Studio monitor or headphone?

kungfu · Post by **kungfu** » Tue Apr 03, 2007 8:52 am

I need something that has good quality for recording and mixing my band's and own stuff. I live with my family so I don't make too much noise. Yes, I'm not a producer but I want my recordings to sound really good.

So..Are studio monitors a 'MUST' for me or will I be ok with a really good headphone?

Do you guys have any recommendations? Any brands/models?

Blainy · Post by **Blainy** » Tue Apr 03, 2007 9:03 am

I have the same question....

kungfu · Post by **kungfu** » Tue Apr 03, 2007 9:33 am

Yeah, I wonder these expensive headphones can give the uncoloured tone for mixing. For example:

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/ ... sku=272025

Phate · Post by **Phate** » Tue Apr 03, 2007 10:58 am

I recently bought ultimate ears super.fi 3 studio in-ear monitors. The manual tells they are not coloring the tone. By my experience they do a great job not doing it and have a very good noise isolation, so you can concentrate yourself on the music. I bought them as in-ear-monitors on stage, because they reduce noise about -26dB which will protect my hearing quite a lot.

I'd say have a look to the website. Most professional use UE in-ears, including a lot of soundmen. They normally use custom built ones, but my opinion is that you don't need that. Buy the clear ones and it will look fine.

www.ultimateears.com

Look into the super.fi series studio 3 and 5. For my needs studio 3 is the perfect choise.

Hope that helps you!

kungfu · Post by **kungfu** » Tue Apr 03, 2007 11:29 am

Thanks a lot Phate:)
It seems that mostly monitor engineers use Ultimate Ears, have you used it for mixing etc.?

timi · Post by **timi** » Tue Apr 03, 2007 11:56 am

As long as your monitoring isn't really bad, it almost doesn't matter what you use as long as you know them really well, but of course the ideal would be monitoring that is accurate and detailed.

I would say that if you are on a budget or mix a lot at night, go with headphones.
If you have more money, and are mixing with other band members, go with monitors.

Its good to check mixes on both though.

Whatever you get, take a good amount of time to listen to your favourite albums and some of your own recordings to get used to them.

Post by **bclaire** » Tue Apr 03, 2007 12:02 pm

I think you need both. You have to hear it on speakers as well as headphones...

... and besides, if you want anyone else to listen to it, you're not going to let them use your in-ears. gross.

Phate · Post by **Phate** » Tue Apr 03, 2007 12:04 pm

Yes Murat, I did. Search for the Golden Age Pickup thread, there is a soundclip which I mixed with the UEs.

A simple rule to control the mix, hear it a low volume, normal volume and high volume, to check if you can hear every part as good as at another volume.

I have the impression that you read the Who is Who of the music branch, while reading their website.

But they are certainly producing great stuff.

kungfu · Post by **kungfu** » Tue Apr 03, 2007 12:30 pm

I have Creative Inspire monitors which have no use for mixing.
I think I'm gonna get an Ultimate Ear and a set of cheapest Behringer studio monitors:)

I'm saving my money for a good amp near my Rocker30 (possibly Rockerverb or PPC212), I can't spend too much for monitors if this solution works enough[:p]
Would Behringer be enough?

teenagekick · Post by **teenagekick** » Tue Apr 03, 2007 12:32 pm

They have had some good reviews, but they said they would only be used in home recording situations. Not in a proper studio.

Pete27 · Post by **Pete27** » Tue Apr 03, 2007 12:45 pm

ive got a pair of these

: sennheiser hd 280 pro
and i realllyyy like them
i use them while recording stuff
and for mixing down stuff ive recorded
plus just listening to music
love them
all ive noticed is that things do sound different when listened to through monitor speakers compared to headphones. and maybe the majority of people who hear your music will be listening through cheap speakers anyway..?

loveinrocking · Post by **loveinrocking** » Tue Apr 03, 2007 2:06 pm

with my experiences in recording you are going to want at least 3 headphones, 1 for you to listen to while recording, 1 for the scratch guitar, and 1 for the drummer, that's the most you will need.

and then you are also going to want to buy monitors anyways so A. yeah other people can listen to it and B. i think they are better for mixing and mastering in my opinion.

if you can't afford all the head phones, which is understandable i would say get at least one of each.

rrrajo · Post by **rrrajo** » Tue Apr 03, 2007 2:20 pm

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by bclaire
 I think you need both. You have to hear it on speakers as well as headphones...

... and besides, if you want anyone else to listen to it, you're not going to let them use your in-ears. gross.
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">

Right=on! The Phones are good for Recording Guitar Parts Silently(With a modeling Device). But, on mix-downs you need the Two monitors separted. Also, alot of things will sound Great through the Phones, but not so hot in Reality.

As Billy says, You really need both. Phones would be fine for Rough Draft 4 tracks.

Also, I'm with Billy 100% on having other people "Muck" up my Phones!

Orphin · Post by **Orphin** » Tue Apr 03, 2007 2:23 pm

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by kungfu
 I need something that has good quality for recording and mixing my band's and own stuff. I live with my family so I don't make too much noise. Yes, I'm not a producer but I want my recordings to sound really good.

So..Are studio monitors a 'MUST' for me or will I be ok with a really good headphone?

Do you guys have any recommendations? Any brands/models?
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">
 
Take my word. Never mix with headphones. You will hear everything so clear in a pair of headphones, too clear. It will make the whole mix sound really strange.
Remember that music is meant to be played through speakers, not headphones, therefor you must mix through speakers as well.
Any pair of crappy speakers will do better than the best headphones there is to buy.

I've done that mistake myself a couple of years ago.

Borderline Productions · Post by **Borderline Productions** » Tue Apr 03, 2007 7:57 pm

Do a rough mix with headphones, then play that mix through monitors, and you will wonder what happened (where did all the reverb go?). Good monitors will help you find what is wrong with your mix so you can fix it. Always take a mix and listen to it a variety of settings through a variety of equipment: car stereos, boom boxes, ipods, etc. A good mix will sound good in a variety of settings. Don't expect to get the mix right on your first try.

For headphones I use AudioTechnica ATH-M409fs. They have a flat response and don't cost an arm and a leg. I use them for monitoring during recording since I record and mix in the same room.

I just went through the "find the right near-field monitor" adventure. There are lots of choices. There are active and passive monitors. The actives are much more expensive, but you don't have to worry about a power source. If you have a clean power source and it matches well to power requirements of the passives you are considering then passives may be a good choice. Too much power will blow out your woofer, too little headroom will blow out your tweeter.

As far as brands go ADAMs are cool and all the rage, but very expensive. I have friends with KRKs who swear by them. JBLs have a good reputation. Behringers are cheap, but some people swear by them. I ended up with Tannoy Reveal 6 Passives ($400 for a pair (about the same price as expensive headphones)) and love them. The key is learn what YOUR monitors are telling YOU and how well that translates to all of the other systems you will test you mix on.

Try out monitors listening to a CD you know backwards and forwards. If you hear something on the CD you never noticed before, that is a good thing. Monitors are not about sounding good, but about hearing everything.

There are several threads on monitors at www.tapeop.com

Studio monitor or headphone?

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