Worthwhile Professional Headphone Models and Brands?

[ScreamSlasher5X]

To keep it short I'm not great when it comes to audio to be honest. I know of two brands Audio Techinca and Sennheiser. I saw a pair of Audio Techinca headphones online but a main complaint on the model I was looking at was that the headband peeled. I'm looking for something that will last quite some time. Something worth buying. An investment if you will. I'd rather spend the money on a good pair of headphones that have excellent sound, built well without cheap shitty plastic that is long term.

[skNDstry]

Look for something with "Dolby Atoms" on it.

[SuperCloneRanger]

are you using 'professional' to mean high quality or do you mean 'professional' studio headphones because there is a big difference between the two. all headphones no matter the cost manipulate the audio in some way, this is called the 'frequency response'. most consumer headphones are tuned by there designer to sound a certain way, lifting certain parts of the frequency while lowering others. professional headphone are designed to have a flat frequency response to try and reproduce the sound as accurately as possible. deciding what sort of sound you want is important when looking for new headphones, especially when your planning on investing in an expensive pair. before i offer any suggestions i'm going to need some info.

 

what sort of sound do you want? flat? bassy? crisper vocals?

on ear or over ear?

open back or closed back?

budget?

 

here's a great video from tech quickie about frequency response

 

58 minutes ago, skNDstry said:

Look for something with "Dolby Atoms" on it.

dolby atmos can be used with any headphones and is not a sign of quality.

 

 

[Slazeus]

If you're looking for studio headphones, that do provide a flat frequency response then Beyerdynamic has some decent ones. I'd personally recommend the dt 1770 pro's if your budget allows for it.

[ScreamSlasher5X]

12 hours ago, SuperCloneRanger said:

are you using 'professional' to mean high quality or do you mean 'professional' studio headphones because there is a big difference between the two. all headphones no matter the cost manipulate the audio in some way, this is called the 'frequency response'. most consumer headphones are tuned by there designer to sound a certain way, lifting certain parts of the frequency while lowering others. professional headphone are designed to have a flat frequency response to try and reproduce the sound as accurately as possible. deciding what sort of sound you want is important when looking for new headphones, especially when your planning on investing in an expensive pair. before i offer any suggestions i'm going to need some info.

 

what sort of sound do you want? flat? bassy? crisper vocals?

on ear or over ear?

open back or closed back?

budget?

 

here's a great video from tech quickie about frequency response

 

dolby atmos can be used with any headphones and is not a sign of quality.

 

 

Don't know if you'll even read this because you aren't following the post.
I'm looking for a mixture of the three, if that's even possible.
Definitely over eat.
Closed back.
No real budget cap. One hundred, two hundred maximum.

[SuperCloneRanger]

I don't need to follow the thread, as long as you quote me or tag me like @SuperCloneRanger i will get notified.

 

i know exactly what you mean, you want a punchy but balanced sound that isn't too flat.

 

My pick is the Audio-Technica ATH-M40x, they have a balanced bright sound with capable bass. fit comfortably on the head and are well built. they also have a detachable cable that is easy to replace.

https://www.amazon.com/Audio-Technica-ATH-M40x-Professional-Monitor-Headphones/dp/B00HVLUR54

 

 

i'm not saying people haven't had issues with pealing headbands, but i think internet chinese whispers has made it a bigger problem than it is. people repeating what they have read online without any personal experience. I had a pair of m50x's that where my daily drivers for 4 years(i prob used them about 6-7 hours a day), they where beat to crap when i replaced them but the headband wasn't peeling.

 

[zassou]

i heard akg k240s is nice

[kasugatei]

On 11/3/2018 at 12:41 PM, skNDstry said:

"Dolby Atoms"

It is Dolby Atmos and it is just a marketing stuff and it won't guarantee the quality.

 

On 11/3/2018 at 12:30 PM, ScreamSlasher5X said:

-snip-

 If you are looking professional model, those modes are studio standards for decades and I would start from there:

open back

AKG K240

Beyerdynamic DT990 Pro

Sennheiser HD650

 

Closed back

AKG K271

Beyerdynamic DT770 Pro

[PhilBoisvert]

On 11/3/2018 at 12:30 PM, Slazeus said:

If you're looking for studio headphones, that do provide a flat frequency response then Beyerdynamic has some decent ones. I'd personally recommend the dt 1770 pro's if your budget allows for it.

I read that they are not a huge step up from the 770, not for the price gap at least. I bought the DT 770 250 ohm and will be trying the tonight.

[YonathanZ]

On 11/3/2018 at 5:41 AM, skNDstry said:

Look for something with "Dolby Atoms" on it.

Worst advice. Stay away from gimmicky headphones. 

 

If if you don’t need sound sealing, get open back headphones. I love my HD598 but am not sure about long term usage since I don’t use them often. 

[ScreamSlasher5X]

@SuperCloneRanger Firstly, thanks for telling me about the @ feature. I didn't actually know this was thing on this website compared to others. I've had plenty of posts where no one has bothered responding because they weren't following the post. I know to use that feature for future use. I can see where you're coming from. I feel the issue is when you don't understand a subject it is difficult to convey yourself to someone else. I've found sometimes users on this site expect you to know a lot on the subject you are questioning even if you have specified you don't have any clue. I saw some of the comments saying about peeling on Amazon and there were some pictures of it having done exactly that, however, again as you said not likely to the extent that people make out due to the Internet being so accessible. Apologise for the delay. Being quite busy the last few days.

[SuperCloneRanger]

Happy to help. because of your following comment i did go into my user settings and set it to auto follow any thread i reply too, just in case someone doesn't know how to get my attention.

 

The veterans on here can be a little gruff, but i think its because they are constantly repeating themselves and its like 50/50 if someone will actually say thanks after you've helped them. for instance, there are 3 pined threads under troubleshooting with things to try before posting, but with the amount of 'help no boot' threads i see every day, i'm positive hardly anybody reads them. Your guilty of it a little(i'm letting you off because you had specifics over quality), there's a pined thread for headphone recommendations i'd wager you did not read before posting. I bet you would be short with people if you had to answer the same simple questions over and over because people are too apathetic? inattentive?(i was going to say lazy but that's a bit mean) to help themselves.

 

 

I wanted to see how prevalent the flaking/peeling was so a searched amazons reviews, i found 9 referencing flaking/peeling out of 1819, that's 0.5%. And considering people are a lot more likely to leave a review when they have problems that number could probably be halved again. like i said before, i'm not denying people have had problems, but it is very small and you probably don't need to worry about it.

 

On what headphones to pick, i'm sure any pair in the thread above at you price point will be fine. like i said previous, my pick is the m40x's. people can be very opinionated about headphones(including me) and there is no such thing as the 'best'. and price is not always a good way to determine performance of quality.  I can tell the difference between a $20 pair and a $200 pair, but $200 and $400? i can pick my favourites, but there's no guarantee its the expensive ones.

[Tarun10]

5 hours ago, SuperCloneRanger said:

Happy to help. because of your following comment i did go into my user settings and set it to auto follow any thread i reply too, just in case someone doesn't know how to get my attention.

 

The veterans on here can be a little gruff, but i think its because they are constantly repeating themselves and its like 50/50 if someone will actually say thanks after you've helped them. for instance, there are 3 pined threads under troubleshooting with things to try before posting, but with the amount of 'help no boot' threads i see every day, i'm positive hardly anybody reads them. Your guilty of it a little(i'm letting you off because you had specifics over quality), there's a pined thread for headphone recommendations i'd wager you did not read before posting. I bet you would be short with people if you had to answer the same simple questions over and over because people are too apathetic? inattentive?(i was going to say lazy but that's a bit mean) to help themselves.

 

 

I wanted to see how prevalent the flaking/peeling was so a searched amazons reviews, i found 9 referencing flaking/peeling out of 1819, that's 0.5%. And considering people are a lot more likely to leave a review when they have problems that number could probably be halved again. like i said before, i'm not denying people have had problems, but it is very small and you probably don't need to worry about it.

 

On what headphones to pick, i'm sure any pair in the thread above at you price point will be fine. like i said previous, my pick is the m40x's. people can be very opinionated about headphones(including me) and there is no such thing as the 'best'. and price is not always a good way to determine performance of quality.  I can tell the difference between a $20 pair and a $200 pair, but $200 and $400? i can pick my favourites, but there's no guarantee its the expensive ones.

That thread is a little outdated but you could use that as a good base.

 

The M40X are great I own them but just get aftermarket angled earpads they will improve comfort a lot. If you can pay a bit more get the Beyerdynamic DT770 Pro 32 Ohms. That is pretty much the best value under 200$ and even higher than that you won't find a much better pair.

@ScreamSlasher5X Most of the experts are like that. You can't expect them to answer every single day that the M40X is better than the M50X but that's usually the case on most dedicated forums as well. This forum is a bit more relaxed and doesn't have tons of limitations on users as long as you follow basic rules. 

[Slazeus]

17 hours ago, PhilBoisvert said:

I read that they are not a huge step up from the 770, not for the price gap at least. I bought the DT 770 250 ohm and will be trying the tonight.

Yeah that is true, although they are without a doubt better there is a fair price gap. I'd say it would be worth the extra if you were to be setting up a home studio or something though. Otherwise you'd get away with the 770's (although the bass is just a touch high and the trebles aren't quite as crisp and clear), they are still a great set of phones though, I have a pair as well, you shouldn't regret the purchase.

[PhilBoisvert]

52 minutes ago, Slazeus said:

Yeah that is true, although they are without a doubt better there is a fair price gap. I'd say it would be worth the extra if you were to be setting up a home studio or something though. Otherwise you'd get away with the 770's (although the bass is just a touch high and the trebles aren't quite as crisp and clear), they are still a great set of phones though, I have a pair as well, you shouldn't regret the purchase.

So far I love them. I had the ATH-M50x before they got stolen in my appartement last week. The difference between both model is not huge. The bass on the M50x were a bit more overwhelming and are more "controled" on the DT 770. The highs are a bit more strident on the 770s too. I am not a true audiophile, so I may not using good terms and i may be biased a little as this is not a true A/B comparison.

 

Most people are not looking for a true flat curve and will enjoy bassier headphone, and I think the 770 are great at that. I have the 250 ohms on a Fiio e10k, there is not much difference between it and the front audio connector on my PC. Maybe a bit more bass on the Fiio. I have a fairly good z370 motherboard tho.

[Guest]

When I think “professional”, I think user-replaceable parts, no fault-prone hinges, and sound isolation. My vote, Sony MDR7510 (if you’re rough on your cans) or the MDR7506 (if you want a more inexpensive option)... I’m very pleased with my MDR7510s.

[ScreamSlasher5X]

20 hours ago, SuperCloneRanger said:

there are 3 pined threads under troubleshooting with things to try before posting, but with the amount of 'help no boot' threads i see every day, i'm positive hardly anybody reads them. Your guilty of it a little(i'm letting you off because you had specifics over quality), there's a pined thread for headphone recommendations i'd wager you did not read before posting. I bet you would be short with people if you had to answer the same simple questions over and over because people are too apathetic? inattentive?(i was going to say lazy but that's a bit mean) to help themselves.

You aren't wrong. No excuses but I totally didn't read the sticky. To be honest I didn't even see it there, and I don't mean because it isn't visible but because I didn't register it being there. I must attribute some of the blame to the fact that where I use plenty of sites there are constantly sticks to read and pair that with loads of discord servers I'm in you just get into the habit of not reading them. Anyway. To be honest you've given me more confidence in what to look for and to decide what to buy. Cheers. @SuperCloneRanger

[ScreamSlasher5X]

14 hours ago, Tarun10 said:

but just get aftermarket angled earpads they will improve comfort a lot.

This is exactly something that I need to consider. I don't know if I have sensitive ears however some headphones in the past have pushed my ears forwards and given me headaches. I have "normal" ear size, maybe slightly smaller ears than most so it isn't like I have dumbo sized ears. Also headband has given me headaches from prolonged use and even short use. I think I may have a sensitive crown but may also be design failures? @Tarun10 @SuperCloneRanger

[Tarun10]

7 hours ago, ScreamSlasher5X said:

This is exactly something that I need to consider. I don't know if I have sensitive ears however some headphones in the past have pushed my ears forwards and given me headaches. I have "normal" ear size, maybe slightly smaller ears than most so it isn't like I have dumbo sized ears. Also headband has given me headaches from prolonged use and even short use. I think I may have a sensitive crown but may also be design failures? @Tarun10 @SuperCloneRanger

That is typical of cheaper poorly built headphones, which headphones did you use previously??? The M40X and DT770 Pro Headbands are pretty comfortable in their price points but if you get the M40X get any decent pair of angled earpads. And I don't think you will get non plastic builds at this price point and the plastics on these are very good like something you might find in a reliable car.

Read this post

Check the 100-200$ price range. Also you could consider open headphones.

[Nicnac]

Beyerdynamic makes good affordable studio headphones

[KaminKevCrew]

On 11/3/2018 at 9:30 AM, Slazeus said:

If you're looking for studio headphones, that do provide a flat frequency response then Beyerdynamic has some decent ones. I'd personally recommend the dt 1770 pro's if your budget allows for it.

The DT1770 is not a flat headphone at all...

 

https://www.superbestaudiofriends.org/index.php?threads/beyerdynamic-dt1770-pro.384/

On 11/3/2018 at 10:28 AM, ScreamSlasher5X said:

Don't know if you'll even read this because you aren't following the post.
I'm looking for a mixture of the three, if that's even possible.
Definitely over eat.
Closed back.
No real budget cap. One hundred, two hundred maximum.

Just keep in mind that you can spend a lot more on headphones that you'd think. $100-$200 is actually on the low end of headphones, generally. 

 

To be clear, I'm not trying to insult you or anything, I just think that's a good thing to keep in mind. That being said, since you appear to mostly be looking for something with a flat response, you're pretty much right in the neighborhood, price wise - most pro headphones kind of fall in the $100-$200 category, as they're meant to be replaceable in a professional environment, which isn't really the case when you're talking about headphones that cost over $1,000 per pair.

On 11/5/2018 at 7:56 PM, SuperCloneRanger said:

The veterans on here can be a little gruff, but i think its because they are constantly repeating themselves and its like 50/50 if someone will actually say thanks after you've helped them.

 

snip...

That's why people like SSL haven't even logged in since January of this year (last I checked, anyway) and why I really only post every few days at most... 

 

[ScreamSlasher5X]

On 11/8/2018 at 1:14 AM, KaminKevCrew said:

Just keep in mind that you can spend a lot more on headphones that you'd think. $100-$200 is actually on the low end of headphones, generally.

I kept the currency generic for readers and potential future readers looking for help with the same question as mine. My currency to US currency is almost a quarter more, so my max of 200 is almost $300.

[geo3]

Etymotic ER4SR are the flattest and most accurate you can get for $300.