headphones to sound "neutral" is difficult. Most people outside of the audiophile hobby wants a pair of headphones that enhances stuff like bass and mids whereas audiophiles sees it as something negative. There is nothing wrong with any of it since it's a matter of taste and preference. Thinking about it for a moment gave me the idea that comparing very neutral recorded vocals (like audio books for example) would make it harder to choose. Or maybe very well recorded records that are NOT bricked in terms of dynamics (like non-remastered Kraftwerk for example).

[@dbean5174]

Yeah, the “commercial sound” is much more outside of neutral involving high amounts of bass with a decently high “harman like mid-treble range”. which is why many “normal” people prefer it.

[@bilalrasool1]

This isn't completely true, you said people outside this hobby want a bass bosted headphones while audiophiles see that as a negative. Bass is fun, people want bass, the issue is when the bass makes the rest of the frequency range worse. When I had my friends try my Arya Stealth, they were all shocked at how there is good bass but the rest of the instruments and vocals are also very clear. Bass doesn't mean the headphone isn't good, Focals are known for their bass, Audeze headphones are praised for their bass. People want bass if it also comes with detailed mids and treble.

[@dbean5174]

@@bilalrasool1 I agree. The TOTL for bass I’d say is probably the Abyss AB 1266 Phi TC. The amount of bass quality I’ve heard it has is unmatched even compared to the Audeze LCD-4. Plus, the changeable bass can be configured towards different genres of music. And of course, the resolution and detail it has is practically unmatched.

[@iPain3G]

@@bilalrasool1 thats why i love my Focal Celestee. This headphone has a lot of punch but is also really clear. The only downside of Focal headphones is the price for new earpads. New Focal earpads are extremly expensive with 90$/€ for only ONE earpad and the only way to get them is through a verified retailer and most of them has to order the earpads from Focal in france.

[@foldspacenavigator6011]

Always a nice break from the baroque measurement analysis episodes and glad to see more creativity being brought to the broadcast choices. Well done sir!

[@eddiebaby22]

This is the best way to test, unbiased and importantly blind.

[@crazyprayingmantis5596]

Totally agree

[@mrfatah4510]

These are my favorite segments/programs, 100% please post more content like this. Like the Kiwi Cadenza reveal, this is second best.

[@liquidchair]

When i was on pursuit for speakers, i listened many different ones in showroom, and asked the guy not to tell me price, just to demonstrate me speakers within my max budget, because i didn't want to be biased to some model cause of price. I choose at the end Wharfedale diamond 12.3 which were among least expensive i heard in showroom. They sounded me absolutely best and I'm still loving em.

[@arthurc6974]

I think that putting gaming headphones on the blind test, along with audiophile headphones, would be a great experiment

[@transparentblue]

A comparison with bassy / Vshaped / Warm headphones could be interesting, Beyer DT770/990, AKG K371, Fidelio X2, AKG K712, Sony MDR-1AM2 / Z7 / Z1R, Any of the big biodynamic driver Denon, Fostex TH610/900, Klipsch HP-3, Audeze LCD-2 for example

[@DonutsReview]

I also noticed it takes time to get to know sound and their various qualities. If you just give someone a super high end headphone one day, they might not be able to distinguish various low high or mid bass qualities. Though of course good sound is good sound, so there should always be tests like this one. Good job. 🤓

[@Cameri760]

This is what I look forward to the most on this channel, love these guys!

[@architectlogin]

I kept seeing all the 'hair' in the cups and wondering what kind of fit/seal they were getting. Also, since bass is something that you don't usually get in most listening scenarios (muggles) that can be stark with a good headphone with decent SPLs for the first time since your high-school friend splurged on a big sub in their car. Am i missing any other experience of powerful bass that normies get to experience before putting on a pair of nice cans?

[@ozkaar5287]

A good 10 band equalizer does it for me. Music is a matter of individual taste and I don't care much about flat response. Of course I make presets for different genres, classical and pop aren't mixed the same way.

[@sparda2098]

They sould not be able to hear other people's opinion next to them. That will give unnecessary bias to the second person who tries the headset

[@CPcheat]

Correct

[@Kagemusha7]

This is what happens when you condition the general public to think a lot of bass = good and not a lot of bass = bad. Same with food. A great meal cooked by a Michelin Star cheff, meh. They'd rather have McDonalds drenched with salt and sugar because their taste is, well, cooked.

[@ChuckPappas]

I’ve owned Focal Utopia, Focal Stellia, Audeze LCD-X, Audeze LCD-4Z, Meza Empyrean, Hifiman HE1000 V2 and sennheiser HD800S. I’ve sold all except for my HD800S. I don’t think the 800s is the best for all types of music but it’s absolutely the best gaming set ever built and I can’t imagine gaming without it. One day I hope to find a pair of headphones I think the same about for music. Then it also can remain in my collection forever like the hd800s which imo are my only end game find this far into my audiophile journey. (Gaming endgame)

[@FaizalKuntz]

normally people dont like neutral or boring sound, when they heard something enhanced some part of the music maybe more bass or more mid thats sound good for normal people. boring sound or neutral sound only appeal to audiophile while specialized headphones appeal to more people.

[@WorthlessDeadEnd]

*3:17* - I know *_exactly_* what she's talking about. Cheap car speakers that are being forced to do what they simply can't and weren't built to do. They're so loud, overpowered, and distorted that, instead of a nice, smooth, deep bass, you're hearing a cruddy, loud, deep, distorted *_"fart"_* as they drive by. It's so obnoxious and irritating, mostly because it sounds so bad. Very common for young people whose parents give them old "hand-me-down" cars.

[@sennheiser]

Separating the audiophiles from the normies.

[@chrono-headphonereviews242]

What if they tried an HE1 tho???

[@stevenjackson8226]

Yeah... They nailed it, though, with the Sundara. Fine headphone. I could understand a broad, easy appeal. And the price guesses for it were right on.

[@dtz1000]

I was disappointed with it. It's quite a boring headphone. Very overhyped. Went back to my hd600 and he400s which are both much better.

[@durrantmiller8810]

From what I understand most people just look for bass. Which makes sense since most music these days focuses primarily on the bass.

[@Your_Degenerate]

A hoopty rolling down the street with music blaring will make that "fart" noise. I'm not sure if it's from blown out speakers in the trunk or that it just lacks sub bass. It reminds me of some cheap headphones I had once that literally vibrated when bass was played as a feature.

[@Ryan-fp8oz]

i love these types of videos thanks chrono and friends

[@Radugazon]

If I remember clearly, at the dawn of sound recording, some famous companies (like Western Electric) used to make demos in theater in front of public. Everything was made behind curtains, a real orchestra was playing and after they played the record with their system (no even in stereo). People were so baffled that they could'nt tell what was from the orchestra and what was from the record.

[@s1lverhand_]

I'm sure if you sneaked in a skullcandy crusher evo/anc and turned the haptic bass just a lil bit , they would straight go like, these are 3000 dollars, take my home and give me the headphones.

[@badwolf8112]

you should tell them you added more padding to the head band and cushions without impacting the sound, that way they're less likely to count how it feels on the head as an indicator. and add a 'no touching' rule.

[@ed_marin]

This is great. I love this series 😁

[@BigBoots-ms5fq]

The musicality🗿, The punch and slam🗿, The… clarity 🗿.

[@calvinyip364]

This series needs to come back. Hoping it can be cheap Vs expensive headphone . For example Fiio ft1 pro Vs edition xs or Ananda nano

[@humanbass]

Audiophiles need to supplement a lot of copium to the anemic hd800

[@lain2236ad]

audiophiles just don't care about bass, me included (8xx user)

[@humanbass]

@@lain2236ad saying that doesnt care = coping. Bass is super important for harmony and rhythm.

[@ZarZar57]

@@humanbassThat’s what I’m saying. Music sounds great on headphones that attempt emulate the tonality of a good speaker in a room. A great speaker has bass

[@dbean5174]

@@humanbass he probably meant that Audiophiles care more about quality rather than quantity of bass. The “commercial sound” is boomy and muddy but “normal” people like overwhelming amounts of bass, it gets them into a rhythm and groove. It’s more like Audiophiles care about “technicalities” where as normal people care about “musicality”.

[@Goodbutevilgenius]

​​​​@@dbean5174 what exactly is technical about the inability to produce subbass? Also, subbass isn't what makes music "muddy", that would be the ~150-400hz range.

[@taidee]

Interesting series, keep it up.

[@SHMPhotography97]

I'm always excited for these videos😂😁

[@blowfishes]

Would love you to have six pairs of headphones - split into three pairs. One they can touch and feel while blindfolded, the other to actually listen to. The thing being that the listener thinks they have handled and listened to the same headphone. Would be great to see if handling the headphone has any effect on how they think they sounded. Giving them really expensive headphones to handle before swapping them out for a far cheaper option, or the other way with very cheap headphones to handle and the swapping them out for really expensive ones to listen to.

[@neurokinetik]

It'd be interesting to see what they'd think if all headphones were eq'd to the same target. Could they identify the differences in the technicalities?

[@Riley_Canvessa]

I actually prefer doing that to my headphones I get the sound signature I want, and teh difference is the soundstage, quality of sounds, imaging, etc

[@dyckstefan]

I personally was not impressed by the 800s when I tried it at an audiofest. Preferred planars for the detail and imaging, and the focal clear for their lively and punchy character

[@sherryssj5]

I think the microphones for the James and Camille pair got switched. I hear audio on the right for the woman, and on the left for James :) The video is really insightful because it shows what people PAY for, and it doesn't have to do with what headphones cost.

[@danieljung2810]

I just did a review of one of my headphones but my friends are musicians and in the entertainment business. They really liked the HD6xx through the A & K SR35.

[@davidrivera2165]

I would venture to guess that besides not being experienced with quality headphones, the quality of the recorded tracks were a variable that they're not used to in determining what they liked in headphone. As in if a track doesn't sound similar to what they're used to hearing in a muffled, dropped highs headphone they will dislike a very revealing headphone that accentuates the treble details.

[@jakemontgomery5540]

Love contents like this😂 super hilarious😂

[@darcy0702]

5:09 your editor must be wearing his headphones backwards lmao

[@MuhammadKharismawan]

honestly the best upgrade i did to my system? buying a good entry lvl 2 channel system, honestly, even just a Swan OS10 is enough to get me off my kilobuck over ears,

[@jalee1910]

Is all about personal taste, sometimes when what is good sounding for us doesn't mean that the others have the same thought. Same like food, u either love it or u don't.

[@7ArchEnemy7]

The HD6XX had to be in the mix. Probably would have come out tops 🔥

[@PinePizza]

Ikr, I really need to get a confirmation that I've made the correct choice lol. Sometimes fear of missing out gets to you.

[@cultofcedar]

Whipped out my 800s to be disappointed. Honestly pretty fair though. They did notice how immersive it was. Comparing it to car speakers sounds pretty good imo. Open backs are like personal speaker systems to me. I’m sure most people don’t have high quality speakers at home so a cars speaker is probably the most similar comparison. They do be lackin bass though.

[@imagzz4942]

I think the reason for their thoughts and differences is due to two things: 1 - Preference.... Most people nowadays just like loads of bass and mids and they are used to closed back headphones. 2 - Listening to hi res audio is a skill and requires understanding of the principles within the skillsets.

[@daniluzzu]

3. Most newbie audiophiles confuse loads of treble for resolution. Which is plain wrong, true resolution doesn't equal to lots of treble. The most resolving planar on the planet, the Susvara, doesn't have loads of treble, or at least it has much less of it that other, way less resolving cans.

[@sand9577]

Us audiophiles need these reality calls, we live in a bubble, it's a constant circle jerk and take this way too seriously. Most of us have more money than brains. We need regular people to tell us we're nuts. I love it. By the way Emu Teak with aftermarket pads are miles better than all of these hehe.

[@phreak1118]

I think people that dont know headphones well... and especially younger people are going to associate more bass with better sounding. Which makes complete sense why the HD800s would rank so low with them. I have a feeling most of them would probably pick beats if that were an option.

[@kael13]

I do kinda feel that most high end headphones are a total waste of money and you hit diminishing returns on quality very quickly. Wheras speakers have much more of an impact on your overall experience.

[@Synflood-dot-txt]

Agree. Once you pass 4000-5000 (i have both IEMs and OE in that range) you really hit the diminishing return and dont get that much back (depends on your source though I have a tone control)

[@Goodbutevilgenius]

​@@Synflood-dot-txt 4000-5000 is probably already well above the mark that OP is talking about.

[@Nearest_Neighbor]

Love those videos. Brings you a bit down to earth. And I wanna hang with Grace and Selina. Love their vibe.

[@unstopology]

Stuff like this is very subjective. Scientifically, a flat response for studio work is desirable but the problem is NO ONE listens to songs (recreationally) on flat headphones. When I was younger I liked a ton of bass, now I want a more flat EQ with some boosted highs and lows.

[@AmaljithR-l2k]

Most people prefer an enjoyable tuning and musical ,it should be punchcas well as the most important thing is the sub base response .if u provided ldx x then everyone will probably choose that one as favourite

[@thewebart]

Love it. What is the Headphone Amp that you have used during the experiment?

[@goranmekota7540]

I tend to consider audiophile equipment overrated in general, but for a fair comparison it should be a mix of different music and amplification. I would assume the HD800s to work much better on a tube listening to classical than underpowered solid-state listening to hiphop.

[@ZiggieZoo]

All of my favorite headphones are midfi. It always seems like there is just something wrong with the high end headphones. It is almost as though they're always experimenting with the newest technology and overlook cohesion, tuning, or some other major thing.

[@bilalrasool1]

Camille knows audio.

[@DefiantAML]

Interesting, I have the Aryas and HD800S. Aryas have the best bass, and good sound stage but the HD800S have the best sound stage and clarity for me. I love both, for different music genres.

[@Bushviking]

It's hard to listen to a new headphone in a vacuum. So give them some "standard" headphone first (Koss Porta Pro or something). Then let them compare it to that. And I agree on 2 people will influence each others opinions more than the (relatively small) changes in soundsignature of the headphones.

[@chrisk6474]

Lol 😂 This is a fantastic series. I don’t know what it says about hobbyists and our tastes in what or how we all hear things. But regular people have a much different experience than almost every other reviewer/audiophile. Regular people, I think like music more than they like measurements. Also equating headphone weight with cost is something that is common in consumer products. Also who chose the music they listened to for the review? Maybe next time you can have them select music they listen too and are familiar with in their daily listening rotation.

[@Omar_ZX]

The 800s impressions make me wanna commit arson /j

[@Yarnooee]

you should test 800s with orchestral piece, or live music like mtv unplugged 1994 hotel california. every friends of mine blew their mind with that one.

[@TheObsesedAnimeFreaks]

price is an indicator of... exclusivity not quality most of the time when it comes to headphones. you can have headphones that compete with 400-500 dollar pairs of headphones but only cost 200 and are marked down to 150 most of the time (eph100sl) but for whatever reason they aren't that expensive... you can also have headphones that cost like thousands of dollars but sound like complete junk. it depends on preference and it depends on who is making them and who they are aiming that product towards. I found my preference in planar magnetics, I have a pair of k901s and i hate them. but the other 3 pairs of headphones i have are planar magnetics, from my t50rps to my sundaras and my dan clark -drop aeon closed yeah... i have far to much intrest in the sound of a planar over the sound of a dynamic.

[@bilalrasool1]

That Arya reaction almost broke my heart, luckily the second duo was able to save it.

[@adamcanterbury]

Keep doing these vids they are so much fun…a good break from the norm 😊

[@GrainOnTheGo]

Compare them against consumer headphones. I notice the difference most between HiFi when I go from a Sony or Beats to a set of Sennheiser Cups.

[@mohamadanas6203]

Please do IEM and headphone in one video. Let them decide IEM or headphone more worth the price

[@Viewer13128]

Since all 4 had same comments about the HD800S, I have little doubt about incorrect ear positioning, but the other 2 headphones were the same brand, and the 2 girls who praised the cheaper Sundara from the brand said the more expensive Arya was fuzzy, while the other 2 testers praised the Sundara, then the Arya more. Since the Arya is sensitive to ear positioning and the 2 girls wore the Arya a bit lower than the other 2 testers, I would have to wonder if imperfect ear alignment messed up the sound quality, imaging, and stereo separation for the 2 girls. Hifiman doesn't seem like a company that can release a significantly cheaper product that sounds superior to their expensive offerings. Hifiman seems to tune their headphones with purpose, as opposed to random releases. The 2 testers who praised the Arya seems to align with Hifiman's pricing. The 2 girl testers, I have to wonder if they way their ears were bent by the blindfold, or the ear positioning was messed up. For the HD800S, they were all very consistent, so I don't have much question marks regarding their verdict for that.

[@The_Geek_World]

I def agree. Fit matters too as I mine sounds bad at time then I adjust and get better sound

[@jamesmay1322]

So to summarise the result according to the ACTUAL title of the video, YES they could all tell the difference. Which ones they prefered, was as always down to preference/subjectivity and the fact there were all unable to a) price them correctly or b) rank them in order of price is no surprise at all. You'd get exactly the same lack of ablity to do a) or b) with any group of people you chose to use, yes including so called golden eared audiophiles or pro audio engineers etc.

[@calvinyip364]

Awesome reviews.

[@NA-dt5sz]

It was entertaining but anyone could predict that having someone else with them will alter the test results. I this would be a great way to judge headphones. Having normal people rank them. Have them blind folded and someone come and put it on there head. I am thinking of buying a hd600/ 650 (it’s a toss up right now 650 is cheaper.) but the first time with normal people trying it out REALLY helped push me towards it. Normal people want a jack of all trades. They want a headphone that does everything when they spend over $50 they want that. That’s what I want I sold my m50x and momentum on-ear (they hurt my head due to my glasses) to cover the cost and I wasn’t using them at all after I got the shp9500 which was $50.

[@rbsorg]

Cool video, I would be interested in a video like this with high impedance hp and you do tube vs solidstate.