If you really want to get serious about your music production, then you need to invest in a good pair of studio monitor headphones or studio monitors. Having a set of these will allow you to hear all the subtle elements that occur when a song is being played. Here are 10 of the best studio monitor headphones for you to make or listen to great music.
 Audio-Technica ATH-M50X |  Sony MDR7506 |  Audio-Technica ATH-M50 |  AKG K240 |  Audio-Technica ATH-M30X | |
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| Our User Rating |  |  | |  |  |
| Avail. Colors | Black / Tan on Blue / White | Black | Black / White | Gold on Black | Black |
| Collapsible |  | | |  | |
| Cable | Detachable cables (inc. 1.2 m - 3.0 m coiled cable, 3.0 m straight cable and 1.2 m straight cable) | 9.8ft Coiled, OFC (oxygen free copper) | 1.2 - 3.0m (3.9' - 9.8') Coiled, OFC litz wire | 3m OFC with gold plated plugs on both ends | 3m (9.8'), straight, left-side exit |
| Connection | Gold-plated stereo 1/8" (3.5 mm) connector with strain relief and pro screw-on 1/4" (6.3 mm) adapter | Gold, Stereo Unimatch plug 1/4" and 1/8" | Gold-plated stereo 1/8" (3.5 mm) connector with strain relief and pro screw-on 1/4" (6.3 mm) adapter | Screw-on Jack Combo (1/4" and 1/8") | 6.3 mm (1/4") screw-on adapter |
| Magnet | Neodymium | Neodymium | Neodymium | Neodymium | Neodymium |
| Driver Size | 45mm | 40mm | 45mm | N/A | 40mm |
| Frequency Range | 15Hz - 28kHz | 10Hz - 20kHz | 15Hz - 28kHz | 15Hz - 25kHz | 15Hz - 22kHz |
| Sensitivity (dB) | 99 dB | 106 dB | 99 dB | 104 dB | 96 dB |
| Max. Power Input | 1,600mW at 1 kHz | 1000mW | 1,600mW at 1 kHz | 200 mW | 1,300 mW at 1 kHz |
| Impedance | 38 ohms | 63 ohms | 38 ohms | 55 ohms | 47 ohms |
| Additional Features | |||||
| Price | **CHECK PRICE** | **CHECK PRICE** | **CHECK PRICE** | **CHECK PRICE** | **CHECK PRICE** |
 Audio Techniqa ATH-M40X |  Sennheiser HD-380 |  Audio-Technica ATH-M30 |  Sony MDRV6 |  AKG Q701 | |
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| Our User Rating | | | | | |
| Avail. Colors | Black | Black | Black | Black | Black / White / Green |
| Collapsible | | | | | |
| Cable | 3.9' coiled & 9.8' straight | 1m coiled, extendable up to 3m | 11' (3.4m), OFC litz wire, left-side exit | 10' oxygen free copper | 3m oxygen free copper |
| Connection | 2.5mm Jack, 6.3 mm (1/4") screw-on adapter | 3.5 mm Jack, straight | Gold-plated stereo 1/8" (3.5 mm) connector with strain relief and pro screw-on 1/4" (6.3 mm) adapter | 3.5mm Jack, 1/4-inch adapter | Hard gold-plated jack plug and contacts |
| Magnet | Neodymium | Neodymium | Neodymium | Neodymium | Neodymium |
| Driver Size | 40mm | N/A | 40mm | 40mm | N/A |
| Frequency Range | 15Hz - 24 kHz | 8Hz - 27 kHz | 20Hz - 20 kHz | 5Hz - 30 kHz | 10Hz - 39.8kHz |
| Sensitivity (dB) | 98dB | 110 dB | 100 dB | 106 dB | 105 dB |
| Max. Power Input | 1600 mW | 500 mW | 1,600mW at 1 kHz | N/A | 200 mW |
| Impedance | 35 ohms | 54 ohms | 65 ohms | 63 ohms | 62 ohms |
| Additional Features | |||||
| Price | **CHECK PRICE** | **CHECK PRICE** | **CHECK PRICE** | **CHECK PRICE** | **CHECK PRICE** |
Table Info
- Our User Rating – This is our own opinion based on our product research on our own and other user’s testing and feedback. Click on one of the featured products and you’ll be brought to Amazon’s product page, where you’ll find genuine customer reviews which we recommend you to read.
- Best Value / Top Rated – Products that we feel stands out in a specific area such as value for money or reputation have been given one of our awards.
- Collapsible – Most earpieces on studio headphones are able to collapse inwards to make itself more compact, although not all of them have this feature.
- Cable – They will either come straight or coiled depending on the model you choose (certain models have both). OFC stands for Oxygen Free Copper, which has enhanced conductivity for better audio signal transmission.
- Connection – Most studio monitor headphones include two types of connectors/adapters, a 1/8″ (3.5 mm) which is a standard headphone jack and a 1/4″ (6.3 mm) used for instruments and other studio audio sources.
- Magnet – One of the most commonly used type of rare-earth magnets in headphone drivers (and many other devices) is neodymium which allows high-fidelity listening in portable devices.
- Driver Size – The headphone driver is the unit within the earpiece that help produce sound. In terms of sound quality, in most cases a bigger driver size indicates a bigger diaphragm (an element within the driver) which is better, but there are also many other factors that contribute to sound quality.
- Frequency Range – This is the range of frequencies the headphones can produce from low bass to high pitch frequencies.
- Sensitivity – The effectiveness of the conversion of an incoming electrical signal into an audible sound depends on the sensitivity. So the higher the value, the louder the sound can be produced at a specific input volume.
- Maximum Power Input – The studio headphone’s maximum supported power supply is measured in mW. It’s not considered better for headphones to have a higher max. power input.
- Impedance – This measures the degree of headphone electrical resistance. Audio Technica states that “Choosing low-impedance headphones for low-voltage portable audio players ensures better efficiency.”
- Price – To find out the price of any of the studio monitor headphones, just click on the Buy Now button or Check Price and you’ll be directed to the official product page on Amazon.com. I didn’t put up prices because they constantly change and there are so many sellers offering different prices.
What The Expert Say About Studio Monitor Headphones
More often than not, aspiring and upcoming producers use standard headphones to produce and playback their beats. Once their beats are completed, the finished article never sounds as good as it should, simply because of details that have been missed out in the production process due to the lack of quality studio headphones.
They make a big difference to the quality of your music production, and here are what some of the leading music producers and engineers have to say about it.
Stephen March (Mastering Engineer) – “I’ve been in this business a while, and I’ve ostensibly have only seen 3 pairs of headphones ever in the studio…Most of them are either uncomfortable, they bleed like the dickens or they don’t stand up to the rigors of studio use…
A (great) pair of headphones gives you a really honest representation of what’s going on. They can be invaluable. They’re not headphones, they’re monitors that you strap on your head. It’s a different animal.”
Michael Donaldson (Head Mix Engineer at Darkchild Records) – “I feel like a lot of the headphone choices that are out there are pretty much glitz and glamor so to speak. They’re not really for the performance…At the end of the day, headphones should be your monitors to your ears.”
Rodney Jenkins (Producer/CEO of Darkchild Records) – “Of course you want acoustics first, but you want to be comfortable. There’s been times when I put headphones on and I’m taking them off cos that little thing hurts your ear (the earpiece)…
Headphones need to almost sound as if you’re listening inside the studio. It has to give you the same feel like “Wow! I just left the booth, and it feels like I’m still in there.”
Jim Roach (Record Producer) – “One of the main problems that I’ve run into even with some of the more higher end ones is click bleed…With KRK headphones, the low end was unexpectedly round and robust, and the tops were high…It was a really flat sound, they had depth…it felt musical and for me, that’s really important.”
If you want to read more in-depth information about all the different elements that make up a pair of headphones, then I recommend that you check this article out.
