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Headphones- From Then to Now.
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First in-ear headphones invented
These early headphones were invented and designed by Ernest Mercadier, a french engineer. They were not, in fact, invented for the purpose of music but instead for telephonists. This allowed them to speak to others on the phone without everyone else in close proximity hearing the call. This invention is considered a remarkable feat of miniturization. It is very similar to modern headphones down to the rubber bits! Source 0 -
First military use of headphones
Source 1Nathaniel Baldwin had sent a letter to the military, and attached were a pair of his prototype telephone headsets. Though it was the center of jokes for a little while, it turns out they were actually a definite improvement over the models the naval operators were currently using. Baldwin further rennovated his own headphones to fit the military's needs- and it turns out Baldwin was making these in his own kitchen in Utah! Therefore, production was limited. -
First Music-Based headphones made
John Koss, founder of the Koss Corporation, created the first commercial stereo headphones. Koss developed an entire "Private Listening" system. He talked to an audio engineer, Martin Lange and they made the headphones together to be commercially available. The sound was very enhanced and they had a great public reception Source 1 -
Lighter Design By Sony for Walkman
Before this time, most would listen to Koss's design at their home stereo. However, now that the much more portable Sony Walkman was released, the demand for lightweight headphones was obvious. The engineers at Sony realized this when they were releasing their product, and they came out with the MDR-3L2 headphones. Another innovation to note is that instead of wrapping around the ears, this design was worn on-ear.
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Noise cancelling headphones are invented
Dr. Amar Bose was trying to listen to music through headphones on a flight but then realized he couldn't hear a thing because of all the noise around him! Being the innovative man he was, he didn't just let it go- instead he created a research program at his company for noise cancellation. The Noise Reduction Technology Group (NRTG) came out of that research program and invented the first noise-cancelling headphones.
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