Songs Designed For Headphones

Posted on 14 July 2009 by


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I was out listening to my Shuffle during my afternoon walk. Earlier I had used iTunes’ Genius functionality to build a few playlists that might go well with a brisk 3 1/2 mile walk. Once again, I was impressed by how great the Shuffle is on a walk or for other outdoor activities.

Along the way something else struck me as well…

There were a few songs that made particularly good use of stereo’s ability to split sound and send it to one ear or the other. These specific songs were mixed in such a way that the tracks bounced from one channel to the other to the point that the sound seemed to travel through my head from one side to the other. The effect, especially while walking, was particularly neat.

Some songs that especially stood out included …

iTunes

Nightmare of You’s “I Want To Buried In Your Backyard”

iTunes-1

Maroon 5′s “Can’t Stop”

iTunes-2

Thievery Corporation’s “Holographic Universe”

Are there songs you’ve come across that sound good through speakers but are AWESOME when listened to with headphones?

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- who has written 2793 posts on Gear Diary.

Having a father who was heavily involved in early laser and fiber-optical research, Dan grew up surrounded by technology and gadgets. Dan’s father brought home one of the very first video games when he was young and Dan remembers seeing a “pre-release” touchtone phone. (When he asked his father what the “#” and “*” buttons were his dad said, “Some day, far in the future, we’ll have some use for them.”) Technology seemed to be in Dan’s blood but at some point he took a different path and ended up in the clergy. His passion for technology and gadgets never left him. +Dan Cohen

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  • Joel McLaughlin

    I have had the same experience that you have had.

    I personally think the separation has always been there, but we usually don’t here it when it’s on speakers. I think that has to be because of all the other noise we hear when music is on speakers. The earbuds enhance it thanks to blocking out most of the other noise. This effect is enhanced when you have really good earbuds or in ear styles.

    It is cool when that happens though!

  • sahdow

    Sad & Beautiful World by Sparklehorse, and Vow by Garbage.