studio grade headphones.

G

Grizzly_Diesel

New member
so I'm looking to build a "beginner" studio, so to speak. i want to get some decent quality headphones. I'm looking to spend around $100. the major differences I'm seeing in the $100 range is the impedance. from a headphone standpoint whats the difference between 64 ohms and 44 ohms. I'm debating between the sennheiser HD280 and the audio-technica ATH-M40X. there both $99.99. the Sennheiser is a 64 ohm and the audio-technica is a 44 ohm. the audio's come with a detachable straight and coiled cable as well as a 1/4" to headphone adapter. where as the sennheiser is a fixed cable. the detachable cable intrigues me but i don't want lower quality headphones just because the cable comes off. the way i always understood impedance was the higher the ohms the tighter the sounds was gonna be. but that's coming more from a big speaker standpoint. ive never dealt with a driver higher than 16 ohms.
 
Re: studio grade headphones.

I don't know if impedance has anything to do with how 'tight' a speaker sounds, but given an identical amplifier the one with lower impedance will be louder. Also, the Sennheiser HD280 cable is semi-fixed. It can be replaced by the end user, but you need to open the case to do so. At least they aren't like Sony 7506s which are essentially junk when the cable goes. Both of those sets of cans are good, so you should base your decision on how they are to wear and your perception of the sound.
 
Re: studio grade headphones.

The HD280 Pro is regarded as one of the best budget headphones out there. I've not heard them, but I have heard the m40x, which I thought had a very flat response and good isolation, but were a little heavy on the head. I'm bald, so without the cushion of hair up top, I tend to notice headphone fatigue. The cups were fine, but the headband was noticeable after awhile. I wouldn't get too hung up on detachable cords unless that's been an issue for you. I prefer the replaceable cable because I've had cable failures before.

I don't take much stock in the arguments that there are sonic difference between impedances, all other things being equal. A high imedance headphones would benefit from amplification, but at 44/64 ohms, a bus-powered headphone jack on a recording interface should supply plenty of power.

I also own a pair of AKG K240 headphones. Good for mixing, but I would not recommend those for tracking due to the semi-open design.
 
Re: studio grade headphones.

I used a pair of HD 280's for a couple of years before upgrading to SRH 840's. I will say they are very good headphones, especially for the price. You don't really need anything better, as they take you most of the way in terms of studio headphones (arguably monitors are more important for referencing anyways). A couple things to note, some users say the headphones are overly tight and can cause fatigue on your head, though I didn't find that to be the case with mine. They are very flat, but I find the bass to be slightly more distant than my 840's. I don't think you can go wrong the the HD 280's, though I can't personally speak for the M40X. Hope that helps!
 
Re: studio grade headphones.

Are You using for tracking or mixing primarily?

Why don't you use what you will find in MANY studios around the world? AKG K240. I have a pair and love em for the price
 
Re: studio grade headphones.

I've had a pair of HD280 Pro's I got maybe in 2001 for about a $100 new. Still have them today... Except they're a bit beat up so I upgraded to HD380's that were on site. You can't beat a decent pair of around the ear cans with good ambient noise attenuation...

Only con is they're a bit big so you might look funny walking around town with them. For home studio or practice, or hell for video games they kick ass.
 
Re: studio grade headphones.

I've never heard headphones that were as good as a nice pair of speakers. That said, I've had a pair of Sony MDR-7506 for nearly 20 years now and they sound pretty good for headphones. Beaten all to snot and the foam around the ears is all falling off though.
 
Re: studio grade headphones.

Don't use Sony MDR 7506s for EQing. Used to use them and there's some freq's missing (hi & lo) vs. pair of speakers... forcing you to compensate.

In fact, I wouldn't use any headphones for EQing.
 
Re: studio grade headphones.

Headphones are really hard for me to EQ or mix on- most hype bass frequencies, and you wind up overcompensating. I fairly inexpensive AKGs to track with if I need to, and that is almost always just vocals. Everything else goes direct, so I can blast my monitors if I need to.
 
Re: studio grade headphones.

LLL said:
Don't use Sony MDR 7506s for EQing. Used to use them and there's some freq's missing (hi & lo) vs. pair of speakers... forcing you to compensate.

In fact, I wouldn't use any headphones for EQing.
Click to expand...

I agree with Mincer. Don't use any headphones for EQing. They're just the wrong tool for the job.
 
Re: studio grade headphones.

Op - you are speaking my language. I live and breath this **** everyday.

First -what are your needs? -Just recording? are you using these for tracking, as mix down references, or for mixing itself? and are these for listening enjoyment elsewhere too -like travel?

AKG and Sennheisers

Reason I ask, The Sennheisers 280s are very accurate compared to most in that price range-so they are mid range heavy compared to other headphones more voiced for listening enjoyment.

AKGs Ks are slightly less accurate in the mids but sweeter in the highs but may sound better to many over the Sennheisers because they have a slightly pronounced bottom - ie -they are lying to you slightly. lol . AKGS were pretty much the standard for recording everywhere you went until the 2000s

I find the detachable cable system of AKG to be an advantage in the studio -as I have many lengths of cables for various set ups.

Both the Sennheiser and AKGS are really for studio recording application and very accurate in the grand scheme of things. -You cant go wrong.

Sony and Audio Technica

Sony 7506 are world standard for basic production stuff like live TV shows, Control Rooms, editing etc. and Audio Technicas are right in line with the Sonys in terms of sound and quality, they are great for the money and pretty accurate and sound great. -They are a bit of a middle ground of accurate and listening enjoyment.

Also, if you are planning on using any of these from your phone, IPOD, Computer or any other consumer device, the lower impedance rating (25ohms or less) on Headphones is an advantage -as consumer devices don't have the power to drive a professional high impedance headphone driver easily -so the volumes will be lower and less accurate if you pick a headphone with a higher impedance meant for a professional or pro-sumer recording headphone jack.
 
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Re: studio grade headphones.

(Realizing this is an old thread)

NegativeEase, have you tried Shure headphones? I find them, for my ears, to have the best headphone-to-real-world tonal and loudness characteristics. Been using ATs lately and I find them to be be a bit hyped in the high freqs but the upper mids are quite clear.
 
Re: studio grade headphones.

TwilightOdyssey said:
(Realizing this is an old thread)

NegativeEase, have you tried Shure headphones? I find them, for my ears, to have the best headphone-to-real-world tonal and loudness characteristics. Been using ATs lately and I find them to be be a bit hyped in the high freqs but the upper mids are quite clear.
Click to expand...

I have a few Shures -mainly in-ears/IFB style stage buds -but do not own the 840s recording headphones or any other Shure over the ear studio headphones. That said, I have used the 840s and they are really really good -but haven't A/B'd them against the others.
 
Re: studio grade headphones.

Adam SE said:
I used a pair of HD 280's for a couple of years before upgrading to SRH 840's. I will say they are very good headphones, especially for the price. You don't really need anything better, as they take you most of the way in terms of studio headphones (arguably monitors are more important for referencing anyways). A couple things to note, some users say the headphones are overly tight and can cause fatigue on your head, though I didn't find that to be the case with mine. They are very flat, but I find the bass to be slightly more distant than my 840's. I don't think you can go wrong the the HD 280's, though I can't personally speak for the M40X. Hope that helps!
Click to expand...
I've used HD 280s but had difficulties in terms of frequency.
 
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Re: studio grade headphones.

In my experience Sennheisers are the weakest mechanically. All of them. If you a single user taking care of your equipment it should not be a problem but if you work with bands - it won't survive its first 2 years on the battlefield without breaking. When I worked for the biggest rec facility in my country I did tech jobs as well and failed Sennheisers tended to pile up. I fixed them - they broke again 2 weeks later somewhere else. They sound really good but after they start to pile up - you will not care about the sound anymore.

The aforementioned Sony is built to last. It is a great monitor for tracking, give it to drummers who otherwise destroy anything else. Maybe because of the age of the units I worked with (they were at least a decade old) these started to develop phase issues so they drove singers consistent flat or sharp. Despite the awesome build soundwise I'm not too convinced, still, I admit that they were awesome tracking workhorses.

Considering Audio-Technicas, even the cheap M20s are indestructible. If you aim higher the M40 is honest enough so it is absolutely capable of switching between main monitor speakers and this one to exclude room reflections, check stereo field and spectrum, error detection and so on that a decent set can reveal. These last for approx. a decade.

The first AKG coming to my mind is the K1000. As it is a set of super accurate micro studio monitors strapped to your head I'd gladly mix/master an album with it alone, without using any external monitors. It is unrealistically expensive and sort of fragile. I sold it and said goodbye to expensive maintenance, too. After some time spent with it I think it is a bad idea to have/use units with sky-high price. I'd have a Toyota over a Ferrari for daily use any time, so to say. These are just tools after all that can break and between $100-200 you can find pretty functional, stress-free tools.

So, the winner for me is the K240. It has the best price-value ratio by far I've seen. It is strong enough by design for tracking and honest enough for mixing duties. The facelift kits are cheap too so when a K240 wears out (I'd say they start to show wear after 6-8 years on average) you can re-build it completely.
 
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Re: studio grade headphones.

Grizzly_Diesel said:
so I'm looking to build a "beginner" studio, so to speak. i want to get some decent quality headphones. I'm looking to spend around $100. the major differences I'm seeing in the $100 range is the impedance. from a headphone standpoint whats the difference between 64 ohms and 44 ohms. I'm debating between the sennheiser HD280 and the audio-technica ATH-M40X. there both $99.99. the Sennheiser is a 64 ohm and the audio-technica is a 44 ohm. the audio's come with a detachable straight and coiled cable as well as a 1/4" to headphone adapter. where as the sennheiser is a fixed cable. the detachable cable intrigues me but i don't want lower quality headphones just because the cable comes off. the way i always understood impedance was the higher the ohms the tighter the sounds was gonna be. but that's coming more from a big speaker standpoint. ive never dealt with a driver higher than 16 ohms.
Click to expand...

Both of those headphones are good TS. The Audio Technicas and Sony 7506's are industry standard for live/ control room production, whereas Sennheiser 280s and AKG Ks are more the recording studio standard, although AT and Sennheiser are certainly used in both.

Overall, the Sennheisers are going to be more accurate and faithful -they have a much better sensitivity rating -they are more of a true reference headphone -better for recording and mixing, they also have higher acoustic isolation from the environment.

ATs, probably sound better for day to day use, as they are not going to have the pronounced accurate mid range of Sennheisers -which is what you want for reference monitors but not for enjoyment. also the Audio Technicas are lower impedance so you can drive them from a consumer and portable device with less battery consumption and more volume -although the impedance difference between the 2 is not that great.

SO for recording studio/home recording only -it's the Sennheisers or AKGs for me, for a lot of listening for enjoyment, walking around/on the train and long durations of listening -I'd go ATs or Sonys.

but don't be afraid to use any for either application, as at 99.00 you are creeping up into the "good" category for most any analog large diapragm wired headphone from a reputable mfg.
 
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