What does Frequency Response, Power Handling, Sensitivity, and Impedence all mean?

The earbud world is filled with its own vocabulary, oftentimes difficult for the layman to understand. If you're one indisposed to understand terms such as frequency or impedance, we're here to walk you through, so you can make an informed decision for your new earphone purchase. Here are a few of the terms you will see when shopping for earbuds, and simple descriptions to help you finally understand just what you're looking for.

Frequency Response -

Sound is actually the vibrations of the air around us, and all sound is generated by these vibrations. The lesser the frequency, the deeper that sound will be (which, below 15Hz, can't even be picked up by the human ear), and, consequently, the greater the frequency of vibrations, the higher the sound will appear to our ears, until about 25kHz, at which point most peoples' hearing will not be able to sense such vibrations. The frequency response describes the range of frequencies at which the speakers are capable of output. The greater the range, the more music our ears will be able to hear.

Power Handling -

Every loudspeaker has its limits - power handling refers to the limid of wattage being able to enter into and through the speakers before damage could be done to the speakers. In small speakers, this is generally measured in milliwatts (mW), and, of course, the greater the number, the better. But, naturally, the smaller the headphone (or earphone), the lesser the power handling limit will be. For most users, however, this limit will not be an issue, as most don't pump enough volume through their earbuds to reach this limit.

Sensitivity -

This term refers to the sound output by the earphone. Specifically, it is a measurement received by tests to determine exactly how much power is required to output a certain amount of sound. Though it can be measured differently, such as in millivolts, when it comes to headphones and earbuds, sensitivity is normally measured in decibals (dB) per milliwatt (mW), meaning, for every milliwatt of power, a certan decibal amount of sound will be output. The higher the decibal amount, the higher the sensitivity rating will be. Obviously, this will differ depending on the size and quality of headphones/earbuds, and one might expect quality earbuds to have a higher sensitivity per milliwatt.

Impedence -

In earbuds, as is in all speakers, sound is carried to the speakers by an electrical current, where it is then translated into the vibrations which reach our ear. Impedence is, in short, a measurement of the quality of said electrical currents, as well as the amount of power the speaker requires to operate properly. Generally, most consumers will want to look for lower-impedence head/earbuds (below 100 ohms), while those in studios or other audio-intensive professions might want something with much higher impedence. A good rule is, the higher the impedence, the more power that will be required from the audio device for quality sound to be emitted from the speakers.