It’s worth mentioning right away that improving the sound quality of headphones is not always possible for objective reasons. You need to understand that miracles do not happen, and a simple, as well as an inexpensive gadget to turn into a seriously sounding instrument will fail in any case.
Nevertheless, even with a weak sound card on models from the mid-price segment, you can make the sound quality in the headphones better. But this will require special software and fine-tuning of the operating system. After all the manipulations, the sound should noticeably change in a positive direction.
So, let's try to figure out how to improve the sound quality in the headphones and make it as painless as possible, both for the gadget and for the user himself. We will analyze the basic techniques and methods that help in most cases.
General tips
Before improving the sound in the headphones, it is worth checking the operation of the gadget itself. Sometimes just looking at it is enough. The most common cause of a malfunction is pollution of the speaker mesh. This may interfere with sound flow. Here you need to treat the mesh with alcohol and wipe it dry.
The reason for the poor sound may be the poor fit of the elements to each other. The vibrating parts of the headphones adversely affect all performance. It is worth checking the housing elements for play and, if necessary, eliminate it.
You also need to check the wire and especially the ends connecting the gadget to a computer or mobile phone. If damage has occurred, then a characteristic rustling may appear. With a break, the sound, of course, will not be played at all.
PC setup
To improve the sound quality in headphones (both wireless and wired), it is necessary to adjust the operating system. We will analyze the ubiquitous Windows 8 and 10 series. We click on the Start button and in the search form we enter the query Sound. In the presented list, select the first proposed option.
To improve the sound quality in the headphones, double-click on the line “Headphones” in the window that appears. After we go to the "Levels" section and click on the "Balance" button. Here you can adjust the sound volume of each headphone.
Next, go to the "Advanced Features" section and check whether the check mark is next to the line "Volume Leveling". You can experiment with bit depth and sound frequency by clicking the "Options" button in the same window. These characteristics allow you to improve the sound quality in both bluetooth headphones and wired models. The results of the experiments can be heard here by clicking on the appropriate button at the bottom of the window.
It will also be useful to update the drivers of your audio card. Newly developed codecs can produce sound with little distortion. Regular map updates eliminate this problem. In addition, you need to make sure that your headphones are connected to the external audio card (if any) behind the system unit, and not to the front panel, where the chip on the motherboard is responsible for the sound implementation.
Equalizer
Even the standard Windows player has its own equalizer, with which you can also improve the sound quality in the headphones. In order to adjust the frequencies, you need to start the application, and by calling the context menu with the right mouse button, go to the "Advanced Features" section, and then open the "Graphic Equalizer".
A window will open where the frequency sliders will be presented. To improve the sound quality in the headphones for a particular musical direction, you can choose one of several standard profiles. Or configure everything manually. All changes can be saved to the user profile.
It is worth clarifying that all sound settings will work only in this program. The quality of tracks played through other sources will remain unchanged.
Smartphones
You can also improve the sound quality of the headphones on the Android platform. In each individual firmware, menu items can be modified, but the principle itself remains unchanged. If you need to increase the volume of individual applications, you need to go to "Settings" and open the "Sound" section. Here you can set parameters for calls, alarms and other media files. Some technically advanced models even have noise reduction and bass boost modes.
By analogy with Windows, you can use a regular player. In most cases, it has several built-in profiles for each musical style. But you can adjust all the equalizer parameters manually: add effects, set mono or stereo output, set priorities for frequencies, etc.
Rude intervention
Some people prefer experimenting with the engineering menu. There is an opportunity to increase the maximum volume level, remove restrictions on low and high frequencies, as well as other functionality.
But working with the engineering menu, regardless of the consequences, deprives the manufacturer of a guarantee. So it’s better not to get into it, especially for beginners in this matter, because as a result, you can even leave the smartphone without sound, burning the audio chip.
Third-party software
On the Internet, you can find special programs whose task is to improve the sound in the headset. For example, add volumes or lower some frequencies. Consider a couple of the most popular applications.
Headphones Equalizer
This is one of the most sought after programs in its segment. The utility allows you to create your own equalizers based on your personal preferences and selected music genres. The application supports working with headphones of any brands.
There is the possibility of both automatic and manual adjustment of sound quality. Moreover, both processes are implemented equally well. More than half of the users, judging by the reviews, did not turn on manual tuning at all.
The application interface is intuitive and easy to learn even by beginners in this matter. All the main tools are located on the main screen, and the auxiliary is correctly categorized and divided into sections. There is no need to wander there. Moreover, the program received sensible Russian-language localization.
"Music player"
This application from the developer GentleMan Dev Studio can be called the most functional. There is everything related to music playback: amplifiers, visualizer, 3D Surround Sound modes and, of course, a sensitive five-band equalizer. All this helps to significantly improve the sound in the headphones.
The player supports all popular audio formats, including exotic ones such as AIFF and MO3. You can select one of several default profiles, or configure everything manually. Judging by user reviews, local presets are enough with a head.
You can also impose some special effects, remove existing and decode formats. Separately, it is worth mentioning the management. You can rewind songs, turn on tracks, and perform other actions using shaking, as well as through a voice assistant. Playback modes are also missing here. You can include tracks taking into account the musical direction, artist, duration and other parameters.
There are no questions to the application interface either. The menu is well-built, and all the main tools are assembled in one place. Additional functionality is in separate sections without any heap-small, which is inherent in products of such a plan. The program is fully translated into Russian along with the help system. So there should not be any problems with development.
It is also worth noting that the player can work with video content. The application received competent synchronization with the YouTube service, and you can view videos directly from the program interface. All tracks and videos from your playlist are easy to share with friends and like-minded people. The integrated functionality of popular social networks will immediately spread your musical mood to others.