The miniDSP EARS can be used to measure wireless (Bluetooth) headphones just as well as wired headphones. In this app note, we will walk you through the process.
Getting started
Firstly, please read through the comprehensive EARS User Manual. (This request saves us from having to repeat information in this app note! Thank you.)
Before proceeding, disconnect or "unpair" the headphones from other devices (e.g. your phone) to remove possibility of interference from other devices.
Method 1: measurement sweep
Method 1 uses a measurement sweep. Pair your headphones with your computer. This is typically done by opening up your system preferences or settings and "pairing" or "connecting" to the headphones. For example:
or:
Position your headphones on the EARS and connect the EARS to your computer. In the REW Preferences screen, select the headphones for audio output, and the EARS for audio input:
Make sure that you have selected the calibration file for the channel that you want to measure (as selected on the Preferences screen). In this example, we are using the HEQ calibration, which is the best choice if you are planning to EQ your headphones:
Play a 300 Hz test tone and set the SPL calibration in REW (see User Manual for details). Then run the measurement sweep. The result will appear in the REW main window:
Note: when using the HEQ compensation, a measurement of a "subjectively neutral" headphone will measure approximately flat. As can be seen in the above, this headphone is fairly close to this ideal. We suspect that its onboard DSP (it's a noise-cancelling headphone) is deliberately tuned to provide this response.
Method 2: pink noise RTA
If you're unable to pair the headphone with your computer, try pink noise with an RTA, as described in the app note Headphone EQ for iPhone (or Android, or DAP).
How to apply EQ
If you are playing the headphones from a phone or tablet, try the free Sennheiser CapTune app, which is available for iOS and Android. This app can play music files that are already on your phone, and can also stream from Tidal. The EQ screen can be a little tricky to use, but be patient.
If you are playing the headphones from a computer, you will need to have a software EQ solution running on the computer. Some playback software has parametric EQ built in, while others accept audio processing "plugins". (We leave it up to you to figure out the details, as it's well outside the scope of our support.)
Wrapping up[Top]
That's it for this app note! Have fun, and please let us know of your results in our forum.
