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Sound Quality |
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• Frequency response has some issues towards the high-end, average otherwise.
• Low distortion overall, but noise is present in the high end.
• Excellent tracking.
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Tour & Design |
Page 3 of 12 |
Isolation |
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About our testing:
For more information on our tests, read this article.
Frequency Response (3.59)
What we found:
The Apple In-ear Headphones with Remote and Mic had ok frequency response. Their main issue that brought their score down is the downard spike just before 10kHz. This is a significant, sudden drop. It might lead to some instruments sounding slightly blanketed, expecially spoken sibilance.
The 10kHz plunge aside, the headphones didn't perform poorly. They have a strong bass response, but some might find it a bit too strong. If the headphones had a slightly plateaued bass, it'd be preferrable to the response curve at right, where the bass emphasis is inversely proportional to the frequency. When the bass steadily increases in volume the lower it goes, playback can sound boomy.
While the graph trends off, it does so relateively gradually (except for the valley at 10kHz). If you like bass-heavy music, the Apple In-ears might offer a good sound. If you prefer vocals, the Apple In-ears are less ideal.
How the Apple In-ear Headphones with Remote and Mic compares:
What is frequency response?
Frequency response refers to the emphasis or deemphasis the headphones add to any given sound frequency. Some headphones have a dynamic response, meaning they add all sorts of emphasis to your playback. This might mean those headphones are better suited to your personal preferences, but we award more points to headphones that faithfully recreate sound. To find out more about frequency response or how we test it, follow this link.
How the test works:
To test frequency response, we play a known sound file through the headphones. The headphones are being worn by HATS, which records the playback and sends it to SoundCheck for analysis. We compare the recording to the initial file and look for differences in the levels. In case the initial hyperlink somehow passed you by, here it is again.
Distortion (4.26)
What we found:
The Apple In-ear Headphones with Remote and Mic do not have much distortion. Annoyingly, however, there is a bit of noise present towards the high end. Chances are, your playback's volume will mask the noise and you won't notice it the majority of the time. During quiet bits, however, those with impeccible hearing will be notice the noise.
Even with the distortion, the Apple In-ears w/R&M had lower overall distortion than many headphones we've reviewed.
How the Apple In-ear Headphones with Remote and Mic compares:
What is distortion?
Distortion refers to the way the headphones alter the shape of incoming soundwaves. Distortion is bad, but the severity of its effects depends on how much intentional distortion in the playback. Punk, grunge or metal? You will have a harder time separating the headphones' distortion from the distortion on the guitars. Classical, opera, or a capella? You'll notice distortion much more easily. For more info on distortion, click this link.
How the test works:
To test distortion, we play a frequency sweep through the headphones and into HATS awaiting ear-microphones. We then compare the recorded sound back to the original and look for changes. To read more on this, check out the following link.
Tracking (10.10)
What we found:
The Apple In-ears had great tracking. They start off a negligible 2dB louder on the right side, which is probably due to a minor fit issue. Even towards the end, where the tracking graph usually turns into a block of scribbles, the Apple In-ears manage to remain reserved. This is one of the best tracking results we've seen to date.
How the Apple In-ear Headphones with Remote and Mic compares:
What is tracking?
Tracking describes the volume balance between the left and right channels. A headphone has perfect tracking when the left and right channels are outputting exactly the same decibel level. Perfect tracking doesn't exist. Basically, you should look for headphones with as close to even tracking as you can find. Poor tracking would involve one channel playing significant louder than the other, or a sudden shift in emphasis from left to right. We've written a bit more on tracking here.
How the test works:
Our tracking test once again involves playing back a frequency sweep through the headphones, and we once again compare the recorded output back to the original file. This time, however, we simply look for areas where either the left or right channel is outputting a louder decibel level than the other. Again, if tracking intrigues you, you can read a bit more here.
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