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blargh4 t1_ixtd1s7 wrote

i don't know what kind of weird-ass ears y'all have but mine fit nicely inside a sufficiently large oval?

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Gofa_Kirselph t1_ixtfioj wrote

Ovals are fine. Circles can be a bit uncomfortable at times, even if they have a large inner diameter. Depends on the headband, clamp force, weight as well.

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Hot_Advance3592 OP t1_ixuoz8i wrote

https://i.pinimg.com/474x/f1/9b/17/f19b17967661a5b78f6213e6a4f0baa7.jpg

Some ears are well-suited for oval shapes (and I assume this is currently more cost-effective for machining in manufacturing).

But more often than not, ears match better with a D-shape.

I think it’s just normalized for over-ear cups to often be partially-on-ear cups. Some cups fit over my ears (rectangle ones for me), and I greatly prefer them.

—

(Edit: I wrote this before I saw the other comments about how the cup shape affects the speakers’ ability to transmit into the ear.

Presumably circle, oval, rectangle, and D-shaped cup designs require specific attention to the design for the speakers.)

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GamePro201X t1_ixtc6vy wrote

Dan Clark Audio has some ear shaped cups on their AEON, Stealth, and Expanse models

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BestDadIsOnMyMug t1_ixtqrjx wrote

Most comfortable headphones money can buy

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coptician t1_ixtxhxc wrote

The HD800 line disagrees. They're a close second though! ;)

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DJ_Firth t1_ixumbxu wrote

So does the Focal Openback range!

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coptician t1_ixummll wrote

Interesting. I tried the Utopia 2022 a month and a half ago and found it severely uncomfortable. The headband pressed into the top of my skull and the round cups didn't sit well with me at all.

Shows that, as I was kidding in my previous comment, it really is your mileage may vary. Because I don't doubt the Focals are super comfortable for others.

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CyberMoose24 t1_ixwofwk wrote

Same here; I couldn’t stand the clamp and the top of the head hotspot of the Clear MG even though I was in love with the sound. Returned them and bought an LCD-X and maybe I’m weird, but I find these far more comfortable.

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School-Tricky t1_ixv4t20 wrote

Aeons > HD800S (Dekoni pads) > HD800S (stock pads)

I want to try a meze empyrean. I hear they are the best best

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coptician t1_ixv5ycn wrote

I do like the Aeons. My Noire are pretty comfy to me but not at the level of the HD800S to me. Haven't tried Dekoni pads because they seem to affect sound so much you basically need to EQ twice as hard. Might be worth it though.

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NoShibesMatter t1_ixvl79c wrote

They are definitely good, but there are better. It really comes down to what you listen to and preference.

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GamePro201X t1_ixugrq6 wrote

I like the Aeon models but I disagree about the Stealth and Expanse. I have a pretty short head so anything with an auto-adjusting headband feels like it it pulling my ears down

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ConsciousNoise5690 t1_ixu1j9k wrote

I love cup D

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IronGolem350 t1_ixuky3x wrote

We all love D cups

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MrCatsoup t1_ixvfo09 wrote

I've never felt a D cup before, how they feel?

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chuckolatte t1_ixvg0bu wrote

From what I've felt, they're quite large and hard to hold with one hand each. But one you put them on your head they completely envelop you

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sequential_doom t1_ixte2ad wrote

Sennheiser does that with the 700s and 800s. Magnificent fit.

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Extrapaj t1_ixtzn33 wrote

Rockin my HD700's atm. I think they are more comfortable than the HD800 because of the smaller cups that doesn't sit on my cheekbones.

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InFortunaWeLust t1_ixv59t3 wrote

i really want to get a paid of HD700s one day just for gaming

0

Extrapaj t1_ixv7hx5 wrote

Why for gaming specifically?

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nm0s t1_ixv8t6z wrote

I use them for gaming due to DAT SOUNDSTAGE

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agastyaseth t1_ixuhoxm wrote

I think one reason could be that the position of your ears inside the cavity affects the sound a lot (I've seen this to be esp. the case with focals) - and since people's ears are different, having oval/circular pads with some wiggle room assures that everyone gets optimal sound.

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Hot_Advance3592 OP t1_ixupm32 wrote

Oh wow, I see what you mean—the focus may be on bringing sound to the canal—and especially the outer regions of the ear are very flexible, so they can be pushed on as collateral while the design aims to facilitate maximum speaker performance.

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pongpaktecha t1_ixv0121 wrote

If you look at your ears the ear canal is not centered on the D shape. You usually want the drivers to be more centered to the ear canal for best tuning (unless they were engineered to be different but that's a whole nother can of worms). The D shape cups move the drivers too far back

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Xenonphilius t1_ixv02me wrote

HD600 familia has entered the chat.

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Critical50 t1_ixv4jkw wrote

For a while I asked myself why the hell do some manufacturers make their headphones more of a rotated C shape instead of a upside down U, that puts a lot less stress in the headband and earcup hinges..

Ive had 2 break from this design in my life. One was a $300 AKG :(

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NFTOxaile t1_iy1565d wrote

Cost of tuning to compensate for the odd dimensions. Same reason why the driver in most headphones is not aimed at the ear like it is in for example the HD 800S or the T1.

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asus3008 t1_iy1d3s5 wrote

Some of us don't like D shaped cups at all. Personally, i found the ones in the image looking funny at best.

Not everyone has some preferences like me, and for many people, comfort is definitely more important than looks

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thatcarolguy t1_ixv2kc4 wrote

Almond shaped are good too (no, large format Hifimans are not oval or egg shaped).

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dstarr3 t1_ixvn6rx wrote

Circles are cheap and easy to make.

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renerem t1_ixwbp6g wrote

I am very lucky that I never had comfort issues with any headphone so far, except a slight hotspot at the top of my head with the HD800S. And I also love clamp force, pretty much the more the better xD.

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dirthurts t1_ixulhut wrote

It can mess with the audio quality. Can't imagine any serious headphones doing this.

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DJ_Firth t1_ixume8a wrote

Dan Clark audio have a few which do

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dirthurts t1_ixumi3p wrote

Good to know. I wonder how they compensated.

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pongpaktecha t1_ixv0dpt wrote

Probably a boatload of R&D and engineering. I doubt a gaming gear company for OP's headphones did much to compensate for this shape tho

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dirthurts t1_ixv4fz5 wrote

Based on what I've heard from these guys they don't do any acoustic research.

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Hot_Advance3592 OP t1_ixuq1xc wrote

I see! Do you happen to know any more about how this works?

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dirthurts t1_ixusyxx wrote

Just like how the shape of a room affects speaker audio.

1