redrabbit wrote: HERE'S what I'm looking for: I need sealed type.
Very comfortable. Not too bright (fatigue factor). Under $250

Sony MDR-7509. Retails for roughly $219

They are nice monitoring quality headphones, a tad soft on the high end in my opinion, which is the way you want it. They are also reasonably comfortable; fit small peoples heads if thats an issue many headphones annoyingly are made for big fat oversized american heads]; and are of the sealed type with very decent isolation to the point where they can be used in a vocal booth without leakage into the condensor.... [which isnt what you wanted them for... but I thought I'd add tha in.]

Lot's of postings on headphones can be found in the archives using the search function. You would be wise to use it...

The Sony MDR 7506's sell for about $100 discount at most Sam Ash, Guitar Center & online stores. They sound fine, and they will give you what you need for the times you've got to use HPs. (You also get a nice faux leather drawstring bag and a gold plated removable 1/4" to 1/8" adapter for the plug, as well.)

Always know what you're listening to; check and recheck your mixes again and again with speakers, etc. so you know where the differences are when you're working with HPs. You can be easily fooled with constant use.

For a $250 budget, you can buy two pairs, and still have a little left over. You'll always need second somewhere....

I have A-B'd SEVERAL sets of headphones over the years and the only headphones for me are the Fostex T-20RP's. They are super comfortable both physically and aurally, and they give me the same even response that my near fields do. You can find a pair for under $80. 8-)

T-20's can have a little too much spill for a vocal
T-40's are better and can support a little more bass

Beyer 770Pros

Have a varienty to keep the clients happy

Thanks everyone. I'll runnabout town and sample all those.

GAFF....Thank you, I must be wise, as I read all 200+ of the results first.

Still wondering about hands-on experience with the In Ear type.

=RR=

IE's do sound great

I'm still experimenting but not convinced it helps with studio workflow...

A long vocal session with a long time user of IE will probably be great but with a fist time user I'm not so sure.

(sure/shure ... get it) :)
sorry

Kev wrote:
Beyer 770Pros

I second ( and third) that! My 770 cans have served me very well, no fatigue, very comfy, very good sounding cans indeed. 8-)

Kev wrote: T-20's can have a little too much spill for a vocal

The "New" T-20's aren't the same headphones as the good T-20's we're all used to. They have ear pads that fall off, the cable is no longermade out of soft rubber but a harder plastic and the sound is much more midrange heavy without the low end of the originals. Also, they have a harsher, more pinched sounding top end.

Having used T-20's in the studio every day for over ten years I just bought 15 of these things and am really upset they changed them.

I wrote to Fostex and they sent me new ear pieces that fit properly. In fact, they are the same ones the original T-20's came with.

There's nothing they can do about the sound though. That's why I'm looking for a new kind of headphones to use in my studios also. I was thinking about Beyer DT 150's but it's hard to sing with a closed cup phone.

My T-20s are at least 10 years old. I guess I'll need to take extra special care of them :roll:

Wow, lotsa replies for what I and Gaff think is an over-asked question. Thanks.

I ordered some HPhones and, funny enough, they are not in any of you're recommendations (although I auditioned many here).

I ordered some AKG 271 S.......$159

My listening thoughts:

(These thoughts were based on about 3 minutes of listening , per HP....so there was no "long-term use" evaluation. Keep that in mind.)

Sony 7506, 7509.....Very comfy. Highly detailed, as if I was missing none of the music. Possibly a bit too analytical when compared to others, but I can see why people find them usefull. I might get some in the future.

Ultrasone..(forgot model#?) similar to the Sony's.

AKG 271 Studio..... Huge cans, covers the entire ear (take note Dumbo). To me, these had more space in the music, more air, where as the Sony's seemed like you had two speakers pressed close to each ear. Is it possible that the AKG's are more colored, and veiled, and therefore sound more pleasing? Maybe, but I felt like I could live with these, over the long run.......and I will not be using ANY HPs for critical listening.

Anyway, these were my thoughts. The Beyer 770's were not available for audition. The 271S , at $159, allow me to get another pair, when I feel the time is right.

=RR=

I have some Ultrasone RFI-650's that have some sort of unique speaker angle that seems a bit louder, but are very easy to listen to for long periods of time. When I am editing through the night, 4-5 hours go by and I forget that I am wearing them. They do a great job on isolating the sound (keeping it in and keeping it out), and (for me) very, very little listening fatigue. Obviously, I like them. I bought them from Sweetwater.com and unfortunately they sent them with a coiled wire which is a pain if you move around, so be sure to get the straight wire. They also have a 550 version that is less expensive. Check out the selection at (dead link removed)
SG