From Newsgroup: comp.arch

Niklas Holsti <[email protected]d> writes:

On 2026-01-23 10:25, BGB wrote:

[snip]

I am currently using some ~ $35 Logitech gaming headphones.

[snip]

Granted, more expensive headphones exist, but I am not made of money.

Indeed. I had occasion recently to inquire about headphones at a large
local electronics shop. The assistant asked for my price range, and
when I hesitated, he mentioned that their range went up to 65
kilo-euro. Talk about "framing" a price discussion :-)

Back in the day, the day being roughly 1970s, there was
a commercial model of headphones that had electrostatic
drivers, and they sounded pretty darn good. Made by Koss
IIRC. Price was about $150 in 1970ish (again IIRC).
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From Newsgroup: comp.arch

David Schultz <[email protected]> writes:

On 1/22/26 6:13 PM, MitchAlsup wrote:

The timber of instruments requires phase accurate reproduction of
frequencies up to at least 15KHz.

Define "phase accurate". As in how much phase error at say 20KHz is acceptable to you. 1 degree? 10?

Between 2 and 10 degrees, based on a rough calculation.

And how do you maintain that through the signal chain? In, for
example, speaker crossover networks.

One way of doing that is to drive full-range electrostats
directly from the output stage of the amplifier.
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From Newsgroup: comp.arch

On 2/14/2026 10:44 PM, Tim Rentsch wrote:

Niklas Holsti <[email protected]d> writes:

On 2026-01-23 10:25, BGB wrote:

[snip]

I am currently using some ~ $35 Logitech gaming headphones.

[snip]

Granted, more expensive headphones exist, but I am not made of money.

Indeed. I had occasion recently to inquire about headphones at a large
local electronics shop. The assistant asked for my price range, and
when I hesitated, he mentioned that their range went up to 65
kilo-euro. Talk about "framing" a price discussion :-)

Back in the day, the day being roughly 1970s, there was
a commercial model of headphones that had electrostatic
drivers, and they sounded pretty darn good. Made by Koss
IIRC. Price was about $150 in 1970ish (again IIRC).

Maybe kinda ironic in a way that in modern times, people would obsess on features like it being wireless, having BlueTooth, noise cancellation, etc.

Whereas, if one just had some old analog headphones from the 70s and
plugged them into a phono jack, chances are they would just work
(assuming one still has phono jacks because they aren't using a computer
from a company that has decided such things are obsolescent).


Recently my dad was complaining because he had gotten a newfangled
modern PC from a store, which did the "glass front, no optical drive"
thing; and then was faced with the supreme annoyance of the inability to
put a DVD in his computer...


Meanwhile, my PC still have a DVD drive (and am annoyed by the trend of companies trying to take this stuff away).

Bonus points if to compensate for the PC lacking phono jacks one then
ends up needing to use USB headphones, but then lacking USB-A one needs
USB-A <-> USB-C adapters, because, say, while it isn't from Apple, their
taint is spreading...

I don't have an internal 3.5" floppy drive anymore, but only an external
USB one. But, alas, haven't used many floppies as of late, and they have become rare.


Well, also USB-C has replaced "connector only goes in one way" with
"connector goes in both ways but device often only works correctly if
plugged in one way...".

Or, say, "Riddle me this... If the connector goes in both ways, wouldn't
it have made sense for it to also be fully electrically symmetric?..."



Well, could have been more "LOLZ":
Design USB like a TRS (or TRRS) connector;
Have the rings radially segmented;
Connector only works if turned to the correct angle.

Then maybe later add a special notch to the top part of the connector to
make it easier to align the connector during insertion.

Maybe make it mechanically compatible for electrically incompatible with
a normal analog headphone connector or line in/out.

...

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From Newsgroup: comp.arch

On 2/14/26 10:57 PM, Tim Rentsch wrote:

David Schultz <[email protected]> writes:

On 1/22/26 6:13 PM, MitchAlsup wrote:

The timber of instruments requires phase accurate reproduction of
frequencies up to at least 15KHz.

Define "phase accurate". As in how much phase error at say 20KHz is
acceptable to you. 1 degree? 10?

Between 2 and 10 degrees, based on a rough calculation.

And how do you maintain that through the signal chain? In, for
example, speaker crossover networks.

One way of doing that is to drive full-range electrostats
directly from the output stage of the amplifier.

A big panel launching a wave front at you. All with varying
distances/phase to your ear.

I love my Maggies but if I move my head even a few inches up or down the
high frequencies roll off enough for even my old lead ears to notice.
--
http://davesrocketworks.com
David Schultz
"Gag me with a Smurf"
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