Why does bass sound so strong with headphones?

Question

With a normal stereo system, you need large speakers to get a good bass sound, but even with little whimpy ear buds the bass sounds great. ????

Answer 1

It's call a proximity effect. The exaggeration of low-frequency sounds in a directional microphone when it is very near the sound source. An increase in bass response occurs when the sound source is near the microphone, a loss in bass response is experienced as the microphone is moved away. The same occurs with headphones, speakers, etc.

Answer 2

the ear buds are touching your head, and the bass gets transmitted directly into your skull bones.