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Gear / Technical Help => Playback Forum => Topic started by: cbd on March 11, 2012, 09:39:21 AM
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have had these Sony MDR-7506's for years, in fact on my 2nd pair. The sound is really just so so. Not bad per se but not the detailed low end I like. Bad enough than when I have been converting my recordings I have been having to burn to disc and listen on the home system just to get a good evaluation ... which defeats the entire purpose of having headphones & mastering on my laptop. plus, the annoying issue is that the ear pads/covers suck and keep slipping off the headphones and are a huge hassle to get back on
(http://di1-4.shoppingshadow.com/images/pi/18/ac/9c/21283931-260x260-0-0_Sony+Sony+MDR+7506+Pro+Monitor.jpg)
Been considering either (1) Grado SR325is and (2) AKG k702
any thoughts on those 2 models or any other suggestions in that price range?
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If your lacking low end in your headphones, skip the Grados. They require a tube amp to get close to normal in the bass region, I sold my pair after a week. Here is some sample data on the three:
(http://graphs.headphone.com/graphCompare.php?graphType=0&graphID[]=2621&graphID[]=383&graphID[]=2361)
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I also was disappointed with the sound of the 7506 and went for the Audio Technica ATH-M50 instead (around $125). Night and day difference. Much better low end, detail, and spatial imaging. Very easy to drive as well; they work well with my laptop and even my iPod. I couldn't be happier with them.
You also may want to check out the Beyer DT880 (around $300). I have not heard them myself, but have heard very good things about them. More difficult to drive, however; you may need a headphone amplifier for them.
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I personally like the 7506's I recently picked up used in the YS. But I almost exclusively use them at shows, not for playback at home.
You might want to check out these threads:
[url]http://taperssection.com/index.php?topic=146975.msg1885925#msg1885925]http://taperssection.com/index.php?topic=148253.msg1897026#msg1897026[/ur;]
[url]http://taperssection.com/index.php?topic=146975.msg1885925#msg1885925 (http://taperssection.com/index.php?topic=148253.msg1897026#msg1897026[/ur;)
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FWIW, I love my akg k701 cans. I think they need an amp to sound their best, and they are open, but I love them.
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I also was disappointed with the sound of the 7506 and went for the Audio Technica ATH-M50 instead (around $125). Night and day difference. Much better low end, detail, and spatial imaging. Very easy to drive as well; they work well with my laptop and even my iPod. I couldn't be happier with them.
You also may want to check out the Beyer DT880 (around $300). I have not heard them myself, but have heard very good things about them. More difficult to drive, however; you may need a headphone amplifier for them.
we have 7506 and ATH-M50 in our house. M50 wins hands down.
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Not sure if this has been posted before around here. Dat Rat (FOH for Red Hot Chili Peppers and Soundgarden) examines several (closed) cans:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QJh8B1QfEn0
I tried the Shure SRH 840's based on those videos and have been using them for a few months. I like them better than the Sennheiser 280's they replaced, although the isolation is not quite as good. I use them mostly for live sound, but they work pretty well for mastering recordings, too. I find that most of the EQ decisions I make while monitoring on the 840's translate well when I listen to the recording on the big system. Like all headphones they will lie to you as far as imaging and soundstage go, but EQ-wise I find them very helpful.
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ATH-M50 wins hands down.
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What about a pair that's more portable than the AT's? Recently my pair of koss portapros have wanted to become mono only; while these portapros lasted awhile, I don't want to replace with the same pair.
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To those who seek for a portable headphone which also have good low end, and don't wish to go for IEMs (many of which have very good low end), I'd warmly recommend the Beyerdynamic DT-1350. You won't find many headphones with a low end like this one has, especially at this compact size - it's very small and folds (Grado style) into a carrying bag for travel. I use them everyday, wish they were more popular in the consumer headphone market. Try to audition them if you can.
These are 80 ohms but are driven nicely from a laptop. They do improve with amplification, it adds some more 'texture' to the overall spectrum and provides a more balanced sound.
Speaking of the sound signature, they have a gentle emphasis at the low mids, say 400Hz, but it doesn't much except some warmth and 'weight'. For mastering through headphones you'll always have to know the weaknesses of your headphone and compensate for them. There's no perfect headphone for this matter.
Here's a link: http://europe.beyerdynamic.com/shop/hah/headphones-and-headsets/studio-and-stage/studio-headphones/dt-1350.html#
By the way, these are ON-EAR headphones, not over the ear like the 7506's are.
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To those who seek for a portable headphone which also have good low end, and don't wish to go for IEMs (many of which have very good low end), I'd warmly recommend the Beyerdynamic DT-1350.
offtopic, but damn:
Lake People Violectric V800 > SPL Phonitor
I always wanted a phonitor, but I don't have high impedance cans...
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I usually use Beyerdynamic DT770 Pro 80 ohm cans for my listening. They're a bit power-hungry if you're trying to feed them from a laptop, though. On my desktop system, my E-MU 0404 USB interface has just enough oomph to make the Beyers shine.
I think, in the US at least, you're most likely to find the 80 ohm version at Guitar Center. B&H has the 250 ohm version.
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I usually use Beyerdynamic DT770 Pro 80 ohm cans for my listening. They're a bit power-hungry if you're trying to feed them from a laptop, though. On my desktop system, my E-MU 0404 USB interface has just enough oomph to make the Beyers shine.
I think, in the US at least, you're most likely to find the 80 ohm version at Guitar Center. B&H has the 250 ohm version.
I almost bought a pair of the DT770 and for a headphone to be used with an amplifier, they shine. Better than my ATH-M50, but with just an ipod or laptop, the ATH-M50 sounds better to me, more gain for dynamic uncompressed shows.
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Why compromise...
http://www.avguide.com/review/stax-sr-009-electrostatic-earspeaker-playback-54?utm_campaign=Weekly+Email&utm_medium=email&utm_source=email-340&utm_content=Stax/Woo+Audio+Headphone+System%3b+HiFiMAN+%27phones%3b+Audioengine+%26+Peachtree+Electronics
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If your lacking low end in your headphones, skip the Grados. They require a tube amp to get close to normal in the bass region, I sold my pair after a week.
page thabnks for the graph although I would say that every review I have read of the grados say it takes on average of 2 weeks to break them in ... so is it possible you got rid of your before they were broken in?
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Craig -- If you're interested in Grados, I've got a pair of SR225's I'd sell you for a good price. Broken in, but really very lightly used and in excellent shape. The vast majority of my listening is on speaker-based systems, so they've never gotten much use.
That said, I'd really skip them if you're interested in mastering. Grados sound excellent, but I don't think they're very good for mastering. Just not much in the way of low end as Page says, so it's hard to get a sense of how your final mix will be since the very lows aren't well captured.
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^^ I've had my Grados for years and, IMO, would definitely consider them on the "bright" side. If you're looking for bass, the Grados ain't it. As page recommends, a tube amp will bring a little warmth to their sound but, on the whole, I don't consider them accurate in the low end. Great for casual listening but the last cans I would grab for critical listening.
In addition to the ATH-M50 (I use mine constantly), I would also take a look at the Shure SRH440.
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I guess the issue isn't so much that I'm "looking" for bass as it is that when I am mastering the shows I record the Sony's - IMO -- give a poor reflection of the bass in my recording. On the headphones the bass will sound nonexistant but yet when I crank it up on the home system or hell even in the car it sounds much richer, fuller. hard to mix my shows when I'm dealing with that...
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I guess the issue isn't so much that I'm "looking" for bass as it is that when I am mastering the shows I record the Sony's - IMO -- give a poor reflection of the bass in my recording. On the headphones the bass will sound nonexistant but yet when I crank it up on the home system or hell even in the car it sounds much richer, fuller. hard to mix my shows when I'm dealing with that...
Yeah, headphones trend toward bass shy, you see the roll off in the graph. Finding a pair that have bass that mimics a speaker system isn't impossible, but takes some thought. Of the two I mentioned, I'd go for the AKGs, but I'd really look at the M50s, they have a response that is closer to a full hi-fi speaker system.
If your lacking low end in your headphones, skip the Grados. They require a tube amp to get close to normal in the bass region, I sold my pair after a week.
page thabnks for the graph although I would say that every review I have read of the grados say it takes on average of 2 weeks to break them in ... so is it possible you got rid of your before they were broken in?
I ran them with whitenoise for about 60 hours and didn't notice enough of a change to keep them. Just not my cup of tea.
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maybe consider the original source material? like the b&k's....... (joking clearly)
however, you are never gonna be able to easily/perfectly match speakers to headphones, just too hard to truely immitate.
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I guess the issue isn't so much that I'm "looking" for bass as it is that when I am mastering the shows I record the Sony's - IMO -- give a poor reflection of the bass in my recording. On the headphones the bass will sound nonexistant but yet when I crank it up on the home system or hell even in the car it sounds much richer, fuller. hard to mix my shows when I'm dealing with that...
This is exactly the issue I had with the 7506 cans, so I dumped them. After doing some research, decided that the Grado SR225 seemed like they were supposed to be good cans, so I got those. I found them very nice to listen to, but not for mastering.
I had the same feeling with the Grados as with the 7506 -- couldn't really hear the low end, so I didn't know if mastered a recording with way too much bass or too little. I chalked it up to: mastering just doesn't work on phones, so use a speaker-based playback.
After all the fluffing of the Audio-Technica ATH-M50, I got a pair of those. Whoa, what a difference! I finally feel like I can master on headphones. I still prefer speaker-based mastering, and always check the mix back on speakers before committing, but I can at least approach the mastering task with the M50's. The M50's do have some bloat in the 100-200hz range I hear, but I can get used to that and master around it (and have some bass bloat below that, but I don't notice that as much).
Not to say they are the only phone that works for mastering, but far better than the 7506's and SR225's I've owned. And I wouldn't necessarily say they are a better set of cans for general listening. In many ways I like listening on the SR225's for typical headphone playback. I don't use phones too much though for general listening lately.
Here's the frequency graph of the 7506, SR225, and ATH-M50:
(http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b82/tramsden/Screenshot2012-03-16at84654AM.png)
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Lil bro, fwiw I use the 7506/600 version and like you I am on multiple sets. I think in the price range these are hard to beat but I have heard good things about the ATH-M50. Never used them though. I have learned ot do one of two things when mixing on the sony's. I have a custom EQ curve I dump in on the master channel for playback to compensate or I just mix "knowing" that the low endis there. For me I found the low end that I felt was missing was due to the physical thump you can feel in your chest with speakers something headphones can't deliver.
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just replaced the sr80i grado headphone pads with the L cush, worlds of difference.
the stock pad is weak, sound leaks all around the side. the L cush is like a mini-amphitheater!
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just replaced the sr80i grado headphone pads with the L cush, worlds of difference.
the stock pad is weak, sound leaks all around the side. the L cush is like a mini-amphitheater!
Where did you pick these up? I've been mod'ing my grados and would love to get a different cushion.
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GoodCans.com
had both l-cushion adn g cush, they are grreat to show other folks pros/cons to the open headphone
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any opinions on the Beyerdynamic DT 880 vs the DT 990? thanks.
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any opinions on the Beyerdynamic DT 880 vs the DT 990? thanks.
Maybe these posts from Ken Rockwell will help. He's a photo guy, but actually knows his audio better than this photography, at least IMHO.
Beyer 880: http://kenrockwell.com/audio/beyer/dt-880.htm
Beyer 990: http://kenrockwell.com/audio/beyer/dt-990.htm
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^ thanks.
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You need Sony MDR-7520's, a big step up from the 7506.
These are phenomenal headphones, I use them to master my recordings and they are totally reliable for getting the bottom end spot on. The bass response is way better than any other cans I've used, the only ones where you actually feel the bass in your insides - like listening through a PA or speakers. However, they are very neutral headphones, they do not overemphasise the bass, nor the mids or highs, ideal for studio work. I pair them with a Yulong D100 DAC which is also very neutral.
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You need Sony MDR-7520's, a big step up from the 7506.
That's not too surprising since they cost 5 or 6 times as much.
If you can't justify the cost of 7520's, the ATH-M50's are a clearly audible step up from the 7506's and they can be bought new for $130 or less (around 1/3 the cost of the 7520's).
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You need Sony MDR-7520's, a big step up from the 7506.
That's not too surprising since they cost 5 or 6 times as much.
If you can't justify the cost of 7520's, the ATH-M50's are a clearly audible step up from the 7506's and they can be bought new for $130 or less (around 1/3 the cost of the 7520's).
We own both 7506 and ATH-M50s in our house. I like the 7506s and love the ATH-M50 set. Big step up for not much money.
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We own both 7506 and ATH-M50s in our house. I like the 7506s and love the ATH-M50 set. Big step up for not much money.
They can be had for $110 shipped from Sound Pro's at the moment.
http://taperssection.com/index.php?topic=158185.0
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Been considering either (1) Grado SR325is and (2) AKG k702
any thoughts on those 2 models or any other suggestions in that price range?
Just a tad late to the party :P, but I can tell you that I love my AKG 702s. They are extremely well balanced. They need 100-200 hours of break-in, for real. I distinguish these from other cans in this way: like monitors, they are designed to tell you what's on the recording, and in that sense they may be more "analytical" vs. "lush" for some people.
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ideally i'd like a pair for mixing that is very neutral and flat, and a pair for listening that is more lush with a bit of boost in the bass and trebles. i'm very intrigued by the Beyerdynamic DT880 and DT990 premium models, but there are a lot of good choices. i've heard consistently good things about the ATH-M50 as well as the AKG 701/702 and the Sennheiser HD600.
i've been using Ultrasone HFI-550 headphones since around 2005/2006. they've served me well and i'll continue to use them, but i'm strongly contemplating an addition. something to complement the HFI-550, not necessarily a total replacement.
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ideally i'd like a pair for mixing that is very neutral and flat, and a pair for listening that is more lush with a bit of boost in the bass and trebles.
I got some Senn HD600's for "listening." They're very good, and a lot of people like 'em more than the 650s.