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Headphones are collecting too much personal data (2019)

soundguys.com

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Re: Headphones are collecting too much personal data (2019)

#231

Post by Teledhil »

monksy wrote: post #167

The article should have buried sony for how egregious they are. They require the app to collect location information, and ear. https://www.sony.com/electronics/support/articles/00233341 I'm not sure what else they collect.. but those are the 2 bad ones. They've got a few settings that are software controlled (one being the bluetooth's internal volume) What happens if you get a software update and you open the app on…

I have the WH-1000XM2 and the location permission is optional if you want the app to change noise cancelling profiles according to what you are doing (walking, running, on the bus). The ear scanner is another optional thing you can do to improve the 360 audio which only works on a few apps.

Re: Headphones are collecting too much personal data (2019)

#232

Post by snvzz »

aidenn0 wrote: post #111
bdefore wrote: post #87

Earlier quoted context omitted.

With a pocketsize amp yes. When at my desk, I plug in through a Mont Blanc FiiO for my Beyerdynamic headphones. Makes a big difference with some audio. Wireless buds are obviously already a step down from wired, and one step further from amplified cans. And yeah, I'm an outlier and want to be.

But there are combined DAC/amps that will use lightning connectors, so if you use an external amp, you might as well use an external dac/amp instead and get audio quality that is certainly no worse than a random android phone, and possibly better.

Typically at the expense of latency, unfortunately. High enough to dramatically worsen the experience of rhythm games.

Re: Headphones are collecting too much personal data (2019)

#233

Post by mandelbrotwurst »

andrewflnr wrote: post #222
josteink wrote: post #203

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I’ve had the best heat headphones Bose has to offer in the Quiet Comfort series and to me this “state of the art noise cancellation” sounds like artefact- and distortion-inducing noise. I’ve returned them and replaced them with much better, naturally damping, closed head-phones. And the audio is so much better, at a fraction of the cost. Noise cancellation in the hifi-space is just snake oil, and I’m not having it.

Does... does anyone actually think noise-cancelling is for increasing audio quality? I always thought it was just for handling obnoxiously noisy environments, like airplanes, screaming children, etc.

No one who's thinking through how it works, which is by picking up the ambient noise and then modifying the output to include the inverse on top of whatever you're listening to.

Re: Headphones are collecting too much personal data (2019)

#234

Post by dkersten »

z3t4 wrote: post #170
secondcoming wrote: post #140

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You have LAN ports in your bathroom?

Its good to take a pause from the screen now and then, for example when you go to the toilet.

Also, how long are people spending on the toilet that they need Internet? And is hygiene not a concern?

Re: Headphones are collecting too much personal data (2019)

#235

Post by dkersten »

djkoolaide wrote: post #202
Kye wrote: post #131

Earlier quoted context omitted.

All my MDR-7506s needed after 3 years was new ear pads.

Going on 10 years with mine. There's a reason 7506s are loved by engineers around the world. Every part is user-serviceable.

I love my 7506s too! Best headphones I ever bought.

Re: Headphones are collecting too much personal data (2019)

#237

Post by ck425 »

JumpCrisscross wrote: post #130
acd wrote: post #115

I tend to use passive headphones with 3.5mm jack, they have no electronics in them except the small speakers. They do not collect data. They are also used by musicians when doing audio mixing so its should sounds neutral and good. That the headphones does not have electronics and batteries means they will last longer and thus be be better for the environment.

> they will last longer and thus be be better for the environment This isn’t necessarily true. My wireless headphones have been with me for years. My wired earbuds are cheap enough that I can lose or damage them without care. The former are far better for the environment.

Well duh. Obviously if you buy cheap headphones and constantly replace them that's bad for the environment. The grandparents point was that if you buy good wired headphones and use them for the same amount of time you'd use wireless ones it's far better for the environment.

Re: Headphones are collecting too much personal data (2019)

#238

Post by snvzz »

johnnycab wrote: post #114
wiredfool wrote: post #93

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I like my grados, but my old sennheisers were perhaps a bit more comfortable.

I felt cheated after falling for the mass hysteria, which lead me to acquire my first set of SR-60. It didn't take very long to realise how uncomfortable they are for longer listening periods, or when the cable turns into a tangled mess, and the special hell, when you have to replace the earpads.

I never liked any of the Grados I tried in shops. They do sound offensively colored. I don't get the appeal.

Most headphones do sound colored relative to the HD600, but the key word is 'offensively'.

Re: Headphones are collecting too much personal data (2019)

#239

Post by dkersten »

maest wrote: post #229

The move to no-jack phones really only exacerbates this problem. It's difficult for manufacturers to justify an app for wired headphones, but, now that bluetooth is becoming the new norm, there's suddenly a justification for instrusive, data-collecting apps. This whole story is a really good reason for keeping headphone jacks on phones.

I would rather give up on a smartphone than give up on my wireless headphones. Hell, I was without a phone for a few months a couple of years back and it felt liberating. It’ll be my excuse to be a permanent smartphone luddite.

Re: Headphones are collecting too much personal data (2019)

#240

Post by [deleted] »

egypturnash wrote: post #175
bitwize wrote: post #132

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My Boses allow you to set the cancellation level with a button press. It cycles through three options: high, low, and off. Does the app enable more fine-grained control or something? Perhaps per-ear cancellation settings?

My QC35s don't have that button. It's only available in the app, and there is no fine-grained control or anything - just high/low/off.

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