Glossary: Headphone Types

Headphones are generally the most important piece of equipment in your portable audio setup although most people usually use the cheapest set possible and spend big on their playback device. There are various types of headphones coming in at a huge range of prices, all have their distinct advantages and disadvantages, and in this post we’ll be looking at each type.

There are 2 main groups of headphones these days, the large style ‘cans’ and the smaller ‘earphones’, we’ll start off looking at the larger of the 2.

Headphones

While large in sound they usually offer the most long term comfort, durability and are usually the best in terms of price : sound quality. You have 3 common types which are open, closed and semi-open, this simply refers to the cups. Open headphones have a grill in the back and let sound both in and out of the cups, they offer a natural airy sound and are usually easier to use for a long time without getting listener fatigue however they aren’t really suitable for use in noisy environments or around other people due to the isolation (or lack thereof). Closed headphones are the opposite of open, they usually have well insulated padding on the cups, and a solid back construction to stop sound leaking in or out, while they don’t sound as natural as open and usually muffle outside noises (which can lead to minor fatigue after long periods) they are perfectly suited to noisy environments and are commonly used by DJs, commuters and studios. Semi-open are the happy medium with the ‘open sound’ but with less leak, they do however still leak a significant amount and anyone in the surrounding area will be able to hear your music.

Earphones

Earphones are small and usually used for portable audio where space is a premium; they are generally more prone to damage and cost more for the equivalent sound quality in comparison to headphones. Earphones are split again into 2 categories, standard earphones and IEMs. Standard earphones are the type which sit just inside the ear but don’t reach into the canal; these types are being superseded by the more common IEMs which slot into the ear canal. IEMs have powerful bass, significantly better isolation and usually stay in the ears better than the older earphones, however they are also regarded as less comfortable although with modern IEMs and a good pair of sleeves IEMs can be more comfortable than the majority of earphones.