Predicting preference is easier for in-ear than over-ear headphones

Evidence

A similar model was developed for IE headphones based on evaluations of 31 IE headphones made by 71 listeners (Olive et al., 2017b). It produced even higher correlations (r = 0.91) between predicted and observed preference ratings with a smaller error: RMSE = 5.5 preference rating. IE headphones tend to be more well behaved with smooth responses fewer resonances at higher frequencies, whereas larger diaphragm AE/OE headphones tend to misbehave. This could explain why the IE model is slightly better at predicting listener preference ratings. — Toole, Floyd E, Sound reproduction- the acoustics and…, 1814

Categorization

• XREF: Connects to the reader’s broader interest in psychoacoustic prediction models and their accuracy bounds across transducer types.
• corroborated: 2 independent passages support this claim — Toole, Floyd E, Sound reproduction- the acoustics and…, 1814