Members DorphonDalfir Posted July 19, 2007 Members Share Posted July 19, 2007 Over the last two years I've been getting aquainted with sequencers and Psytrance production, I've decided to take this route seriously. I sold my guitar gear that's been gathering dust to invest in some toys. I'm looking at these Sennheiser HD280 Pro headphones for monitoring (as well as simply enjoying music off an iPod, I like the fact that headphones are more mobile than speaker monitors) Is there a big difference in high quality headphones made for enjoying music and high quality headphones made for studio work? Will Monitoring headphones sound better than mainstream headphones in terms of listening to music for entertainment and not monitoring? Would I (even with an untrained ear) easily be able to pick up on problem areas when monitoring through a good pair of 'phones? Also, in terms of MIDI controllers, I'd most probably go wit the Oxygen8v2 , but I see that the Oxygen49 (http://www.soundz.co.za/ProductInfo.aspx?productid=MOXYGEN49) is going for the same price. Should I rather go for the Oxygen49 seeing as it does have more features than the 8v2, although it looks like it's double the size which could cause some mobility problems. Is the 8v2 pretty much fine for this type of work? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Diametro Posted July 19, 2007 Members Share Posted July 19, 2007 I have these ... frankly, while they're fine, you could probably do better ... they seem fairly accurate ... yet I don't use them much ... whereas my old 10-year-old Sony's got a lot of use ... not sure I like the HD's closed-ear design ... something about the entire design seems too inorganic, digital ... I think they'd be sweet, though, if you wanted to be ghetto fabulous and wear them, say, when working in the garden or shooting hoops in the backyard ... I was actualy considering using them at the gym ... but they don't take well to sweat ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Diametro Posted July 19, 2007 Members Share Posted July 19, 2007 For the best sound production, you should preview your work on a wide variety of sources (montiors, good headphones, {censored}e ones, other {censored}e systems, laptop, etc.) during various stages, IMO. Of course, I haven't been doing that for awhile now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Metrosonus Posted July 19, 2007 Members Share Posted July 19, 2007 headphones are great when you dont want to wake up your wife or kid. use monitors instead. theres too many things that get misrepresented in the mix that when you switch to monitors or a stereo, simply dissapear. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Khazul Posted July 19, 2007 Members Share Posted July 19, 2007 If you have to use headphones, the HD650s. As for studio headphones vs hi fi headphones - I guess the same argument applies to hi fi speakers vs studio speakers - one is designed to make stuff sound good, the other is design for accurate reproduction - warts n all... If you do primarily mix on headphons - get some monitors anyway - thing allways sounds rather different on speakers, or while I have never tried it - there are some gizmos for processing a headphone feed to spacially similate a speaker feed. On midi controllers - have a look at the Novation Remote SL 37. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ElectricPuppy Posted July 19, 2007 Members Share Posted July 19, 2007 +1 on checking your mix on a variety of monitors. I hear things on my monitors that I don't on my headphones and vice versa. Caution on the ReMOTE SL: Make sure there's templates available for the DAW you plan to use. I know it works out-of-the-box with Cubase and Reason. Run away if you're using Sonar. Otherwise, nice controller. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DorphonDalfir Posted July 19, 2007 Author Members Share Posted July 19, 2007 Ultimately, I'm planning on sending off my tracks to a friend who's a professional sound engineer who's offered a very good deal on mixing and mastering services for a very sweet price. I'd just like to have a better idea of what my stuff is sounding like than my 5.1 setup allows. Would listening to music leisurely with studio 'phones really not sound all that incredible? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members akliner Posted July 19, 2007 Members Share Posted July 19, 2007 Ultimately, I'm planning on sending off my tracks to a friend who's a professional sound engineer who's offered a very good deal on mixing and mastering services for a very sweet price. I'd just like to have a better idea of what my stuff is sounding like than my 5.1 setup allows.Would listening to music leisurely with studio 'phones really not sound all that incredible? First, you should eventually learn to do your own mixes. You'd be suprised how much creativity can be expressed (or lost) during the mixing phase. Mixing your own work, the music is ENTIRELY in your hands. Also, no. Studio headphones (in my experience) don't justify a huge price tag when it comes to casually listening to music. The only time I use studio headphones when listening to another person's recording is if I'm doing some EQ'ing, sampling, critiquing, etc. With your money, I suggest getting a decent pair of headphones and get a GOOD set of montiors. Also, you want to listen to your mix on every sound source available. When I come close to a final mix, I use comp speakers, monitors, headphones (iPod and Sony closed back), burn it on a disc and listen to it on my alarm clock radio, my hi-fi system, and ultimately (my favorite test) my car. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Cygnus64 Posted July 19, 2007 Members Share Posted July 19, 2007 Would listening to music leisurely with studio 'phones really not sound all that incredible? The best headphones (for me) are the ones that cause the least amount of fatigue, although that is hard to judge unless you own several. I have a closed set, a semi-open set, a walkmanish set, a cordless etc. My Sonys are good. My AKGs are very good but they completely close off the ear which can cause fatigue ( and hearing problems if you do it a lot). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Rabid Posted July 19, 2007 Members Share Posted July 19, 2007 I've been using HD600's for a couple years now because I live in an apartment. Contrary to what some say you can learn to mix pretty well with headphones. When people say "get a good set of monitors instead" you need to remember that a good set of monitors start at $1200US or more and the volume needs to be pushed. At very low levels even good monitors are off. If your budget is a few hundred dollars, you are better off with $300 headphones than a $300 pair of monitors. The trick is finding reference tracks to compare your recordings with and trying to match the sound and balance. After that, listen to your mix on a variety of speakers including in your car. That is when you check to make sure some parts don Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members akliner Posted July 19, 2007 Members Share Posted July 19, 2007 I agree with most of that. I just usually find it dangerous to mix on headphones. The sound attacks the ears differently. A good mix should start out great through speakers and then translate on headphones... The opposite is also true, but I think it's easier to start on speakers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DorphonDalfir Posted July 19, 2007 Author Members Share Posted July 19, 2007 For a relatively entry level producer, I don't think I can justify splurging on speakers. The headphones do serve two purposes though, if I suddenly veer away from music production at least I have a really good pair to listen to my favourite music on...I mean, either way, are reputable monitor headphones and hi-fi headphones ALWAYS going to sound better than the mainstream $7 TDK headphones I'm using now with my iPod? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Rabid Posted July 19, 2007 Members Share Posted July 19, 2007 ... I mean, either way, are reputable monitor headphones and hi-fi headphones ALWAYS going to sound better than the mainstream $7 TDK headphones I'm using now with my iPod? Listen to CD's like "Dark Side of the Moon" or "Airdrawndagger" on good headphones and you will notice parts that you never heard before on the $7 set. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Umbra Posted July 19, 2007 Members Share Posted July 19, 2007 Listen to CD's like "Dark Side of the Moon" or "Airdrawndagger" on good headphones and you will notice parts that you never heard before on the $7 set.Very true. The problem is that also happens with monitors vs. headphones. Volume levels and panning are two big problems when you mix on headphones, they just don't translate well over to monitors. If you can't buy expensive monitors (and yes, you can get a decent set under $1k new) buy low end monitors and a set of better headphones. Mix on the monitors and use the headphones for a quick check before each mixdown. Then take the mixdown and play it everywhere you can. In my case I noticed that cars seems to make my stuff sound like crap so if I can get it sounding decent there I'm generally ok, but I would never mix on headphones alone. For one it's bad for your hearing! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Allerian Posted July 20, 2007 Members Share Posted July 20, 2007 For a relatively entry level producer, I don't think I can justify splurging on speakers. ...but I'm paying a guy to mix my tracks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DorphonDalfir Posted July 20, 2007 Author Members Share Posted July 20, 2007 Yes, I'm paying a friend roughly $10 per track for him to mix and master a song till I'm happy with it, no matter the time it takes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Sinner6 Posted July 21, 2007 Members Share Posted July 21, 2007 Keep in mind that when you listen to speakers, your left ear can hear what is coming out of the right speaker and vice versa. This is not the case with headphones, so no matter how nice a set of headphones you get (and you should get a nice set), they will never accurately represent what listening on speakers. Think of headphones as the audio equivilant to a magnifying glass. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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