Denon AH-D2000 for mixing?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jbucla2005 

Denon AH-D2000 for mixing?

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I just ordered a pair of Denon AH-D2000 headphones based on the fact that my source/amp right now is an Apogee Duet (original) and I understand the Denons are fairly easy to drive. Also, a lot of people seem to be happy with them (besides the fact that the screws tend to fall out?)

I plan to use the headphones for home listening (music, etc.) but am hoping I will also be able to use them for post-production mixing. Headphone.com describes them as having an "analytically neutral, flat response."

I am hoping the Apogee Duet will drive the D2000's well and I will be happy with the performance for music as well as mixing.

Any comments? Thanks!

LOL!!!!!!!!!

you're right about everything (build quality is good though)

except they DO NOT  have a neutral/flat response.

they are bass heavy on the low end and have very slightly recessed mids.

they are fun for listening and enjoying music. but not for studio work. get something like hd 600s for that or maybe dt 880

You can use them for music making just make sure to switch over to your monitors to check your mix.

I am very surprised Headphone.com described the D2000 as being neutral and flat, they couldn't be more wrong.  These would be terrible for studio use.  I'd be very surprised if any studio has a D2000 for use anything other than taking a break for pleasure listening.  

Studios use headphones designed for studio use.  These are flat, neutral headphones that are designed for durability.  K240, DT48, HD25, SRH840, V6 are just to name a few.  Sennheiser, AKG, Shure, Beyerdynamics and Audio Technica have all made a name for themselves among professionals.  Dennon definitely has not.  Denon targets the audiophile market which is sometimes the opposite of professional grade gear.  Professional grade gear is not about getting pros to fork over the most money over for brand name, and other gimmicks.  Compare the HD25 which is used in the studio vs the HD800 by Sennheiser which is targeted at audiophiles.  Same for Beyerdynamics, their DT48 is for Studio, the T1 is for audiophiles.  Very different headphones.  AKG is pretty much a pro audio company, they didn't make $1,400 audiophile headphones, their best headphone is the Q701 which is arguably among the best headphones for studio use. 

Put it this way, some professionals think audiophiles are morons.  And personally in general I trust a professionals opinion who bases their opinion on facts, science and engineering than any audiophile here on Head-Fi who seems to be more affected by price, rarity, and exclusivity of an item.  Professionals are much more pragmatic about the gear they use, they look for something that is functional and gets the job done.  

Head-Fi is not the best forum if you are looking for professional gear and looking for an opinion on various headphones for mixing.  There are some professionals, but the vast majority are not, and most of the Head-Fiers who promote cables, Grados etc are not professionals.  Just google gearslutz.  That forum is dedicated to professionals who share their opinions of headphones for the right job.  That forum also has industry leaders among professionals responding to questions as well.

You might do a forum search for 'headphones for mixing' or 'headphones for studio'. there's quite a few treads I'm sure. There's lots of studio phones that will work out of the duet. The newer akg K240 or 242 and k271 or 272  come to mind, as well as a few from shure and the new krk's. I had the Beyerdynamic dt250 and thought it sounded very neutral....also relatively easy to drive. 

Headphones I read mentioned most for studio use are: German Maestro GMP Monitors, Shure SRH840, Beyerdynamic DT48, AKG K702/Q701, AKG K240, Sennheiser HD25, and Audio Technica M50.

HD25 has a big midbass hump.  DT770-80 gets used in studios quite often too, and it's far from neutral.  A super flat headphone isn't the end-all-be-all for studio use.

Having said that I also wouldn't use the D2000 for mixing.  Its mids aren't as recessed as much as their treble is enhanced.  I don't mind their bass much, it doesn't slobber over the mids as much as the treble does.

The Denons' lower mids are quite strong up to 1khz, which is a good part of the mids.  The upper mids suffer a bit because the treble is too strong for it.