Sound
V-shaped
Also called V-shape, scooped mids, smile curve
A V-shaped tuning boosts both the bass and the treble and pulls the midrange back, so the frequency response looks like a V. It sounds exciting and impactful, at the cost of voices sitting behind the drums and cymbals.
V-shaped is the most common consumer tuning, especially in budget IEMs and wireless headphones, because it impresses on first listen. The recessed Mids can make vocals distant and guitars thin.
A milder version with less of a dip is called U-shaped. Compared with the Diffuse-field curve, the Harman target adds a bass shelf, which is why mild-V and "Harman-ish" tunings can look alike.
Whether a V is a flaw depends on the music. Electronic and hip-hop benefit from the bass and sparkle; acoustic and vocal recordings suffer most.