All-around studio headphones.

Roozter

Roozter

New member
Im looking to get a new pair of headphones. But I need to know a pair I can use for tracking , mixing, and mastering. Under $200. Comfortable for wearing for hours, and no frills, I just want to hear the music how it is, no coloring to make listening to music more enjoyable.

I switch between headphones and monitors when mixing, and my main focus on a new pair of headphones is to get a pair that help me get my mix just right.

Any suggestions?
 
Roozter said:
Im looking to get a new pair of headphones. But I need to know a pair I can use for tracking , mixing, and mastering. Under $200. Comfortable for wearing for hours, and no frills, I just want to hear the music how it is, no coloring to make listening to music more enjoyable.

I switch between headphones and monitors when mixing, and my main focus on a new pair of headphones is to get a pair that help me get my mix just right.

Any suggestions?
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I have a pair of Sennheiser HD 280 PRO's that I use for tracking and some do some minor mixing with. But they are a pretty decent set of headphones.
 
phriq said:
I have a pair of Sennheiser HD 280 PRO's that I use for tracking and some do some minor mixing with. But they are a pretty decent set of headphones.
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I had those recommended before and Ive heard theyre good but that there are better headphones under $200. I know there are a pair of AKG's that are highly rated I just cant remember the model.
 
Roozter said:
I had those recommended before and Ive heard theyre good but that there are better headphones under $200. I know there are a pair of AKG's that are highly rated I just cant remember the model.
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Probably the K141s or K240s. I can't stand AKG's because I have fairly large ears, and nothing I've ever tried out from them have fit well, might be perfect for you however.

I have two pairs of Audio-Technica ATH M45s that I let other people use and they're pretty comfortable, pretty flat response and would be good for some spot mixing and crit listening. Personally I have a very old pair of Sony's that my dad had from the 70s and refurbished them, but they're nice and broken in after 40 years so they're soooo comfortable.
 
phriq said:
I have a pair of Sennheiser HD 280 PRO's that I use for tracking and some do some minor mixing with. But they are a pretty decent set of headphones.
Click to expand...

I go for the hd 280s also i have a pair for 8 years and counting wouldnt go anywhere else.
And im sure ya'll know this already, but mixing with headphones is not the best idea.
 
TheChikenMaster said:
I go for the hd 280s also i have a pair for 8 years and counting wouldnt go anywhere else.
And im sure ya'll know this already, but mixing with headphones is not the best idea.
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This guy speaks the truth.
If you have to decide between monitors or headphones, do monitors every time. It'd be better to drop $200 on a used pair of BX5's than to mix exclusively on a nice set of headphones.
However, I've heard of the AKG K 121's being fairly standard for studio use. The college I go to uses those in the studio, and they sound great.
Honestly, once you hit about the $100 mark, most of the "studio headphones" have a flat enough frequency response to mix on... The HD 280 Pros are no worse than the K 121's, it's really just personal preference on the design and feel of the headphones. The main reason we have 121's at our studio is because they're not over ears, they kind of just sit on them so you can hear what's going on outside the headphones if you're tracking with them.
I personally love the 280's because they fit perfectly over my ears, so it shuts out almost all sound other than what I've got in my headphones... But again, it's mainly just personal preference.
 
Roozter said:
Im looking to get a new pair of headphones. But I need to know a pair I can use for tracking , mixing, and mastering. Under $200. Comfortable for wearing for hours, and no frills, I just want to hear the music how it is, no coloring to make listening to music more enjoyable.

I switch between headphones and monitors when mixing, and my main focus on a new pair of headphones is to get a pair that help me get my mix just right.

Any suggestions?
Click to expand...



The way I understand it, you want headphones that have as flat a frequency response curve as possible.

Also, you might want to go take a hearing test. You'll see what your ear's hearing frequency response curve profile looks like.
IF your ears dip in a certain spot, and you don't know it, you might overcompensate when you adjust the eq.

You might find this clip interesting. There are multiple parts.
Dave Rat - The Mighty Headphone Quest Part 1 - YouTube
 
I've got the ATH M50's and I'm well pleased with them - paid about £125 sterling so not too expensive - a good all rounder I'd say.
 
I know you should mix with monitors. I have a fairly cheap pair. But I my only pair of headphones broke so I cant really track or anything now. When I mix Ill switch between headphones and monitors on the first go around, and then for the rest I just do monitors exclusively to fine tune everything.

I have a terrible room for recording though, and the only place Im able to keep my monitors/computer/interface is situated at an odd place in room. On a little bar that sits jutting out from the middle of the left side of the room, so the cheap monitors x bad room/bad placement causes me to keep the volume low so I dont get tons of reflections.

The hearing test thing is interesting. I probably should have one done ASAP, I over-produce wax and I havent had my ears cleaned in awhile as well.
 
Bump.

What about the Equation Audio RP-21? Ive read that in terms of flat response these are some of the best for the money. Has anyone used them?
 
Sennheiser HD280 Pro, Shure SRH440, or Equation Audio RP-21? Those are the three Im choosing between. Any thoughts? Id consider spending the money on a more expensive pair if I got enough recommendations on them.
 
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I don't like 280s for working long hours - they start to pressure my head after in about an hour. For tracking drums they are good (small bleed).
For mixing and producing I like my Sony mdr-7506, which should be in 200$ range.
 
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