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What Are Monitor Headphones And Should You Get A Pair?

Juan Stansbury May 11, 2023

With monitor headphones, it’s not just about quality sound, but accurate production of audio as well.

Monitor headphones are designed to detect a wide range of frequencies with zero sound distortion in order to sound as precise and accurate as possible.

Monitor headphones are usually robust and used by professionals to hear exactly how each word, beat, and rhythm sound.

In other words, the answer to “what are monitor headphones?” is in threefold, that is, sturdy and conformable construction, precise sound representation, and extremely wide frequency range.

What You Should Know About Monitor Headphones

Video: “STUDIO HEADPHONES – Everything You Wanted To Know!”

As the name implies, [amazon link=”B00HVLUR54″ title=”monitor headphones” link_icon=”amazon” /] are used to monitor and analyze sound.

Unlike ordinary headphones, monitor headphones do not enhance or boost their bass and “loudness.”

Professionals use them when recording music in order to hear exactly what is being recorded, whether it’s average or quality.

With such quality headphones, people who are trying to record will have an easy time producing music with the highest level of accuracy.

There Is No Boosted Bass Levels

You don’t need a trained ear to notice how modern music is louder with amplified bass compared to older music across all genres.

Some people think that the average human is drawn to bass, and as such, they design speakers and headphones that produce more colored and “musical” sound.

But this might be a myth as a good percentage of people are found to prefer the finesses and clarity of neutral and uncolored sound.

What’s even worse, most songs are produced with the intention of playing them loudly in clubs—sprucing up the sound to make them louder and bassy has become common.

No wonder our ears have slowly adapted to that kind of sound to a level of feeling wearied when listening to something else.

The trend for more colored sound has made headphone manufacturers flood the market with pairs that automically adjust the bass and “loudness” of music.

Some of such headphones have switches that increase the bass level even more.

With that kind of sound from almost all speakers, listening to quality, uncolored sound from monitor headphones is slowly becoming “foreign.”

This brings us to the big question, is it about what sound is better or is it about which one you prefer most?

Let’s add dots to the I’s and cross the T’s.

When listening to enhanced bass, what are the chances that that bass is the only thing you will enjoy at the expense of all other essential elements?

For a fact, bass is not the only thing that constitutes a piece of good music and anyone should be able to enjoy all other elements that make an awesome song.

For this reason, you should get yourself a pair of monitor headphones and enjoy the originality of any music without getting fatigued from unnecessary blasts and pulses.

They Have a Very Wide and Flat Frequency Response

Video: “Frequency Response As Fast As Possible”

The human ear can only hear a sound that falls within a range of 20 to 20,000 Hertz, at least that’s what biology says.

Monitor headphones are designed to reproduce a full 20-20,000 hertz spectrum, a range that any human healthy human ear can hear—any frequency beyond this range is inaudible to the human ear.

If part of the sound produced by your headphones falls outside this range, you will only receive sub-par audio, which is the case with some regular headphones.

Luckily the monitor headphones are built with a flat frequency response capability.

This means that, at any volume, the headphones reproduce each frequency (at an equal output) without distorting the sound.

Studio Monitor Headphone vs Regular Headphone

This is not the case with regular headphones, which are designed to cut some frequencies when it comes to certain volumes to enhance the sound.

Sometimes, when you increase the volume of these headphones to a certain level, that same feature that was designed to cut some frequencies here and there leads to reproduction of poor quality sound due to pulse overlap.

At this level, the enhanced bass and loudness simply become disturbing noise, thereby compromising the quality of the sound.

This is a common phenomenon when regular headphones start getting old.

The mechanism that used to boost the bass begins to act out leading to reproduction of poor audio, especially at high volumes.

This is just one instance where monitor headphones are superior in terms of performance and durability.

The wide and flat frequency response makes monitor headphones reproduce near-perfect audio with no reflections between the inner parts of the headphones.

Their design also helps in eliminating the outside noise so that you can enjoy audio with zero distortion.

They Are Robust and Well Built for Extended Use

All brands of monitor headphones are premium both in quality and comfort. Since they are usually built for professionals, they are very comfortable to sustain daily use for hours and hours during recording.

As they are intended to be used daily and for long hours, they are built with quality material that does not easily tear or wear.

They have thicker and coiled cables with carbon fiber and metal alloyed parts that guaranteed durability.

What’s more, some of them are made of standardized parts. (parts that are manufactured as a batch for the purpose of serviceability).

If need be, such monitor headphones can be disassembled, and if there is a broken part, one can purchase the individual component from a local store and replace it, thereby saving on the cost of buying a brand new one.

Are Monitor Headphones Good for Listening to Music?

Monitor headphones are customized gadgets for analyzing audio, especially during recording or production.

But it’s better to view monitors as audio analytical tools as well as top-of-the-line audio enjoyment gadgets.

Imagine listening to music and only hear the intended audio signature, no exaggerated bass, or amplified loudness.

You simply get the exact quality audio, which is accurately presented to echo the sound signature that the producer intended for you.

That said, if you’d rather listen to a more colored, bassy, and v-shaped sound, then monitor headphones aren’t for you, but what’s the fun of compromising the highest audio fidelity for a bumped up bass and loudness?

If accurate reproduction isn’t your thing and you are just okay with modified audio, what about the feel of comfort and the fact that monitor headphones are made with top-end materials for durability?

Monitors are superior and are most likely going to last for over a decade. They can take a beating, and you can as well mix a tune with them.

By investing in a good pair of headphones, you will listen to quality music for many years to come, which is a worthy investment. Just take your time to audition different brands and go with the one that sounds best to you.

In short;

• If you want clarity and hear deep cool bass when it is actually there.
• If you’re going to enjoy the awesomeness of the songs you love from a single pair of headphone for ten years down the line,
• If you want endless fun of listening to new music from a superb, comfy headphone that will never make you feel fatigued

Then go for a monitor headphone.