Apple, Dolby Labs, and others have been throwing around the phrase spatial audio for several years. It’s a broad term, covering several disparate technologies. On the hardware side, spatial audio with “head tracking” is often gimmicky at best. On the recorded-music side, it’s potentially more interesting. However, quality varies enormously. Turns out a lot of that has to do with how the headphones and earphones interact with each of our own unique physiologies. If only the average consumer could test that out in a consistent and easy-to-understand way.
Read more: The Audiophile Society “Headphone Evaluation and Spatial Audio Test Album”
Sound:
Value:
(Read about our ratings)
Measurements can be found by clicking this link.
I don’t review audio electronics a lot, because the sonic differences among them rarely excite me. For me to review, say, a headphone amp, it’s got to have some useful new feature, a unique design twist, or incomparable bang for the buck. In my view, the KZ AZ09 true wireless adapters go beyond those parameters. Not only can they deliver an awesome listening experience, but they offer outstanding convenience and deliver that gratifying swell of pride we audiophiles experience when we choose something we know is a cut above the junk that the unwashed masses buy.
Sound:
Value:
(Read about our ratings)
Measurements can be found by clicking this link.
As my experiments in headphone tuning and experience in testing headphones show, there’s no more effective way to tweak your headphones’ sound than by changing the earpads. My recent reviews of the Dan Clark Audio Æon 2 Closed and Monoprice Monolith M1570 headphones, which offer or include alternative sets of pads, showed that the right set of pads can transform good cans into great ones. The problem, which Dekoni Audio is working to solve, is that it’s tough to know if a set of pads will give you the sonic change you desire.
Originally published on SoundStage! Xperience
Sonarworks True-Fi measurements using headphones mentioned in this review can be found by clicking this link.
Anyone who’s tried a few different headphones knows their sound can vary wildly. Some sound harsh and thin, others dull and bloated, and many sound good but have a few annoying quirks. When you consider these differences, and that most headphones are now connected to smartphones and computers, it’s not surprising that many apps have emerged to equalize ’phones for better sound. One of those is Sonarworks’ True-Fi ($79 USD), an app for Windows or Apple OS that I first encountered at the 2018 Consumer Electronics Show.
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