Customer Reviews

Koss EQ50 3-Band Stereo Equalizer

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(13)

 

 

I disagree with two of the people who have nothing good to say about this equalizer, and understand that they may be expecting it to match the performance of extremely high quality audio equipment -- which won't need it anyway.

This equalizer is extremely useful if you are trying to listen to -- say -- tapes of old time radio, shortwave broadcasts, or noisy AM signals. You can reduce harshness, improve bass response, and reduce noise effects.

However, it does have some limitations, related to its low price. At $20 retail price, such a helpful and flexible gadget will not have perfect audio performance, and it doesn't. There is a SLIGHT hiss audible at all times, apparently intrinsic in the audio chip used for the headphone amp. The hiss is introduced after the volume control; it's there all the time. Depending on the input voltage of the device to which it's connected, the hiss can be as loud as -30 dB, or as soft as -50 dB or lower; and it is predominantly a very bright hissing. So extremely efficient, bright headphones may exaggerate it. I hope Koss improves this device in a future model; but for low fidelity source material, and with phones that are not extremely bright, the hiss introduced by this device is MUCH, much lower than the hiss intrinsic in a tape, radio broadcast, or old recording and will quickly be ignored. If, however, you are hooking this to a CD player to listen with excellent phones to wideband digital recordings, you'll notice the hiss -- and be annoyed, depending on your sensibilities.

I am glad I purchased one. My intended use was to listen to cassettes of old time radio shows. Many of the commercial tapes are not well corrected and sound extremely harsh and thin; this equalizer fixes that quite nicely. The bands are well chosen to have an aural effect where poor recordings have flaws.

For background: I am a retired audio engineer with three decades in broadcasting and recording, and an enthusiast of OTR and recordings of old classic performances of music from the fifties back to the twenties, many of which NEED help that this equalizer can provide.

First off... note: I don't use this for my MP3 player. I'm a medical transcriptionist who spends her day immersed in technical dictation by doctors with heavy accents, surrounded by background noise, often speaking nearly inaudibly. This thing has saved the day for me. The EQ on the unit helps allay the inconsistency in sound quality from one dictator's environment to the next. The volume control has made even the quietest dictations perfectly audible.

My accuracy and production have increased measurably in the four or so years I've used this thing, with not a single problem with the unit itself, though I do, of course, go through a lot of batteries.

So the short story is... if you are looking for some fancy high performance gadget for your Ipod, this probably isn't what you want. If you don't need packaging glamour, or if you're looking for something to help you decode quiet spoken word recordings, this is probably what you want.

There is a little story before this:

I bought a pair of Sony MDR-XD100's (they are full cup headphones) because I lost the earbuds which came with my mp3 player (Sony HD5). I took them out of the package and found that, even at full volume on the player, it cannot drive the headphones sufficently. I went to a few electronics stores then found the KOSS EQ50.

On with the review:

Yes, there is a slight hiss, but I find it alright. The biggest gripe I have is that whenever someone within about 2-3 ft (IE, on a bus or subway) uses a cellphone, this devices picks it up. You can get the same effect by using a cellphone next to an unshielded pair or speakers. I do most of my listening at home so this won't bo too much of an issue.

It also does a great job of amplifying the signal, it works very well, I can now listen to my XD100's properly (and they are very good!). I haven't used the EQ much but what I can say is that it is very, very sensitive. Raising the bass slider a third above normal makes a massive difference. At a half, my headphones start to distort.

If your looking for a nice little EQ and/or preamp this is the product for you. It has its drawbacks though, mainly the problem with cellphone interference and of course, the hiss but it isn't too loud & I can live with it.

I reccomend this product if your looking for a budget portable equalizer or headphone amplifer.

Just got this device today. I purchased it because my ZUNE does not have eq functions.

I used to work in recording studios so my ears are trained... I am not only familiar with what all different types of distortions sound like, but I also have a pretty good frequency spectrum recognition (trained by hours of playing with warble sine wave test tones and various parametric equalizers.) This is what I have to say about this unit...:

First of, the specification of this unit is 30hz - 20khz, but there is no tolerance indicated (+-db, THD, etc) so this number is pretty much garbage... The center frequencies of the graphic EQ are 125hz for bass, 1Khz for mid, and 10Khz for treble, with all bands adjustable +- 10 db. There is no information on the Q and bandwidth of the curves applied. The bass and treble bands are likely shelved, but I have yet to play any sine wave test tones through this unit so I cannot verify this.

This unit emits a hiss noticeable at approximately 10khz - 16Khz, which is why I suspect the treble EQ is shelved... This is not all bad or unacceptable for a unit this cheap...

However, I am not all that pleased with the choice of center frequency of the bass EQ. Most pop music sound much punchier with a boost of bass EQ centered around 50hz or so. I am not all that concerned with frequency below 40hz or so since all earphones by design cannot do an adequate job with bone conduction hearing anyway... Bass EQ centered at 150hz is way too high and makes modern pop recording sound bloated without the more satisfying lower notes. It makes a recording sound like those cheap boom boxes... I suspect KOSS chose this bass band center frequency to cater this device to ALL cheap headphones on the market, as increase of the lower tones will greatly distort headphones that cannot handle that kind of boost.

So if your expectation is very low, and your device does not provide any EQ at all (like the new ZUNE), then this unit will likely satisfy you. However, I do not think this device is of any use for devices that already have build in EQ functions. There are only 3 very coarse bands, the bass band center frequency is way off for any descent music listening, and there is small amount of noise (which is the least of the problems)...

As a musician, my ears are very acute to detail in sound quality. I like to walk and listen to music, so I own a few MP3 players of various brand names. The problem is, an MP3 file (meaning song) is compressed, or reduced in size. Therefore, many songs do not sound as pure, clean and full in MP3 format versus the full non-compressed sound of a normal CD. While many MP3 players have built-in equalizers in the menu section that allow you to adjust your highs/mids/lows, the sound is still NOT as good as it could be. So how do you truly enhance the tones of your music? Buy this Koss unit. The 3-band EQ is surely enough to give you the tone adjustments you will need. It uses two AAA batteries (not included) and DOES include one cable that attaches your MP3 player's headphone jack to the Koss EQ "input" jack. You then plug your headphones or earbuds into the "output" jack on the Koss.. Think of it this way. The sound comes out of your MP3 player and goes into your Koss EQ, then from your Koss, the music goes to yoru headphones so you can hear it. The Koss has an On/Off switch that you MUST remember to turn OFF when you are not using it so that you do not wear out your batteries. Along with this, I recommend you purchase Sennheiser PX 200 folding headphones that give you a true powerful bass sound. These headphones, combined with the Koss EQ will be the ultimate sound accessories to ANY MP3 player. Believe me...I do NOT waste time posting a review unless I truly believe in the product.
The choice is yours, but if you want your music to sound premium, this is the dynamo recipe!!!!

Hats off to KOSS for this device-IT SCREAMS!!!
Without a doubt, another "big bang for the buck" product
from KOSS & AMAZON!!!
(Better buy two before volume & fun become outlawed!)

I mow grass on Zero-Turn & Tractor mowers all day long.
Stock, wimpy MP3/CD players directly into headphones-
Just DON'T CUT IT!!
I want to HEAR & FEEL the music!

To simplify it, here's the set-up that I use:
1. MP3/CD/Casette player-into-
2. Boostaroo amplifier-into-
3. Koss EQ50 3-Band Equalizer-into-
4. Koss KTXPRO 1 Titanium Headphones

(All above components are available from AMAZON !!!)

THE "HISS" ISSUE:
Yeah, I've had an "audiophile" ear for the last 35+ years-
YES-ALL personal stereo gear emit SOME hiss to a degree however the 1-2 dB of added hiss of the Koss EQ-3 is negligible.
NO-this unit does not have a belt clip AND it is slightly larger than most MP3's, it is however THINER than most personal stereo gear.

THE CONTROLS:
Robust rotary volume, no wobble tone sliders, solid on/off power switch.
What is really great about the Koss EQ3 Equalizer is the full range control of the 3-band sliders (Bass-Mid-High).
These slider controls offer a wide range of audio trim/boost to your music signal! When Koss says 10dB of boost/cut on each band-They mean it!!
WAY BETTER- tone control than the built in "EQ curve" selection of the player being used!

ADDED FEATURE:
The Koss 3-Band EQ3 also has a "volume" control knob, when used in line BEFORE your MP3 player, this volume control acts as a TRIM or GAIN control which allows you to increase the volume (and definition of the music) of the MP3/CD/Cassette player. Sort of like a master volume on a guitar amp! (you "axe hackers" know what I mean!)

Get it FACTORY FRESH from AMAZON-for the lowest price anywhere !!!

I use this equalizer for transcribing cassette tapes and digital uploads in my home business. It works like a charm at eliminating most background noises, adjusting bass voices for better audibility, and provides up to 75% volume increase for soft voices. Would be great for secretaries whose bosses dictate on airplanes or in the car, too. It also works well for MP3 players and all kinds of stereo systems. Simply plug your headphone into the equalizer, and the equalizer into the headphone outlet of your stereo or dictation equipment. Great little gadget!!!

Unfortunately, I disregarded the pervious reviewer and purchased this product anyway. It is very noisy (heavy hissing)--totally unacceptable. I'm highly disappointed in Koss.

I do transcriptions from home, both electronic and on tapes, and have begun using this and it really has helped with the ability to hear the statements better. My only complaint is that I forget to turn it off at times and it then runs the battery down but that's my fault for not double checking that it's turned off. I was given one and I have bought one and I will continue to use them.

This product is great for anyone who has to listen through headphones for work. You can make the sound come through a lot clearer.