Monitor Headphones

Consumer headphones flatter whatever you feed them, boosting bass and smoothing the top end, which hides exactly the faults you need to catch. Monitoring headphones aim for a flat response so a hum, a click, a plosive or a room resonance is audible while you can still do something about it. Closed-back designs are standard for recording because they keep playback from leaking into the microphone. Open-back designs sound wider and more natural for mixing and are useless next to a live mic. Whichever you use, learn one pair properly. Knowing how a good mix sounds on your own headphones beats owning three sets you half know.