Sony V600 Review

Audio Lingo

Thresh's comments in BLACK
Kenn's comments in BLUE

Impedance? Not I!

If you've ever been around an audiophile friend, you know that there are enough terms, concepts, and mathematical formulas involved to span several engineering disciplines. That kind of complexity usually doesn't filter down to us regular folk, but there are a few important principals to understand. We'll do our best to try and explain these terms, but the important thing to remember is to go with what works best for you. Comparing ohms, decibels, and kHz sounds good on paper, but if you don't like the way a particular pair sounds or feels, you're generally better off with something else, even if it doesn't match your "ideal stats."

Frequency Response: This is the basic measurement of how well the headphones will reproduce sound of varying pitch. Remember though, that a driver that can sufficiently reproduce a wide range will not necessary sound better than one which more accurately renders a smaller range. The V600's claim a range of 5-30,000 Hz, which covers the gamut of low base to shrilling treble. Sony's Studio Monitor headphones have a general reputation for doing bass good, which is great for most games.

Circumaural Design: This basically means "surrounding the ear." Supposedly a circum-aural earcup places the drivers at the perfect distance from your ear - improving the sound stage (for effecting stereo separation). The important thing to know here is that these headphones will completely cup your ears, cutting off any outside sound source, as well as relieving pressure on your ears - this'll be a lifesaver if you use them for more than a couple of hours every day.

Neodymium Ferrous Magnet: Compared to standard ferrite magnets, the magnetic field of a neodymium magnet can be up to five times stronger at the same size, making for more accurate and dynamic drivers without added size or weight. Rule of thumb: the stronger the magnet, the greater accuracy over a given frequency range.