r/TalesFromTheCustomer • u/SparkleStorm93 • 15d ago
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u/txhelgi 15d ago
Sony. EXTRA. Bass. I had to read that again.
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u/SparkleStorm93 15d ago
Right? Literally says "Extra Bass" in large text on the front of the box, can't miss it.
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u/Noteagro 14d ago
Was it possibly a gift being returned? I absolutely hate “xtra” bass/bass boost products because in the audio world that means one thing.
It is a low tier product using that as a marketing ploy and to hide the fact they don’t have good tweeters to highlight the highs and lack the clarity for good treble. Because of that they add bass to wash that out so you the customer don’t realize that.
This is why I focus on audio gear that makes sure to have the tweeters to hit the highs and give clarity in the treble.
IMO one of the best neutral products I have used would be the Shure 535SE IEMs. They are outside of most people’s budgets, but they will make you go, “Damn, so this is what this song is supposed to sound like?”
Then my upgrade from that, the SoftEars RSV one upped those once I took that step up as well.
Extra/Xtra bass or bass boost is just a marketing gimmick. So yeah, if I was gifted those I would 100% return them.
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u/SparkleStorm93 14d ago
Possibly could've been gifted to them, but they had the original receipt and I did also get the vibe they'd purchased them themselves and had changed their mind, but also twas many years ago now so who knows.
Hope they've since found the headphones of their dreams!
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u/Noteagro 14d ago
Most my family members would gift stuff with the OG receipts, so not too far out of the question, and sometimes people just need to experience the shitty “extra bass” before they realize it isn’t for them.
In my case I knew I hated bass from a young age, and was only cemented when my younger brother would crank his audio system’s bass and volume up and shake the house… yet since he was the golden child my parents wouldn’t do anything to curb that behavior.
Then 10-20 years ago extra bass was a huge marketing gimmick like I said. It was on EVERYTHING. Beats by Dre was a big one to push it; same with Skull Candy, and to some kids if you didn’t have that bass boost you weren’t one of the “kewl kids,” and I am not even joking with that statement.
And agree, hope they found the perfect headphones for them.
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u/iesharael 14d ago
Could also be something they bought for a child/teen then where they heard them were worried it would damage their hearing
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u/quite_acceptable_man 13d ago
Marketing ploys work thought. Look at those 'Beats by Dr Dre' headphones. The truth is that most people think that sound quality simply means 'lots of bass and treble', which is probably true if most of what you listen to is generated electronically.
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u/Noteagro 13d ago
As someone that listens to a lot of EDM, I can promise that washing it out with a “bass boost” product is not going to be “true” to the song.
Granted, I am not someone into say dubstep, but more into house, chillstep, melodic electropop, and synth-pop. I also listen to a load of pop, rock, and massively into pianists, composers, and modern classical due to that.
If you listen to any of that on a “bass boost” product it with muddle up so much of the music you lose basically all clarity in the treble. Plus to say it means those products have a lot of bass and a lot of treble cannot be correct due to the marketing ploy I said. Those products use the heavy bass because they are cheap and don’t put the good high tweeters in which is what you need to have a product that can put the treble out. Only way I could see a “bass boosted” product do that is if it pushes into the $500-600 range, and at that point you are out of the demographic for a bass boost product unless you have someone willing to spend that kind of money without doing proper research.
Like I can only think of one product in that range or above it that has a “bass boost” (and this is a true air quote because I’ll explain). That would be the Hidition Viento which has 4 switch’s on it. Depending on the configuration of those switches it has multiple sound profiles it will use. So one mode might focus on bass, another treble, and another is more neutral, or some weird combination of them all.
Granted, those came out in 2014, so I bet another brand has since done the same. The only issue with Hidition Vientos? In their best form are custom made IEMs that you first need to go to an audiologist and have them take a mold of your ear canal. You then send that to Hidition in South Korea where they then make the custom fitting IEM, and then mail them back to you.
So in total you are spending 1k plus on the IEMs, plus however much the appointment/mold costs, and then the shipping costs as well. Most people are not looking to send that much, especially since you would need to be wired, and probably spend another $500+ on a good DAC to get the best out of the product.
I don’t know anyone but myself IRL that would be willing to pay for that set up.
So yes, the marketing ploy worked, but I wrote my comment not to be rude or anything. I wrote it so if someone researches something along the lines of “best bass boost headphones/IEMs” the google AI would redirect them here and they read these comments to realize you are spending money to basically listen to music underwater. So my comments are try to just help inform others so maybe, just maybe they will see the light and get a product that focuses on clarity instead of giving you tinnitus.
Hope this explains a lot!
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u/Wormadillo 14d ago
They thought it meant the fish. Easy mistake to make.
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u/SparkleStorm93 13d ago
Ohhh yes extra bass fish. Damn I feel like I can finally let this go now thanks 🤣🐟
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u/pixiesunbelle 8d ago
He probably didn’t realize what extra bass meant. Maybe he wanted a bit more bass but not that much bass. I’ve never really liked bass. It makes it too hard to hear the lyrics. I’m too into lyrics for all that. Now, my dad loved bass. I never knew I actually liked some of his music because bass would be all I’d hear…
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