Decent "mixing" headphones for $100 or less?

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Absolutely!  I think the fit of various models on our heads influences things too, the low end particularly.  Something as simple as how the pads wear over time - I had 4 pairs of Sony 7506 for about 10 years, all bought around the same time.  I changed the pads on one pair to new and they were unrecognizable sounding compared to the others.

The HD-650 being open is not an issue for me as I'm 99% mastering guy these days but in a regular tracking scenario it is indeed a problem.

Thankfully headphones are cheap, I think the trick is try them in store if you can but if not take a chance and resell if they are not for you.

Cheers
Ruairi
 
druu said:
For $100 I would probably go for a pair of ATH-M50's. But probably best to go for something a little better and preferably open if you want a more natural sound.
I have a pair of ATH-M50 for mixing. Having a little problem  getting good sub-bass information, like 20-70hz.
 
G-Sun said:
druu said:
For $100 I would probably go for a pair of ATH-M50's. But probably best to go for something a little better and preferably open if you want a more natural sound.
Having a little problem  getting good sub-bass information, like 20-70hz.

Isn't this a common problem for headphones?
 
Isn't this a common problem for headphones?
That was sort of my question?
Do I need good big speakers to get decent monitoring in this area?
Or do some headphones/designs work better than others?
 
If I buy the dt770's what ohms would work best with the headphone output of mackie vlz 1604 and or my headphone out of my mouth 2408mkII.

They have ohms in 30, 80 and 250. I know 30 is for like iPhones ect. But would my equipment be able to support the 250?  Or should I go with 80 to use it on all thins even my iphone
 
Just seen this - I am too late maybe.
The classic version of the DT770 has 250 Ohms. Pro Audio Gear or your home stereo will have no problem in driving them.  The downside of the high impedance is that the will need more power for the same sound pressure level. They will also work on an iPhone but your battery will be drained a bit faster. The 80 Ohms version sounds like a good compromise. I haven't heard or compared it to mine, though.
My 250Ohms version is 18 Years old now and it is still my most used headphone.  Never spend 130 DM (approx. 65 EUR) better. Highly recommended!!!

Never forget to check the availability of spares and the pricing of spares.
Beyer has  a good reputation on spares and they are fairly priced (especially compared to Senn....).
 
chefducuisine said:
Just seen this - I am too late maybe.
The classic version of the DT770 has 250 Ohms. Pro Audio Gear or your home stereo will have no problem in driving them.  The downside of the high impedance is that the will need more power for the same sound pressure level.
Not more power, just more voltage.
They will also work on an iPhone but your battery will be drained a bit faster.
Probably not. For a class-B output stage and a given supply voltage, the power consumption increases when the ohmic value of the load decreases. If only battery life is the concern, the lightest the load (high Z), the lower the drain. The limit is when the available voltage is not capable of producing enough power into the load or when the output stage reaches its current limit. Typically with 3V supply, the max. output voltage is ca. 1V rms.
For 32 ohms headphones, the power is about 30mW, which is plenty to make your ears bleed.
With 250 ohms, the max power would be about 4mW, which is still enough for comfortable listening, but would not meet the needs of a whole generation of premature deafs.
And with 8 ohms, the output stage would probably limit the available power to about 8mW, very likely with early distortion.

Now, most IC headphone amps today use a current pump that doubles the voltage, so they can produce in excess of 100mW into 32 ohms with a 3V supply; with 250 ohms that would be about 10mW. With a DT770, that would produce about 106dB spl.

Class-D stages are also different since the power consumption is essentially independant of the load, but still, the voltage and current limitations apply.
 
regarding sub freqs, that's always going to be a problem with headphones, regardless of what the marketing blurb may claim - one useful tip I've used over the years in bad monitoring environments (untreated), is to very very gently rest my finger on the edge of the driver/speaker (of a monitor, not headphones), to feel what the sub is doing; after all, you don't really hear 20hz anyway, you feel it :) ...its not perfect, but its better than trying to mix sub/low-bass by ear in an untreated room (aggh lol)

personally I would rather spend the money on bass traps (build them yourself! not expensive at all, and you can make them modular/storable if you don't have the space to keep the room treated all the tim) and a reasonably flat pair of monitors - you don't have to spend a fortune to do good mixes

if you really want headphones, then any reasonably detailed headphones will do the job, as long as you have something to reference them to, whether that is a good monitoring environment, or some experience mixing for your target sound systems (or access to someone else with the experience)

you often hear engineers recommending headphones for mixing, but what you don't usually hear, is that these engineers have years/decades of experience, and its not actually the headphones doing the work, its the engineer and his/her experience which allows them to translate what they hear on headphones, and compare it to what their target system for the mix actually sounds like
 
this is a cool tip. the guys in sound reinforcement produce subwoofers for drummers that attach directly to their stool so that the sound is propagated through the spine and not in the air. very clever, as those drummers are always loud. I wonder if something like that can be made in a studio.

back to HP: shure srh440 is out for 79€ on thomann and they are usually considered pretty decent, and flatter than, say, sony's 7506 or ath-m50.

me, I've always used the 7506, but I never mix on them. They're great for outdoors use, and I can check some parts of the audio spectrum that my monitors don't produce (they seem to have a rather bumpy bass range). I also check them for placement of instruments while mixing, but there are more precise headphones for that. They're still more accurate than studio monitors. I've had them for ages and they still rock.

miszt said:
regarding sub freqs, that's always going to be a problem with headphones, regardless of what the marketing blurb may claim - one useful tip I've used over the years in bad monitoring environments (untreated), is to very very gently rest my finger on the edge of the driver/speaker (of a monitor, not headphones), to feel what the sub is doing; after all, you don't really hear 20hz anyway, you feel it :) ...its not perfect, but its better than trying to mix sub/low-bass by ear in an untreated room (aggh lol)
 
I can always use my Sony MDR-7506 for mixing if needed, I use them for everything.

There's loads of different headphones and loads of different opinions but you already limited the price range, so for that price Im pretty sure the Sony MDR-7506 will be the best option
 
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