Klipsch Reference On Ear EQ settings

Parametric EQ correction for the Klipsch Reference On Ear, derived from measurements by Innerfidelity. It moves the measured frequency response toward a neutral target.

How the Reference On Ear sounds before EQ

Measured against a neutral target, the Reference On Ear comes out bass-heavy. The low end dominates the tuning and can mask the mids.

The mids region, vocals and most instruments, sits about 3.8 dB behind neutral, so vocals sit behind the instruments. The bass region, punch and bass lines, sits about 3.5 dB forward of neutral, so bass lines carry extra weight. The lower mids region, warmth and the body of voices, sits about 2.8 dB forward of neutral, so voices and guitars thicken up. The presence region, vocal clarity and attack, sits about 2.7 dB behind neutral, so detail and clarity soften.

The largest single move in the correction is 6.2 dB around 2 kHz, on top of a broad tilt of up to 3.8 dB. That is not subtle. This model benefits clearly from correction.

These figures are read from the correction itself: whatever the EQ lifts, the headphone lacked, and whatever it cuts, the headphone had too much of. The target is the community's neutral reference, and how far above 10 kHz you can trust any measurement varies by rig. More bass-heavy models.

The correction curve

The solid line is the full measured correction (all 10 filters). The dashed line is what Atrium applies: the same shape at 65 percent strength, capped at 6 dB per band, so the headphone keeps its own character instead of being forced flat.

What the EQ fixes

Summed across every filter, these are the changes the correction actually makes, largest first:

• Around 2 kHz the correction lifts the clarity region by 6.2 dB, over a medium-width band about 1.2 octaves wide.
• Around 5 kHz the correction lifts the sibilance range by 6.0 dB, over a narrow band about 0.5 octaves wide.
• Around 215 Hz the correction cuts the upper bass by 5.2 dB, over a broad band about 2.6 octaves wide.

The preamp of -6.2 dB offsets the boosts so nothing clips at full volume.

Parametric EQ settings

This is the published correction for the Reference On Ear, unaltered, in AutoEq format. It pastes straight into Equalizer APO or Peace on Windows, and into most parametric EQ apps. Enter every row, including the ones that cut. These are the values to use: the numbers are not rounded off or simplified for the page, because changing them would change the result.

How to use these settings

Manually: enter the preamp and each filter into any parametric EQ. On Windows that is usually Equalizer APO with the Peace interface. On a Mac, eqMac or SoundSource. Set the type, frequency, gain and Q exactly as listed.

With Atrium: pick your Reference On Ear in the app and it applies a tuned version of this correction: 65 percent strength with a 6 dB per-band cap, which fixes the rough spots without erasing what the headphone does well. Atrium also measures how you hear with a short listening test and layers your personal hearing profile on top. Two people with the same headphones do not hear the same sound. Headphone corrections are part of Signature Edition; the app itself is free.

Reference On Ear vs other Klipsch models

Bass and treble are each model's average distance from the neutral target in that range. Positive means more than neutral, negative means less.

Headphones that sound similar

Closest matches across all 4,332 measured models, by distance between their deviation curves. Useful if you like how the Reference On Ear is tuned and want alternatives.

More Klipsch EQ settings