• Light/Dark
  • Ever wanted an RSS feed of all your favorite gaming news sites? Go check out our new Gaming Headlines feed! Read more about it here.
  • We have made minor adjustments to how the search bar works on ResetEra. You can read about the changes here.

Audio Era: Because Sound Matters

Brucey

Brucey

Member
Jan 2, 2018
828
DJ Lushious said:
The "+Dolby" is your receiver upmixing the source to include any additional speakers you have. This brief HighDef Digest article has the listener doing a quick review; I find it is a good starting point to understanding what Dolby Surround and DTS Neural: X.

PCM Multi In is the direct audio feed from the source. The audio display is in two parts: {Direct Feed from Source} + {AVR upmixing}

You say you have 5.1 speakers. I would think that you couldn't upmix a 5.1 feed to 5.1. How do you have your speaker configuration set up?
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
Is this the article? https://www.highdefdigest.com/news/...und/upmixed-dolby-surround-v-dtsneuralx/32382

Oh ok! Does the "+" always mean upmix? If that's the case should I avoid upmixing when possible?

My configuration is 2 fronts, a center, a left and right surround. and a subwoofer. All speakers are set to small with an 80hz crossover. Subwoofer is set to Lfe. And lpf for lfe is set to 120hz.

I don't really notice a difference between setting my avr to auto and it selecting multi ch in and me physically pressing game and choosing multi in + Dolby surround. The only difference is setting it to auto makes me have to turn the volume down from 44 to 38 cause it's louder for some reason.

Should I just do multi ch in and forget about the +Dolby surround? Thanks for the help everyone btw :)
 
Last edited:
DJ Lushious

DJ Lushious

Enhanced Xperience
Member
Oct 27, 2017
3,330
Brucey said:
Is this the article? https://www.highdefdigest.com/news/...und/upmixed-dolby-surround-v-dtsneuralx/32382

Oh ok! Does the "+" always mean upmix? If that's the case should I avoid upmixing when possible?

My configuration is 2 fronts, a center, a left and right surround. and a subwoofer. All speakers are set to small with an 80hz crossover. Subwoofer is set to Lfe. And lpf for lfe is set to 120hz.

I don't really notice a difference between setting my avr to auto and it selecting multi ch in and me physically pressing game and choosing multi in + Dolby surround. The only difference is setting it to auto makes me have to turn the volume down from 44 to 38 cause it's louder for some reason.

Should I just do multi ch in and forget about the +Dolby surround? Thanks for the help everyone btw :)
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
Yeah, sorry, I forgot the link; it is the one you linked above. "+" always means upmixing. All of your settings look good, in regards to LFE and low-pass filter.

At this point I'm genuinely curious what the upmixing is doing on a 5.1 signal in a 5.1 configuration. Maybe nothing, but it still displays in case of a mono/stereo signal? I honestly don't know, though.
 
Brucey

Brucey

Member
Jan 2, 2018
828
DJ Lushious said:
Yeah, sorry, I forgot the link; it is the one you linked above. "+" always means upmixing. All of your settings look good, in regards to LFE and low-pass filter.

At this point I'm genuinely curious what the upmixing is doing on a 5.1 signal in a 5.1 configuration. Maybe nothing, but it still displays in case of a mono/stereo signal? I honestly don't know, though.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
Ok well I'm glad my settings look good haha I'm not very bright when it comes to this stuff.

Yeah I dunno. At this point I don't think Dolby surround is adding anything compared to just multi ch in. I can't tell any difference between the two.

I just put pokemon (lol) on Netflix to test. It's a 2 channel stereo source. And sound is only coming from my 2 fronts and it says sound is multi in + Dolby surround. Sound doesn't change when I pick auto either, it selects multi in like always.

The weird thing is it says input signal has surround backs left and back right while I only have surrounds left and right (active)
But it says that for anything that i use like games or anything 5.1.

I don't know if that's the way it should be or if I did something wrong.

Here's what my info looks like when I select multi in + Dolby surround
9uhUtBd_d.jpg


And the input signal looks the same when I select auto
Gj1STJy_d.jpg


Am I dumb or why is the input signal giving me sbl and sbr? Lol
 
Last edited:
Brucey

Brucey

Member
Jan 2, 2018
828
DJ Lushious said:
Let's start here. What device is giving you that input signal? Surely there's a way to get it to send 5.1, rather than the current 7.1 feed.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
Ok haha sorry! Every device is giving me that signal. Ps4. Xbox one. For ps4 I have linear pcm selected.

Edit: Xbox one is working now at 5.1

Awhile ago I had switched it over to 5.1 instead of 7.1 in the settings. When I went and looked at my info right after it still said it was 7.1.

I haven't used Xbox since. Guess it needed to be turned on and off again for it to take affect. My bad sorry.

Still don't know how to change from 7.1 to 5.1 for ps4 though. Seems to be a problem with linear pcm as the other two options output 5.1. But I heard pcm is the best audio and is lossless for games that's why I selected it. how do I get it to output 5.1 I wonder?

Edit: got helped. Thank you :)
 
Last edited:
DJ Lushious

DJ Lushious

Enhanced Xperience
Member
Oct 27, 2017
3,330
Brucey said:
Still don't know how to change from 7.1 to 5.1 for ps4 though.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
Settings > Sound and Screen > Audio Output Settings > Primary Output Port > HDMI Out

Then the system should ask if you want to output 5.1, instead.

(That should be the instructions, but I was only able to get to so far while remoting into my PS4.)
 
Brucey

Brucey

Member
Jan 2, 2018
828
Lakershead22

Lakershead22

Member
Oct 27, 2017
968
Los Angeles, CA
Hello, I have a 4k TV with HDR and my old receiver is not compatible with those features on the TV. What is a good 5.1 receiver that allows me to have 4K and HDR pass-through for around $300?
 
johan

johan

Member
Oct 29, 2017
1,554
I'm looking to buy two front bookshelf passive speakers to make this new loft like living room sound good. I already have a receiver and a subwoofer! I have some old wall mounted small pioneer speakers (the subwoofer is part of that set), but I kinda just wanna go 2.1 for now and go with 2 sweet bookshelf speakers. Main use is video games, of course, and video content. We'll be playing music too, but I'm less picky about that. Might expand to 5.1 later, but for now 2.1 is fine.

Currently looking at the Q Acoustic 3020i's and the Elac Debut B6.2's. From what I'm reading, they're both very good! It's kinda hard finding reviews that also talks about video games/video content though, most of them are all about how music sounds. Do any of you have these speakers or other suggestions?

I'm not a huuuuge audiophile so maybe I should get something cheaper..

I had some (active) studio speakers hooked up to my receiver before, but I had to connect them using the headphone port, and that was less than ideal - will also disable subwoofer output. Music sounds pretty good on those, but it was hard hearing voices on them, which isn't ideal for movies and the like. Thanks!!
 
Brucey

Brucey

Member
Jan 2, 2018
828
johan said:
I'm looking to buy two front bookshelf passive speakers to make this new loft like living room sound good. I already have a receiver and a subwoofer! I have some old wall mounted small pioneer speakers (the subwoofer is part of that set), but I kinda just wanna go 2.1 for now and go with 2 sweet bookshelf speakers. Main use is video games, of course, and video content. We'll be playing music too, but I'm less picky about that. Might expand to 5.1 later, but for now 2.1 is fine.

Currently looking at the Q Acoustic 3020i's and the Elac Debut B6.2's. From what I'm reading, they're both very good! It's kinda hard finding reviews that also talks about video games/video content though, most of them are all about how music sounds. Do any of you have these speakers or other suggestions?

I'm not a huuuuge audiophile so maybe I should get something cheaper..

I had some (active) studio speakers hooked up to my receiver before, but I had to connect them using the headphone port, and that was less than ideal - will also disable subwoofer output. Music sounds pretty good on those, but it was hard hearing voices on them, which isn't ideal for movies and the like. Thanks!!
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
I have the Elac b6.2's and I would recommend them! I use them as my sides though, not as fronts as you are planning. But that hasn't stopped me from being impressed.

In games I've been surprised when spinning the camera around while characters are talking or when the action picks up I hear no difference really between my fronts and the b6's it keeps up very well.

And in overwatch I've been picking up things like crazy. Peoples footsteps. Sounds of thunder and trees bristling when idle on the main menu. The wonderful music of horizon zero dawn punching through creating this incredible chamber of sound.

They can sound very loud if need be for games and such but also super subtle as well in movies.

The first day I set my system up I played guardians of the galaxy 2, there's a scene where rocket falls on a bunch of rocks and one skips over him and it played on my right surround. I actually turned around and looked at my door cause I thought someone was knocking. It was that convincing to me haha.

I'm no audiophile either though so I'm sure others will offer better advice but I also did some research and came across a ton of praise for these speakers. Some people even said the b6.2's were a bit overkill as surround speakers and would be better suited as fronts so that would work well for you!

Whatever you choose I hope you enjoy setting up your system :)
 
johan

johan

Member
Oct 29, 2017
1,554
Brucey said:
I have the Elac b6.2's and I would recommend them! I use them as my sides though, not as fronts as you are planning. But that hasn't stopped me from being impressed.

In games I've been surprised when spinning the camera around while characters are talking or when the action picks up I hear no difference really between my fronts and the b6's it keeps up very well.

And in overwatch I've been picking up things like crazy. Peoples footsteps. Sounds of thunder and trees bristling when idle on the main menu. The wonderful music of horizon zero dawn punching through creating this incredible chamber of sound.

They can sound very loud if need be for games and such but also super subtle as well in movies.

The first day I set my system up I played guardians of the galaxy 2, there's a scene where rocket falls on a bunch of rocks and one skips over him and it played on my right surround. I actually turned around and looked at my door cause I thought someone was knocking. It was that convincing to me haha.

I'm no audiophile either though so I'm sure others will offer better advice but I also did some research and came across a ton of praise for these speakers. Some people even said the b6.2's were a bit overkill as surround speakers and would be better suited as fronts so that would work well for you!

Whatever you choose I hope you enjoy setting up your system :)
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...

Thanks Brucey!! I'll definitely consider them, and I'll most certainly have fun setting up my system!!
 
kvetcha

kvetcha

Banned
Oct 27, 2017
7,835
demosthenes said:
SVS PB-2000 was delayed (they e-mailed an apology, but didn't say why it was delayed) but it is plugged in finally and it is massive. Haven't been able to test it out really much but even when friends were over watching the Avengers last night it was shining. When the hellicarrier is lifting off when Hulk was running through it, the fighting in Manhattan. Mmmm, I can't wait to test some jucier stuff.

What are people's favorite movies / scenes? I heard the start of Edge of Tomorrow is fantastic.

Also, I see youtube has some tests, would these be good when running via my PS4?
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...

Master and Commander is one of the best sounding movies ever made.
 
Noons End

Noons End

Member
Nov 5, 2017
39
Getting a new TV soon and looking to get some decent sound out of it, mainly been looking at soundbars in the sub $300 CAD range (should be a big step up from my $40 logitech speakers I've been using I'd hope). Anyone have any experience with the Yanaha YAS 108? Looks to be the best deal I can find with good reviews at only $250.
 
Stall_19

Stall_19

Member
Oct 27, 2017
5,998
Noons End said:
Getting a new TV soon and looking to get some decent sound out of it, mainly been looking at soundbars in the sub $300 CAD range (should be a big step up from my $40 logitech speakers I've been using I'd hope). Anyone have any experience with the Yanaha YAS 108? Looks to be the best deal I can find with good reviews at only $250.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
This might be the best bang for you buck for now. At least according to Cnet.
 
Klotera

Klotera

Member
Oct 27, 2017
1,550
I'm curious how well newer soundbars would compare in sound quality to an older set of home theater speakers. Do older home theater speakers still hold up today compared to newer stuff? I'm still using a set of Klipsch Quintet II speakers from 2004 with matching 10-inch sub. Cost me a decent amount of money back then, paired with a Sony receiver that was high end for 2004. I've since upgrade the receiver multiple times, but still using the same speakers. The receiver I'm currently using is an Onkyo TX-NR656, which supports full HDR/DV passthrough and Dolby Atmos.

I still think the speakers sound pretty good on their own merits, despite being 14 years old now. However, now that advancements in putting big sound in smaller packages have been made, I wonder if I'd be able to get similar quality to these in a soundbar set, or if these speakers would still outperform soundbars today. My main motivation would simply be to clean up the look of the area and reduce wire clutter. I'm not necessarily looking for better sound quality, just matching sound quality. With Black Friday deals going on, I see some good deals on surround Atmos soundbar sets, like the LG SK10Y or the Vizio SB36512-F6, so now would be the time to jump, if I decided to go that route.
 
Powerofthecloud

Powerofthecloud

Member
Oct 27, 2017
9,427
Klotera said:
I still think the speakers sound pretty good on their own merits, despite being 14 years old now. However, now that advancements in putting big sound in smaller packages have been made, I wonder if I'd be able to get similar quality to these in a soundbar set, or if these speakers would still outperform soundbars today. My main motivation would simply be to clean up the look of the area and reduce wire clutter. I'm not necessarily looking for better sound quality, just matching sound quality. With Black Friday deals going on, I see some good deals on surround Atmos soundbar sets, like the LG SK10Y or the Vizio SB36512-F6, so now would be the time to jump, if I decided to go that route.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...

What advancements? Speakers are still speakers. There really hasn't been anything new there. Yeah we have better DACs etc now but two bookshelves that are seperate are going to give you a better experience. But speakers are speakers and can be a pain to arrange and blend in your living room.

Simplicity- get a sound bar

Better quality- stick with speakers
 
nikasun :D

nikasun :D

Member
Oct 30, 2017
3,165
So I just installed my 4 height speakers and I use them for Dolby Atmos and hot damn, it is awesome. Still waiting on the couch to have the correct seating height.

What are some of the best films/music titles to watch/listen to?
 
GearDraxon

GearDraxon

Member
Oct 25, 2017
2,786
Flandy

Flandy

Community Resettler
Member
Oct 25, 2017
3,445
Hey everyone I need some help. So first of all I'm not an audiophile. I didn't buy this equipment and they were basically just hand me downs that I happened to get.
Anyway my amps screen stopped turning on and wasn't outputting any more audio. The power button would turn on as there was a battery but the rest didn't work. I noticed the USB wasn't connected so I plugged it in which resulted in a high pitched whine. After that not even the power button would light up. This was the dac/amp I had.
https://www.amazon.com/FiiO-Alpen-Portable-Headphone-Amplifier/dp/B0070UFMOW/

I was using it with a pair of Senheiser hd700's. I'm not an audiophile so I honestly don't know if that was a good setup but since it's gone now I'd like to get a proper one if that wasn't correct
https://www.amazon.com/Sennheiser-HD-700-Headphone-stereo/dp/B0070U8KSM/
 
Last edited:
Ra

Ra

Rap Genius
Moderator
Oct 27, 2017
12,207
Dark Space
Flandy said:
Hey everyone my I need some help. So first of all I'm not an audiophile. . I didn't buy this equipment and they were basically just hand me downs that I happened to get.
Anyway my amps screen stopped turning on and wasn't outputting any more audio. The power button would turn on as there was a battery but the rest didn't work. I noticed the USB wasn't connected so I plugged it in which resulted in a high pitched whine. After that not even the power button would light up. This was the dac/amp I had.
https://www.amazon.com/FiiO-Alpen-Portable-Headphone-Amplifier/dp/B0070UFMOW/

I was using it with a pair of Senheiser hd700's. I'm not an audiophile so I honestly don't know if that was a good setup but since it's gone now I'd like to get a proper one if that wasn't correct
https://www.amazon.com/Sennheiser-HD-700-Headphone-stereo/dp/B0070U8KSM/
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
Sheesh, an HD700 and E17 are one hell of a good hand down setup. I had an E17 for many years, it's a good to great portable amp.

So are you asking if you should just replace it? The FiiO E17K is even better sounding, if you want to go that route.
 
Flandy

Flandy

Community Resettler
Member
Oct 25, 2017
3,445
K.Jack said:
Sheesh, an HD700 and E17 are one hell of a good hand down setup. I had an E17 for many years, it's a good to great portable amp.

So are you asking if you should just replace it? The FiiO E17K is even better sounding, if you want to go that route.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
Thanks for the input. The specs for this day it supports. Seems the dac is rated at 16-150 ohm. My hd700 are rated at 150. I don't really know what ohm means but I assume that means they work well together?

Also is there any benefit to plugging my pc speakers into this thing? They're a regular $20 pair of speakers since I don't want to have headphones on all the time.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EZ9XKCM/
 
nikasun :D

nikasun :D

Member
Oct 30, 2017
3,165
Any recommendations for an LFE/Subwoofer cinch cable? (Europe/Austria here).

Edit: I guess Amazon Basics should be solid enough?
 
Bumrush

Bumrush

Member
Oct 25, 2017
6,770
Someone please help! GearDraxon you have a similar setup so maybe you can weigh in...

On my Denon x3400h the 4K Signal Format setting can be switched between standard and enhanced, with enhanced significantly improving the image quality, color, etc in HDR.

Unfortunately, when I switch to enhanced, my cable box - which is obviously not 4K - loses sound. The image comes through just fine, but the sound is gone.

No other inputs are impacted as the ATV, PS4 and UHD player are all 4K. Please tell me I don't have to manually change this every time I switch between cable and other sources. Please.
 
GearDraxon

GearDraxon

Member
Oct 25, 2017
2,786
Bumrush said:
Someone please help! GearDraxon you have a similar setup so maybe you can weigh in...

On my Denon x3400h the 4K Signal Format setting can be switched between standard and enhanced, with enhanced significantly improving the image quality, color, etc in HDR.

Unfortunately, when I switch to enhanced, my cable box - which is obviously not 4K - loses sound. The image comes through just fine, but the sound is gone.

No other inputs are impacted as the ATV, PS4 and UHD player are all 4K. Please tell me I don't have to manually change this every time I switch between cable and other sources. Please.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
If possible, try swapping HDMI cables on this input with one that is known to be 4k-compatible and working correctly.
 
Bumrush

Bumrush

Member
Oct 25, 2017
6,770
GearDraxon said:
If possible, try swapping HDMI cables on this input with one that is known to be 4k-compatible and working correctly.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...

I did, and same result. It's an issue with the cable box.

I can by-pass the AVR for the cable box and just go straight to another HDMI (but I won't use my speakers for cable TV) or I could try to set up a rule for the Harmony (although this seems super complicated and I'm not sure how to do it). Any thoughts?

You don't have this issue with Cable?
 
SirMossyBloke

SirMossyBloke

Member
Oct 26, 2017
5,855
I have a question that I've never seemed to be able to get answered over the years, hoping someone here can help.

I have a 7.1 system, but it's set as 5.1 with front heights. In settings on PS4 Pro am I selecting 5.1 or 7.1? I would assume 5.1 and my system upmixes the last two channels, but I'm not sure.
 
GearDraxon

GearDraxon

Member
Oct 25, 2017
2,786
Bumrush said:
I did, and same result. It's an issue with the cable box.

I can by-pass the AVR for the cable box and just go straight to another HDMI (but I won't use my speakers for cable TV) or I could try to set up a rule for the Harmony (although this seems super complicated and I'm not sure how to do it). Any thoughts?

You don't have this issue with Cable?
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
I wouldn't use the Harmony for this - it'd be a long, complicated macro, and if it misses a step who knows what settings it would beef up on your AVR.

I don't have cable or satellite, so I'm less help on this, sorry!
 
Bumrush

Bumrush

Member
Oct 25, 2017
6,770
GearDraxon said:
I wouldn't use the Harmony for this - it'd be a long, complicated macro, and if it misses a step who knows what settings it would beef up on your AVR.

I don't have cable or satellite, so I'm less help on this, sorry!
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...

I'm just going to bypass the AVR. For anything big that I'd care about better sound, I'll plug it into the AVR boom
 

GaussianMultivariate

Banned
Jul 26, 2018
2,464
Dumb question before I open the sound bar (I'll try to return it if the setup won't work). I've got a TCL S405 TV (with spdif and analogical output), a PS4 Slim (no optical audio output) and a Vizio sb3621n-e8 soundbar (with rca and optical but no HDMI input). I cannot connect the PS4 directly to the soundbar.

If I connect my PS4 to the TV through HDMI and my TV to the soundbar through an optical cable, will my TV "forward" the console sound to the soundbar? I've read the TCL manual but it doesn't explain much.
 
sweetvar26

sweetvar26

Member
Oct 26, 2017
467
Milky Way Galaxy
Hey guys, I'm going for a 7.1.4 set up, starting off from the scratch and might eventually upgrade it to a 7.2.4. We bought a brand new condo and looking to invest into some good A/V tech. Just as a heads up, I'm in India right now and these electronics are extremely expensive.

As for the receiver, I've narrowed it down to Denon 6500 but it isn't launched here yet, so I might have to fall back to a Denon 6400 if I don't have an option. I'm trying to see if I can get it through someone coming from America but the voltage over there is 110v while here it is 220v.

Please do let me know if you have any suggestions. As for the subwoofer, I was really impressed with the SVS PB2000 which I've recently had a chance to experience it :D
 
Bumrush

Bumrush

Member
Oct 25, 2017
6,770
sweetvar26 said:
Hey guys, I'm going for a 7.1.4 set up, starting off from the scratch and might eventually upgrade it to a 7.2.4. We bought a brand new condo and looking to invest into some good A/V tech. Just as a heads up, I'm in India right now and these electronics are extremely expensive.

As for the receiver, I've narrowed it down to Denon 6500 but it isn't launched here yet, so I might have to fall back to a Denon 6400 if I don't have an option. I'm trying to see if I can get it through someone coming from America but the voltage over there is 110v while here it is 220v.

Please do let me know if you have any suggestions. As for the subwoofer, I was really impressed with the SVS PB2000 which I've recently had a chance to experience it :D
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...

I have a PB2000 and absolutely love it. Also tested a bunch of speakers and went with ELAC Debut 2.0s since they sounded the most "natural" to me. They sound incredible in house. Lastly I went with RSLs for the heights as they were so highly recommended on AVSFORUMS. They sound wonderful and don't break the bank!
 
Phendrana

Phendrana

Member
Oct 26, 2017
7,062
Melbourne, Australia
So I'm trying to get a budget sound system for my new Sony X900F set up, but am completely clueless when it comes to receivers.

I managed to get a good price on some QAcoustics 3010 passive bookshelf speakers. I was looking to find a decent budget receiver for them, and came across the Pioneer SX-10AE Bluetooth Power Music Stereo Receiver/Amplifier (https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/112932586950)

This has solid reviews, but it can only connect to the TV via RCA which seems kind of limiting? So on the same eBay store I found the Pioneer VSX-330 AV Receiver 5.1cn (https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/122219580853), which looks like it would have all of the outputs I would ever need.

My stupid question is...what is even the difference between these two units? The SX-10AE actually seems to have a higher RRP than the VSX-330 despite being cheaper on this eBay store. Do they both excel in different areas? I want my setup to be solid for gaming and watching movies, so am I right in thinking having an optical connection would be better? And is there anything I'm missing compatibility wise?

Any help with this would be greatly appreciated.
 
GearDraxon

GearDraxon

Member
Oct 25, 2017
2,786
Phendrana The SX model is just stereo (2 speakers) while the VSX is surround (5.1 speakers). If you're planning on doing surround, the latter is the only one of the two that will get you there.

Without looking at the specs, the SX may be more expensive because it's a better receiver - you can get 2-channel systems that run into the many thousands of dollars!
 
Bumrush

Bumrush

Member
Oct 25, 2017
6,770
RedlineRonin said:
Hope you like them! Will be very curious to hear (hehe) what you think
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...

Hey quick question...I ordered them and then went on ratings and it said they're semi open.

I'd like to use them for playing switch in bed, commuting, etc. How much sound leaks? I'd feel bad if my wife had to hear the Smash Ultimate announcer when she was trying to read.
 
RedlineRonin

RedlineRonin

Member
Oct 30, 2017
2,620
Minneapolis
Bumrush said:
Hey quick question...I ordered them and then went on ratings and it said they're semi open.

I'd like to use them for playing switch in bed, commuting, etc. How much sound leaks? I'd feel bad if my wife had to hear the Smash Ultimate announcer when she was trying to read.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
Hmmmmm

I guess I could anecdotally answer by saying that I listen to music at the office, usually at pretty reasonable volumes, and no one near me ever says anything about being able to hear it?

But they are definitely semi open.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.