Hello All!

I'm new at this forum; nice to meet you.

I'm a female singer and I record at home on my laptop.
I have a pair of Sennheisers HD202.
They sound good, but I can't wear them for too long; they hurt my years and make me feel very tired.

I REALLY NEED TO FIND COMFORTABLE HEADPHONES THAT I CAN WEAR FOR LONG HOURS.

I've been reading here and in other forums but didn't get to any conclusion, as there are so many opinions, different brands and qualities.

I saw these:

AKG K240
Sony MDR 7505
Grados SR60 and SR80
Sennheiser HD280Pro
Vic Firth
Boss RH200

For example, there is a lot of good reviews about the Grados, but do they leak too much sound for the recording of vocals?
I was hoping to find great headphones that doesn't make a hole on my pocket.
Is that possible?

I hope you can help me to find the best solution.

Thank you for your help!

Dreka

FWIW, the Sony headphones do the same thing to me. They wear out my ears.

I like the AKG K240 for sound. The same goes for the Grados. AKG makes a cheap headphone called the K44, which go over the ear. They are cheap (sometimes as low as $20), sound fairly decent and don't bleed too horribly for vocals. They don't seem to fatigue the ears either.

The Extremes isolate sound the best but people who worry about comfort a lot tend to find them uncomfortable. I don't find them uncomfortable but they isolate in part by being firm on your head.

If you want the best fidelity for the money, then the Grados are going to be OK. Headphone bleed has never been an issue in any mix I've done. But, I tend to force people to use the Extremes.

I've got Sony V-6's, which are about the same as the 7506 -- very fatiguing top, although they isolate pretty effectively. For closed-ear phones, I'm thinking of picking up the Sennheiser 280's as I tend to hear good things about them. I could probably get away with open ears for vocals if I use my M-88, a hypercardioid dynamic.

Bear

I tracked a great vocalist tonight with my friend, Steve B. The vocalist wore the K44s. He did not complain at all. No headphone sound in the tracks.

I'm looking forward to try these headphones on. Today I went to a store and tried the Grado 60 and 80. Funny thing is that I liked the 60 better than the 80.
Also tried AKG K101 - not good!

I'm in NYC so, I'll try J and R and will also call Samash and Guitar Center to see if it's possible to try headphones.

i have the Sony MDR-V700s and the Sennheiser 280's, i do not like either.
the sonys have the better build but the bass is over exaggerated and they are fatiguing.
i just do not like the build quality of the Sennheiser 280's.
i think my next headphone will be a set of Beyerdynamic DT 770 PRO's ?

Hey Ozraves, do you know this model is discontinued? I was wondering how could I try them on...

You are right. The AKG K55 is the same model but with "turbo bass." I find the added bass headphones to be more fatiguing. The K55 model is also discontinued but it seems to be more available. I imagine that's because it was not nearly as popular as the K44. I saw some K44 headphones on Amazon BTW.

If you want something you've tried on, then I'd go with the Grados.

i did a search on Ebay and their is a lot of AKG K44 as well as AKG K55s, new old stock, it would appear, and very affordable.
i say that, but, i am not sure what they were originally?

Looks like AKG might have dropped its cheap headphones.

I know I've liked them and I know Jetboatguy liked them as well.

Street price was usually around $20 to $30 for the K44 and $30 to $40 for the K55.

sounds like i might want to grab a pair or two for around hear.
i hate letting someone else use my headphones and i never have enough

Pan60--

For the "I don't want the guys who come to my studio to screw up my good cans" thing... I suggest the K44 and K55 as well as the More Me headphones. I prefer the Deluxe model which is $30. I use these myself as well. All the headphones I've got are the K44, the More Me and the Extreme. I have been intending to get myself a pair of the AKG 240 or the Grado 60. Since I used to spend so many hours tracking, I got turned off to the different brands and models which tend to fatigue the ears.

Hi
I saw the Akg K44 on amazon and will order one for me.
I'll let you know what I think when I get them.
I also found the K55 but since you said they can be more fatiguing, I'll go with the K44.

Thanks for your opinions, it helped me a lot to make a decision!

yes Please post your thoughts

These are really worth checking out. http://www.equationaudio.com/Professional/pro-eartools.htm . An engineer buddy of mine brought a pair of the rp-21’s for me to try, We replaced all our cans with these. The sonys/akgs don’t even get touched any more. I track mostly bands and the request for separate mixes has virtually disappeared!! I like the detachable/replaceable straight cord, great isolation.
Now... the Humongous disclaimer:
I have a small music store in front of the studio and I DID BECOME A DEALER so don’t believe a word of this.

Paul

I got a couple of these in my studio, they do sound very good for the price, but they have an over-responsive low end and they aren't comfortable for long periods. The detachable cord with standard jacks on both sides is a great move though, especially having been burnt by sennheiser's proprietary cables(£30 for a flimsy stereo lead, anyone?) in the past. i've gone back to using my old beyer dt100s however - they don't sound as bright or as bassy as the equations but they're very comfortable and extremely rugged, not to mention easy to maintain.

Hey guys,
I'm back!

Just received my AKG 44 and I'm really happy with them. They feel great on my ears and head. Super light and without pressure of any kind.
The sound is clear and detailed and I can definitely hear more things than with my Sennheiser HD 202.

I can only imagine that the AKG K240 must be heaven.

Thank you for all your help!

Bought at www.amazon.com

1 "AKG K 44 Headphones"
Accessory; $18.00
Sold by: GT

I've had a pair of Grado sr60s for a couple of years. They wear me down after a couple of hours but sound better than anything else I've used. I've been rough with them and the drivers finally went out. The factory where they're made is about 10 blocks from where I live. I took em in and they fixed them up for free. I'd recommend them on that alone. ~70$ for a pair of phones you dont necessarily need an amp for sounds great to me. Don't use them anywhere near an armed mic, though.

A lot of fatigue is just the volume. However, about half the equation is the headphone itself. Of course, these are my opinions. One of the rule of thumbs of distorted guitar is to find where the guitarist likes it and then cut it in half for actual tracking. I use a similar rule for headphones. Find where the musician wants the level and then cut it back a notch or two (but nothing like half, more like 15 to 20 percent). And, do not keep turning the headphones up as the session progresses. Set a level and keep it there. If the talent wants more level, then it's time to stop for the day. Or, it's time to take a break.

Sometime the best headphone are no headphones at all....have you tried flipping one monitor out of phase, then placing the mic in the junction of a perfect triangle?

You will be able to hear perfectly, but the mic (bing a single point receiever as opposed to bi monoral like our heads and ears) will cancel (null out) equal but of of phase music content...

A lot of hit records were done this way - singer in control room, speakers out of phase, mic in right spot....no headphones at all...

I like the SONY MDR-7506. They're punchy, a little colored on the low and high end, but have a hot signal and are pretty clean. I also use the AKG K240. They're a little warmer.

I never use headphones to mix with, although I may use them as a reference periodically just as I use any speaker system I have. My base opinion is if the mix sounds great in crappy speakers as well as good ones, then it is great.