First of all, those earbuds that come with the ipod are horrible, and should be dropped in the trash upon opening the package. I actually had someone come up to me on the subway back in 2004 and ask how I was able to rig my ipod to use “normal” headphones…
Anyway, to answer your question factually, it depends on the recording. Most stereo recordings of orchestras which I’ve listened to have not been mixed that way. As far as what is going on in my head, I’m usually focused more on what the music is supposed to represent, rather than trying to picture a live performance with sections.
They don’t have to be specifically for iPods - any headphones with a small jack that will fit in any given portable CD player, etc., will do the trick. I think I bought a $20 pair of Sony small in-ear headphones as my most recent set for my iPod.
Most earbud-style headphones with a small jack will be OK for an iPod. Look for ones with a white cord, those will work fine. I usually buy cheap Sony earbuds, white with aqua plastic bits on the earbud to match my iPod, and have no problems with them. Well, except the pair my sister’s dog chewed up.
If you’re listening to orchestral music, earbuds will give you a lousy sound unless you actually keep them pushed in with your fingers. The best are the noise-canceling headphones (expensive), but you should be happy with something in between.
There are several categories of headphones, so you have to figure out what you want. There are open-back phones, closed phones, earbuds, and in-ear phones. Open-backed phones generally give you the best sound for the money, but they provide no isolation from outside sounds, and they let others hear your music as well.
Earbuds are things that just sit in your ear and provide little isolation. In-ear phones form a seal with your ear canal.
I almost never picture an actual performance when listening to music. Now sometimes under the right “conditions”, I might be seeing interesting colors and patterns.
Exactly. This person ASSUMED that you could only use the earbuds that come with the ipod. I just had to laugh and tell him that it’s a regular headphone jack, and the person mumbled to himself something about how everyone he sees with an ipod has the same headphones…actually soon after, the NYPD started up this ad campaign telling people NOT to use the white earbuds, as they’ll make themselves targets for theft.
I recently got a $20 set of headphones - Sony MDR-XD200. They won’t fit in your pocket, but if your ears can only handle earmuff headphones, they’re a great value for the cost. It also has a 10 foot cord, which is weird when I’m on the go, but great for when the roommates are asleep and I want to watch a movie/tv.