How to choose earphones to listen to sound professionals | AppBank

I was told that "high resolution" is a very good sound source, and I wanted to know more about good sound.Click here for the previous article → What is "high resolution" that sounds better than a CD? I asked a professional

"If you want to enjoy music with good sound, it is better to change from the place closest to your ears," he said, and this time he will tell us various things about the item "earphones" that is closest to your ears.

The people of "Radius" will teach us this time as well. "What's the difference between cheap earphones and expensive earphones?" "What is noise cancellation?"

Please use it as a reference when choosing earphones!

Click here for the official website of Radius → radius ｜ Radius Co., Ltd. Audio / Digital Audio Equipment / Lightning Product Manufacturer

The difference in price is the difference in materials

--Earphones cost less than 1,000 yen if they are cheap, or tens of thousands of yen if they are expensive. What's the difference?

Radius people: Cheap earphones are generally bad, and expensive earphones are not good earphones, but the big difference is the material.

For example, this "Doburube Numero Quatre Rouge" uses a material called beryllium for a small part called a diaphragm. There is a sound that can be expressed only with this material, but with cheap earphones it is not possible to use such an expensive material.

The materials that can be used for cheap earphones are limited. That's why I'm away from "good sound".

▽ Silver part is beryllium diaphragm ▽

Various numerical values ​​representing earphones

--When I'm looking for earphones, I see various numbers, but I don't know what those numbers represent. For example, what do these numbers represent?

Radius: Let's answer in order!

Playback frequency band

The reproduction frequency band represents the breadth of the sound. Small numbers mean low notes and high numbers mean high notes. Generally, there are many earphones with 20Hz-20,000Hz.

In short, it is a guideline number that "low sound comes out so far, high sound comes out so far". For example, even earphones in the playback frequency band may have conspicuous low-pitched sounds, or they may be good at high-pitched sounds, so you can't tell how they sound until you actually listen to them.

By the way, regarding high-resolution sound, it is called "high resolution compatible" when it reaches 40,000Hz or higher. High-resolution earphones can produce a wider range of sounds.

Impedance

Impedance is the resistance value. It's hard to understand, isn't it?

Simply put, the higher this number, the quieter the sound, so you have to make the volume adjustment louder. However, the sound is clearer with less noise.

On the other hand, if it is small, a loud sound will be produced, but noise will be more likely to occur. As a guide, I think it is just right to choose around 20Ω. By the way, "Ω" is read as "Ohm".

Sensitivity (output sound pressure)

Sensitivity also represents volume. The higher the number, the louder the sound. Since it represents the volume, it is a number that has nothing to do with "good sound".

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Speaker diameter

The speaker diameter directly represents the size of the speaker. The bigger it is, the more powerful the sound will be.

Maximum input

The maximum input shows how loud the sound is made to come in. It can be said that the larger one has a margin, but it is a value that has nothing to do with "good sound".

Connecting terminal

The connection terminal indicates the thickness of the "connector" that is inserted into the earphone jack. 3.5mm is the size of a general earphone jack such as an iPhone.

Recently, the number of earphones that are connected with a "Lightning connector" instead of an earphone jack is increasing.

Connector finish

It shows how the connector is processed. Most of the time it is gold plated. Since the earphones are to be inserted and removed, gold plating with little deterioration is used.

Here is one piece of bean knowledge!

There is a black wire in the connector, but there are two and three black wires. If you look here, you can see if the earphones have functions other than making sound. Earphones with functions such as microphone and volume control have 3 lines, and those without such functions have 2 lines.

Well, even if you don't bother to look here, you can tell by looking at the microphone attached to the cable (laugh)

Body mass

The mass of the main body directly represents the weight of the earphone. If it is heavy, it may come off easily, so it is a guide.

However, it is a little different to assume that it is easy to come off just because it is heavy. Even if it's light, it's easy to come off if it doesn't fit, and even if it's heavy, it's hard to come off if it fits your ears.

For example, this "HP-NHL11" can be made by adjusting the position of the earpiece in two steps and fitting it firmly to your ears. The design is based on ergonomics, so even if it is a little heavy, it will not come off easily.

It's best to actually listen

-I see, you can tell what kind of earphone it is by looking at this number.

Radius: That's right, but it's best to actually listen to earphones. It's just a guideline, so it's important to listen to it with your own ears and check if it's the sound you like and if it's easy to put on.

What is noise cancellation?

-I have one more thing to worry about ... What is noise cancellation?

Radius people: Noise cancellation is a function that silences sounds other than those coming out of the earphones and outside sounds. It picks up the outside sound from the microphone attached to the earphone and outputs the opposite sound from the earphone to cancel the sound.

Therefore, it is a function that only the sound of the music you want to listen to comes into your ears and you can hear it clearly. For example, when you get on an airplane, you will hear a humming noise. If you cancel the noise, you can reduce it, so it is useful when you want to take a rest on a night flight.

However, even if it is not noise canceling, there are earphones that fit perfectly like earplugs and block outside sounds. Also, you can adjust the fit to your liking by changing the earpiece of the earphone, so it feels like you like it.

How to wrap earphones to make them last longer

--By the way, the earphones often break, is there any good way?

Radius: Let's introduce the easiest way to bundle earphones.

First, pick up the person who puts it on the ear of the earphone, and wrap the cable around your finger as it is.

Leave a little at the end of the winding and pull out your finger, then bundle the center with the left part.

Finally, insert the connector part in the middle to complete it.

With this winding method, there is no burden on anything, so the risk of disconnection is reduced. It is recommended because it can prevent the cable from getting entangled.

In search of better sound ...

--- Now that you know how to choose earphones and how to buy high-resolution audio sources, you can enjoy "high-resolution" with this!

Radius people: Actually, I haven't heard "high resolution" yet ... There is another item that cannot be removed in order to listen to high resolution. It's a DAC!

-Duck? ?? ??

Radius: Yes, it's DAC. It is an item that is attached between the iPhone and the earphones, and it plays the role of delivering the sound data from the iPhone to the earphones in a better condition. It's an indispensable item for listening to high resolution.

Next time about DAC

So, I heard about the road to "good sound" and finally DAC! Sound source, DAC and earphones If you have this, it will be the best sound, so please look forward to it next time!

Click here for Radius high resolution compatible products

An app that allows you to enjoy "high resolution" that sounds better than a CD