Build your new AIAIAI TMA-2 Headphone based on your Spotify Discover Weekly

Yes, it’s no joke! AIAIAI has managed to team up with Spotify to create an ingenious online application called TMA-2 Discovery. The point of this simple application is to help customize an AIAIAI TMA-2 modular headphone based on your Spotify Discover Weekly Playlist.

I decided to give it a try since I’m a fan of the AIAIAI TMA-2 modular headphone series and use Spotify on a daily basis. It’s fairly simple to use and all you need is an established Spotify account and internet connection to the AIAIAI website via your browser. Here’s how it works.

TMA-2 Discovery

First you go to the link http://aiaiai.dk/tma-2-discovery to begin the process. I used Chrome on a PC and imagine it probably also works via other browsers or on mobile devices too.

START
You’ll be asked for access to your Spotify account and once you get past that you go through a series of steps to get you to your custom TMA-2.

GENRES
After analyzing your Spotify Weekly Playlists you’re given a fancy graphic that represents the percentage of genres that you listen to. For example I was told that 38% of the music I listen to is rock and that 7% is techno. From there you can click on the genre objects and listen to music from your Discovery Weekly that fits that genre.

MOODS
From there you go through the same thing with moods. I was not surprised to find that based on my Discover Weekly I am only 3% tenderness.

TEMPO
The next step is tempo. Definitely a deciding factor in how your music sounds and what type of headphone you would listen to. I listen to all types of music and tempo tends to vary quite a bit. The TMA-2 Discovery seemed to confirm that. This one turned out more like a political vote. No clear majority.

TMA-2
Then you finally get to the last step where you get that informed recommendation the perfect AIAIAI modular TMA-2 headphone for you. Based on genre, mood and tempo of your Spotify Discover Weekly Playlist. Here’s the one AIAIAI recommended for me. I still dig the Young Guru Preset modular headphone though.

TMA-2 DISCOVERY REVIEW

I’m a big fan of Spotify and AIAIAI TMA-2 headphones but I have mixed feelings about the app. The idea is great and I want to like it but there’s a few flaws that need to be weeded out. Although I think Spotify is the best online streaming service available I am not a fan of the formula they use. This will likely get better in the future (like Google results over the years) but for now it’s not quite right. I find that I rarely listen to the Spotify Weekly and rather opt to use the other discover function in the Browse menu. This tends to be more accurate because it gives suggestions based on artists I listen to regularly. I can scan through the results and often find new artists as well as new albums from my favorite artists.

The formula would make more sense if it made a more even judgement based on artists I follow, music I listen to frequently and my custom playlists. This would be a much better gauge of what kind of music I listen to on a regular basis. Actually I make so many playlists you could make the formula based on that alone and it would be infinitely better.

The point is I think it’s a great idea and hope it is improved in the future. The Spotify Weekly Playlist is certainly a reasonable starting point in getting an idea of what combination of TMA-2 modular parts will work best for you. And for some people it’s going to work like magic. I know people who love their Weekly Playlists and think Spotify does a good job. I recommend giving it a shot and see what you come up with.