Open back vs Closed Back Headphones

Headphones Headphone Discussion / Help
1

Hi,
Just want to know which type of the above mentioned headphones are better.

Regards.

2

Is there any partially open headphone available in the market too ?

3

Hi there!
Yes there are partially open headphones, even though that definition is a little bit wonky.
You can have open headphones with unexpectedly high isolation and also closed headphones that isolate very little.
Regarding which ones are better: none, very subjective

1 Like
4

No correct answer, subjective.

takes a quick google search to find out about ā€œSemi-Open Back Headphonesā€ in the same regard there are some open backs that feel like closed backs and vice versa.

5

There are semi open ,closed , and fully open . Which is best comes down to personal preference use case and which headphones are being compared and what aspects is being compared

6

Agreeā€¦ā€˜bestā€™ is ultimately dependent on what you individually need to get out of them and personal sonic preferences. Thereā€™s no ā€˜bestā€™, just best for your specific use case, need, and preference.

7

Itā€™s very subjective (i.e. down to your opinions and tastes) but I have observed that many of the accepted best/top headphones are open. There are a few exceptions though, of course. The ZMF Verite Closed is better (imho) than the open version. Open headphones typically sound less ā€œin your headā€ but again there can be some exceptions. Closed headphones will typically isolate you from the outside world (and the outside world from your music), which can be advantageous in noisy home or work environments. If your budget could stretch to it, you might want both an open and a closed headphone.

8

I would recommend you to explain what kind of music you listen to, where you listen to it. That will definitely get you farther than this question on itā€™s own.

9

As everyone else has said, open vs closed is not the main determinant of how a headphone will sound (at least in terms of frequency response, soundstage etc).

The main way they differ, imo, is in isolation and sound leak. Closed backs generally have better isolation and less leak. Whether this is important to you will depend on your intended use.

I lump semi-opens in with open backed in most regards.