Using cheap quality Headphones for production/mixing?

[Ana Richey]

Does anyone know of cheap quality headphones for production/mixing?

Has anyone heard of clients needing to wear the same headphones as you are wearing as it gives you the same response? Or id that a myth?

Does anyone know if Roland RH-5 are any good?

I use that and scarlet Focusrite and scarlet sounds louder in those headphones -why?

[loukash]

Er… "cheap quality headphones" as in:

1. cheap "quality"?
2. "cheap" quality?

You see the dilema here? 😉
I'd definitely avoid #1 and go for #2 because quality will always has its value and thus its price for a reason.

[fuzzfilth]

10 hours ago, Ana Richey said:

clients needing to wear the same headphones as you are wearing as it gives you the same response

That is like a graphic designer asking their client to please wear the same yellow tinted glasses to avoid them noticing just how f*ucked up the blues turned out. Mixing is about making it sound as good as possible on every playback system. There are different strategies out there, but when mixing I prefer to hear everything exactly like it is. Not bassy, not trebly, not nice, not coloured, thank you. Did i mention that I abhor the ever so popular NS-10s for precisely this reason ? Only if I know what it really sounds like I can take proper measures to take care of the peculiarities of the likely playback systems.

Edited February 23 by fuzzfilth

[David Nahmani]

9 hours ago, Ana Richey said:

Does anyone know of cheap quality headphones for production/mixing?

No, you need a minimum of quality from the headphones you're using in order to obtain a minimum of quality in your production/mixing. 

9 hours ago, Ana Richey said:

Has anyone heard of clients needing to wear the same headphones as you are wearing as it gives you the same response? Or id that a myth?

I have never heard this before and it's not a myth either, it doesn't really make sense, as Fuzzfilth explained.

If your poor quality headphones boosts high frequencies a lot and to compensate you have to turn down all the high frequencies, and your client has the same headphones so they hear your compensated mix just fine, then once the mix is played back on any other system that does not boos the high frequencies, it will sound muted, dull and boomy, with no high frequencies. 

For that reason your goals should be: 

1. To get headphones that have a minimum of quality, somewhere in the $100+ range, so that they give you a relatively even ("flat") frequency response without boosting or attenuating any specific frequency range exaggerately,
2. To get to know the headphones you got in order to know how your mixes will translate to other headphones and speakers. 

I have done some decent mixes using Beyerdynamic DT770 Pro so I would recommend these as minimum quality headphones for mixing, if they are within your budget ($170).

Production work is less critical, and although it's obviously better to work with quality headphones, you don't necessarily need them to have an even frequency response to determine for example if the verse is too long or the guitar riff too repetitive or the singer sounds sharp. 

9 hours ago, Ana Richey said:

I use that and scarlet Focusrite and scarlet sounds louder in those headphones -why?

Louder... than other headphones you mean? Depending on their impedance, different headphones will yield a different volume when used with the same device. 

[Little Fat Bloke]

I used to use cheaper headphones, but not anymore.

 

As most like-minded people will tell you, it's an expensive hobby/business that we're all a part of.
The software, a powerful enough computer to handle the software, numerous plugins and effects, and then there's the outboard stuff to consider: audio interface, decent mic, guitars and/or keyboards, even peripherals like a sturdy desk and comfortable chair will probably cause your bank manager to start administering the last rites to your account.

But, quality costs. If you want your productions to sound good enough to rub shoulders with the big boys you don't have an option - you've got to spend.

 

For years and years I used to use cheap headphones, and I would tell myself they will do for now, I'll buy some decent ones when I've got the money. But I erred on the side of caution for too long because there was always something a lot more important that needed to be paid first.

Last year I finally bought some Audio Technica M50's, and it has made a world of difference. Hearing exactly what you need to hear gives you more confidence in what you're working with - and new horizons open up for you with a broader audio palette to experiment.

 

I know it's hard to justify the expense of a pair of decent headphones (and let's be truthful, they are very expensive), but you will not regret one second of your investment.

 

Good luck.

[Ana Richey]

thanks, k, ill check them out.