Yeah those MDRs you first mentioned are... different. Your friend was probably referring to MDR 7506's. You will in fact find these in studios... they tend to be the throw-around-rough-handling headphones for careless use. Point being... they are still considered good enough to use in studios that otherwise spend $2000+ on a (good) audio interface for your computer.
Normally they are $95 or so brand new, but you can surely find a used pair if you want for about $50-$60. I've been using them for years and never knew they had such a good reputation until a few months ago - so I vouche for them (err... not that that actually gives them any extra credibility). Just don't try to do any mixing (if your into audio production) with them as they will be slightly deceiving on the high end due to being closed headphones. For anything else, they are EXCELLENT, and have a reasonably flat response.
And of course, like most mid-high end headphones, every part of it is replaceable.
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Decent headphones?
Quote: Original post by MoeThe higher the impedance, the less power required to drive them. Crystal radio sets manage to produce sound without external power (relying solely on the induced power from the radio waves) as the earpieces used have an impedance measured in kilohms!
My only concern with those is they seem to have some pretty high impedance, so I'm a bit worried about how much the microphone (the Zoom H1) can put out on it's line out, especially if it is being split.
Quote: Original post by benryves
The higher the impedance, the less power required to drive them. Crystal radio sets manage to produce sound without external power (relying solely on the induced power from the radio waves) as the earpieces used have an impedance measured in kilohms!
OMFG, too awesome (plus they were nicknamed Cat's Whisker Receivers!!!1!).
Quote: Original post by tabyTo be fair, even the $25 Sennheiser's will offer layers of music over OEM earbuds. The nicer models are worlds better again...Quote: Original post by MoeI can guarantee that it's really worth it. There seems to be layers of music that you won't hear on regular earbuds that spring out at you when wearing the nice Sennheisers.
I'm willing to go as high as $150 or thereabouts, if it really is worth it.
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Quote: Original post by benryvesQuote: Original post by MoeThe higher the impedance, the less power required to drive them. Crystal radio sets manage to produce sound without external power (relying solely on the induced power from the radio waves) as the earpieces used have an impedance measured in kilohms!
My only concern with those is they seem to have some pretty high impedance, so I'm a bit worried about how much the microphone (the Zoom H1) can put out on it's line out, especially if it is being split.
Hmm, I guess I was thinking the opposite for some reason - the higher the impedance, the more resistance and more power it takes to run...
Unfortunately all the headphones from newegg in Canada are here. The Grado ones do look pretty tempting, but finding them in Canada seems to be a bit of an issue. Are they widely available in the 'states? I could pick up a pair next time I am down there.
Memory Express (in Calgary) and NCIX.com (in BC, but fast shipping, good warranty service) have a few headphones.
I believe you are right about impedance.
Effectively, when electrons flow through a wire they also bounce randomly off of the wire's atoms sometimes. Thus the wire resists the flow of the electrons in a way. The higher the Ohms, the more resistance to electron flow there is. Zero Ohms == a perfect conductor, or possibly a superconductor.
There is also the concept of reactance, and together with resistance they form the concept of impedance.
[Edited by - taby on September 9, 2010 3:33:57 AM]
I believe you are right about impedance.
Effectively, when electrons flow through a wire they also bounce randomly off of the wire's atoms sometimes. Thus the wire resists the flow of the electrons in a way. The higher the Ohms, the more resistance to electron flow there is. Zero Ohms == a perfect conductor, or possibly a superconductor.
There is also the concept of reactance, and together with resistance they form the concept of impedance.
[Edited by - taby on September 9, 2010 3:33:57 AM]
Quote: Original post by benryvesI'm gonna have to quote you on this too. The higher the impedance, the more energy is needed to feed the device.
The higher the impedance, the less power required to drive them.
Therefore, for small MP3 players and the like, that use small batteries, you'd want headphones with the lowest impedance possible.
Quote: Original post by KryzonTo take this to an extreme, imagine an amplifier with its output shorted out (near zero impedance) and an amplifier with nothing connected to its output (near infinite impedance). Which one is going to consume more power?
I'm gonna have to quote you on this too. The higher the impedance, the more energy is needed to feed the device.
A low impedance will drain the capacitors used to remove the DC bias on amplifier outputs more quickly than a high impedance, too, which distorts bass. This is one reason headphone amplifiers exist; they have a very high input impedance and a low output impedance. An alternative is to increase the capacitance of these capacitors.
Bear in mind Ohm's law, I=V/R; increasing the resistance reduces current (voltage is determined by the audio amplifier).
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Quote: Original post by benryvesQuote: Original post by KryzonTo take this to an extreme, imagine an amplifier with its output shorted out (near zero impedance) and an amplifier with nothing connected to its output (near infinite impedance). Which one is going to consume more power?
I'm gonna have to quote you on this too. The higher the impedance, the more energy is needed to feed the device.
When you put it that way, it does make more sense.
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