Not trying to be contrarian or confrontational at all, I'm merely an admirer trying to understand. But if flat frequency response is preferred in both good enjoyment speakers and studio monitors, then why is it any different with headphones?
Not seen as such.
It isn't any different, the response is 'linear' with a slight tilt and for my older ears the right amount of treble (after the felt mod).
Below: No smoothing applied. No narrow peaks and dips in the all important range (60Hz to 4kHz), just a warm tilt.
Treble is extended enough (a bit too elevated for enjoyment) and does not have problematic peaks or dips.
Extended in sub lows and enough extension in the treble. Very sensitive so plays from all devices without having to add amps.
Below stock vs
feltmod S5X
And the 'no weird dips and peaks' is also true for HD800 (once corrected for subbass roll-off and treble level) which may be important aspects. At least that is supported by Harman research.
I might be sucker for sound with a small 'upper midrange dip/tilt' tonality, possibly due to personal ear gain. I reckon the 'evenness' (no substantial wobbles) is what makes these particular headphones sound good to me.
The DT1190 (A pads) + t
reble filter also sounds fine to me. Similar tilt, similar flatness overall.
That seems to work better for me than 'EQ-ing out wobbles on a specific test fixture to a specific target' and not pay extra attention to everything above 6kHz for me.
Probably why I also like the well known Sennheiser headphones such as HD560S (
with filter) for upper midrange tilt and smoothness of response.
So 'flat' response with speakers (not talking about tonal tilt differences but lack of peaks and dips) in headphones is just as valid in speakers and headphones.
EQ can certainly be beneficial but you can't polish a turd. (I know the mythbusters showed you actually can)
In the end it is just
my preference with headphones I own and use most often for said reason (with and without EQ). That will differ from others and is in no way the best choice in a universal sense nor other use cases.