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I wanna bring up the fischer fa 003/brainwavz hm5/lindy or $50-$80(shipping affects it a lot) unbranded version at jay car.I think its better than most headphones under $200 unless you have to have a lot of bass.Its really comfy and isolates well,its big though.
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Where do you live (you don't say in your post related profile)--the UK? I ask because my knowledge of prices pertain to U.S. prices, as do the buying guides I posted.
Open cans have open ear cups and thus tend to leak sound more than closed cans. Open cans generally do not isolate you from outside sounds as well as closed cans. Closed cans (in similar price ranges) tend to have stronger bass, while open cans usually feature a superior sound stage.
Circumarual tend to isolate the best; the rest pertains to individual comfort factors that will vary from individual to individual.
Once you decide what type or types of cans will work for you, you have to decide what will work well with the equipment you have that will be driving them. In your case, you need them to be very easy to drive, which means that you are looking at those with a "1" rating on the buying guides. This will reduce your choices.
The final--and probably most important question--is what sound signature do you prefer? When I hear "monitoring" that means something reasonably neutral to me. But there are a number of other choices. Some here love bass heavy cans. Others like the bright--sitting on the stage with the rock bank--sound signature of the Grado SR line. Others want smooth mid-centric cans. Others like emphasis on bass and treble with recessed mids. You'll have to tell us which is your cup of tea.
With all this answered, we can make recommendations (limited perhaps by limited knowledge of prices where you live) of what cans are likely to be best for you.
One last caveat--there is not substitute for wearing and hearing the can yourself, especially with your music and your equipment. This is because there is no getting around the fact that parts of headphone selection are subjective and personal.
Ok here goes,
I will be using whichever set I get for making dance music and creating sounds from scratch using Ableton Live ( Not playing Live, sorry about the confusion ), so critical
listening is key. I will be relying on the headphones to ensure my final mix will be true to how I intended and not altered ( or
at least the less the better ) by artificial enhancements or built in EQs so maybe reference monitors is what I am after. At the moment I'm using a pair that seem to generally
alter what I make, and try make it sound nicer. The problem is that when the final mix is played through another set of
speakers which are not so forgiving, what I have missed now stands out and sounds horrible, dull sound, too much bass etc. So
basically Id like confidence in what I create, to sound how it should wherever its played. Listening to other music through
them will come secondary as will the looks and ill also forgive any comfort issues as it will only act as a reminder to take a break. I
do not own an amp or indeed any other equipment besides some very cheap, very small speakers, a computer ( no sound card only
onboard sound ) and a midi keyboard. My price range is very low, around 150 dollars, though I could look at options up to 200 as I
may find a used/cheap pair on Ebay. It will be impossible for me to try out any of your recommendations, so whatever you do
recommend I will buy, no pressure
I guess my order of preference would be
1. Little or no sound enhancements
2. Able to define sounds across a broad range
much further down the list
3. Aesthetics, ( sad really )
4. Comfort
I'm English but I live in a remote area of Finland so whatever I buy will be over the internet.
Your replies are of much help and valued, thanks again.