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Hi,

I hope it's a proper location for this thread.

I've got to buy new headphones for my digital piano. I have a few options. They differ in price and parameters. Could someone please give me advice on which parameters to look for if I am going to buy decent headphones. So far I found a couple of them such as:

* Frequency response.
I guess this should be at least 20Hz - 20kHz because this is our hearing range. However, some of the models have this between 12Hz and 38kHz Isn't it overkill???

* Impedance.
I have no idea what values are the best. It usually varies between ~50 to ~65 Ohms. Is higher value better or worse?

*Sound pressure level (SPL).
Represents loudness I guess. The values are between ~102 dB and ~117 dB. I suppose this is better when it's higher.

* THD.
THD, total harmonic distortion. I read it's a measure of diversity from an ideal signal. Therefore the less, the better and it usually in range between 0.05 to 0.2%

Thanks for any help


EDIT. I also read about open-cup and closed-cup and about their advantages and disadvantages. I guess I'd need closed-cup headphones.

EDIT2. The models I found so far are: Sony MDR7506, Sennheiser HD380 Pro, Sennheiser HD558.

The number-crunching is a little bit pointless, actually. The key criteria for headphones are sound and ease of wearing.

In regards to sound, the numbers will help you a bit there - but not by much, since the output signal of your piano has to fit to the headphone's rendering. The impedance might actually be a no-go-argument for some models (or you will require an additional headphone amp). The higher the impedance, the lower will be the maximum volume. Furthermore, everybody has a different taste in sound - reproducing the signal "truest possible" might not be what sounds best to your ears.

Ease of wearing is much underrated, but since you will wear those thing hours upon hours, one should set high demands in that area. And each person is different there. For instance, for me personally, I found that closed cups are too uncomfortable (too hot, pressured feeling) so I finally decided on an open design (I have the beyerdynamic DT990 Pro). Had I not tried it out on a few models, my decision would have been quite different.

+1 for LaRate's excellent advice.

Unless you will be using them for recording as opposed to daily practice, I don't think there is any reason to prefer closed cup headphones for use with a DP.

I myself am partial to the AKG K240 circumaural, open-back headphones. They are not particularly expensive, sound very good, and are extremely comfortable to wear.

I've had the best luck with "monitor" type headphones designed for a flat response and then adjusting the EQ to suit, if needed. Right now I'm using Yamaha RM5MAs. A real bargain, compared to how much you could spend.

Whatever you do, avoid the headphones that come with an extreme EQ built right in, like Beats or Urban Ears. Those things sound unbelievably awful hooked up to a DP.

LaRate is La Right.
The specs are nearly meaningless ... and probably unsubstantiated. So ignore them.
The only meaningful results come from your ears.

+1 for LaRate.

You'll find people here who use, and like, each one of the phones you mention. And many previous "Which headphone should I buy?" threads.

I'm using Sennheiser HD-280 closed-back phones, a less-expensive version of the HD-380. I _like_ the feeling of being isolated from external noise, even during normal practice. I accept the "sweaty ears" side-effect. They're comfortable for hours.

. Charles

PS -- I might soon spend $100 to try either one of two alternatives:

. . . AKG K240 open-back headphones, which are very popular;

. . . Shure SE215 in-ear monitors, to hear what _good_ earbuds sound like.

But the HD-280's (and by extension, the HD-380's) do a fine job.

I'd second the view of the HD280s. I wear them for 2-3 hours a day and have for a year or so with no issues.

Charles - I know what you mean by "the sweaty ears effect". It gets quite warm here in Australia.

Patrick

I bought Sony MDR-7506 headphones recently for DP use.. they are very very popular monitoring (flat response) headphones, if you watch TV and news crews you will see they are all wearing them, and apparently it is similar in recording studios. They are tough, hard to beat unless you spend a lot more, cheap ($85 on amazon) , comfortable, and can be repaired. Sony even includes the parts list & repair manual in the package.

They are so popular that a lot of accessories fit them. E.x. for another $20 I bought replacement beyerdynamic ear pads which I find more comfortable than the Sony pads. (They eliminate the sweaty ear feeling) I love using them with my DP, although they don't sound that great on portable devices which have less power. I wear headphones all day at work a lot of the time, these are good for super long wear (8 hours?).

I didn't get to try them, but Roland markets some headphones specifically for DP use, and I believe they are under $100.

Hi,

There are plenty of good and very good headphones today. Once you go into the higher price segement they are all excellent. AKG, Beyerdynamic, Sennheiser,... all offer great headphones. So the only hing you should try to do is to put them on and try them on. As others have said compfort is probably the most important part. I for instance was intending to buy some akg's .. but they turned out to be too big for me and were not sitting tight on my ears. I then tryed some byerdynamic DT880s and they fir perfectly. Tight enough, comfy soft earpadss, great sound,... Love them.

Wouter.

That's good advice, Wouter. If only there were means available! It's quite rare to find a store that (a) sells better quality headphones and (b) has samples on display and (c) has them connected to a sound source for trial.

That is almost unheard of over here. The units on display are generally the cheap quality units. The good ones are usually boxed and not available for trial.

Hi again,

Really big thanks for all advices. They are really useful. Thanks to this thread, I have realised I should try everything before buying.

I'm in Manchester and there is at least one shop with a piano I have. The question is if they let me have a couple of headphones to test and compare. I hope it is possible.