Does EQing Headphones veil the sound?

[Mile]

I play around with Sonarworks Headphone Edition and SoundID and Peace. The tonal balance is better with all of them, but the sound is veiled with all three programs. The sound is also noticeably quieter. With all three, I miss a certain clarity and "punch" that I really like in my DT880.

I have to crank the volume knob all the way up to get a listenable volume. Does my Focusrite 6i6 gen. 1 simply do not have enough juice? I can't find any meaningful specs on the headphone output. People like to think that louder is better, I also like to fall for it sometimes. Would the veil disappear if I could turn it up louder?

 

[Jimbob54]

I play around with Sonarworks Headphone Edition and SoundID and Peace. The tonal balance is better with all of them, but the sound is veiled with all three programs. The sound is also noticeably quieter. With all three, I miss a certain clarity and "punch" that I really like in my DT880.

I have to crank the volume knob all the way up to get a listenable volume. Does my Focusrite 6i6 gen. 1 simply do not have enough juice? I can't find any meaningful specs on the headphone output. People like to think that louder is better, I also like to fall for it sometimes. Would the veil disappear if I could turn it up louder?

Well, when you EQ in software, it will either automatically reduce the overall volume (Pre-amp adjustment) or the EQ settings should specify one to add manually. So, in very simple terms , if you add one EQ peak of 6dB- in very rough terms the pre amp reduction should be about -6dB. So every other freq apart from the one you EQ up will be 6 dB down compared to without EQ. Thats quite a big drop and most head amps will have to provide quite a lot more power than before depending on how loud you normally listen and how hard the HP are to drive.

So, yes, if you left the volume dial on your amp at the same spot as you usually listen without EQ, it may well sound "dead" . And yes, that extra few dB you need to obtain might challenge some amps , especially if you have the 250 or 600 ohm 880. Now. whether you then like the EQ sound at your usual levels of volume depends on how well the EQ curve you use suits your ears physically and mentally.

As to what the power output of your amp is , I dont know and obviously depends on the 'phones your using.

 

[Jimbob54]

Well, when you EQ in software, it will either automatically reduce the overall volume (Pre-amp adjustment) or the EQ settings should specify one to add manually. So, in very simple terms , if you add one EQ peak of 6dB- in very rough terms the pre amp reduction should be about -6dB. So every other freq apart from the one you EQ up will be 6 dB down compared to without EQ. Thats quite a big drop and most head amps will have to provide quite a lot more power than before depending on how loud you normally listen and how hard the HP are to drive.

So, yes, if you left the volume dial on your amp at the same spot as you usually listen without EQ, it may well sound "dead" . And yes, that extra few dB you need to obtain might challenge some amps , especially if you have the 250 or 600 ohm 880. Now. whether you then like the EQ sound at your usual levels of volume depends on how well the EQ curve you use suits your ears physically and mentally.

As to what the power output of your amp is , I dont know and obviously depends on the 'phones your using.

Oh, and another thing. The Beyer's are all , to some degree, famous for being quite shrill in some of the treble frequencies, so the EQ settings might well lower those freq, which for some users may be perceived as then sounding more balanced/ neutral, but other users may like the "clarity"/ "air" etc that those boosted treble freqs brought.