Headphones for Mixing and Mastering

[andYz00m]

I had a lot of them, but had to retire them as the foam would disintegrate and end up messing clothes and skin. I had a few angry ladies complaining.
I orderd some replacement cushions, but could never put them in place.

That does happen for sure! I always give female performers the Beyers for that exact reason. Haha.

 

[soliloqueen]

I use HD600s with FR compensation

 

[dandandandandandandan]

I love my HD600s!

 

[MicMaven]

t had to retire them as the foam would disintegrate and end up messing clothes and skin.
I orderd some replacement cushions, but could never put them in place.

Ha -- Send them to me to replace and restore! I have swapped pads on several AudioTechnica headphones, and can quickly show you how to change the pads with ease. I currently use a BPHS-1 broadcast headset on my radio station, and put a set of really thick, but super smooshy, cushy memory foam pads purchased on eBay for $12 that are SOOO COMFORTABLE you can wear them for hours on end you will forget you are wearing headphones! I have these cushy pads on all my favorite cans. Photos show how thick they are - but they are really squishy soft. Happy trails to you. James - K8JHR

 

[abbey road d enfer]

Ha -- Send them to me to replace and restore! I have swapped pads on several AudioTechnica headphones, and can quickly show you how to change the pads with ease.

You're probably much cleverer than me!
I bought two pairs of pads that were supposed to be conform. I could never fit them the way it's supposed to be done, by inserting them like the original.
I Finally opted for gluing them with superglue.
Can you make a video, showing how you're doing it?

 

[the groke]

I'm also an AKG fan. I didn't try the new models but I'm a big fan of the older k240 models. Either the Sextett or DF models.

Definitely the DF over the regular ones (or the anniversary models)

 

[the groke]

I use HD600s with FR compensation

Older, used HD580 are great too... and you can drop-in install HD600 replacement drivers in them!

 

[MicMaven]

I Finally opted for gluing them with superglue.
Can you make a video, showing how you're doing it?

Superglue works, but it is either permanent or it reacts adversely with fake PU "pleather" and makes its own mess. I have used double-sided tape which does not react and can be removed later, if necessary.

The trick to installing pads is they stretch far more than expected without tearing or deforming beyond their elastic limits. Trust the engineers they can stretch over the earphone receiver and resume their original shape later. This requires real faith, but is the key to success.​

Step 1) Slip one end of the pad over one end of the earphone receiver and go as far as you can, holding it in place with the thumb and first finger of one hand, as shown in the photo.

Step 2) Slip the first finger of your other hand INSIDE the doughnut where you ear goes, press and S_T_R_E_T_C_H it by pushing INSIDE the pad toward the uncovered end until the retaining ring slips over the edge of the receiver shell. Alternatively, grab the seam on the pad (circled area in photo) with thumb and first finger and pull hard until the retaining ring clears the receiver shell. This requires some nerve, because we do not want to damage the pad. But, it works and the pad will soon regain its original shape.

Step 3) Pour two fingers of your best Bourbon and enjoy that heady sense of self-satisfaction that comes from completing a successful home-brew project.

Sidebar - I will look into making a video. I am a fair photographer, but a really lousy videographer. Something about old dogs and new tricks comes to mind, but I will check it out.

Good luck. James - K8JHR -

 

[abbey road d enfer]

The trick to installing pads is they stretch far more than expected without tearing or deforming beyond their elastic limits.

That's how I tried, but I'm probably too faint-hearted. I'll give it anotehr go.
Thanks a lot!

 

[MicUlli]

I use HD600s with FR compensation

The same applies to me. Sennheiser HD600 equalised a little bit (gentle bass boost, considerable rise of +6dB @ 20kHz)
Nevertheless i recommend: ALWAYS control your mixes with speakers in a living room...

 

[kags]

I am also a fan of the Sennheiser HD600/650. I replace the ear pads once a year (they are about $45 and just snap on) to maintain a consistent seal.

I also use SoundID freq calibration for my phones and I’ve had great success with mixes and masters that I’ve had to do on phones, especially since COVID forced more remote work.

I’ve mixed and/or mastered several very successful commercial albums over the past few years using HD650s instead of my studio monitors. Not one client noticed a change in my consistency or end result. Hopefully that’s a good thing ;-)

I also consult with a company that has performed acoustical analysis of thousands of rooms and headphone measurements and also measured tens of thousands listener preferences. Of anyone has any questions about those things, I’m happy to share anything that’s not a trade secret.

-Adam

 

[john12ax7]

I am also a fan of the Sennheiser HD600/650.

Is there a big difference between the two?

I also consult with a company that has performed acoustical analysis of thousands of rooms and headphone measurements and also measured tens of thousands listener preferences.

Was there any consensus preference that correlated with the data? I would be curious to see something like waterfall plots of rooms where many agreed sounded good.

 

[kags]

The 650 and 600 use the same drivers and ear pads, so the sound is very similar- I don’t really have a preference as their overall feeling is the same. Not sure if the 650 is being manufactured anymore but the 600 is a perfect substitute.

With good freq correction many headphones sound very similar with the main diff being their transient response.

For listening/mixing/mastering rooms, the general tend is flat from the bottom up to 1K, then a linear slope down to 18 or 20kHz with a 7 to 10 dB drop between 1k and limits of your hearing.

The room acoustics and speaker personality (horn vs ribbon vs some tweet, etc) has much to do with any small adjustments in n the high mids or highs.

The decay time needs to be even at all freqs. Uneven decay and bad symmetry ruin a monitor system more than a slightly rolling freq response.

One interesting thing I’ve noticed while tuning Atmos rooms is that some people strongly prefer time aligned subs while others prefer not doing that. I find the time alignment really focuses bass tones, but some people like the blurry mush better.

 

[MicMaven]

Nevertheless i recommend: ALWAYS control your mixes with speakers in a living room...

Good Humored Observation No. 39882:

While YOU can tune YOUR mixing room perfectly - none of that matters when I replay your recording in MY acoustically lousy living room! A Stradivarius in MY hands sounds pretty bad. ​

But seriously, folks, it mus be very difficult to make a single recording with a single set of EQ and other settings sound good in any other on any other system. I suspect the real genius is in knowing how to make it sound good across the range of rooms and playback equipment.

James-K8JHR

 

[RuudNL]

I see that many users are satisfied with the Audio-Technica ATH-M50X, but for me these headphones emphasize the low frequencies too much.

 

[kags]

Apple headphones (unsurprisingly) make up the single largest user base (around 10% worldwide) and no other model or brand has more than about 1% of the market. That includes consumers, obviously, but indicates that most listeners simply use what they have.

The key for professionals is to use a monitor system that reliably translates to the greatest number of listeners. Fortunately a good song will overcome a not great mix and listeners react to songs more than sonics.

 

[MicMaven]

a good song will overcome a not great mix and listeners react to songs more than sonics.

Well said.

A good example of poorly recorded, yet wildly popular, music is Fleetwood Mac's "Rumors" album. It has a terribly muddy, lack luster sound, yet it was very popular and sold like crazy. In contrast, I also have some fairly ordinary, yet well mastered, jazz albums with amazingly clear, realistic, and articulated sound that makes me feel as though I am on stage with the musicians. James

 

[kags]

I heard a first-hand story that the Rumours album was made from safety copies of the 2-inch tapes that had to manually synced due to either deterioration of the time code track or some other issue. The mixes were made using 3rd or later generations. Amazing it sounds good at all!

 

[Electrobumps]

I never won a Grammy, but I was nominated for one in 2021, funny enough the nomination was a for a work I did entirely on Headphones, true story

Maybe if you used monitors you would have won. Just joking.....good for you.

I have DT250's and HD800's if I had to choose one set I'd go for the DT250's. The top end on the HD800's is ridiculously hyped.

I Use sound ID on headphones now. That makes the HD800's much more useable!

 

[Austral]

When mastering, I find that I use headphones more and more --to capture little stuff easily missed on monitors, and also because so many people now listen to their music on ear buds and headphones, as was mentioned on this thread.

Black Friday last year, I bought (the fairly new) Neumann NDH 30 open-back headphones, and have not looked back.

Previously, I would rotate through three or four pairs of headphones (including HD600), never fully satisfied, making sure I was catching everything. But the Neumanns are very good, and excellent value for the price...

Ok, they are twice or three times the price of some other headphones mentioned in this thread, but if you really do want to use headphones as part of your mastering process / chain, then I'd say that you are looking at spending more money than you would for tracking or mixing cans, anyway.

I have gorgeous sounding planar headphones ($$$) that I don't like as much as the Neumanns for when I'm working... The NDH 30 headphones are a lot like some Neumann monitors, with a mid-forward profile, which isn't my favourite for relaxing, but for working I find that to be the best profile. YMMV, of course.