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Old 02-25-2016, 09:30 AM
RedJoker RedJoker is offline
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Default $100 monitor / headphone options?

First off, I know this is an insanely low budget but I just don't feel like spending more on this at the moment.

I currently record in an untreated spare bedroom and "officially" only make recordings to track my progress, not to publish. Having said that, I notice a huge difference in what my recordings sound like through my crappy computer speakers and/or $20 headphones and what they sound like through a real stereo or even car stereo. It's mostly the eq that I'm looking to improve here. I think I could significantly improve the quality of my mixes if I could hear how screwy the eq is without running around to the car, the stereo, whatever.

At this point, I'm really only willing to throw about $100 at this. If I can't get a decent set of speakers or headphones for that amount, I'll just stick to what I have and just keep learning. After all, I don't need better recordings, I just want a bit of improvement.

FYI, I put headphones as an option here because we are planning to redo that room and I'm not sure about what acoustic treatments I'll be able to do.

Thoughts? Is it even worth it?
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Old 02-25-2016, 09:49 AM
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Methos1979 Methos1979 is offline
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There is no end of really good headphones in your price range.

My son is a sound engineer for a large concert venue and we got him a set of Audio-Technica ATH M50X Full Size Headphones for his birthday that are the industry standard for this type of work. Those can be found for just over your limit at $119. If you go one model back (the ATH M40X) you can find them for $79.
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Old 02-25-2016, 10:51 AM
Trevor B. Trevor B. is offline
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As well as the AT ATH M40X you might consider Sennheiser HD 280 Pro Headphones. They're within your stated price range and also an industry standard. In fact, they're the workhorse headphones that many pro studios assign to recording clients.
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Old 02-25-2016, 01:11 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by RedJoker View Post
First off, I know this is an insanely low budget but I just don't feel like spending more on this at the moment.

I currently record in an untreated spare bedroom and "officially" only make recordings to track my progress, not to publish. Having said that, I notice a huge difference in what my recordings sound like through my crappy computer speakers and/or $20 headphones and what they sound like through a real stereo or even car stereo. It's mostly the eq that I'm looking to improve here. I think I could significantly improve the quality of my mixes if I could hear how screwy the eq is without running around to the car, the stereo, whatever.

At this point, I'm really only willing to throw about $100 at this. If I can't get a decent set of speakers or headphones for that amount, I'll just stick to what I have and just keep learning. After all, I don't need better recordings, I just want a bit of improvement.
FYI, I put headphones as an option here because we are planning to redo that room and I'm not sure about what acoustic treatments I'll be able to do.

Thoughts? Is it even worth it?
I think there is no question that a set of $100 headphones vs. computer speakers and cheap HP's and ear buds etc. , will make a big difference your ability to hear and mix
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Old 02-25-2016, 04:44 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Trevor B. View Post
As well as the AT ATH M40X you might consider Sennheiser HD 280 Pro Headphones. They're within your stated price range and also an industry standard. In fact, they're the workhorse headphones that many pro studios assign to recording clients.
Sennheiser is also a great maker of quality headphones at lower budget prices. Every set of Sennheiser headphones I've ever owned have been great. When we bought our son's we narrowed it down to the Audio Technica and the Sennheisers...
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Old 02-25-2016, 04:56 PM
RedJoker RedJoker is offline
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Thanks for the tips. I have a cheap set of Sennhieser HD 202 headphones but they seem very bass heavy.
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Old 02-25-2016, 05:34 PM
sdelsolray sdelsolray is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by RedJoker View Post
Thanks for the tips. I have a cheap set of Sennhieser HD 202 headphones but they seem very bass heavy.
Look at open back headphones, not closed ones.
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Old 02-25-2016, 05:46 PM
RedJoker RedJoker is offline
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Look at open back headphones, not closed ones.
That's what I thought but all I've found are more expensive tHan my budget. The suggestions above are also closed back, I think.
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Old 02-25-2016, 06:30 PM
clintj clintj is offline
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The Sennheisers are excellent for home use. I use them when tracking to avoid bleeding the monitor mix into the mics.

If you want a good, affordable set of open back headphones check out a set of AKG K240's. The EQ on them compares favorably to my JBL nearfield monitors and they're $99 most places.

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Old 02-25-2016, 08:07 PM
sdelsolray sdelsolray is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by RedJoker View Post
That's what I thought but all I've found are more expensive tHan my budget. The suggestions above are also closed back, I think.
That's tough. Closed backed headphones suck for mixing but are needed for tracking. I bought a pair of open backed AKG 240DF on sale of $99, although it was some time ago.

I was at Guitar Center a couple of weeks ago to get some strings and they had paired of powered near field monitors for about $150, IIRC. Something like that (a cheap pair of near filed monitors) would probably be the biggest improvement you could make in your recording chain.

Nearfield monitors trump headphones in this situation. By a very long mile.
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Old 02-25-2016, 09:31 PM
RayCJ RayCJ is offline
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Sennheiser HD 280 Pro. 99 bucks. These are used in many professional environments. Very flat EQ and closely match my Yamaha HS 7 studio monitor speakers.

http://www.amazon.com/Sennheiser-HD-.../dp/B000065BPB

You will not likely find speakers in your price range that have a flat response and will serve you well for recording. An outstanding studio monitor is the Yamaha HS 7 but, they run about $350 each.


Ray
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Old 02-26-2016, 06:48 AM
RedJoker RedJoker is offline
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Thanks for all the suggestions, everyone. I ended up placing an order for a pair of AKG K240's. Amazon currently has them for $60 so I figure I can't really go wrong. We'll see how it goes!
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Old 02-26-2016, 06:20 PM
Trevor B. Trevor B. is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by clintj View Post
If you want a good, affordable set of open back headphones check out a set of AKG K240's. The EQ on them compares favorably to my JBL nearfield monitors and they're $99 most places.
Whoa, good price for open back headphones!
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  #14  
Old 02-27-2016, 12:45 AM
runamuck runamuck is offline
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Grado makes open back headphones for around $100.
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Old 02-27-2016, 09:09 AM
Sage97 Sage97 is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by sdelsolray View Post
Nearfield monitors trump headphones in this situation. By a very long mile.
Same observations here.
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