The headphones should be as neutral as possible = non coloring the sound = flat response, and crystal clear instead of "blurry" in high frequencies, otherwise you might end up optimizing the whole mix to sound cool only with your specific headphones model and completely off with anything else (worst case).
For music intended for a specific audience like listening via earphones, one should also check with a good quality set of earphones too.
For music intended for a specific audience like listening via earphones, one should also check with a good quality set of earphones too.
Well said. This is my philosophy as well. Here are some suggestions based on this principle:
The Audio Technica m50x are actually really good for highlighting flaws and screaming them out in your face - if you want something to tell it to you straight for cheap they may be a good choice for you. Not perfect in any sense of the word (and probably not good for final production evaluation), just a cheap producer's tool to highlight any flaws and really make them clear so you can work on them.
I'm going to the exact opposite of this and say actually avoid the HD650 as your sole production headphones. They have a warmed bass response that might make your Trap sound great on them, but then seem a little bass light on other gear. Instead:
The Sennheiser HD600 have been a long standing go-to for a flat frequency response. I've demo'd them at great length and I can attest to that. The only thing I have agaisnt them is that they suffer from the Sennheiser veil (the treble rolls off a bit and doesn't "sparkle" or resolve too clearly; you can google it). The counterpart here would be the AKG K701. These comparisions are aplenty online, feel free to google.
Outside of headphones I'd suggest the Etymotic ER4S - they have a neutral sound and are targetted at the harmon curve so that the percieved sound is as close to "flat" as possible. The newer model (ER4SR) is actually further from the harmon target curve than the older ER4S. I've owned both. There is also a new ER3 line, but I know nothing about this, though I expect it to deviate from that curve even more as Etymotic seems to be slowly targetting their products towards generating more consumer volume (more pleasant to listen to instead of un-colored, unbaised sound). The ER4S are completely un-coloring in my honest opinion (and when comparing freq response graphs, again this is all googleable) and they'll be able to tell you the difference between a good recording, a decenelty engineered track, and a hearstoppingly well produced record. This would be my top suggestion to you for your purpose. Yes, I listen to EDM on these (not a lot of trap); They allow me to pick the really good stuff from the badly produced crap. Honestly unrelated, I have a pair for sale since I own two. You don't have to buy them off me whatsoever, these would just be my top suggestion regardless. They're my objective baseline when comparing all gear and evaluating production quality of any audio, period. Paired with a reference/studio grade dac/amp, these are all you should ever need. If you're interested of course, please do PM me, but again, my goal here isn't to promote these so you buy mine; it's to highlight that I loved them enough when it came to baseline, no color audio to buy two at one point.
Outside of that the only thing I know in terms of "perfect" studio headphones would be the Mr. Speakers Ether Flow C. Stupendously expnsive, but Tyll (and even the incredibly non-objective Zeos) has stated that they're pretty much the best in reference grade gear. I plan to buy and own these as soon as I sell some of my other gear since I have 3 of 4 things just sitting around that I don't use.
PM/reply here of course if I can add to this in any way. I'm sure I've re-stated some suggestions others gave and have probably even contradicted something that someone else said here. Audio is highly subjective but my goal for about half of my audio journey has been to get the best objective sound, without color, without magic.
I use Sennheiser HD 250 headphones. Are they good for the price? I have some nerve deafness, so I always ask a second opinion.
I've been using HD 250 for quite a long time, have nothing to complain to. The sound is good, after a long time usage I've got no headache (which I had with other headphones). All in all, I do love them
- Status
- This old topic is closed. If you want to reopen this topic, contact a moderator using the "Report Post" button.