[tpc41]

A friend of mine is looking to get some nice headphones for when he plays the drums, but i cant seem to think of any models that seem to fit his kind of obscure requirements.

-he wants full sized headphones, definitely no IEMs

-the headphones must be open enough that he can hear himself play. The drums are not mic'ed so he doesn't monitor himself using headphones

-he drums along to music playing through his ipod, so he needs enough isolation to be able to listen to the music at a safe listening level, but also be able to hear himself play

-budget is around $100 new or used

the best thing i could suggest was the akg K240s. They are a semi-open design and i think that might be the key to his problem. They are also right at his budget. I have seen drummers using these in the past so i thought it might work.

does anyone know of a good set of headphones that fit these requirements?
or have any suggestions about weather open or closed designs are better.

Thanks

 

[pixelpruner]

A few things I would suggest as general rules:
- nothing too big (sticking outward) or fragile/expensive - it's really easy to catch headphones with your sticks.
- even closed headphones with active isolation won't make a drum kit much quieter, but they can help. all earphones significantly dampen the sound of the drums and my feeling is that isolating ones would do this too much. You still want the drums to sound like an instrument not a wet cloth. probably be as well putting ear plugs in under open headphones!
- i find sealed headphones quite uncomfortable a lot of the time - they get very sweaty and hot.obviously pad material/size/shape etc make a big difference with this.
- cans that will drive easily if an amp is not being used - whether they are closed or open you need plenty of volume.

hope that's of some benefit. i have a lot more experience of drumming than headphones so wouldn't feel qualified to go much further!

 

[Punnisher]

First off, you will want phones that isolate as much as possible.

Drums are so incredibly loud that you'll have no problems hearing them, even with extreme isolation phones on. This means you'll be able to hear your music and your drums at reasonable levels.


Though what I do, is use extreme isolation phones over iems for the most isolation you can get. I can still hear my drums just fine.

 

[tpc41]

im afraid a closed headphone will make the drums sound too muffled,quiter yes, but will they sound crisp?

i have never played drums so i could be totally wrong on this.

 

[Drag0n]

Vintage Fostex T20RP, M-Audio Q40, MB Quart 45X

 

[Punnisher]

They will be muffled, but any headphones that are the least bit open will let in way too much sound, and you'll likely suffer hearing damage if trying to listen to music at the same time.

 

[tpc41]

ok thanks for all the help guys

 

[Peter Pinna]

If your friend really needs to hear his drums that much while listening to headphones here is what I suggest:
Buy an inexpensive mixer (I think Radio Shack has some for under $80). Make sure the mixer has a headphone jack.
Buy an inexpensive microphone. Any basic microphone will do as long as their is an impedance match with the mixer.
Run the music and the microphone "through" the mixer.
Place the microphone several feet away from the drums.
Plug the headphones into the headphone jack of the mixer. Turn on the music and adjust the volume and microphone volume levers.
Play your drums to the music.
If the drums are too loud, turn down the mic volume lever.
Listen and see if the overall volume is too loud. You only need it to be loud enough to hear the music and the basic finer attack points of your cymbals and drums. Don't cause yourself to become deaf.
Try to create a blend in the sound between the music and the drumming.
Wire up a tape recorder (or computer) to the mixer and record yourself playing. Listen to the playback to see how good is the blend. Keep the recordings you make and listen to them for the purpose of improving your playing.
I hope this helps.

 

[tpc41]

this was my first suggestion to him, but he was really on a budget. But i think this is his plan eventually when he can afford it

thanks

 

[Pars]

Not audiophile, but my son(s) use these and like them. The 18 year old plays quite loud and can hear his ipod fine while he's playing.

Vic Firth SIH1 Isolation Headphones and more Headphones at GuitarCenter.com.

 

[mookowz13]

DT770/80's may be an idea. They have the clamping force to stay on your head but the velour pads don't make ti uncomfortable over long periods of time. Also they do leak a little bit of sound while being close-backed so it make give him enough to hear what he's doing. Although he'd need an amp to get the most out of them.

As a drummer myself, I know he doesn't want to use IEM's but as far as I'm concerned they're really the way to go. Drumming with my Super.fi 3's easily outdoes any full sized headphone I've used thus far while drumming. I hear everything I need to and my MP3 player doesn't get drowned out by my playing.