Flat monitoring headphones?

RAfBOy · Post by **RAfBOy** » Fri Nov 18, 2005 5:34 pm

I know that ideally you're not supposed to mix to/with headphones, but due to noise restrictions, I can't always mix with my Mackie 824's. Does anyone know of any very good flat response headphones (that don't add anything to the mix that isn't there)?
I've heard that Sony makes a good set (forgot which model though) and that AKG does as well, but I want to get some opinions before I buy some instead of food
Thanks in advance for any help!

paradeatw · Post by **paradeatw** » Tue Nov 22, 2005 11:21 am

I may be looking into a pair of Ultrasone... has anyone have any thoughts?

cases05 · Post by **cases05** » Wed Nov 23, 2005 12:09 am

I love my Sennheiser HD25.

kelldammit · Post by **kelldammit** » Sun Nov 27, 2005 5:04 pm

sony 7506's are pretty commonly used for monitoring while recording...
not sure if i'd mix on them, but they don't seem to have a lot of overemphasized bottom end like a lot of "consumer" phones do nowadays.

akg 240m's are likewise pretty commonly seen. they take some real juice to get them going. they have a more spacious sound to them, imho, and i think they're open air design, so if someone's trying to sleep next to you while you're working...they may not be a good call.
someone recommended another akg model to me, but i can't remember the model number now for the life of me...

also, fwiw, one of my friends was tracking with the akg's and called me to see what she was doing wrong, as her vocals sounded very "distant". the pre, levels, etc looked fine, so i had her switch to the sony's, and that solved that.

kell

epidot68 · Post by **epidot68** » Fri Jan 06, 2006 11:18 am

Similar to monitor choice, all that matters is that your mixes translate in the end.The Sony 7506's are my choice, but only because that is what I am used to. At around $100 they are a great value. They are also great for vocal tracking due to very minimal bleed.

I believe that the key is to listen to a bunch of stuff through them. Whatever cans you get, pick commercial mixes that you like and compare them to some of your own that you like and do this a lot. You'll find that whatever you and your ears click with will be the ones you dig.

BaSSic · Post by **BaSSic** » Mon Jan 09, 2006 1:08 pm

Beyerdynamic DT 770 are one of the best I've tried, but it depends on what are you going to use them for, since these are extremly colsed. Good for live mixing since they isolate well (& for drummers too).

artfarm1 · Post by **artfarm1** » Fri Jan 13, 2006 7:33 am

I second the Beyerdynamic DT 770's. The best I've used...could almost be used for a final mix!.....but haven't tried that yet. They're great for working when you don't want to have the wife yell at you for replaying the same 10 seconds of music for about the 88th pass.

They take getting used to, as they are very unflattering. (A singer may not like them very much for monitoring themselves.....very unflattering!)My pre-final mastering has gotten pretty good using these headphones before I go back and check everything on my main monitors.

I thank the people at Sweetwater for turning me onto these...they're great, and I'd have no hesitation in recommending these to anyone for any style of music.

stephentayler · Post by **stephentayler** » Sat Jan 14, 2006 11:29 am

I use a lot of headphones for various different reasons.

Sony 7506, have used these and their forerunners for almost 20 years, and they still give the best overall frequencies and power. Most recommended. Good all-rounders. Spares available, can be fixed.

Sennheiser HD25, similar sound to Sony 7506, but less bright, great sound isolation, good for location recording, will stay put on head!! Spares available, earpads can be replaced etc.

Grado Labs (http://www.gradolabs.com/) SR60 or SR80 (or higher models). These are amazing sounding headphones. Isolation not good as they are open-backed, but I like these for mixing and editing, comfortable and not fatiguing. Have blown up one pair, don't know if parts are available.

I chose these models for their essential similarity in sound, but their very different features.

regards

Stephen

bhagert · Post by **bhagert** » Sat Jan 14, 2006 11:40 am

Stax Lambda Pro electrostatic are not bad for mixing but still monitors are the best.

I can use the Stax to do a pre mix and then fix it up with the monitors later. Normally I use HD-25 as the Swiss Sound Knife to get in deep in the mix to check details.

AKG 271 are quite good and similar to HD-25 but with less accentuated bass.

Edit: Stax has made more cans after Lambda pro

RAfBOy · Post by **RAfBOy** » Sat Jan 14, 2006 11:57 am

Thanx all.
I'm probably going to get either the AKG K271 or the AKG K240DF (which, if I understand correctly, is supposed to mimic the acoustics of a room)- as I want a completely flat response.

jaffi · Post by **jaffi** » Sat Jan 14, 2006 3:36 pm

Headphones will sound different to everybody, even more so than speakers. That is due to the proximity effect. The closer the speaker is to your eardrum, the more bass will be present. So, your will hear it differently than the guy next to you because your head, ears and eardrums aren't in exactly in the same place. I never mix with headphones, but if I had to, I would use a combination of DT770's and MDR7506's. They are very complementary to each other in showing the others weakness.