They cannot. If they could we would have them.

Sure you have. The AKG - K371 and seems nobody use them for mixing. Because the "flat" response never was the key to make the headphone great for mixing?

I am using the K371. Really recommended it.

https://olloaudio.com/pages/measurem...=hs_automation

What's the most comfortable headband you've tried? Out of the ones I've used I'd have to give it to Sony MDR 7506.

sony mdr 7520, senn hd 598s I can both leave on forever

Denon AH-D2000, 5000, 7000, 9200.

These measurements come out a bit different than what I've seen elsewhere and there are a lot of models missing. The Sennheiser HD650 are almost the only ones that are really close to flat response here.

This may sound crazy but I owned HD600, HD650, Audeze LCD X and got rid of all of them when I heard the Slate VSX. Even in its flat mode when not modeling any rooms they just sound right to me. No BS. But I still have a pair of 7506 for tracking and quick checks and believe it or not I do a lot of listening and small mix adjustments in Apple AirPods.

lol you thought these models were feeding you bs? the vsx measurements are not great when detached from the software and there's no way they're as revealing as the list you dissed - do you enjoy listening to your mixes on an astroturf field..?

I think you misunderstood the wording of my post.

and no, I’ve never heard my mixes on an astroturf field.

Always try before laughing.

I'm good thanks!

Ugh. The HD280s, they hurt my right ear for some reason. Probably have a deformed head. But they are really clamp-y. Like if you were needing HPs for a motorcycle ride, or a war. And I ended up EQing them. I attribute the clampy closedness to getting the bass these do. So can't wear for an extended time.
Still using 7506 for editing and comfort. Ordered some HD600s and pretty much feel I am done chasing the dragon at this point. I suspect even if I found a pair of absolutely flat cans, it wouldn't sound right. It's just a matter of compatibility.

@ dirtROBOT If you think EQ curves are telling you the entire story of how things will perform then you really are wasting your time. Your replies comes off as cocky and amateur-ish.

There are so many more important things to be concerned about.

This is a mixing headphone thread, and for mixing the most universally acclaimed mixing headphone basically ever - the hd600 - demonstrates that frequency response seems to be one of the important qualities of a good mixing headphone.

What are the other many important things you look for in a mixing headphone?

isn't the hd300 pro an upgrade on the 280? I've heard really good things.

If I must use headphones for mixing then I must have:

Comfort, inspiration, enjoyment, ease of ability to make them translate to other systems. All of which VSX does for me. Realistic transient response and accurate representation of low frequencies and how they will translate to speakers. Both of which VSX do for me.

“No BS” is slang for “no kidding” in some regions. So in my original post I did not “diss” any gear. 600 and 650 served me well for what they were (there’s really a lot of overlap between the two) but if I told you I got any actual mix work done on them I’d be lying to you. I can go into reasons why but it doesn’t really matter.

LCD X is not a flat pair of headphones either the mids are very underrepresented. (In The 2–6khz which is literally the most important range for mixing, lol.) And they’re heavy as f*ck for no reason. Bass and transient response is pretty nice but that’s about it.

In conclusion. If I told you I got any mixing “right” on headphones alone then I’m also lying to you.

Which is why there’s more important things to worry about.

I have Ultrasone 840’s and the sound of the mounting and cable rubbing is really annoying. The phones sound great but the chamber tech seems to be really accentuate any mechanical sound. Do yo find this a problem and any ideas other than oiling joints to dampen them?

I guess I’ve noticed that a bit, but it hasn’t bothered me enough to blow another $300 for a competitive pair of cans. I prefer Tannoys (edit desk) and AR Model 9 towers (living room) for serious listening/auditioning of music and mics, and Sony MDR-V6 on locations (better iso) and checking with Equator D5s wherever/whenever possible. Works for me!

Cheers...

Just measured and listened through the AKG K371 -definitely not flat. Actually drove to the store to fact-check.

I don't know how you made the measurement but i want to share the measurment from rting.com

K371



HD 650

Headphone measurement won't turn out flat. K371 is following Harman Curve. Harman did a research led by Sean Olive on the preference of listeners for headphone. The target freq response of K371 is very close to the curve. Oratory1990 did an eq correction on it and there is a very small discrepancy.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/9ftqm1c13x...0K371.pdf?dl=0

The difference between headphones and monitors is (obviously) you don't have either the room to F*** up the FR response, nor the ability to treat the room to try to mitigate those effects.

Looking at so many headphone responses, they are much better in the bass and mid regions than a lot of home-studio monitor setups in real rooms. *Much* better!

I don't think anyone should be comparing FR response of monitors in an anechoic chamber the FR response of headphones, it needs to be in comparison to real room measurements, a comparison to *your* room (if you have one).

Let's face it, if you're looking to do a lot of mixing on headphones, it's because you don't have a good studio set up in the first place.. so I'd worry less about it than folks seem to be.

It's the usual difference between idealism guiding decision making and practical reality.. Add a bit of EQ to your headphones and that's fully acceptable and still going to be better than monitors in a bad room.

My 2 cents:

Beyer DT990 - Nice for music listening, but way too hyped lows and highs. Extremely comfortable and nice build for price.
Beyer DT770 - Similar experience, closed backs are nice for tracking.
AKG K240's - Cheap and bland-sounding but have always had a pair and can actually put together a 1/2 decent mix.
Senn HD650's - Sound gorgeous and lots of detail but have never translated well for me. Comfy, great for enjoying music.
Senn HD600's - Borrowed a pair for a few months and liked them. Seem flatter than the 650's, still a little sweet for my ears.
Avantone MP1 - Hurt my head like audiology cans, and bass was obscene even after break-in. I love their other products though.
Audio Technica R70x - I just got a pair of these. Frame build quality is less than I had hoped for- thin plastic and metal. However, they are quite light and easy to wear, and I LOVE the sound. The chart shows these have a bit of a bump in the 6-9K range, but overall I can hear the middle better which is what I need. Bass is not overwhelming and I can actually make bass/kick decisions on these better than the others.

https://www.apple.com/shop/buy-airpods/airpods-max

Yep, R70x’s do it for me too.

They've combined the aesthetics of Hello Kitty with sports bras.

Headphones helped kick a drug habit?

You don't want a flat headphone anyway. The outer ear and torso affect the frequency response coming into your ears. On top of that the room interacts with speakers, even in purpose built listening rooms. It all needs to be accounted for to get a realistic response.

Harmans approach of additionally incorporating listener preference is clever and makes it more useful as a tool for referencing. Skip that and you might end up with a mix that sounds good to you but the audience won't like it. Classics liked by picky listeners such as Sennheiser HD600 and Beyerdynamic DT250 are very close to the Harman curve despite being developed independently of Harman and it's no surprise.