Best Head Phones for Axe Fx II?

B

blastcap

New Member
This has probably already been asked but based on a recommendation I went with a Beyer DT800 pro. This one is 250 ohms. I wasnt that happy with them considering how much they cost. These headphones lack lots of punch and volume and sound dull and dark. On the other hand I wasnt happy with my first AKG K44's. They have much more volume than the Beyers but theyre more shrill with lots of high end. Im just looking for something that sounds great plugged right in for bedroom playing. Please help?
Thanks!
 
Yea this has been talked about a million times ,funny I think Mr Chase uses the DT800 pro's .I was going to try them,maybe not after what you said:D I use the AKG 240 mkII I think they sound good for the price.But then again everybody's got there own opinion. Some people have said with the 250 ohm you need the head phone amp.
 
For those looking get the DT800s, I'd suggest the 64Ω version. That's what I use and they sound great to me.

AKG 240s are okay but not great in my experience. I didn't particularly like them better than the AT-M2X cans I was looking to replace at the time. Audeze are too rich for my blood. I have a set of Sennheiser HD280 from a project where I was tracking loud and in the room. They were great in that application but I find them to have an upper mid peak that doesn't make my ears happy.
 
There are a number of things to consider when buying headphones.
1. Bass response?
2. Accuracy
3. Hyped sound (not recommended for mixing)
4. Closed back or open back style
5. size
6. cost

When I was searching I wanted something that I could use to actually mix music on (never a good idea. Ha) but a necessity when living in an apartment where monitoring past 10pm is not possible. I do most of my work after 10pm so I wanted something that would allow me to get close with levels and frequency response and then I could spot check and correct on my monitors during the day. If you are going to use the headphones in a recording environment where headphone bleed is not desirable (recording of acoustic instruments or voice) then you really have to go with the closed back style. A good rule of thumb is that if you want accuracy at a lower cost, open back is the way to go. If you need isolation then use closed back. The bass response is usually slower in closed back headphones, therefore possibly muddier. Opens are going to give you more clarity in the low end. Of course there are probably some headphones that "break the mould" so to speak. I bought a pair of Sennheiser HD650s (open back). I find that I can wear them for hours with absolutely no ear fatigue because they fit over my entire ear. My Sony MDR-V6 set rests on the ears and my ear cartilage aches after a while. I have used the AKGs for years and hate them. The HD650's are very clear and only slightly brighter than my Genelec monitors. The low end is pretty accurate but not as good as the reference monitors would be. I would recommend them. Definitely listen to everyone's recommendations and then make an educated decision. Good luck
 
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To me headphones are just a tool to get whats bring played into my ears without it getting in the way of whatever is being recorded...

i have a $30 closed back pair and a $30 open back pair (i think they're both sennehiser)

But when it comes to Axe fx/playing quiet/etc--
I don't care about sound at all... all i care about is comfort

i don't use headphones to mix... all headphones color the sound a certain way anyway...

so I use a pair of Bose AE2- purely for comfort and not for sound

(all the headphones sound fine)
In fact...I buy big $10-15 headphones from BIG LOTS all the time... haven't seen a profound difference between most of them- besides the Bose is the lightest and most comfortable
 
luke said:
Look down
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Hey Luke! Are you using those with any particular head phone amp or can they be plugged into the axe and/or the Duet for instance? I'm really interested in these head phones as I want to keep working late at night and what not. But I don't really want to spend a grand extra just for a head phone amp. How do the sound of these compare plugged in to a head phone amp as opposed to straight into the unit?
 
Very happy here with Beyer Dynamic DT-880 with low ohms (32 I think) from Fractal direct or from Duet. Had high Ohm 600 AKG's that just didn't work out.
 
Been looking at Sennheiser HD800 - but they are all 300 Ohm's - will that mean I will need a separate headphone amp? - or will the Axe drive them OK??
 
On my end I use either my Sennheiser HD650 or Shure SRH840 and both work great. I do prefer the HD650s overall for comfort and ear fatigue but the Shure do a great job for about half the price.

Dealmaker said:
Been looking at Sennheiser HD800 - but they are all 300 Ohm's - will that mean I will need a separate headphone amp? - or will the Axe drive them OK??
Click to expand...

Sennheisers HD650 are 300Ohm and the AxeFX drives them perfectly so there should be absolutely no problem with the HD800. Among other things, I notice impedance affects volume output. I can put the Output1 volume of the Axe at maximum with the HD650s and get a great volume and playing comfort whereas the SRH840s at 44Ohm can get screeching loud with Output1 about halfway.
 
Okay, after doing more research, it appears the problem I'm having has to do with the impedance of the headphones. The 250 ohm version of the Beyer apparently needs a separate headphone amp in order to drive them more so that my deaf ears can be filled?! Why would I want to spend another 150 bucks for an amp after spending 350 for headphones!? That's nonsense! I'm going to return these and look for something in the lower ohm ratings. Ill report back what I find.
 
Audeze LCD-2 Rev2

+1000 for the Audeze LCD-2 Rev2

I come from Sennheiser HD650, and I am amazed of the difference. They are in another league! another galaxy!

I bought them last week end, and now I do not only enjoy the Axe-FX more than with any of the Firmware revisions, I am also re-listening all my old-time favorite music from another perspective. This headphones really rock!

BTW: now I only play the Axe-FX with headphones, since I am in a 32 sqm apartment.

The Audeze sounds actually better than a pair of good speakers in a non-optimally acoustic treated room.
 
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Beyer DT-880 Pros are my number one. No screaming ice pick high end. Not fatiguing after hours of listening. Also use Beyer 770s in the studio and the are no slackers either. Had UtraSone 650s for years. They have more high end than the Beyers, but too thin sounding overall. Also fatiguing after a while. I have a set of JH Audio JH16 Pro in ears which are $1100 worth of outstanding, but anytime I can use the DT-880s instead I do.

Maybe you should give the DT-880s some time to grow on you.
 
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