I am going to buy new head phones for mixing with whats better out of the 2 I have listed

Hi all

I have been thinging of updateing my studio monitors but I have thought long and hard about it and for anything I would like is going to cost me a lot of money

At the momment I am useing a set of Tapco S'5s (made by mackie) they are good but not the best

So I thought for the time being until I can afford the new monitors I would like I wil buy my self a better set of headphones to mix with I have it down to 2 sets

I hope some one can tell me the pros and cons of each and what would be better for creating mixes with :)

http://www.roland.co.uk/p...s.aspx?p=787&c=107

OR

http://www.roland.co.uk/p...s.aspx?p=786&c=107

Thanks for any info anyone can give me :)

Norrie

now that's cool. I was just going to ask the same question. I'm wondering if it's reasonable to think you can mix with headphones...What do you guys think?

gustabo


Get this instead for your Tapco's and whatever future monitor that you might buy.

This looks simply awesome man!!!!!!!!

I think its a bit out of my price range though or I would be buying it tomorow.

I guess I am just trying to find a way to get teh most out of my monitors there not the best and my far not the worst I guess i am just the kind of guy to always be looking for a little bit more sound on sound gave the tapcos not a bad review back in 2004....  http://www.soundonsound.c...4/articles/tapcos5.htm

Let me know what you think ?

I will be honest though I bought them before I had ever done any home recording and just took the sales guys advice on them for my price range.This was about a year ago now.

In your honest opinion guys would I better staying with the tapcos or going for something like the MAckiie MR5 ?

I shall be tottaly honest here and tell you all I know nothing about monitors of looking for a bit of help. I think the Mackie MR5's would be my max ammount to spend at at 240 a pair

Or is there anything else out there I should look at ?

Or again should I stay with the tapcos ?

I guess I am just woryed I will make crap mixes if my monitors are not up to the job and I am in the very early stages of learning so every little would help me

I cant thank you all enough for any input or advice on what I shoudl do

Norrie

Just to further pickle your head you could do worse than a pair of Behringer Truth monitors. I have a pair of B2031As but there is a slightly less powerful version even cheaper.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/BEH...mp;hash=item2eaf0e32eb

They made a huge difference to my mixing.

ruralrocker2010


now that's cool. I was just going to ask the same question. I'm wondering if it's reasonable to think you can mix with headphones...What do you guys think?

in a word, NO.  you can and should do some things with headphones, but not the final mix.  check your stereo panning levels, etc, but headphones should be used for final mixing unless you have no choice because of monetary issues.

for mixing in headphone you want to have a transparent sound that contains little coloration.  As a secondary mix or a source to check a mix for an intended audience mixing with head phone is pretty essential for the I pod crowd.  unless you are not planning have your music digitally distributed..  Your customer will be listening to ear buds and computer speakers and aux connect to teh car stereo.  

Akg 240's have served me well for over 20 years.  they a relativity inexpensive and have held up  in many many scenarios.  I would rather mix on genelecs but I need something now to get it done!

There are two types of phones, open and closed back. Mixing is sort of possible only with expensive open backed phones. Open back models have a flatter frequency response generally. But they emit more sound than closed back models so they are not so good for overdubbing.

Closed back models are generally better for overdubbing (because they are quieter on the outside) but not so accurate in the frequency response department. However I believe the closed back models are gaining in frequency response and getter closer to open back models. You really need both unless you can find a smooth well balanced sounding closed back model.

But generally speakers are better to mix on. Headphones are good for a check to see how you mix stacks up on phones. If you know that your final product is going to be listened primarily on phones like earbuds etc, it pays to spend a bit more time with them in general.
Bass can sometimes get a bit strong for some phones, things cannot be panned so hard left and right because that can sound a bit strange in phones and reverbs seem quite loud in them as well. You are just so close to your reverbs!

One should always know how their work is going to be listened to anyway.

Thanks for all the replys !

I have my Future Sonic In Ear monitors

I use them live on stage and in the studio when tracking but I dont like to be pulling them in and out of my ears all the time so looking for a half decent set of closed backs to do the job when I cant be useing monitors :)

Norrie

Been awhile since I visited the forum, and I hope I can be helpful in this advice.

For tracking, and singing, and even mixing, albeit comparing with my trusty Mackie hr824's I'm very satisfied with my ATH-M40fs studiophones. The only downside I've found is that they are accurate to the point that I notice how how badly the engineer sets up the mix if I'm in someone elses studio. I wouldn't trust any headphones to mix solely on, though. I find good cans are very helpful in pinpointing locations in the stereo field and getting good tonal separation between instruments, especially if your room is acoustically challenged.

Check 'em out http://www.bing.com/shopping/search?q=ath-m40fs&qpvt=ath-m40fs

Happy Mixing!!!

I have several very nice sets of headphones (AKG 701's/Senn HD650's/AKG240's ect.. and they all have their strong points. Many high end headphones have a very flat freq response and may sound weak in the low freqs. as most phones have exaggerated bass and that is what we get used to.  AKG's have a VERY long break in time. -300 or 400 hours. A good headphone amp helps
-As with any speaker, a listening session with recordings you know well is the way to choose.
-Just keep in mind what your goal is, Do you want headphones that make everything sound great or headphones that expose the truth?  As with monitors, The answer to that question may lead you in different directions.

I use my headphones to CHECK mixes at different stages -mainly to evaluate timing with transients, check for sibilant S's, background noise in vocal tracks, timing of delays/reverbs, ect -In short when listening through headphones I have something I am checking for.

I never MIX with headphones, they don't translate a mix the same a monitors.
    -I have tried to MIX with phones in the past, I work nights for months at a time and am up all night on my "days off" (why I have so many sets of headphones)...EVERY TIME I have tried to MIX something with phones I have had to go back and adjust/redo with monitors
You can do work on a project with headphones, but mixing is best through Monitors.
-I also have a set of the Mackie MR5's, I use them for studio (hardware) synths and as a third set of monitors. They have worked flawlessly for 2 years and sound good. -Good bang for buck. Not my first choice for a primary set of monitors though.
-Jason