[maverickronin]

Hello all!

I'm new to the board and have another "what headphones should I buy" question.

A hobby of mine, which I'm trying to get back into, is video editing. I like to make AMVs (anime music videos) and I'm thinking about getting a pair of headphones primarily for that purpose, but also to have something more convenient than my SE530s to use around the house. I've never heard any other high end headphones, so comparisons to my Shure's would be appreciated.

The primary requirement is the precision/clarity to easily pick out individual notes from the densest passages. So I can for example, pick a harp string out of a mess of electric guitars and drums and then place it on the timeline to the exact frame (1/30 of a second). I can do this with relatively inexpensive speakers and/or headphones, but it can often become very difficult, requiring me to listen to a one second clip dozens of times to get it right. My SE530s work quite well for this, but since I'm considering buying some full size cans for home use anyway, I figured I should ask and see what's out there.

Closed would be preferable since my overclocked PC needs a lot of noisy cooling fans, and my parrot often objects to me using the computer and not letting her out to play, but it's not a requirement. I'd also like it to be decent with all genres of music since I listen to (and will hopefully make videos with) a lot of different stuff, and if possible, not mercilessly unforgiving of source material. (I'm already asking too much aren't I?)

Budget is pessimistically a few hundred dollars, though I could go higher if I find a place to demo it first. The only headphone amp I have is a Total BitHead (I got it mostly to bypass the crappy sound cards on the computers I use at work.) so feel free to recommend something better if necessary.

Thanks in advance!

 

[Acix]

You can try the K271, they are a nice studio level. Second option will be GMP 8.35.

 

[classakg]

The Sony MDR-V6's and the Audio-Technica ATH-ANC7 are good for studio and music editing.

 

[JadeEast]

For the specific task described using EQ and reading the waveform in the editing program will help regardless of the headphone you have.

 

[maverickronin]

@JadeEast
Yeah I do that as well and sometimes it helps more than others. If I just adjust it one frame at a time I'll get it sooner or later. Maybe I should clarify a bit. I'm not saying that I absolutely need better headphones to do it but because I want to get a full size pair to use at home I thought I should make sure they're at least as good as my SE530s in this department.

@Acix
I hadn't come across the GMP 8.35 in my own research, but from your review (#1 hit on google) they look promising.

@classakg
From what I've read about the MDR-V6's they don't seem to have the detail I'm looking for, and the ATH-ANC7 are noise canceling. Were you thinking of a different model?


One model that looked promising to me were the Sony MDR-SA5000s. (They are open but that's not a deal breaker. I'd just prefer closed over open, all else equal.) I've read things like "most detailed headphone under $1000." I do like hearing new things in songs I've head before but are they too far in that direction? Should I stick to more conventional monitors instead?