How do you hear headphone 'soundstage'

[Talisman]

Today, for the first time I heard an amazing stereo image out of my head with my hifiman sundara.
I don't know how it happened, but in the evening, after my wife and son went to bed, I sat on the sofa, connected my hidizs ap80pro to my smartphone's bluetooth and put on the sundaras and played
"The last of the Mohicans"

It was wonderful, I first heard the full-bodied but also distant bass, then the instruments came in and it was incredible, it was all so beautiful but also outside my head, a real stage, I had never experienced this sensation with headphones.

I found out why when about thirty seconds later I heard my wife yelling from the bedroom to turn the fucking volume down.
My hidizs hadn't connected, and I was playing, sitting on the sofa with headphones on, from my R3s at reportable volumes, but having headphones open I hadn't noticed....

 

[posvibes]

My hidizs hadn't connected, and I was playing, sitting on the sofa with headphones on, from my R3s at reportable volumes, but having headphones open I hadn't noticed....

Excellent, just excellent! I think you may have just invented a new audiophile product, disconnected headphones that you wear for a real binaural experience.

We've all been there or similar places.

 

[Doodski]

Today, for the first time I heard an amazing stereo image out of my head with my hifiman sundara.
I don't know how it happened, but in the evening, after my wife and son went to bed, I sat on the sofa, connected my hidizs ap80pro to my smartphone's bluetooth and put on the sundaras and played
"The last of the Mohicans"

It was wonderful, I first heard the full-bodied but also distant bass, then the instruments came in and it was incredible, it was all so beautiful but also outside my head, a real stage, I had never experienced this sensation with headphones.

I found out why when about thirty seconds later I heard my wife yelling from the bedroom to turn the fucking volume down.
My hidizs hadn't connected, and I was playing, sitting on the sofa with headphones on, from my R3s at reportable volumes, but having headphones open I hadn't noticed....

Hilarious...Lol.

 

[classy cheapo]

... I cannot seem to get the same depth I can hear with good speakers ... with headphones...

Can you still get the same depth if you move your good speakers from 60 to 180 degrees apart and stick your head between them?

 

[Emlin]

Can you still get the same depth if you move your good speakers from 60 to 180 degrees apart and stick your head between them?

No.

 

[classy cheapo]

No.

Probably there comes the answer to ages old question about headphones' soundstage.

Only time I get this out of head illusion with traditional recordings is when sound seems to reach directional mic from close to or more than 180 angles. Probably it creates binaural recording effect where higher frequencies are attenuated.

 

[pablolie]

Am I the only one that sees little value in binaural recordings? I love headphones, but the soundstage is always going to be in your head, and binaural doesn't change it for me.

 

[Emlin]

Am I the only one that sees little value in binaural recordings? I love headphones, but the soundstage is always going to be in your head, and binaural doesn't change it for me.

I get something like the binaural thing anyway.

 

[Axo1989]

Am I the only one that sees little value in binaural recordings? I love headphones, but the soundstage is always going to be in your head, and binaural doesn't change it for me.

I don't generally get out-of-head stereo image with headphones playing regular mixes, but I get somewhat expanded soundstage with Spatial Audio (aka Atmos binaural) in play, whether or not the track was mixed that way*. I've had some occasional spectacular out-of-head effects from video soundtracks lately (the kind where you have to take the headphones off to check nothing weird is going on in the real world).

*that's playing Apple Music or TV apps from iPad or Apple Silicon Mac to AirPods Max. I've also had good results from actual binaural recordings played on regular headphones

 

[classy cheapo]

Guys, let's not go offtopic. This thread is dedicated to headphone soundstage experience with regular stereo recordings without any tricks like binaural recordings or digital enhancements.

So, the question which could shine some light on headphone soundstage illusion is whether you can move your good soundstage depth providing speakers to 180 degrees apart and get the same deep soundstage experience?

 

[Robbo99999]

Guys, let's not go offtopic. This thread is dedicated to headphone soundstage experience with regular stereo recordings without any tricks like binaural recordings or digital enhancements.

So, the question which could shine some light on headphone soundstage illusion is whether you can move your good soundstage depth providing speakers to 180 degrees apart and get the same deep soundstage experience?

It's an interesting point you bring up re speakers at 180 degrees apart as an analogy for listening to headphones, but there's more to it than that. For a start headphones are designed with a different frequency response target than speakers and for that reason specifically, so it's a bit disingenuous to say that headphone listening is the same as having the speakers 180 degrees apart. It's a good starting observation, but it's not quite as simple as that, so I wouldn't get hung up on that as your answer for everything speakers vs headphones.

 

[IAtaman]

My hidizs hadn't connected, and I was playing, sitting on the sofa with headphones on, from my R3s at reportable volumes, but having headphones open I hadn't noticed....

Happens to me almost on a daily basis. The DAC connects to the speakers when the HPA is off. Sometimes I put the headphones on, start playing music, and only 30 seconds or so into it I realize the amp is off when I notice the sound is a bit muffled. I don't know about you, but I blame mine on age.

 

[Ilkless]

Anyone with the latest Audeze LCD-2 Fazor? This PEQ gives me incredible frontal externalisation for my HRTF, albeit with slightly too much upper midrange energy.

 

[tomtoo]

I also have experienced some sounds coming from far across the room every now and then.
Usually a sound I do not expect to be in music or is recorded from quite a distance.
When this happens I start the track again and sure enough its in the track. My brain can make that illusion based on what comes in. Is not headphone dependent.
Most recordings inside my head, left to right.

HD800 gives me the best imaging. Stable and easy to pinpoint. Surprisingly the X2HR came in second. HD560S was just behind.
The K701/702/712/7XX/812 don't do it for me.

Also HE400i/400SE/Sundara/Edition XX nor other planars work that well for me in this particular aspect.

Ot sry.
Hehe always when i hear the sound of a police car over the tablet. I look at the window. Could swear it was from there. Something in my brain must happen that tells police cars are usually not in your room.

 

[wiggum]

For people who do hear a soundstage, how close is the soundstage to the original vs 3D-processed in the attached samples?

For best effect, use a headphone(without any audio processor, sound EQ is OK) rather than an IEM.

 

[IAtaman]

For people who do hear a soundstage, how close is the soundstage to the original vs 3D-processed in the attached samples?

For best effect, use a headphone(without any audio processor, sound EQ is OK) rather than an IEM.

Nice choice of music
3D one did not sound any more 3D than the original, if anything it sounded off tonality wise. Might be better not to name one of them 3D next time maybe. If I learned one thing being an audio geek that is people hear what they expect to hear mostly.

 

[Axo1989]

Hehe always when i hear the sound of a police car over the tablet. I look at the window. Could swear it was from there. Something in my brain must happen that tells police cars are usually not in your room.

A life of crime will do that to you.

 

[IAtaman]

A life of crime will do that to you.

Yeah man. You better turn yourself in. It's not worth it.

 

[Axo1989]

For people who do hear a soundstage, how close is the soundstage to the original vs 3D-processed in the attached samples?

For best effect, use a headphone(without any audio processor, sound EQ is OK) rather than an IEM.

Nice choice of music
3D one did not sound any more 3D than the original, if anything it sounded off tonality wise. Might be better not to name one of them 3D next time maybe. If I learned one thing being an audio geek that is people hear what they expect to hear mostly.

It's a bit different for me (playing the .mp4 files from Mac to AirPods Max) with the second (3D-processed) sample centre guitar slightly 'closer' and the reverb a bit darker/distant but not by much. The sonics are maintained over multiple plays, but yes I was aware of the labels. Both soundstages appear between my ears, not outside my head.

 

[IAtaman]

It's a bit different for me (playing the .mp4 files from Mac to AirPods Max) with the second (3D-processed) sample centre guitar slightly 'closer' and the reverb a bit darker/distant but not by much. The sonics are maintained over multiple plays, but yes I was aware of the labels. Both soundstages appear between my ears, not outside my head.

Is it really safe downloading random zip files from a forum frequented by criminals?