Learn to Listen - Idiot guide to listen good music

[Deinel 0]

Hey guys,

 

Dunno if i should post this here but theres alot of things i just wanna get it off my chest cause i cant seem to find the right answers on my own, whether is it in Yahoo or Google.

 

I am a proud owner of a Grado SR60...was looking for it for around half a year since i read it in HWM but recently got it a month ago after i stumbled into this site.

Now im just very happy to say that sgheadphones is one of the sites that i click into everyday and that im even a member

 

1) Okay, opening speech is over. Im actually very amazed at how you people are able to listen to what non-experts does. Im just one of those, and i kinda 'aspire' to reach your level tho im still stuck at the 'good music means loud and got bass can already' level. How did u guys achieve this feat? In-born or u guys really do have headphones stuck in your heads 24/7? How can i reach your level if theres really a solution?

 

2) This is where its gonna get u sleepy But please i really do need answers! Haha...This qns is all about terms, audio terms. I just cant seem to understand them maybe cos i flunk my science? Here's the list (be prepared )

a) Tranducer type - Whats dynamic and what other terms are there?

Frequency Response - Whats tt? Bigger numbers better?

c) SPL 1mV / Signal to noise - Is this volume? Also bigger better? Oh wats dB?

d) Impedance - Ohms? For wat?

e) Distortion - ???

 

3) How to you guys identify 'Highs' and 'Lows' in the music?

 

K...shall pause here first for the qns...they will keep coming tho... Dun wanna pressure u guys...haha...

 

Please enlighten me

 

 

 

 

 

[Q00 0]

Firstly.. invest in good eardrops. I usually stop listening to music for a few days and clean my ears regularly with the ear-drops and when i listen again i notice a marked improvement. your milage may vary though.

 

Highs usually refer to the higher frequencies... and lows refer to the bass and inbetween the two is the midrange which is where the vocal range and most of the acoustics are at.

 

Good is just so subjective nowadays. It differs between so many different people. Good equipment is a good start. Your SR-60's are good but your envrionment plays a factor also since those are open cans. Noisy surroundings can prevent you from hearing the good stuff since you have to raise the volume thus drowning the details. I think you also have to ask yourself what are u looking for in your music and depending on the type of music, different cans/equipment can help you achieve your goal. Generally the Garbage In Garbage Out rule applies. If your source of music (your player) cannot resolve the details well enough, the resulting sound will sound bad even though your cans/amp are of really good quality. There are just so many variables at play here so a little more info might result in much better answers from the more knowledgeable guys around. Im sure they will be here soon to enlighten you.

 

Cheers!

[Charismatic 0]

Hi Deinel,

 

Why seek the answer when you already have it? SR60+a decent PDCP will already give you hours of enjoyable music.

 

my 2ct answers to u questions.

 

1. never an expert, sorry can't provide.

 

2. technical figures aren't directly equal to good music. i didn't pass science either, i was from commerce stream

 

3. high - uplifting, low - sad

 

[Kube 0]

Good's just very subjective. So far, when I judge cans, I first 'feel' quality using a variety of soundtracks ranging from jazz to rock to acoustics. This is just getting an overall impression of what ranges it's strong at, and what it dampens. Then I go more in-depth and check for clarity and crispness. I find that sometimes, too much of something (eg. crispness) is not too good. I also hear for other things, like depth and measured bass.

 

Physical features-wise I don't really care, unless they're going with my mp3 player (in which case sound quality is reduced).

 

These, however, are just my way of judging cans, I don't know about the pros cause I just became an audiophile.

 

 

[Deinel 0]

More answers!

[lypk 0]

I'm not an expert in these stuff, haven't even owned a headphone b4 (just earphones), but i will still pass on some comments.. for ques 1 that is..

 

I listen to music alot, at least 4 hours a day... anywayz, i think that 'good music' or more concisely, 'good headphones/earphones/speakers' is any that first of all, have the ability to produce what you like to hear.. cuz in the end, if you don't like what you're hearing, then its really no point.. the second most important point IMO is to be able to convey the mood of what you're listening to.. if its a ballad, then i need to feel my heartstrings thugged, and somehow just get immersed into the song.. with that being said, i feel that there are times I find a headphone/earphone overly detailed, which made me focus on the instruments/other sounds, instead of the singer... IMO, its not good.. so a good balance between both is definitely appreciated. Third most important point is for the song to sound natural to me.. a piano needs to sound like a piano, a female needs to sound demure.. you get what i mean.. the rest just basically boils down to your preferences.. do you like more bass? More clarity? blah blah.. i myself have only owned earbuds b4, and a behind the neck crap phone... haha..

 

Long essay.. o.O Ok, i think you would probably need to start by analysing songs instead of listening to them.. ask yourself whether it sounds natural (whether the song sounds realistically real life.. lolz), whether the song sounds like its coming out from thin air, or does it just sound like its from the 2 pieces of equipment on your ears... I personally don't like to analyse songs too much, cuz it really takes all the emotions that the song is trying to convey away..

 

Note: there are probably many other ways of going bout this, but what i've written is just my opinion, so no flaming from pple please ;P Hope that it can guide you along..

[Yon 0]

Good music like beautiful women, you'll know when you see one. If you have no problem spotting a pretty babe, should be the same when you put on a set of good cans, go with your instincts.

[Yon 0]

Loud bass - women with big breast

 

Deep bass - women with big butt

 

Smooth vocals - girl next door

 

[orca 0]

Hey guys,

 

Dunno if i should post this here but theres alot of things i just wanna get it off my chest cause i cant seem to find the right answers on my own, whether is it in Yahoo or Google.

 

I am a proud owner of a Grado SR60...was looking for it for around half a year since i read it in HWM but recently got it a month ago after i stumbled into this site.

Now im just very happy to say that sgheadphones is one of the sites that i click into everyday and that im even a member

 

1) Okay, opening speech is over. Im actually very amazed at how you people are able to listen to what non-experts does. Im just one of those, and i kinda 'aspire' to reach your level tho im still stuck at the 'good music means loud and got bass can already' level. How did u guys achieve this feat? In-born or u guys really do have headphones stuck in your heads 24/7? How can i reach your level if theres really a solution?

 

2) This is where its gonna get u sleepy But please i really do need answers! Haha...This qns is all about terms, audio terms. I just cant seem to understand them maybe cos i flunk my science? Here's the list (be prepared )

a) Tranducer type - Whats dynamic and what other terms are there?

Frequency Response - Whats tt? Bigger numbers better?

c) SPL 1mV / Signal to noise - Is this volume? Also bigger better? Oh wats dB?

d) Impedance - Ohms? For wat?

e) Distortion - ???

 

3) How to you guys identify 'Highs' and 'Lows' in the music?

 

K...shall pause here first for the qns...they will keep coming tho... Dun wanna pressure u guys...haha...

 

Please enlighten me

If you haven't seen this article, you should. Download the MP3s as well...and take a listen on your own..

 

http://www.fix-it.org/thread418.html