With the rising popularity of true wireless earbuds, it’s becoming vital for society to come up with etiquette rules for the new-age gadget. Poor behavior around true wireless earbuds in particular isn’t new, but the cases are certainly becoming more prominent. Some advice would’ve definitely helped a customer, whose order at a coffee shop was rejected by the barista because he was wearing a single AirPod. The man named Kevin shared his story with columnist The Salty Waitress, and it was published on The Takeout: The issue has since been picked up by other outlets and the debate has sparked anew....

In this article, we will look at the most common audio file formats in use today and find out is there indeed a best audio format. We will explore: What is exactly an audio file format? What is considered HD audio and what does audio file format has to do with it? Understand the difference between Uncompressed, lossy, and lossless files Comparison between popular types of audio files What songs format should one be using?...

As one of the most popular gaming headsets among streamers and casual gamers alike, I revisit the HyperX Cloud II gaming headset, highlight some of its pillar features, and compare it to some of the newer gaming headsets on the market. The gaming industry has seen exponential growth, especially in recent years. In 2018 the global gaming industry revenue was just over 120 billion. Four years later, 2022 sees gaming revenues exceeding 235 billion dollars – an increase of over 195 percent....

Communication is key when playing any online multiplayer game. To win, you and your teammates need to work together. Without your mic, you can’t make call-outs unless you type it into in-game chat, which takes time. Your mic also enables you to chat with friends. The banter with your friends during a match is half the fun. What good is having a gaming headset if you can only listen-in on the conversations happening?...

There are two inescapably good reasons for using the miniDSP EARS test rig to measure headphones. Namely, its low price and ease of use. It’s a mere fraction of the cost of a professional measurement rig, and the ready availability and beginner friendliness of the EARS mean that its user base of headphone enthusiasts will continue to grow. The miniDSP EARS includes very good instructions and documentation for beginners. It works well with the free and generally well-regarded Room Equalization Wizard (REW) software....

Samsung’s eye-catching Galaxy Buds line is consistently recognized for its unique, lightweight, innovative designs. However, that doesn’t mean they’re entirely immune to a few flaws or software errors. Fortunately, like most true wireless earbuds, you can resolve these issues by simply restarting or resetting your Galaxy Buds. The only catch is that, due to their design, the process isn’t always straightforward. To help you with this, we’ve created this handy guide to walk you through how to restart and factory reset your Samsung Galaxy Buds....

Dongle DAC/amps have a place in the arsenal of all aspiring audiophiles. They are ultra portable and rather than lugging a DAP (digital audio player) around or (Heaven forbid) a huge amp, these dongles allow for high fidelity audio on-the-go from just a humble smartphone. In addition, dongles are generally cheaper than their DAP counterparts, so from a price-to-performance perspective, they offer great bang-for-the-buck. Today we will check out the Colorfly CDA M1, the latest in a long line of dongle releases....

Another day, another new IEM from Knowledge Zenith (KZ). Seriously, I’m doubting whether KZ employees can keep the product lineup straight. By my count, they have released more than 35 IEMs, each of which is named a cryptic 2-3 letter code usually followed by a number. My experience with KZ is primarily with their higher-end products, so I’ve missed out on most of the ‘bang-for-the-extremely-low-buck’ options that initially made them famous in IEM circles....

When the Tin P1 were released a couple of years back, planar IEMs were still in their embryonic phase. The P1 were a proof-of-concept of what planar drivers could bring to the table; however, they were hard to drive and had anemic bass. Thereafter, other CHI-FI planars were gingerly released, most of which flew under the table, namely, the Tin P1 Plus, Tin P2, Tin P2 Plus, Toneking P10, Toneking BL1, and TFZ Balance 7....

The Aiva are a provocative pair of headphones. If you are a headphone enthusiast, you’ve likely heard of the Sendy Audio Aiva. They debuted a couple years ago to rave reviews and they quickly became the engine powering the flavor-of-the-week hype-train. Then, just as quickly, the tide changed and all the cool kids seemed to change their minds about them. Sendy Audio clearly feels the impact of all this controversy....

The TempoTec Sonata E35 is the second portable DAC/amp I’ve ever reviewed, and the first budget model. TempoTec specializes in producing similar portable DAC/amp products with varying functionality. Their lowest-end DAC/amp is the TempoTec Sonata HDII with a simple plug-and-play design. Their highest-end portable DAC/amp is the TempoTec Sonata E44, which is essentially a more powerful version of the E35 and has a 4.4mm TRRS balanced output. The TempoTec E35 has a 3....

One might think that using a headset on a computer is as simple as plugging it in. And sometimes it is when you know what type of plug and socket you’re dealing with. But what happens when you’re working with a headset that has two plugs and a laptop with only one jack, or vice versa? How do you plug a headset mic to a device with only one port?...

Pandora, formerly known as Savage Beast Technologies, was founded in 2000 by Tim Westergren, Will Glaser, and Jon Kraft. It initially started as a music recommendation engine called the Music Genome Project. However, after a succession of failed pitches in 2001, Pandora saw several employee layoffs with many more working for free in the two years that the company struggled to find funding. This led the team to rethink the business model and move toward music streaming....

Visiting other countries and seeing new places can be a fantastic experience; however, traveling itself can get pretty stressful. When you’re in transit, unforeseeable things can happen – some of them unavoidable, and others downright annoying. It can be difficult to relax even when you’re on vacation with the added bother of different intrusive sounds, like engine noise and noisy passengers. Several factors ought to be considered when picking a pair of noise-canceling headphones, and, the good news is, you don’t have to look far because we’ve compiled them all in this extensive guide....

How to Pick the Right Open-Back Headphones for You Open-back headphones are coveted for their natural staging and a more out-of-the-head presentation. They are often preferred over even speakers for personal listening since one can push the volume high without waking up their neighbors. All being said, there are numerous options at every price point, so choosing the right open-back headphones often becomes a complicated task. As a result, you might end up with something less-than-ideal for your specific needs....

Big Picture: The Sirius Pro true wireless earbuds were developed by GravaStar, a company known for incorporating futuristic cyberpunk designs into HiFi audio devices. In addition to its design, the Sirius Pro also has Environmental Noise Cancellation, low latency gaming, and other convenient features. Key features: Multipurpose Sci-Fi Design One of the most noticeable things about the Sirius Pro is its unique, Sci-Fi themed design that makes it look like it came out straight out of a Star Wars movie....

Big Picture: Those who require crystal-clear communication with their teammates will appreciate the EKSA E1000’s ability to eliminate background noise and provide a premium surround sound experience with no compromises. Key features: Immersive sound quality In addition to the 7.1 surround sound, the EKSA E1000 features 50mm, magnetic neodymium drivers, for an improved gaming audio experience overall. Adjustable Noise-Cancelling Microphone Because of their cardioid polar pattern, the EKSA E1000 is touted as being able to effectively isolate your voice from the background noise coming from the sides and at the back of the gaming mic In order to improve voice clarity, you can also rotate the microphone up to 120 degrees so that it is closer to your mouth....

A quick search for “the best noise-canceling headphones” will have you staring at the usual cream-of-the-crop names of Sony, Bose, Apple, Beats, Shure, Sennheiser, and other popular audio brands. The problem is, not everyone can drop a couple of hundred bucks for a sleek pair of noise-canceling headphones. I mean, sure, everyone wants the best — but not everyone is willing to pay the hefty price. This brings us to this list....

Most songs are produced to sound good on any device, to any listener. This is obvious, as balancing a song based on each person’s tastes would be impossible. But, it also means that some tracks can sound underwhelming to those who have specific tastes when it comes to how music should sound like. If you’ve invested in good quality audio equipment, it goes without saying that you want your audio quality to be as close to perfect as it can be....

The first Starving Student hybrid headphone amplifier originally debuted in 2008 on Pete Millett’s DIY Audio Pages. Pete had gained notoriety in DIY and headphone enthusiast circles by publishing tube, solid-state, and hybrid amplifier designs online and by making them public domain. Pete’s previous creations were highly praised, and when he designed the original Starving Student, he had a new agenda. The Starving Student II (SSII) shares the same basic architecture as the original....