In a few ways, yes, they are missing out. But, perhaps it is not because music is "better" on the speakers - though my gut tells me it is.

I think they are also missing out on the having to negotiate and communicate with the other people in their living space (or adjacent to their living space!), the car, wherever. If I wanted to listen to music when I was growing up, I had to deal with my sibling(s) and my parents - homework, phone conversations, other music all had to be negotiated; I eventually got headphones, but I still preferred being able to hear it fill the room instead of just filling my head. Cars were especially prone to negotiation because we all had different preferences and there were no headphones (this was shortly before Walkman's became popular and noone thought of carrying their own little cassette player with cheap little earphones.

I think that the real decrease in music quality, though, is not the headphones, but the way music has become so compressed at the production level.

But, perhaps it is a natural evolution in how we listen to music, though. Before quality home stereos, you had to go to the symphony hall or to a jazz club or ballroom to listen to music - it was a communal experience. Then, it became a home experience. Then, it became a car experience. Then, a computer speaker experience. Now, it has become a in your ear experience. (What next? Piped directly into your brain? I already hear voices... ;-) ) Heck, I haven't even bothered to put up "real" speakers in my new house (though pre-wired), and I listen to music day and night.

Thanks for the question, andy. It got me thinking first thing in the a.m. - always a good thing.

Hmmm..It depends on the person in how they are able to listen to music. I used to work at a Boutique stereo store and even after describing sound staging and sound separation some people could not tell the difference between a $100 dollar pair of speakers vs a $1000 dollar set.

"Is music better with big speakers instead of tiny earphones?"

Again depending on the quality of the playback gear..Some prefer Can-Headphones others prefer earbuds....I prefer my Mirage Monitor speakers for critical listening.

I prefer big speakers to earphones and think anyone who listens exclusively to earphones is missing out on learning to differentiate between the two, EXCEPT that the compressed and edited digital deformities that are offered up as music wouldn't allow as much of a difference as you might think. Computer programs and real live file-size butchers regularly chop "unnecessary" details out of the music as initially created to such an extent that the artists themselves who hear the final result have been know to cry and barely recognize their own work.

Going one step further, big speakers playing the best of accurate recordings will never hold a candle to live performance. Anyone who listens exclusively to recorded music is missing out on learning to discern the subtleties and superiority of live music. There is always another step to take in music appreciation. Which is good.

There is no substitute for real air pushing speakers.
-->-->-->-->But todays high end earphones deliver music undistorted because frequency specific speakers, nearly touching your eardrums in an almost silent realm, can deliver clear sound at low volumes.-->

The iPod generation is getting some tremendous sound when they use stage monitor earphones. What these devices do is put the music directly in the ear channel, very close to the inner ear, using earplugs to dampen surrounding outside sounds. You can play your music very soft and hear everything. A good pair of top end earphones will cost you less than one decent studio monitor loudspeaker. Earphones are ideal for portable devices like ipods and laptops, if you want to hear great music on the go.

How do you wear yours?