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ARSCLIST  August 2009

ARSCLIST August 2009

Subject:

Re: Headphones vs. speakers

From:

Tom Fine <[log in to unmask]>

Reply-To:

Association for Recorded Sound Discussion List <[log in to unmask]>

Date:

Wed, 26 Aug 2009 07:02:36 -0400

Content-Type:

text/plain

Parts/Attachments:

Parts/Attachments

text/plain (73 lines)

Hi Dave:

What setup did you have before? Which monitors and how far out from your work position? Could you 
compromise with near-field speakers?

I use near-fields and find them reliable and likeable, in fact if I really want to _hear_ something, 
I'm so used to the studio now that I'll listen there instead of in my comfortable living room with 
full-sized speakers. In my studio, the near-field solution meant minimal treatment -- just some 
fiberglass panels tacked to the panelling behind the speakers. The speakers sit about 6" out from 
that wall, and these types have front-firing bass ports, so no reason that wall should be reflective 
at all. I tried suspending a fiberglass panel above my listening position but it didn't make a 
difference.

As for unsafe levels and headphones, there is much literature on the web. You may, in fact, find 
literature from the manufacturer you select for your headphones. All headphone user manuals now 
include a few bullet-points about listening levels and hearing damage.

Whether you can work with headphones and get reliable results is a matter of personal preference. 
There are people on this list who turn out consistently high quality work, especially those who 
record in the field often, who live and die by their ability to use headphones. I'm on the other end 
of the spectrum, I prefer never to use headphones for critical work and have some difficulty getting 
as good results -- unless it's just a straight transfer with no fixing or sweetening, in which case 
headphones are just fine but not preferred by me; indeed, headphones can expose problems at a lower 
listening level in some cases, sometimes not.

For the past 2 years, I've found these 'phones very usable:
http://www.audio-technica.com/cms/headphones/0edf909675b1be4d/index.html
They also make a straight-cable version, which I would have bought if it were available at the time.
These 'phones are somewhat hyped in the bass (to my ears at least), which gives them a natural 
"loudness curve" at low levels, making them good for detecting low-end problems without having to 
suffer excessive midrange or high-end levels. They also have good resolution and clarity at what I 
think most professional audio people consider very low volume. If you want to crank them up, which 
one of my semi-deaf friends has to do, they apparently can handle the power and hold it together 
very well, he reports. Street price is $150 range.

-- Tom Fine

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Dave Kesner" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Tuesday, August 25, 2009 12:55 PM
Subject: [ARSCLIST] Headphones vs. speakers


> Hi all,
>
> We're preparing to move into a brand new music facility with a mastering
> preservation studio for my audio archiving work.
> That's the good news; the bad news is that because of a shortage of funds,
> we're unable to do any acoustical treatment to the surfaces for the time
> being, so its been recommended that I use headphones instead of my high-end
> monitors for critical listening.  To say I'm appalled would be quite an
> understatement...
>
> I'm wondering if anyone has come across literature showing the a)
> inferiority of the accuracy of headphones vs. studio monitors and b) the
> potential ill-effects of prolonged listening using headphones.
>
> Thanks in advance,
>
> Dave
>
> -- 
> Dave Kesner
> Recording Engineer
> UCSD Arts Library
> 9500 Gilman Dr. 0175Q
> La Jolla, CA 92093
> 858 534-1268 (office)
> 858 534-0189 (fax)
> [log in to unmask]
> 

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