How do I find the best headphones for me?
Some are very good; some are very bad.
The problem is, it is a bit difficult to compare them – especially when the comments on the net diverge from one forum to another. headphone guide
Also, I offer you a selection of concrete criteria that will help you (well) choose your next monitoring headphones, whether you need them for computer music, for recording, or for mixing.
Open helmet or closed helmet?
There are basically two types of studio headphones: so-called “open” headphones and so-called “closed” headphones.
For me, this choice of open headphones or closed headphones is really important: it’s the very first criterion to take into account when buying monitoring headphones since it will allow you to eliminate immediately some models from your list.
The terms “open headset” and “closed headset” refer above all to a manufacturing specificity that is easy to identify, namely whether the outer shell of the ear cups is closed or not.
Physically, this usually results in:
either by a plastic cover for closed helmets;
either by a metal or plastic grid for open helmets.
The first difference headphone guide two types of headphones is therefore visual, as you can see in the image below:
Note: to make things a bit more complex, there are also so-called “semi-open” helmets, which should generally be compared to “open” helmets.
Of course, the fact that there are open and closed studio headphones is not just a design story – it strongly impacts the sonic properties of headphones, with all kinds of advantages and disadvantages associated with it.
By construction, closed-back helmets are very well insulated from outside noise – which, I grant you, is quite logical.
This, therefore, allows you to stay immersed in the sound, often with a “bonus” (appreciable or not) of more marked bass, since the closed construction will tend to create resonances in the space between your ears and the driver. of each headset.
On the other hand, closed headphones are often associated with a smaller stereo image, that is to say a narrower and potentially less precise perception of the instruments in space.
For open helmets, it’s just the opposite.
Already, as the driver is exposed at the back of the ear cups, the sound leakage will be important, and in both directions:
the people around you will hear what you are listening to;
you will hear everything that is going on around you, headphone guide which can make it difficult to focus on the sound.
On the other hand, the sound is generally better in the audiophile sense of the term, especially in terms of the stereo image which will be larger and more qualitative (you will be able to more easily “hear” the position of the various instruments in space).
In the same way, there is often better restitution of the transients and a little less saturation.
For example, to listen to an accompaniment when you record your voice.
Indeed, there will be less bleed of sound from the headphones into the microphone.
And then, in this type of use, the precision of the stereo image or the frequencies is still much less important.
On the other hand, open headsets are generally to be avoided for recording, since sound leaks could be transplanted by the microphone with which you are recording, especially if it is very sensitive.
On the other hand, their very good stereo image and their relative neutrality in terms of frequency response make them very good headphones for mixing and mastering.
Ideally, you will therefore have at least two headphones in your home studio: a first for recording, and a second for mixing.
However, especially for budgetary reasons, this type of configuration is not always possible – in this case, it can be for example interesting:
