Headphones

[Hepcat]

And.......................................................
THAT AIN'T RIGHT !!!!!

Oh...you have no idea.

the next logical question, of course, is how many of those can you wear at one time?

[Putts]

Quite a few.

[rvpopeye]

OMG Putts whaddaya think!
Hep
So what do you pick as the BEST EVER ?
Hep Et Tu Brute?

[Scott7022]

Best ever headphones?

I have an uneducated opinion. Like any of my opinions are really that bloody educated!!

As I have been doing all this editing, adding LUTS and fixing color really for the hours and hours of footage I have been using the top of the line Sony MDR's, that came with my Black Magic editing board. For soundtrack that includes voices and music and effects they work really well. But I have a pair of Turtle Beach gamer headphones that have cut outs for my glasses and nice noise cancelation. I use them for long flights, how do people afford to fly children upfront!!!
For scenes in the film with just ambient sound, wind, wolves in the distance. These seem to reproduce "real sound", or perhaps as I remembered it better than the MDR's in spades!! With sound cancelation off. I switch between the two and then when the footage is corrected and i've done some sound tweaking in Fairlight, as it is part of DaVinci Resolve, the outcome is amazing on a friends 22.2 surround system. Kind of like 5.1 for rich Russian Oligarchs that say build the best.

So I think it depends on what you are listening to? I mix the audio for direction and levels and then switch to the Turtle Beach and add the ambient to the level I remember and finally balance them all using only level meters. Sounds awesome. Probably not doing it right...LOL! But I thinks it sounds great and the three times we had previews at the local theater it goes over well.

[Putts]

OMG Putts whaddaya think!
Hep
So what do you pick as the BEST EVER ?
Hep Et Tu Brute?

Kinda like "what vehicle is best" it depends on your use. My opinions are here. For most people the Sennheiser HD 471 is a great ~$70 full-size sealed headphone. I you want an in-ear, the $50 HiFiMAN RE400 sounds terrific. There are versions with in-line remote/mic as well.

Best ever headphones?

I have been using the top of the line Sony MDR's....

The MDR Z1R...at $2299 you must be doing pretty well.  

Most Sony headphone model numbers start with MDR...which ones do you have?

[rvpopeye]

I'm probably gonna edit this so you might miss something if you don't read it twice
.....DUH , you won't see this till after the EDIT !!! Actual Gig last night so.....................sleepy
BeastMaster
Good to "hear" you like the Sony and were happy with the results.
HEP
My mistake for confusion in my editing that post though , I got your name in twice???
The "Et Tu Brute" was the part I was asking you. (Shakespere meaning "You Too")
I was asking if you were a HP guy too!? Because of your earlier comment about HPs

BeastMaster
And your input is quite welcome too. Thx for the review !!

The which do you think the best ever ? was to "Ol Stuck In The Mud" our resident HP tester deluxe.
Mr. Putts-Punt Keeper
(I'm gonna read your link after I write this and see how much we differ if at all!)

That would have been my #2 dream job (but a distant second)I didn't even know it existed when I hit the road so long ago. There was so little high end reproduction tech back then ( on stage or at FOH ) and my Koss Pro 4AA's were the best we had back in the days of a pile of gtr amps or a glorified head and a column cab.
The fact that I still have a set is all I have to say about how much many of us "golden ears" thought 'bout Pro4's.

Because of the high volume environment I found myself immersed in . The sealed over ears were usually desired and required . Yup Yup !
(I know there's some fine stuff in more open formats so include them in your comments too just to know how they stack up............)

Flat response is my most valued trait period, (all those "bass boost" models are crap IMO. Dr. Dre and Beats can go bite my ass!!! Over priced bass player rigs , nuff said ......almost.... People ought to let the artists and engineers decide how the program should sound ...grrrrrrrr !
And then ruin it to their uneducated liking with the tone controls on the pre-amp...........  Skuh kuh kuh kuh JOKE !    You don' get no stinkin' pre-amp anymore people !)

BTW speaking of pre-amps..."Gateway Mastering's Bob Ludwig" lives just down the road from me.

And I just have to say Sennheiser was my absolute all time fave best ever (always keep 2 of doze) road microphone , the 421 !
The perfect choice for just about every input! Roll off switch heaven.... ...........
Just never got my hands on a pair of dem cans. (ding ding ding-drooooooooooollllllll)

And EV RE20's are of course SWEEEEEEEEET , we did carry one or two in VERY well padded cases..........


Neumann !!! Ohhhh Yeaaaaaahhhhh !   
Did they ever come out with a set of HPs????
My studio counterparts used to rub them in our faces!!!
(Stick it boys! We did it all without rewind , simultaneously, in real time !.....You LOSE !)

And finally came out with something "road resistant" not too long ago and some of the high priced artists carried them ,,,but I couldn't justify the price when I could get Shure Beta's for a buck fitty !

 
I have had good impressions of the Shure brand as well ,again ,their high end condenser tech is top notch (re:87's),
and their industry standard 57 and 58 have always been around since the dawn of sound , the beta versions are a huge jump up and now my #2 after Sennheiser.
So ding ding ding to them for #2 brand !

I saw Sony's in studio use but they didn't seem to have the happy spot in a 125+dB environment I lived in.
Though , I'm sure I wouldn't have "tossed a pair" my term for let the band use 'em!!

There were always esoteric "super" brands around but nobody wanted to risk the big bucks to try 'em...
So your thoughts on those might be very interesting........

OH , Ear Buds..........I tested so many and they are so fragile...
Lots of the same from above but I bought the JBLs'
Great Hz response and the best sounding to my tired ears !
Also my fave large format transducer in pro sound ever !
I always knew it was gonna be a good show with JBL pointed my way !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Everybody should get a set !!!!!!!!!!!

Bluetooth ,,,,,cool ,but I don need it right now.


To everybody else reading along...............well , I (WE) Ain't Right.
Pay no attention to all the dribble just posted.........................

[rvpopeye]

HEPCAT
So I just went back to see what was posted when .
OMG !
You just wanted to know how many sets of HP's Putts could wear and I just saw his pic answering !
Skuh kuh kuh kuh , guess now ,you know !

BeastMaster
well the rest was my fault too!

I take so long to type , sometimes I forget who I'm typing to !

[Putts]

That would have been my #2 dream job (but a distant second)I didn't even know it existed when I hit the road so long ago.

It doesn't hardly exist at all. The equipment reviewer world needs about three of them.

There was so little high end reproduction tech back then ( on stage or at FOH ) and my Koss Pro 4AA's were the best we had back in the days of a pile of gtr amps or a glorified head and a column cab.
The fact that I still have a set is all I have to say about how much many of us "golden ears" thought 'bout Pro4's.

The original ones were far better than the Pro4AA they sell today. (You'll hear it.) The original was the first headphone I ever had. I remember laying in bed listening to Pink Floyd as a teen and having to wipe the sweat out of the ear cups every half hour. Damned liquid filled plastic earpads.

Because of the high volume environment I found myself immersed in . The sealed over ears were usually desired and required . Yup Yup !
(I know there's some fine stuff in more open formats so include them in your comments too just to know how they stack up............)

It's a tough call: Open acoustic earphones have less resonant problems behind the driver, so they're cleaner and more refined sounding---if they're good ones. Sealed cans can get you much better bass extension, but it comes at the cost of a bit rougher response curves, so they're not as nuanced.

Flat response is my most valued trait period,

Oh man, don't get me started.  The problem is: Nobody knows what flat is on headphones yet. Sean Olive at Harman International is working hard on it; even I am working on a proper compensation curve for my measurement head. Bottom line, it's a wicked complex problem. If you want to read about it I have articles here, here, here, here, and here....for a start.

(all those "bass boost" models are crap IMO. Dr. Dre and Beats can go bite my ass!!! Over priced bass player rigs , nuff said ......almost....

You'll love this...wait for it!



Fortunately, Beats has made so much money (they sell about 40% of all headphones over $100!) that they vastly exceeded Dre and entourage's need for hookers and blow, so about four years ago they hired about 12 top notch headphone engineers and their new line-up introduced about a year ago is actually above average. Their Solo 3 is pretty damned good...the rest is well built but only mediocre.  

BTW speaking of pre-amps..."Gateway Mastering's  Bob Ludwig" lives just down the road from me.

Bob Katz writes a blog for me.  And there you go...we've just name dropped the two most famous mastering engineers.

And I just have to say Sennheiser was my absolute all time fave best ever

Yup.  Mics or headphones, they're the best maker out there...though they still produce lemons sometimes.

Neumann !!! Ohhhh Yeaaaaaahhhhh !   
Did they ever come out with a set of HPs????

Don't think so...they're owned by Sennheiser.

I have had good impressions of the Shure brand as well ,again ,their high end condenser tech is top notch (re:87's),
and their industry standard 57 and 58 have always been around since the dawn of sound , the beta versions are a huge jump up and now my #2 after Sennheiser.
So ding ding ding to them for #2 brand !

They kind of avoid consumer audio distribution for headphones, but their cans are pretty good. Tend to be a tad bright, though. Still, a top notch outfit. Privately owned and I think the founders wife is still the board chairwoman.

There were always esoteric "super" brands around but nobody wanted to risk the big bucks to try 'em...
So your thoughts on those might be very interesting........

I've tested numerous multi-thousand dollar cans...mostly they're all purdy on the outside but sound no better than good $500 headphones. There was even a recent study showing that headphone price has NOTHING to do with sound quality. Sad.

[rvpopeye]

I had the first version Pro 4s back in the early 70s too.
I robbed the drivers and ear pads for my spare box (I used to have a source for both many moons ago but can't find 'em anymore.). And I had an old Sony 1144 amp in the bottom of my proc rack to boost the board HP output enough to hear above the "band of the night".

X10 on the sweaty ear syndrome and yes , P F Dark Side Of The Moon was on them before on my (homebuilt) monster speaker cabs (but not by very much).

Sennheiser once sent me a carabiner clip with their logo in appreciation? (As everyone knows , a carabiner is an important piece of audio gear????) Skuh kuh kuh kuh kuh That Ain't Right!
Glad you like them for what they are too !
My ear bud choice of JBL is part of Harman these days . Glad they still care about quality sound.... I always knew just what the 2445J 2" horn drivers meant for my shows , (I crossed them at 1.5K and my vocals etc. were sweet all the way up even if I didn't put another horn up top!.

BTW I still have a function generator and a mostly working 1/3 oct. RTA
 (the range switch knob is missing but I can still use a toothpick,,,road repairs!!!)
And P.S.
I was wondering who you would check my Ludwig ref.with ....yes I knew it would happen Skuh kuh kuh kuh kuh.
Anybody but us know what a mastering engineer does?

Is everyone else bored yet ? (I'm not !)
Maybe we should be doing this in PM but who knows ? BUT , maybe someone will not buy Beats and get something actually GOOD as a result  and of course there is always this (It's My Thread! )

Isn't it great that we aren't getting scolded for being off topic ? this thread was intentionally without topic from post #1 other than slipping the occasional "Ain't Right" in here and there , we're good... Remember the gun discussion ? I do !

OK , I now return to our regularly scheduled "program". (Like we got wonna doze!)

The Weirdo Overlord has yet another title to bestow !
Putts /Drunk in the Mud/ Keeper of the Dingy will also be called ....wait for it.............."Ears"
confirmed and so recorded in the thread title log.

T W O h s,,,,P. O.

[Scott7022]

Yeah those are them I think I called zr1' or R1's I had to go and look as I had boxed them. Not mine they came with the Black Magic Designs Advanced panel and at 30 grand, and the only one in Russia, very rare. Not MINE either. Owned by the production studio and they just let me take it home to play with. But it looks like I am done and sending them all back, so back to my two old laptops and not the flashy new ones. LOL!

Ok I feel a little embarrassed as The Sonys sound good. But not THAT GOOD. My Turtle Beach cans are like 300 bucks I think, perhaps less. They are a little bass heavy, not much, (Nothing like beats) but the Sonys don't sound three times as good...Not to my shredded ears anyway.

The Black Magic Product is a dream and super fast. This edit was almost a year on my end and would have taken three EASY solo. We did it Russian style and edited everything and then they will cut to production, and master it. Beyond my skill set.
   

As for off topic. Cans and plugs make you a better neighbor. Also professionals are so much more interesting to listen to and follow for advice on what to buy. See I never knew the price of these cans so I would gone to B&H Photo, order my movies stuff and just found what I used here and gone WTF? I am not spending that kind of money on cans....I'll just get HMMMM? Now I can make an informed choice. Can't be an expert on everything....

Thanks