Uploaded June 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago

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Andrew, Griffin, and Caleb reflect on how better budget gear, maturation in measurement discourse, and other developments have made the modern headphone hobby easier to get into than ever.

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How to read the new measurements:
youtube.com/watch?v=QWS-hIzI1KU
Why you shouldn’t use AutoEQ: youtube.com/watch?v=s0nZCXyDTz4
The 10 stages of headphone measurements
youtu.be/LrIoNMeo_GI
Sound quality in headphones explained: youtu.be/Km2DNLbB-6o?si=DkKz5tAnv42Tg9FF

00:00 - Intro
00:59 - What's changed from when we started
07:42 - How do we approach recommendations in this phase of the hobby?
09:02 - High-end vs. budget-fi
16:52 - Getting into the hobby is easier now than ever
17:43 - What would we choose to buy in today's market?
22:13 - Conclusion