[Dragunov-21]

Posting this more as a What than anything else, because there's no logical explanation.
 
> Enjoy some music on my laptop (EQ'd, through my AT M50s)
> Enjoy some music on my Clip+ (no EQ, through the M50s)
> Update firmware and RockBox on my Clip+
> Load some more music on
> Listen and think What?  It sounds hollow, I can barely hear the basslines of the songs I'm listening to (that I was listening to ten minutes earlier).  Percussive bass sounds like a hollow tap rather than a thud/thump.
> Assume that the new FW or Rockbox has messed with something (not sure what, since I was running it unEQ'd before I updated it, perhaps something affecting it's ability to power the phones?), so look around in the settings and find nothing obvious.
> Figure I'll fix it tomorrow morning, and resume listening on the laptop.
> Same thing - hollow/nonexistant bass.
> Freak out thinking that it must be in my head while knowing that it's not.
 
Has anyone ever had the sound of their phones inexplicably mess up?  I cannot explain it at all - the laptop hasn't had anything changed on it yet it's exhibiting the same problem, which means it's ... the 'phones or my ears?  Can 'phones develop a fault that messes up the response without killing them completely?  I'm at a complete loss.

 

[Eschaton]

I'm not sure if you've tried a source other than the clip, but that'd be my first guess. Second guess would be the cable. Actually, in my experience, sudden hollowness is almost always the cable. If neither of those is at fault, then I'd start worrying about the drivers. But if it's both ears, it's the clip or the cable, most certainly. Not likely that you blew up two drivers at the same time unless you had the volume waaaay too loud.

At least, this is my inderstanding of things.

 

[MattTCG]

Which hp are we talking about here?

 

[GM325i]

Its got to be a bad connection, stressing the cable can break a solder connection or the copper wires may have frayed somewhere. If you have no bass in both cups it is most likely the fault is at the jack on the common pole. I have encountered this problem when I first was learning to solder new cables, all that was needed to fix the problem was a new jack for me.
 
Should be an easy fix. Good luck!

 

[Dragunov-21]

Cheers, GM Picked up a new jack (and 6ft of star quad, since the original cable has been mauled by the cat). We'll see how it goes.

 

[Dragunov-21]

This is really weird... =/
 
Recabled the ATH-M50s with some star-quad and a connector half the size of my Clip+.  I've not had a lot of sleep lately and could barely see the tracks while soldering, but the multimeter doesn't lie - it was a success.
 
Net Result:
 
 - Cable is ridiculously robust
 - Cable is now reasonably microphonic
 - Plug makes it look like I've got a 1/4" stuck in there (half awesome, half stupid)
 - The 'phones are now noticeably more revealing.  I'm a skeptic and would normally put this down to placebo, but this really came outta left field.  No idea what to think.
 - Bass is there... kinda, but it still feels off. The best way of explaining it is that I can hear it, but can't feel it at all - there's no impact, and it seems as though increasing the volume increases the volume of the mids/treble but the bass stays at pretty much the same volume.
 
Any further thoughts?

 

[reddragon]

 
Quote:

This is really weird... =/
 
Recabled the ATH-M50s with some star-quad and a connector half the size of my Clip+.  I've not had a lot of sleep lately and could barely see the tracks while soldering, but the multimeter doesn't lie - it was a success.
 
Net Result:
 
 - Cable is ridiculously robust
 - Cable is now reasonably microphonic
 - Plug makes it look like I've got a 1/4" stuck in there (half awesome, half stupid)
 - The 'phones are now noticeably more revealing.  I'm a skeptic and would normally put this down to placebo, but this really came outta left field.  No idea what to think.
 - Bass is there... kinda, but it still feels off. The best way of explaining it is that I can hear it, but can't feel it at all - there's no impact, and it seems as though increasing the volume increases the volume of the mids/treble but the bass stays at pretty much the same volume.
 
Any further thoughts?

um... maybe try eqing it?

 

[blinkstar]

My M50s died completely and I believe the cable is at fault ... I've never replaced a headphone cable. Would you consider posting a short guide on how you did it? Or could any of you point me to such a guide? I'd be much appreciated ...

 

[GM325i]

I know what you mean about the lac of bass, that last little bit is what really matters 

 
 
Did you use silver bearing solder? Remember not to heat the wires too much? 
 
Also the quality of copper has a HUGE effect on the bass and clarity in fine headphones. I am not familiar with the star quad cable or what AT uses on the M50s but you may have taken a downgrade in the cable because the star quad isn't oxygen free (I think). 

 

[Dragunov-21]

I'm a sparkie - I used standard lead/tin/copper alloyed solder. That makes enough of a difference?  For the record, this isn't a small difference/disctinction I'm picking up - I'm no critical listener.  I figure that since I've replaced the plug/cable, it has to be one of two things:
 
 - Capacitance attenuating low frequencies
 - Earcups or HP housings not sealing.
 
Thing is, neither would just change over the course of 20 minutes unless I dropped the bastids.  Guess I'll have to wait until I get the chance to listen to some other phones I'm familiar, or some other M50s to compare with.

 

[GM325i]

Well lets not over complicate this. you haven't changed the capacitance or the quality of the seal enough to make any real difference. The fact is that different cables give headphones a different sound, that is why audiophiles spend thousands on getting the right cables. The difference you hear is most likely just that. If I were you, I wouldn't worry about it, just eq to your taste and enjoy your music. That's what we are all here for anyways right?

 

[Mike-leewarren]

Ok i dont know if youll get to this but.... What happened is a program changed your sound settings. I noticed right away and went to the search bar in the start bar. Typed in sound. Selected playback device and clicked properties.. Then changed the quality from dvd to studio and hit apply.    Whenever i make a beat or another program uses the primary sound card it can change a setting. Bass came right back.

 

[Davidek]

Did you find out what was the problem? I have the same problem right now.

 

[charlied5858]

I have the same problem. My headphones (which aren't very nice or expensive, they're just kind of like Apple headphones) worked for a few months after I bought them, but a few days ago, I realized that the bass was completely mute, so that I could hear only the highest pitches. This has happened to me before, so I did some research on it. There are two significant variables to a headphone problem: the jack (plug) and the stereo wires.
 
When you look at your headphone jack, you should see that there are metal sections divided by white or black (may be other colors) plastic rings, with a metal section that is differently shaped from the others. Before the first section, there is a rubber jack grip (the part that you hold when you plug the headphones in). There are three basic types of headphones: standard stereo, iPhone, and iPod AV. Standard stereo headphones have only two metal sections along with the section at the end that is differently shaped. The section closest to the grip is known as the "ground". This is the part that picks up the bass current. The next section is the treble for the right earbud. The END section is ALWAYS the LEFT treble, no matter what kind of headphones. Beats are an example of standard stereo headphones. iPhone and iPod AV headphones have three metal sections, along with the end (left treble section). The only difference between these is that the iPhone headphones have a microphone section, while the iPod AV headphones have a video section, which is used mainly when the iPod is plugged into a TV or computer source. So, let's just leave out the iPod AVs. The iPhone headphones have: (in order from grip to end) a microphone section, then ground, then right treble, then left treble (end section). You most likely have standard stereo or iPhone (which includes any headphones that have a mic, and can be any company, not just Apple).
 
The second main sources of headphone problems are the stereo wires. These are located in the thicker rubber wire section that connects the jack to the headphones. The wires (if you have iPhone headphones) split midway, with the microphone wire stopping at the mic, of course, the left and right treble wires splitting apart and going to the respectable side or earbud, and the ground (bass) wire splitting with one half going to the right and the other to the left, creating an equal sound in each side. Headphone wires may have an
additional cord for strength, but this is irrelevant to the problem.
 
Now that I have thoroughly and boringly discussed the possible source to the problem in your headphones, I will now explain what the problem may be. If the problem is in the jack, since your bass won't work, it means that the ground section (1st closest to the grip if standard stereo, and 2nd closest if iPhone) isn't picking up the bass current correctly, or at all. This may be the device's fault. If the problem is in the wires of your headphones, it means that the ground wire is either severed or has an interference between the jack and the right/left division. An extremely strong sound current has the potential to cause the bass to stop working. There are ways to repair a broken ground wire, but I do not know enough to tell you how.
 
I hope this has been helpful to you, and I hope you can fix your headphones!

 

[STENSPIELBERG]

LMAOOOOO, Someone here gets it. (laughing uncontrollably right now) Yeah, If you're using an HP laptop, that would explain a lot. In fact, I'm using one right now in school. and I could have sworn my earbuds had wayyyyy more bass. and of course, it's because it's a ******* HP. I used the dts audio app, and the srs audio app on the laptop with the bass all the way up and it still sounded like ****. so, just use a different computer for music. PLEASE, save yourself a day of ear rape from the tinny crappy audio quality. I hope you invest into a SELF BUILD PC with a decent aftermarket audio card, like one by creative or one with THX audio, so that you don't have future audio problems.