SoundID Listen app promises "truly personalised" headphones listening

SoundID Listen app promises "truly personalised" headphones listening
(Image credit: Sonarworks)

Sonarworks – the company whose audio software is used by music professionals in over 45,000 recording studios around the world – has announced a new desktop app designed to offer a personalised sound to anyone listening to their compatible headphones through their Mac or Windows PC.

Sound personalisation applications are hardly novel, however Sonarworks claims this is “ the first time [sic] one of the most respected companies in pro audio has come forward with a solution”. SoundID technology was born from the company’s professional audio software, which is used by the likes of Lady Gaga, Madonna, Rihanna, Adele, Coldplay and Kanye West.

SoundID creates an individual user profile based on your headphones, hearing ability and listening preferences. Thanks to the software’s use of algorithms and machine learning, it can evolve over time, too.

With an update due later this year, users will also be able to take their SoundID onto their phone and across streaming and social platforms.

Sonarworks’ early research claims that over 80 per cent of its blind test participants preferred their SoundID sound over their headphones’ performance without it.

If you want to hear it for yourself, you can download the free SoundID app from the iOS or Google Play Store, create your sound profile through the in-app test, and load your cloud-connected profile onto the SoundID Listen app on Mac or Windows. The software is free to try for 60 days, after which it costs $4.99 per month.

MORE:

Over-ear (yet in-ear) Nuraphones promise tailored listening

Dolby On app promises to improve audio recording on your phone

Best headphones 2020: all styles, all budgets

Best audiophile headphones 2020: the ultimate headphones

Becky Roberts

Becky is the managing editor of What Hi-Fi? and, since her recent move to Melbourne, also the editor of the brand's sister magazines Down Under – Australian Hi-Fi and Audio Esoterica. During her 11+ years in the hi-fi industry, she has reviewed all manner of audio gear, from budget amplifiers to high-end speakers, and particularly specialises in headphones and head-fi devices. In her spare time, Becky can often be found running, watching Liverpool FC and horror movies, and hunting for gluten-free cake.

Latest in Headphones
Meze Audio Poet
Meze's open-back Poet cans arrive, and they want to bring your music alive
Grado Signature S950 on a black background
Grado's open-back headphones boast upgraded drivers and Brazilian walnut earcups for a "refined, balanced sound"
Noise cancelling headphones: Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S2e
Ask The Industry: Bose, Sennheiser and other headphone experts explain how active noise cancellation can hurt sound quality
AirPods 3 vs AirPods 4 graphic
Apple AirPods 4 vs AirPods 3: what's new and should you upgrade?
Audio Technica ATH-CC500BT2
Audio-Technica's novel wireless headphones aim for high-quality audio and a comfortable fit wherever you go
Beats Powerbeats Pro 2
Beats' latest running headphones promise a lighter fit, improved sound and the brand's "best-ever" noise-cancelling
Latest in News
A grey WiiM Vibelink Amp on a wooden cabinet between two bookshelf speakers.
The WiiM Vibelink Amp is WiiM's first integrated amp with no streaming elements
Q Acoustics 3050i
Save £650 on this five-star Q Acoustics 5.1 home cinema setup
Optoma Photon Go on white background
Optoma's new on-the-go projector is set to be one of the cheaper USTs on the market
Marantz Cinema 30 AVR
Our Award-winning reference Marantz AVR is still selling at its best price ever
Meze Audio Poet
Meze's open-back Poet cans arrive, and they want to bring your music alive
Side view of Marantz CD6007 on wooden rack with magazines in background
This Award-winning Marantz CD player is back at its Black Friday price