[Dimension]

I do EVERYTHING on headphones, obviously if I could, I would use monitors as I know they are more suitable. But after having the K702/K712's for 5 years I've decided they make everything sound too good - meaning they do not translate well or allow you to mix properly. My mixes tend to sound too bassy since they are indeed open back. I understand the logic; if I have open backs I will hear a more accurate representation of bass as opposed to closed-backs where there is too much bass - which translates into having not-as-much-bass. The other question I had was is there an open back headphone that has more bass than the k712's that may translate better, and that doesn't sound overly scooped in the mid-highs to highs? They are very pleasant headphones to listen to and I think they are great as a second pair of headphones to check mixes, but not a primary
 
But if not I am thinking my next journey in headphones is the DT880's, because they are SEMI open, I have hopes that they will be right in the middle (I also have the DT770's but 32 ohms (which I think I should get 250's))
 
What are you guys experience, and is there a pair of headphones you find really translate accurately? I don't like sonarworks headphone calibration plugin or anything similar so that is out of the question.
Edit: also I have the 02+odac combo. Will they drive whatever headphone you suggest or is there something better?

 

[Anatidae]

O2 is fine for your purposes.

My view is that NO headphones can be your primary set for mixing. You need 2 or 3 pairs to reference against eachother, and you need to make sure you know those headphones inside out.

You can always get monitors (or just one and use it mono!) and use them quietly to set your levels.

 

[Slaphead]

One trick is to take a mix, either done by yourself, or by somebody else in the genre of music that you're producing that you already know translates well, then use that as a reference mix.

You can then use any relatively good headphones or monitors to get your mix more or less right just by referencing the known good mix and setting your levels accordingly.

Depending on the music you're producing the K-series may not give you the right feel. If you're doing some genre or sub genre of EDM then IMO the K-series are too bass light and a bit to toppy in the treble regions to give you that club feel, and that's what I think is likely to be causing you to overcook your bass.

The DT880 IMO are slightly better in the bass quantity department, but are still quite neutral, albeit with a touch more treble than the K-series. I much prefer the DT880 to the K-series.

If the budget is there then I would suggest taking a look at the DT1990 Pro as it comes with two sets of ear pads, one producing a warmer sound and the other producing a more analytical sound - you can try both and see which one enables you to produce mixes that translate well.

Of course the traditionalist in me say you should be mixing on good monitors, but in view of the fact that headphones is the way most people consume music today then I would say that it's fine to mix on headphones.

 

[ubs28]

Just learn your headphones better. You will run into the same problem when using monitors. You need to understand how your headphone and monitors sound and what you are targetting.
 
What was helpful for me was listening to commercial recordings on the same monitors and comparing it to my mix to see what I needed to improve.
 
Maybe you could also try out Sonarworks and see if that will help you.