Mix checking headphones?

[reddirt]

Guys I'm wanting to purchase a pair of high quality cans for checking mixes- am thinking along the lines of Sennheiser HD650 which I heard for about 30 mins a couple of years ago and liked a lot.
Does any one have a good reason why not to get those and if you have a better suggestion please put it up.
I live in Alice Springs which makes auditioning difficult.
I currently monitor with Event ASP8s and Avantone mixcubes which are fairly diametrically opposed ( a good thing) and am looking for icing on the cake.
Cheers, Ross

[jkhuri44]

i use Audio Technica ATM50s


they are awesome....really good detail...lots of stuff revealed in mixes i've never heard before! translate nicely as well!

[Senad]

i use Audio Technica ATM50s


they are awesome....really good detail...lots of stuff revealed in mixes i've never heard before! translate nicely as well!

+1...nice ,pretty true bottom end too..

[jithknot]

i use the HD 650's theyre great headphones, you never regret getting one.

[waitup]

Audio Technica ATM50s

Have to agree on that one, They're probably the only cans I've felt confident mixing in.

As with anything though, listen to a lot of familiar mixes in them, do a lot of mixing in them and you'll learn to compensate for whatever shortcomings your cans have.

[Chris H]

I've been using these for a few years. They are a good choice to check mixes. Beyerdynamic DT770-PRO

Like anything, you get to know how they sound in comparison to your monitors etc. I find them a bit more forward in the top end than my regular monitors, the B&W 806's

[DaleRoyce]

I have used the senn's HD 600's for a about 4 years now as my main monitor cans..
And cant recommend them enough. they are a more comfortable fit than the 650's, and i chose the sound over the 650's too.
Also they can be found for a song as they are now the third from the top of senn's range.., about $400 au.
But be prepared for a lack of love for your monitors from there on in :wink:

[reddirt]

Thanks for the replies guys - for me the ATM50s don't do what I'm after ; I bought them on the large raps on other sites and for mine they have a strong extended bottom end but to their detriment have a a too smooth mid which doesn't really tell the story.

Chris , the 770s were a bit bright for my tastes when i listened some time ago.

When I heard the 650s it was in company with the 600s and AKG 701s and thought for music listening they had the most homogenous sound; at the time I never viewed them from the point of view of checking balance and tonality; many 'net commentators have said the 650s are a bit too full in the bottom end which would seriously compromise their ability to sort out that crucial upper bass area on acoustics/bass/vox etc. Some say the 600s are more accurate in that area - Dale or anyone else is that how you see them?

All thoughts gratefully accepted.
Cheers, Ross

[Text_Edifice]

might want to reconsider the dt770's as a new version was released in the last couple of years that apparently 'evened' out the spectral response a little. I can't speak from personal experience but I remember when I was looking the Equation Audio RP-21's came highly recommended from a friend but I couldn't find a pair to listen to at the time.

When you say you want a headphones to check mixes on though I'm wondering what you mean specifically?

I use my DT770s to edit on, check spatial locations, get a different mix perspective and occasionally pull a rough level and pan mix / obsess over minutiae. They are not as 'neutral' or 'accurate' as my monitors but for these purposes they work great - I know their foibles and they add a useful reference point.

Sounds like you might have some more heavy duty application in mind?

[prequalizer]

I have always been happy with the ATHM-40fs for several years and then moved up to th ATHM-50. I have tried the Fostex, Roland, AKG in the same price bracket as the ATHM and I thought the ATHM range has always been easier to mix in.

[Chinagraf]

Well if ya got the bucks Grado ones are pretty impressive. No good for recording with as the spill outside them is pretty loud but awesome for listening.

[DaleRoyce]

Ross,
My setup is minimalist. Just for stereo mastering. No tracking, so spill is no prob.
I have two pairs of 600's. one for me and one for the client. These are fed by my GRACE m904 monitor controller.
The headphone amp was 50% the reason for choosing the m904. I'd had the 600's for a couple of years before the m904,
and thought they were the best cans could buy for just under a grand. But when i started headphone amp testing,
thats when my eyes (ears) were truly opened.. Anyway i'm a small time indie artist mastering engineer, that pains over
detail.. probably to my detriment . (I do often hear Ricks words of wisdom ringing in my ears " just make it sound better.. Then stop."
easier said than done i find..)
My chain is as follows.. Mac pro to Grace 904 to MillenniaMedia NSEQ-2 to a Mytek 192 ADC and back to the mac.
A bit of work in logic before she leaves the mac to this chain, and then a bit of work in another couple of app's before she is handed over to the client.
Monitors have come and gone, But the 600's stay the same... nearly a hundred clients have gone through them.
My Last Word... ;-) They are comfy to have on your head for long listering sessions. This is important. :-)

[heathen]

I really only ever use headphones when listening for noise or spurious noises, also for making sure I hav'nt gone too mental with reverb, checking fade outs also sometimes if they are long. I really never find myself mixing with hp's, can't get enough done before my ears crap out.

My headphones are RS, but I'm used to em. I should get some new ones but the superglue on these ones is still holding strong.

[JulienG]

I've always been a headphone lover, and have recently expanded my collection.

The Sennheiser HD 650's are wonderful, but usually need a powerful headphone amp driving them, most pro gear's HP outputs are probably enough.

Other options are any of the AKG studio or top-end lineup, they're all quite good.

The better Sony's used to be surprisingly decent, but the lineup has changed completely and I don't know the current models.

Grado's are well regarded as well, my first pair is in shipping ATM.

Lastly if you're insane (like me) there's the Stax, my office cans are the Stax SD-404 driving by the SRM-323II off a cheap Chinese DAC (that is far better then any other cheap DAC I've heard)

[TimS]

In this edition of AT, there is a good headphone review - probably worth checking out.
If you want me to scan the article if you dont have/get AT, let me know - I have it here at work today for reading in between jobs..

[eek!]

I'm using 650's too. My main stereo monitoring is with Mackie HR824's and there isn't an audible difference between the two when I pop the headphones on. If I'm working away from the studio I can be fairly confident that my work will match up ok.