What would be the best headphones?

Hello and welcome 

 

On few words, he needs headphones for monitoring right? how much are you willing to spend? 

Sony MDR-V6. Industry standard.

Inspiring or aspiring musician? :) If the first he just needs to play. Ok, I'm joking.

 

So I am understanding you correctly, he plays and records that playing, while listening to the beat (or already recorded parts of the song).

 

Then he needs closed, monitoring headphones. Closed means they don't leak sound to the outside world while they are playing and the recording mic in the room won't pick up their sound.

 

The Beyerdynamic DT 770 PRO version is used by many in studios, field recording and live monitoring. It it around 120 to 160 dollars and has a 5 year manufacturers guarantee. 

 

If he doesn't need closed headphones you can look at the DT 880 PRO. A bit more pricy but also easier to learn its sound signature for monitoring use in a studio.

 

Note: The PRO version are profesional versions. There are also consumer versions that are better for easy listening. The PRO versions are better for monitoring. They clamp tighter, giving a slightly more compressed sound which is great for monitoring, and in the 770 isolate outside noises better as well. You, or he, can audition them in a good music instrument store. You won't find them in consumer stores like best buy etc.

 

Others will chime in with more suggestions soon. 

 

The Sonys mentioned above are also great. I prefer the Beyers. Sturdier. More metal, less plastic.

Edited by ev13wt - 2/7/13 at 4:07pm

 

I think it's only 2 years.

I just got mine and the warranty does say 2 years. It is a good recommendation, though, I'm finding them very good for the price. And the construction is pretty sturdy and tried and true, so it's doubtful you'd need the warranty.

Could possibly try a Fostex T50RP and an easy and some cheap modifications ( DBV #3 ) .

There is a complete tutorial in here with pictures for that. Here is a link to loads of mods .http://www.head-fi.org/a/fostex-t50rp-modification-summary-links-wiki

The neutral sounding one is here though there are others but this one is well documented as you will see. Step by step with photos.http://www.head-fi.org/t/618659/fostex-t50rp-incremental-mods-and-measurements

 

heck he could theoretically use them straight out of the box even for a bit..

 

Also there is a massive thread.http://www.head-fi.org/t/452404/just-listened-to-some-fostex-t50rps-today-wow

As you can see at any stage of the process he can get feedback almost right away and most folks in there are great and helpful

 

.

Once done he can be proud of his creation also, ending up with something that rivals headphones MANY times their price and use them for mixing as they will be neutral sound ( DBV#3 ), meaning each area of the sound he is hearing coming out is even with the rest of it basically highs, mids and lows all even, basically nothing is boosted/emphasized or less than anything else,and they are closed more or less minus a tiny vent. Neutral would be what you'd want for mixing I would think.

They were used initially as studio cans anyhow.

 

Worth looking into he can use what he has as he does the relatively easy modifications.  Or he can do half the mods even and as he gets used to what he is hearing then do the rest later.

 

Then you could force him to put your name on the headband

 

 

One thing that you should find out though for sure  here.

 

Does he plug the headphones in to the laptop only or does he use an amplifier? plug the headphones into something other than his laptop while recording?

 

This is important to find out. If possible also find out what he plugs them into and a name/model of the thing.... if possible

Edited by nick n - 2/7/13 at 7:09pm

 

That is strange. Where did I read 5 years?

 

Found it, my latest Beyer purchase: "Made in Germany" with 5 years manufacturers warranty

 

http://north-america.beyerdynamic.com/shop/hah/headphones-and-headsets/gaming/mmx-300.html?___store=usa_en&___from_store=de

 

Guess only some headphones from them have 5 years.

Isn't the Audio-Technica M50 also considered a good option for studio use? :)
 

It marketed as a studio headphone but it's not so balanced.

 

I'd say your first priority is to get your boyfriend out of the closet. You can worry about headphones later.

Meh. It is a good entry level headphone for music LISTENING. Not everything that says Studio and Professional on it is actually recommendable for studio use. All in all it is a pretty good headphone but it clearly lacks resolution and it is quite bassy. More so than a 770. The new version is more neutral but I listened to it in a store for a good 30 minutes and felt it still isn't very resolving.

As you can see, we got just a few jokers around here.  If you can afford the Beyer dt770 mentioned above, it would be a good choice. They can also be found here on the used forum for less.

 

Best of luck!!