Your ears are just fucked, be happy and ignorant of whatever bullshit audiophile faggots hear.

>earbuds in 2025
You deserved to be scammed

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How do you avoid this? How do you avoid paying 250 bucks for cans that are worth barely 50 bucks?

>>723786852
In pretty much every product where the difference is subjective, the difference between cheap options and average priced options is huge, and then the difference between an average price and a super expensive top of the line one is pretty much non-existent and is 99% just people flushing money down the toilet and then trying to rationalize their dumb purchase OR people are just buying it as a prop to play out a little personal drama where they inflate their own ego for being such a refined person that prefers the finer things in life

just buy mid-range products next time and don't scam yourself

>>723786909
what's wrong with earbuds?

>>723786852
EQ them until they sound good
I use EqualizerAPO because the Sony XM4s sound way too muddy out of the box

>>723786852
for me the difference is never immediately noticeable, try your $30 earbuds after a week or two with the new headphones

>>723786971
You sound bottom barrel trying to make the climb to mid

>>723786943
Just check reviews. Rtings has some good tools for it but you should never compare buds and over-ears. If you are willing to do some modding and go wired, you can get some of the best headphones for under 50USD

>buy cheap $20 headphones
>sounds infinitely better than my $100 gaymer headset
pretty happy i got memed into buying some KSC75s. now I just need to find a good cheap dacamp for them.

>>723786852
Then you've either bought shit headphones or have fucked your ears. I can easily tell the difference with mine since the sound has actual direction and clarity to it

>>723786852
Your $30 earbuds break from just looking at them. Ballpark of $100 for headphones is optimal, because they last years. Going above that price range is diminishing returns and snake oil for audiophiles.

>>723786852
>I listen to over compressed, over produced MAX VOLUMIZED slop
>why does it dound bad even on expensive equipment?

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>>723787180
>Your $30 earbuds break from just looking at them
I've had pic rel for like 6 years and have used them daily since then, still works

>>723787292
this is strictly about videogames, not music

>>723786982
Everything, really.

>>723787114
so, what overpriced thing did you blow your money on?

>>723787143
which model would you recommend? my CALs have just died and i do not want to spend lodsa emone

>>723786852
You also need a better DAP retard.

>>723786852
use speakers with a subwoofer dumbo.

Chi-fi won.

>>723786852
The most I've spent on some cans were $150. For videogames, I've been using the same exact cheap $25 headset for well over a decade now and they are perfectly fine.

I got those sony monitor headphones and I immediately noticed the difference in quality between a gaming headset I was using before, to me 100 euro headphones seemed expensive but I think they were worth it

But yeah I'm hesitant to spend more on sound hardware, good enough is good enough

>>723786943
you do what i do and buy like 5 pairs of headphones in different price ranges based on reviews and pick out the pair that you like best and is cheapest

headphones come in different listening styles, like for example there's studio style and then there's "fun" style. there's no reason to buy 400 dollar studio headphones if you enjoy a simple 50 dollar pair more. buying studio headphones as a regular consumer is like buying a van to haul groceries

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>hearing sounds
Get rid of that shit.

>>723789904
What are the different styles and what do they mean?

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>buy nice bookshelf speakers and a subwoofer
>cant stop messing with the levels to try and get it mixed right
>cant listen to music loudly anyway because i dont want to annoy the neighbours

>fell for the speaker meme
lol

Got myself a pair of DT 990 Pro 250 Ohms, will I get noticably better sound quality by also getting a DAC? I was thinking about a modi but dunno, they cost more than the headphones. Is this just for audiophiles or will a general consumer notice a difference?

>>723786852
fell for the audiophile meme

>>723786852
>use dt990 over 5 years
>buy apple earpods for 15 bux because it was summer
>sounds pretty okay for what it is, apply EQ curve which changes the pods sound entirely
>actually sounds more enjoyable than dt990 because they have bass now and the beyer peak doesn't exist
>try EQ on dt990
>does fuckall and just sounds ass/wrong
It's been 2 years already and I haven't switched back, I'm considering selling my amp/dac and the cans at this point
it also helps that these earbuds barely have any weight, I fucking hate audiofaggotry

thats cause the 30 dollar headphones fucked up your ears

the point is you know you have superior audio

also recommend some headphones i was close to buying 550s when i got my new computer like 2 years ago but never comitted
also need a desk for a 42 inch tv as a monitor

>>723786852
that is a lie

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>>723786909
>30 bucks for earbuds is getting scammed
i'm just going to assume you can't read for shit

>>723790938
nta but 30 dollars for earBUDS is genuinely a massive scam

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bro paid 250 dollars to get gamer dent

Get speakers, it makes everything much nicer being able to listen without a piece of plastic lodged in your ear or wrapped around your head

>suddenly speaker shills out of the woodwork

just get HD681B

>>723787619
Buds are superior to cans in every way that matters if you dont spend 5 digits

>>723786982
If they're wired they're ok as super portable. But their sound quality is dogshit because of how small they are.

>>723791307
>>723791248
Literally some $30 headphones are more than enough.

>>723786943
they are all the same unless they are falty made. Theres only difference between those under 10 dollars and everything else. Everything above 10$ is the same or different dont justify the price

>>723790381
I got a set of Altec Lansing 2.1 speakers second-hand for cheap. I never use them.

>>723791248
>buy speakers
>listen to a track
>somehow missing a ton of it
>listen to one of those incrementing audio Hz things
>speakers top end caps out like 500Hz earlier than headphones
>sound cuts on headphones at like 8KHz
Is this likely a problem with my audio setup? What can I do to try and diagnose where the issue stems from?

>>723787826
not him, but i went with AKG for 50 bucks some years ago after consulting an audiophile acquaintance and a 100 bucks Shure after asking around in the headphone general on /g/ and i had absolutely no complaint, beyond the AKG having a non-removable 3m cable

>>723790254
well the most common difference is how strong the bass, mids and treble are. most studio headphones ive tried have been pretty flat throughout, so quite low in bass and they can also sound a bit muddy because the treble is also low. apparently this all adds up to better usage in the studio, somehow. however non-studio headphones have higher bass and high treble are more "fun" to use because they are punchy and clear. some headphones go deep in that meme and are outrageously bassy, and people still like them exactly because of that.

>yeah but you can fuck around with the EQ

yes you can but at that point you are trying to fix distortion with more distortion, which is not a great or consistent experience. ive done it but nowadays i dont really believe in it. buy something that sounds about right out of the box, and maybe tune it a bit to your liking if you must

other than that there is also some differences you can only notice if you try headphones side by side. some cheaper headphones can just sound staticy, and some studio headphones can sound a bit harsh and sharp. i can't exactly explain it, it's just a vibes thing. that's why i think you should always try a bunch of different headphones side by side to really pick out if a pair is "off" for you

>>723788750
I'm using sony mdr-7506 btw, I've had them for two years, the ear cushions were shit but I replaced them with leather cushions and they are comfy now

The sound quality is great for the price and they will probably last a long time, I drop them a lot and they're still fine

I got some KEF LS50 and a Emotiva BasX S8 sub with an integrated amp. It just works

>>723786852
get BAYER DYNAMIC, and stop playing plebstation garbage, you dumb fuck

>>723791453
based

>>723786852
shit ear genetics

That's cause you play on PC when PS5 has built in tempest engine 3D audio

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>>723786852
>buy $500 headphones
>they sound better than my $180 ones
Your hearing is fucked and/or you bought shitty $250 headphones.

Or maybe you're trying to drive high impedance/low sensitivity headphones on your mobo/phone.

>use iems
>Constantly have to fiddle with them to make sure they're in just right
>Ears start to hurt after an hour
>Spend lots of times changing tips to try and find something that works
Meanwhile
>Put on headphones
>Comfy
>Just works
>Wear them all day no issues
Maybe my ears are just shaped weird or something but I couldn't deal with using iems as my main driver's.

>>723791248
Not a great option for neets who are awake at weird hours if you don't want to disturb the neighbors.

>>723786852
Speaking of, my headphones broke recently. I exclusively use speakers for gaming on my PC, but I do need new headphones/earbuds to listen to music on my phone.
Can I get some recommendations for shit that won't break within a year?

>>723787314
Lucky. I used to buy cheap buds like your pic, but it was pure lottery. Sometimes they would break within a few weeks, sometimes they would last a year or two.

>>723792483
I guess you could compare headphones to speakers? Everyone knows what a low-quality, tinny speaker sounds like. Everyone's heard crappy TVs with distorted audio that makes the voices sound off. I suppose those qualities extend to headphones, just more subtle.

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>spend ages trying to figure out a weird crackle in the right ear of my headphones
>turns out it was compacted earwax and the pressure of the headphones was pushing on it

>tinnitus thread

Audio stuff in general tends to rely on typical snake-oil bullshit to be good.

I've spent a lot of money on audio shit, so if you want a random's two cents, here you go.
>Never pay more than a 100~ for wireless earbuds. Their battery will shit the bed in a year or two.
>Regarding earbuds, the middle range is always better than the "premium" ones, except for ANC
>There are no good "budget" ANC earbuds, except for certain releases from sony.
>If you want audio quality, go wired. IEMs or Headphones
>Unless you're a professional audio engineer, you'll never get the most out of expensive headphones and gear
>Good audiophile headphones go for 500~ bucks. Get a DAC/Amplifier because you'll need it.
>Be real about your usecase, because you won't get your money's worth out of expensive shit just to listen to spotify/youtube or old mushy 90's albums. Use FLACs.

>>723786943
a fat asian audio autist named crinacle has a tierlist for headphones

>"yes i use $50000 Sennheiser Orpheus cans to listen to my music, it's the best sound money can buy"
>meanwhile the album was mastered on 90 dollar sony mdr 7506 headphones by a guy in his mid 50s who can't hear above 10khz

>>723790254
High fidelity studio monitors may be more accurate but they sound flat to normalfags. Laymen usually prefer ones with more bass.
Unless this is something you are looking for specifically and/or intending to do some music work you might overspend on something you don't need and straight up don't enjoy.

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>>723786852
>buy $250 headphones
>they sound noticeably better than cheap gaymin headphones but their "neutral" sound signature is very unfun to listen to
>mfw i realize i have plebian ears that want the "fun" slop sound signature of overpronounced bass and overpronounced treble

>>723790938
Yes, actually.

>>723786852
I bought philips earbuds and they did in 2 weeks
bought JBL and they've been pushing nearly 12 hours a day for year and a half now

>>723786852
I use $5 earbuds from aliexpress and I couldn't be happier.

>>723786852
lol yea bought headphones for $150 and the sound's as good as i remember it but only if it's wired ffs, end up taking my $20 buds everywhere else most of the time while the set stays at home

>>723799539
how did you not notice it when you opened your mouth?

>>723791993
Follow the signal chain, starting from the beginning(soundcard/audio interface). There's cheap oscilloscopes to test the electrical signal side of things.

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my $20 earbuds sounds just as good as my sennheiser 660S, haha
right?

once you get a pair of speakers and sub, you can never go back to headphones