Headphone advice?

AdamBat

Evening all, looking for a bit of a steer. I’ve mostly been playing a HX stomp through headphones recently due to trying to avoid waking the baby. I managed to get half an hour when I had the house to myself and turned my Kemper on and played through studio monitors. I don’t think I expected such a huge difference, I even felt like I could play better! I don’t know anything about headphones - the ones I have I understand are good-ish, maybe a little old, and I think are closed back Shures. I’d like to ask whether there is a certain type or model of headphone that is best for modellers and that can achieve something closer to the “amp in the room” sound? A quick look online seems to suggest open back headphones but any advice or pointers would be greatly appreciated! Cheers!

Nerine

Depends on budget really but any of the most talked about open back models from Sennheiser or Beyerdynamic etc are a safe bet. 

You can’t really aim for “best” because they all sound objectively good. They’re likely just different. 

So pay attention to how people describe them when you read reviews. 

Dont listen to utter waffle like “soundstage” “openness” or any other jargon bullshit, just read more into stuff like pair X are less bright than pair Y. If you like a softer sound in general, then pair X will likely suit you better. 

You’ll end up getting used to whichever ones you buy. 

Personally I have a pair of Sennheiser HD600’s. I could have bought more expensive ones, but I bought them based on how people compared them to others I was looking at. The majority opinion was largely correct and I’m happy with my headphones and have been using them for years for editing, listening, mixing, referencing etc. 

This is basically the best way to buy headphones. That or try some and return them if you don’t like them.

Lewy

Before buying new headphones…try putting a stereo Dynamic Ambience reverb at the end or your preset (even if you have another reverb in the chain too). It dramatically improves the headphone experience. 

dhaywood67

And whichever headphones you choose use Amazon's 30 day returns to trial them :-)

AdamBat

Nerine said:

Depends on budget really but any of the most talked about open back models from Sennheiser or Beyerdynamic etc are a safe bet. 

You can’t really aim for “best” because they all sound objectively good. They’re likely just different. 

So pay attention to how people describe them when you read reviews. 

Dont listen to utter waffle like “soundstage” “openness” or any other jargon bullshit, just read more into stuff like pair X are less bright than pair Y. If you like a softer sound in general, then pair X will likely suit you better. 

You’ll end up getting used to whichever ones you buy. 

Personally I have a pair of Sennheiser HD600’s. I could have bought more expensive ones, but I bought them based on how people compared them to others I was looking at. The majority opinion was largely correct and I’m happy with my headphones and have been using them for years for editing, listening, mixing, referencing etc. 

This is basically the best way to buy headphones. That or try some and return them if you don’t like them.

Wow, thanks for reply! I’ll do a bit of research around the Senheiser and Beyerdynamic ones. I’m only a three-chord cowboy bedroom strummer, so finding something that is “good enough” should be hopefully easy enough! 

Lewy said:

Before buying new headphones…try putting a stereo Dynamic Ambience reverb at the end or your preset (even if you have another reverb in the chain too). It dramatically improves the headphone experience. 

Ah, I didn’t know about this, thanks! I’ve basically done a 360 with my view of the Kemper at the moment after going down the rabbit hole of lots of pedals, turns out that I really like the sound of all the Kemper has to offer! I’ll give it a go when I next get a chance to play

Winny_Pooh

I like open backs just because they are less sweaty. Beyer DT880

Musicwolf

If you want something that is more neutral, and generally more comfortable, then choose something open-backed.  I use AKG K702's and Sennheiser HD650's with my modellers / editing / check mix details.  However, they 'leak' sound so they may not be what you are after if you are looking for quiet listening.

Bidley

I would go AKG K371 or DT770 for closed back. K371 are Harman tuned so a little more neutral, 770 is V- shaped so emphasised treble and bass.

For open-back the HD600s are benchmarks and I love them for listening to music, but the upper mids are a little harsh for monitoring (for my tastes). K712 (bit warmer, big soundstage) or K702 (less bass, wider soundstage) would be my picks. I love the DT880 but they're hard to drive.

Rocker

Superlux HD681.  Cheap as chips and great sounding.

Accurate and honest review here: https://www.tnt-audio.com/headphones/superlux_hd681_e.html

Secret_Sam

There are very good headphone reviews on sonarworks.com.

Sonarworks sell correction software for headphones.  Their reviews of headphones seem unbiased, and reviews of phones that I have used have all seemed right to me.

They don't cover every model but they cover a lot. 

pt22

Secret_Sam said:

There are very good headphone reviews on sonarworks.com.

Sonarworks sell correction software for headphones.  Their reviews of headphones seem unbiased, and reviews of phones that I have used have all seemed right to me.

They don't cover every model but they cover a lot. 

Thanks for that site. Helpful!

AdamBat

Hi all, thanks for your help on this - I thought I’d dip my toe in by trying @Rocker ’s suggestion on the Superlux’s. I’m yet to try the dynamic ambience on the Kemper, but it’s been really useful in proving the point that I much prefer the sound of the Kemper over the HX stomp, even with headphones. I really had hoped that it would bring the HX stomp closer to the Kemper to maybe think about moving the Kemper on, but pleased to say that the Kemper is staying firmly put! Nothing wrong with the HX, I think it just doesn’t sound as lively. I ultimately still prefer playing the Kemper through speakers, and I think there’s a strong argument for trying a “better” set of headphones with the Kemper, but so far, I’m really pleased!

allen