Is using Headphones for Audio Editing a good idea?

MadMaverick wrote on 1/12/2014, 11:37 PM
Is using headphones for audio editing a good idea or a bad idea?

I've heard that it's a bad idea sense very few people listen to a video while wearing headphones.

I like to edit late at night when there's no distractions, but if I do audio editing, then my speakers could easily wake up my family.

Are there any kind of headphones that can kinda replicate the sound of my computer speakers?

I use a pair of wireless enclosed Radioshack headphones for watching TV at night. They work great for watching movies, but they have a low hissing sound to them, and just all around sound different from my speakers. I also have a pair of Marshmellow headphones that are nice and loud and go inside your ears, which I use mainly for music.

So what do you do? Do you use headphones for editing? If so, what kind?

Comments

rraud wrote on 1/13/2014, 10:43 AM
OK for "editing".. I would not recommend making any "[/i]mix[/i]" decisions, which should be done on suitable monitors. This subject has been discussed in-depth on the SCS and other audio forums most recently here: http://www.dvxuser.com/V6/showthread.php?318326-Benefits-of-monitors-for-post&p=1986396785#post1986396785
Geoff_Wood wrote on 1/13/2014, 3:10 PM
Headphones are fine for rough mixes. But for final mixing real speakers should be used. Soundstage is totally different when a room in in the equation. But use 'good' headphones designed for the purpose, and not ones designed to hype bass (etc).

Unless you are expecting everybody to be exclusively listening on (usually crappy) 'computer speakers', you should mix on or audition mixes on, a range of speakers. If your mixes are targeted at a very specific audience, then mix with that in mind.

I aim for sounding best on real hi-fi speakers, and acceptable on 'average' speakers, but that's just me. If your target group is teens who listen on nasty little ear-buds (so so sad ;-( ..... ), then the yardstick is different.

geoff
pwppch wrote on 1/13/2014, 6:28 PM
It also greatly depends on your "room".

I have expeirianced terrible mixes when the room is bad - poor bass reflections, or bad speak placements.

Yet I have heard great mixes through headphones.

So getting the mix started in headphones - don't use cheap ones - has always worked for me. Listening in a good room is tough though. A lot of moving parts in a non-studio room can really mess up the mix far more than doing it with head phones.

Peter
Geoff_Wood wrote on 1/14/2014, 5:34 AM
Yep, lots more variables in a room. But also lots more differences between headphones and any room.

Yer just can't win whatever you do ;-)

geoff
LarryP wrote on 1/19/2014, 7:34 PM
I've found that in the ear earphones, Etymotic ER-4's in my case, sound more like listening to speakers than headphones do. Your milage may vary.

For bass mixes I recommend headphones. Move a foot or two in a small room and different bass frequencies get deemphasized or emphasized. Not much you can do for small rooms to change the physics.

Sometime try Googling: small room calculator
and try some of the mode calculators.

Larry