Cheap headphones can be a temporary option if you are willing to buy expensive ones later; you can also go for cheap headphones if you are low on budget. Some cheap headphones can be a bargain where they sound better than many other expensive ones; however, it’s not always the case.
The good cheap headphones are low on price for a certain reason, and it’s they have not made a name for themselves yet; cheap headphones don’t have the required components to sound better than the expensive ones because if the manufacturer includes these better components the cost will raise and they would have to increase the price of the headphones losing their only advantage over expensive headphones.
Could Cheaper Headphones Sound Better?
Cheaper headphones can illude that they are better than the expensive ones, but actually, they are not. The cheap headphones boost some of the frequencies that pass through them, like the treble and the base; this can give the listener that the sound is better than the one produced in the expensive headphones.
For example, if you have a stereo system and boost the frequencies like treble and bass, you will be satisfied with the sound produced, and when you reset the frequencies to their defaults, you will think that they become worse; however, if you are used to knowing the right sound and frequencies, you can differ between the boosted and original sound.
Another reason cheap headphones appear to be better than the expensive ones is that the cheaper headphone used is better than the expensive one. Still, due to the marketing of the expensive headphone, it costs more, even though it doesn’t sound better than the cheaper ones. In addition, some headphone manufacturers have no experience in manufacturing headphones; however, they may be popular in other electronic manufacturing; therefore, their headphones may be expensive for their brand name, not for the quality of the headphones.
Are Cheap Headphones Worth It?
Cheap headphones are not worth it if you have the money for the expensive ones; finding great cheap headphones is like searching for a needle in a haystack; you will need to spend a lot of effort and time to find a good bargain; the cheap headphones lack the sound and the build quality of the expensive ones.
You may find a cheap headphone that sounds great, but it will have low-quality materials that will last only for a short time. So to compare a cheap headphone to an expensive one or see if it is worth your money, you need to consider two factors, the build quality, and the sound.
Build Quality
The build quality of cheap headphones doesn’t depend on their price; you may find some 10-dollar headphones with better build quality than the 30-dollar ones; the 10-dollar headphone may seem more durable and last longer. However, that doesn’t mean that they are made out of premium materials; the materials could be cheap but durable.
When wearing a headphone, you want to have premium materials touching your ears, durability is a great thing to find in some cheap headphones, but comfortability is also an important factor to consider; the cheap headphones, if they have solid materials, will lack the comfortability of the expensive ones. However, some people would go for the durability of the quality of the materials.
You can also find some cheap headphones that are more durable than the expensive types; some expensive headphones may be more fragile than the cheaper ones, even though they are made of more premium materials. Still, they may lack the durability that can sometimes be found in 10-dollar headphones.
Sound Quality
The sound quality in cheap headphones can not be compared to the one in the expensive headphones; the cheap headphones change a lot in the original frequencies of the sound, they can boost the treble and bass to illude the listener that they have better quality, but in fact, they don’t. As a result, the cheap headphones will not deliver the high frequency they should be delivered.
They will not be as realistic or delicate as they should be; this is what makes the expensive headphones outperform the cheap ones, they can deliver the high frequencies, and they don’t boost the low ones or low notes.
What Makes Expensive Headphones?
Expensive headphones are better than the cheap ones for many reasons; they sound better, have better build quality, have high comfortability, come with a warranty, and many other features that can’t be found in the cheap headphones. All these features make the expensive headphones better and more worth it.
Sound Quality
The sound quality can be the main concern for every user; the expensive headphones provide more premium sound quality than the cheap ones because they don’t boost or adjust any frequencies; they instead deliver the original frequencies of the sound. In addition, they can deliver the high frequencies realistically and delicately; some people say that the expensive headphones can offer a live performance experience.
The main reason expensive headphones offer better sound is that they have bigger drivers, which can cut out any ambient noise and easily catch the bass notes; meanwhile, the cheap headphones come with smaller drivers, resulting in noise and missing out on some bass notes. Therefore, the users of expensive headphones can listen to background sounds that the users of cheap headphones can not listen to.
Build Quality
The expensive headphones’ price is higher than the cheap ones due to the build quality of the expensive headphones; the build quality term refers to the driver size, durability, and material quality. This means that the materials of the expensive headphone are tolerant to drops and shocks, unlike the cheap ones, which can break or get damaged if you drop them.
The materials of any electrical component are responsible for the length of its life span; when the materials are sturdier and durable, they can last longer, which is the case for expensive headphones.
High Comfortability
Comfortability is one of the advantages of buying expensive headphones; they can offer a high level of comfortability due to the quality of the materials they are made from; for example, the ear pads are covered with high-quality, comfortable leather, and the pads are made from memory foam which gives a satisfying filling when placed on your ears. In some headphones, the leather can be replaced with lambskin.
The texture of the ear pads is not only the main thing to consider; you also need to consider the breathability, which means the air can flow to your ears under the pads, which results in less sweat; this can provide you with a more hygienic experience.
Warranty
Warranty is an important factor you should consider when buying electronic equipment like headphones. Almost all expensive headphones come with a warranty, and some of them might even come with a lifetime warranty. The warranty can be very helpful if the headphones have a manufacturing fault or failed components; you can either replace the components or fix them through your warranty.
Meanwhile, the cheap headphones don’t come with a warranty because they are low-budget equipment; the warranty would cost the manufacturer a lot; therefore, they will need to raise the price of the headphones. Another reason they don’t come with a warranty is because the manufacturer knows that their headphones will start to fail in a short time and will not last long.
Conclusion
To sum up, cheap headphones can illude you that they sound better, but in fact, they don’t sound better than expensive ones; the cheap headphones tend to boost some frequencies like treble and bass to give an illusion of better sound; however, their divers are much smaller than the ones in the expensive headphone, drivers are the components responsible for catching notes.
When the driver is bigger, it catches more bass notes and cuts out or reduces the ambient noise from the audio; therefore, the cheap headphones can’t sound better than expensive headphones unless they have bigger drivers, which can not happen and still keep their only advantage which is low cost. Buying cheap headphones can be an option if you are low on budget and want anything to get the job done, but it’s highly recommended to go for expensive headphones because of their quality and long lifespan.
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