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STRUCTURE OF HEADPHONES

Headband
Headbands provide lateral pressure, which is essential for a good fit. Too tight, and
headphones are uncomfortable; too loose, and headphones may slide off or even
fall off.

Slider
For adjusting headband length. Sliders on Audio-Technica headphones can easily be
resized to suit the shape of your head.

Headphone unit (Driver unit)

The heart of sound production in headphones. Larger drivers can produce
substantial bass.

Baffle
Base components attached to headphone units, baffles are next to the earpads.
These pieces prevent interference between sound waves emitted in the housing and
waves emitted outside, from the front surface.

Headphone unit (Driver unit)

Holds the housing, baffle, and related parts. The arms pivot, making it easier to put
headphones on.

Housing
An outer covering for the baffles on headphone units, and a wall for the air chamber
behind these units. The volume, seal, and material (wood, metal, plastic, and so on)
of the housing affects sound quality.

Earpad
Fits against or encloses the wearer's ears. Earpad material (leather, foam, soft
plastic, and so on) and hardness affects sound quality.

Bushing (Strain Relief)

Prevents the cable from being bent at extreme angles, which may sever it.

Cable
Cables come in various thicknesses and lengths to suit different listening needs.

Plug
Plugs into the headphone jack of AV equipment or portable audio players. Comes in
two main formats: standard (6.3mm) and mini-plug (3.5mm).

A CLOSER LOOK AT SOUND

Sound Components

Sound of many kinds exists in the world, but analysis reveals a few basic
characteristics.

The easiest sound to analyse is a pure tone (emitted by tuning forks used to tune
musical instruments), which is represented visually as a sine wave to discuss
frequency, amplitude, and phase. Frequency (measured in hertz (Hz)) is the number
of oscillations per second, amplitude (measured in pascal (Pa)) the peak deviation
from baseline, and phase, the current point in the cycle of oscillation.

Pure tones are combined to create complex tones, and a special kind of complex
tone with all pure tones being integral multiples of the lowest pure tone (the
fundamental frequency) is called a periodic complex tone. Examples of periodic
complex tones include the timbre of musical instruments and the singing voice of
vocalists.

Human Hearing
Even at the same sound pressure level, sounds at various frequencies are perceived
as being at different volumes. The human ear is most sensitive to frequencies
around 4 kHz and less sensitive to higher or lower frequencies. For this reason, we
perceive sound at frequencies we are less sensitive to as being fainter than sounds

at frequencies we hear well, even if they have the same sound pressure level.
Represented visually, this measurement of human hearing is called the equalloudness contour.

Three Elements of Sound

Three elements of sound can be distinguished by the human ear: pitch, loudness,
and timbre (also called tone).

Pitch
Pitch can be described in terms of frequency. The higher the frequency, the higher
the pitch, and vice-versa. Typically, the audible range of frequencies is 2020,000
Hz.

The interval between one musical pitch and another at twice the frequency is called
an octave. Musical instruments are tuned so that the note A is at a frequency of 440
Hz.

Loudness
Interestingly, perceived loudness is not directly correlated with the amount of
energy in sound. For this reason, loudness is expressed with a logarithmic unit of
measurement called decibels (dB). In acoustics, we describe perceived volume as
loudness, and scientific measurements of this phenomenon determine the sound
pressure.
Timbre
Compared to pitch and loudness, timbre is associated with more elements of human
perception. Expressions used to describe this quality of sound include bright, dark,
clear, muddy, intense, and weak. We can distinguish the sound of a guitar from the
sound of a piano by timbre, the distinctive "voices" of these instruments. Timber
can be described in more sophisticated ways, according to spectral envelope,
attack, decay, and the presence of noise components.