It's important to hear yourself while podcasting. That's why you should wear headphones and monitor your audio.
But it's also crucial that these headphones are comfortable. If you host a podcast any longer than 5 minutes, your headphones could make you sore.
This is my current, very cheap pair of headphones. I last about an hour in these before my head hurts. I've tried quality earbuds, but they give me headaches from the way my own voice sounds with my ears plugged.
So a quality and affordable pair of headphones is next on my podcasting gear upgrade list. What headphones do you use?
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I am using Audio-Technica ATH-M40FS. Compared to cheaper headphones I’ve used before for casual listening, these are great. I don’t know how they compare to more expensive phones, but for their relatively reasonable price ($60) it was a good choice.
Thanks! I’ll check out that pair.
For a long time I used Sennheiser HD25SP (closed type) but they are small cups that would hurt and I’d sweat a lot, being closed. I’m currently using AKG K99 which are bigger and open and sound better (at about half the price), so they keep me cooler but leak out sound and start to hurt in about 30 minutes.
Audio leak is definitely an issue.
i like pansonic gear the most. I found these great headphones for Pansonic in ear headphones there not the best but they do the trick and there very flat in sound so you get true sound. next headphones will be the can type, not sure who’s going to get my $$$. when that time comes i am going to doing a lot of research.
The main problem I have with earphones is that it sounds like my ears are plugged when I speak, even though my voice is coming back through. It doesn’t feel right and it gives me headaches.
Daniel I have FOUR pairs of headphones in my studio. it was not till i came upon a realisation that I found the right pair. The first three pairs were great for comfort…but…the sound I heard monitoring in my headphones was great with them, the problem was when i played back what I had monitored WITHOUT having mt headphones it sounded horrible, totally diff from when the headphones were on.
Hence I was monitoring and mixing and adjusting the sound till it sounded good in the headphones. Take the headphones off and Yuk. I then realised my podcast recording sound, was being audibly ‘swung’ by each headphones coloration of the monitored sound!
I went out to buy new headphones, took a small but good mp3 player with me to my audio shop and listened to the mp3 on the player with no headphones,then listened with headphones, put all the headphones were the sound sounded the same as no headphones to one side and THEN made my purchase based on budget and comfort.
The result…a pair of Sony’s at one third the price I would have paid and had budgeted for! 🙂
And importantly the sound I am mixing and monitoring ends up the same as the sound I am after when its played with no headphones ie no increased bass, or increased treble etc i get just the sound I was after in the first place. 🙂
So yes get phones that are comfortable, but make sure they are no changing your ears to whats really there!
Hope this helps in your choice and others who read.
David.
dd3.tv
Thanks, David! What model of headphones do you get?
The ones I use now and purchased last are Sony MDR-XD200’s
Very comfortable indeed, fully closed with reasonably good isolation, a bit on the plastic end of things but hey, and the price amazing for the sound quality.
The only increase or coloration I get with them is a slight bass increase and I use that to my advantage as it stops me increasing the bass too far in my recordings. My voice is very low in tone anyway so I find this slight listening increase in the lows helps me keep the bass to acceptable level.
I use Apple’s $80 headphones, and I don’t get headaches. I’m selling my school headphones, which are comfy, just not as portable as I would like, here: http://kansascity.craigslist.org/ele/3464393980.html
Thank you for sharing the article, that was a good read. I believe that headphones have evolved a lot since their invention. With changes in technology and user needs, various types of headphones have been made. My relative recently got affordable audiophile headphones from http://www.soundmagic.us/index.php/product/soundmagic-hp150/ that provides high quality sound, bass and treble response. I believe that the headphones make our work easier to some extent and hence this property makes them very popular.