I'm generally a fan of
open-back headphones.
The design prevents
cabinet colouration and
affords the drivers with a
more open, natural sound
signature. However,
headphones aren't quite
portable enough for
outdoor usage, where
you need smaller
earphones for
convenience.
Unfortunately, due to the
limitation of physics, it's
impossible to achieve the
same natural fidelity from
smaller drivers. The fact
is, as the transducer
(speaker) gets smaller, it
costs more to produce
the same sound accuracy
as its larger equivalent.
Therefore, it costs much
more to obtain the same
level of sound quality
from headphones as
you'd get from a decent
pair of bookshelf
speakers. Due to the
smaller planar surface of
IEMs (In-Ear Monitors),
it's still more challenging
and expensive for them
to match the performance
of headphones with
larger drivers.
Tragically, since urban
India has spread out like
a cancer without much in
the name of city planning,
we have been cursed to
spend anywhere between
one to three hours of our
waking lives commuting to
and from work. Despite all
of its disadvantages
then, it makes perfect
sense to invest in a good
pair of IEMs that will
block out the city's chaos
and transport you to
your own personal space
right in the middle of a
crowded locomotive. Mind
you, this guide won't
merely throw random
brands and models. The
main objective here is not
just to learn which IEMs
to purchase, but rather
how to go about finding
the right one for your
needs.
Choosing the correct
driver type
There aren't many
choices available in IEMs
when it comes to the
drivers, with dynamic and
balanced armature (BA)
drivers being the two
dominant types. Dynamic
drivers are most common
because they are the
cheapest to manufacture.
These drivers are pretty
much miniaturised
versions of your regular
loudspeakers employing a
magnet and moving voice
coil to oscillate a
diaphragm, in order to
reproduce sound.
Balanced armature
drivers employ a similar
setup, but the voice coil
is stationary. The
diaphragm is moved by
an armature that's
suspended frictionless
between two opposing
magnets and the voice
coil.
Technical mumbo-jumbo
aside, this configuration
allows the BA driver to
have phenomenal
electrical efficiency, which
allows it to produce a
more detailed sound.
However, since it doesn't
push a large volume of
air like dynamic drivers,
a BA driver lacks the
ability to produce natural
bass. To put it in a
nutshell, dynamic drivers
are cheap and produce
great bass, whereas BA
drivers are expensive
but deliver great high-
frequency detail at the
cost of a stunted low-end
performance.
Having said that, you
have examples where
multiple BA drivers are
combined to produce a
greater impact, or even
instances where passive
crossovers are employed
to split high, mid and low
frequency ranges across
multiple BA drivers. Some
expensive IEMs even
use a combination of BA
and dynamic drivers to
deliver the best of both
worlds—detailed highs
and deep lows.
Getting the specifications
right
That technical mumbo-
jumbo at the back of the
product packaging
actually does account for
something. If you can
read it right, it should
allow you to match the
IEMs well with your PMP
and decide if you should
invest in a headphone
amplifier. As a thumb rule,
most IEMs have nominal
impedance between 16-32
ohms, which makes them
easy to drive without the
need for separate
amplification.
If that sounded Greek
and Latin to you, here's
an easy example to
understand what
impedance really is.
Imagine sipping a glass
of milkshake through a
straw, where your lungs
are the amplifier, the
glass of milkshake the
IEM and the straw
representing the concept
of impedance. The
impedance is higher when
the straw diameter is
small, whereas it gets
lower as the diameter
increases. It's easier to
sip milkshake through a
thinner straw, but the
volume of milkshake
coming through is
miniscule. However, you
may be able to suck in
copious amounts of
milkshake through a two-
inch PVC pipe, but that
will also put a tremendous
strain on your lungs.
IEM impedance works in
the same way. A high-
impedance driver won't
put much strain on your
PMP, but the maximum
volume will be limited.
Conversely, a low-
impedance IEM will sound
louder, but it will put a lot
of stress on your PMP's
amplifier. Certain balanced
armature drivers can be
tough on amplifiers due to
their very low impedance,
whereas some dynamic
drivers may sport too
high an impedance to
provide sufficient volume
without amplification. As a
rule of thumb, these
outliers are better
auditioned with and
without headphone
amplification to see if
there's a noticeable
improvement in sound
quality.
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