headphone ear tips transform the sound

2023-11-23 19:30:00

Ear tips must be chosen correctly to have good comfort, but their influence on in-ear headphones goes beyond that. Ear tips are capable of transforming the sound you hear considerably through several features, as you will see in detail here.

How can ear tips influence the sound quality of in-ear headphones?

How the sound of in-ear headphones can be transformed by the ear tips used. Source: Vitor Valeri

Depending on the size, shape and type of material of the ear tips (“tips”, “rubbers”), the sound quality of an in-ear headphone can change considerably. Furthermore, it is important to position the headphones correctly so that the ear tip can really do its job optimally.

Anatomy of ear tips: how it influences the sound of in-ears

The height and diameter of the “bore” (hole in the ear where the sound comes out) of the ear tip influences the sound of the in-ear headphone (IEM). Source: Vitor Valeri

As mentioned above, there are several aspects of ear tips that can influence the sound of IEMs (in-ear monitors). Check out each of them below.

Size: We don’t always have the ideal size of ear tips in the box of the in-ears we buy. Although the standard is normally S (Small), M (medium) and L (large), there are sets of ear tips with more sizes on the market (Example: SS, M, ML, L), with some variations such as XS and XL.
Format: The height and diameter of the “bore” (hole in the ear where the sound comes out) of the ear tip influences the sound of the earphone.
Type of material: The flexibility and expansiveness of the ear tip material will affect the quality of the earphone’s fit in the ear and consequently the sound produced.

How is sound affected by in-ear ear tips (IEMs)?

The sound of an in-ear headphone can be considerably affected by the ear tips you use. All of the characteristics mentioned above will affect the quality of the fit in the ear canal, something crucial for the correct reproduction of frequencies according to what the manufacturer thought.

To get the “real” sound from the in-ears, it is necessary to correctly seal the ear canal. The ear tip must cover the air passage between the internal part of the channel and the external environment. If there is an air leak, the bass in the music will practically disappear, leaving only the mids and highs.

After achieving the correct fit, the biggest influence you will have will be due to the height of the ear tip and also the diameter of the bore. Basically this will influence the bass and treble of the phone.

One “boron” but large will deliver a sound with less bass and more treble, while a more closed bore it will increase the bass and make the treble more “contained”. This is useful for making the sound more balanced.

In a lower ear tip there will be greater activity in the treble while in a highest ear tip will tend to have a greater prominence in the bass. As the frequencies in the bass range are slower, they need more space to develop while in the treble region there is no need to travel a long distance to obtain ideal performance, as the speed of the waves is considerably greater.

Examples of good ear tips to buy:

Azla
Coreir Brass Metal Core
Divinus Velvet
Dunu Candy
Dunu S&S
Final Audio Type-E
iReep 01
JVC Spiral Dot EP-FX9L
Sony hybrid EP-EX11
SpinFit W1

Solution for fixing if the silicone ear tips are not fixing in the ear

If none of the silicone ear tips you have tried have worked, the solution is to use those made from foam. They allow you to “crumple” them so that they expand inside the ear canal, providing good fixation and isolation from external noise (noise).

Compression and expansion capacity of foam ear tips. Source: YouTube (etyhead channel)

The most traditional foam ear tips are the made by Comply, but Sony makes some interesting models too. Note that they are disposable and cannot be washed.

The foam ear tips provide a firmer fit and isolate external noise better than the silicone ones. Source: ebay

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