But somehow they cannot figure out how to make a replaceable battery. hmm
PodSwap seem to have worked it out.
CT scans of AirPods evolution
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Re: CT scans of AirPods evolution
#12Wow, it’s the first time I’ve seen this site and format but what a great way to explain electronics and design.
Re: CT scans of AirPods evolution
#13Not an audio expert, but I really wonder why they need a microphone for their adaptive EQ. I understand home speakers/theatre systems need to compensate for a room's shape and contents, but do human ear canals vary that much to need a mic? I think it's pretty neat how sophisticated this adaptive EQ system is, but tbh, I haven't noticed much difference between this mic system and the "dumb" adaptive EQ that companies…
Low frequencies are heavily affected by both how well the canal is sealed, and the volume of air that is in the (partially) sealed area. The adaptive EQ does seem slightly over-engineered; given that people tend to be forgiving of a fairly large amount of bass emphasis, you can just tune for the worst-case. However people don't generally buy Apple products to get something under engineered...
Re: CT scans of AirPods evolution
#14But somehow they cannot figure out how to make a replaceable battery. hmm
They can, it's just that the trade-off isn't worth appeasing a few HN readers.
>The reason earbud companies use non-replaceable rechargeable batteries is simple: It makes the earbuds smaller. Earbud buyers generally prefer more compact devices, but that means the earbuds have less room inside for all the necessary components. Designers need to cram a Bluetooth chip and processor, an antenna, a battery, drivers, controls, and microphones into something that’s often the size of a thimble. Replaceable battery compartments require more earbud real estate, and in a competitive field where tiny is currently king, companies don’t want to risk their earbuds being flops by making them bigger.
https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/blog/your-wireless-earbud...
Re: CT scans of AirPods evolution
#15Not an audio expert, but I really wonder why they need a microphone for their adaptive EQ. I understand home speakers/theatre systems need to compensate for a room's shape and contents, but do human ear canals vary that much to need a mic? I think it's pretty neat how sophisticated this adaptive EQ system is, but tbh, I haven't noticed much difference between this mic system and the "dumb" adaptive EQ that companies…
Might be more important for noise cancellation.
Re: CT scans of AirPods evolution
#16Not an audio expert, but I really wonder why they need a microphone for their adaptive EQ. I understand home speakers/theatre systems need to compensate for a room's shape and contents, but do human ear canals vary that much to need a mic? I think it's pretty neat how sophisticated this adaptive EQ system is, but tbh, I haven't noticed much difference between this mic system and the "dumb" adaptive EQ that companies…
Ears do vary quite a bit. If you try in ears molded to your ears they can be mind blowing.
In some cases a microphone will also help adapt to background noise.
Re: CT scans of AirPods evolution
#17I'm curious how the newest airpods compare to the pros when it comes to bass. I had first gen airpods, then I bought a set of pros, but the bass was so weak I thought they had to be broken. Turns out it's just an artifact of how they were designed. Some people are okay, but a lot of people feel the same way I do. I ended up returning them and now I'd like to know if the g3 airpods are comparable to the pros, or compa…
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Re: CT scans of AirPods evolution
#18But somehow they cannot figure out how to make a replaceable battery. hmm
They can, it's just that the trade-off isn't worth appeasing a few HN readers. >The reason earbud companies use non-replaceable rechargeable batteries is simple: It makes the earbuds smaller. Earbud buyers generally prefer more compact devices, but that means the earbuds have less room inside for all the necessary components. Designers need to cram a Bluetooth chip and processor, an antenna, a battery, drivers, contr…
Another reason for the trend (in phones too) is better water resistance.
Re: CT scans of AirPods evolution
#19Not an audio expert, but I really wonder why they need a microphone for their adaptive EQ. I understand home speakers/theatre systems need to compensate for a room's shape and contents, but do human ear canals vary that much to need a mic? I think it's pretty neat how sophisticated this adaptive EQ system is, but tbh, I haven't noticed much difference between this mic system and the "dumb" adaptive EQ that companies…
> do human ear canals vary that much to need a mic?
Not an expert in human ear canals, but over the years I've learned that if I am looking into a field that I am not familiar with, it's always more complicated than I expected/imagined.
> "dumb" adaptive EQ that companies like bose/ikea etc do (Basically turn up base at low volumes, down at high volume to not clip)
Sounds like a compander for the lower frequencies. That's technically "adaptive" to the input audio, but not adaptive to the acoustics of the output environment. I expect that to for the second type of adaption, you'd need to measure it, which would necessitate some sort of input, such s a mic.
Re: CT scans of AirPods evolution
#20I'm curious how the newest airpods compare to the pros when it comes to bass. I had first gen airpods, then I bought a set of pros, but the bass was so weak I thought they had to be broken. Turns out it's just an artifact of how they were designed. Some people are okay, but a lot of people feel the same way I do. I ended up returning them and now I'd like to know if the g3 airpods are comparable to the pros, or compa…
You need a seal to get significant bass from earbuds. the non pro airpods do not make a seal (by design).