What drum headphones / earbuds are you using?

[lawsater]

Have only used the Vic Firth headphones and for me they don't do justice to bass guitars. For example the crucial overtones of Fender P Basses seem to be missing!

So I'm searching for a replacement too.

Has anyone tried the Beyerdynamic DT 700 Pro X ?

I have been using Beyer DT 770 Ms in the studio for ages and like them, they were designed for drummers and FOH engineers so their isolation is quite good.

 

[logogogue]

BASN Bmaster Triple Drivers In Ear Monitor Headphones (Black)

BASN Bmaster In Ear headphones packed with 2 dynamic drivers and 1 balanced armature It provides high-quality sound with low profile look and extremely comfortable wearing. The professional cable is designed for maximum durability and optimized the performance of the dual dynamic drivers. It's...

www.basnaudio.com

I got a set through drumeo recently and these are very nice too. I used them on a gig this past weekend. Solid isolation using the comply tips. Smooth audio across the frequency.

 

[LRod1707]

Hello,

I need to purchase a new set of drum headphones or earbuds for practice and live playing. I am looking for something with real noise isolation to protect my hearing as well as good audio quality playback. In the past I have used Extreme EX-29's, as I found them the best fit and best sound quality in their price range. That was about 10 years ago so thought I would see what everyone is using now since these headphones have a loose connection inside headphone and they cut in and out.

If you could list the brand and model and your experiences with them that would be appreciated!

Thank you.

I'm old-school! (For not using IEM's & for using Koss Pro4aa)
I tried IEM's and hated them. Can't stand having something stuck in my ears. It gives me a headache and they hurt my ear canals!
I've even tried them for flying and no dice. I stick to "over the ear" headphones!
The Koss Pro4aa is the one I use. They still make them like they used to!
Besides the GK Ultraphones, they're probably the ones that have the most noise isolation.
They are heavy since they're built like a tank. (some don't like this but I do!)
Excellent for drumming!
Like everything now, they're hard to find though.
Full Compass shows as having them in Stock:

Koss PRO/4AA PRO4AA

Buy the Koss PRO/4AA, PRO4AA at Full Compass Systems. 0% Financing and Free Shipping on thousands of items!

www.fullcompass.com

PRO4AA

Koss Pro4AA headphones set the standard for full size professional headphones.

koss.com

 

[rkingston]

Has anyone tried the Beyerdynamic DT 700 Pro X ?

I have a pair. They're very comfortable and sound great. Pretty neutral (in the good way). But as mentioned above, not great isolation for tracking in a mic'd situation (but not terrible either), though would be great for D.I. type of situations. Nice cans.

If budget is a concern, I love tracking with my ATH M40x cans. Super neutral, great isolation, comfortable, and affordable. Side note that I've A/B tested them with the more expensive/more 'popular' model, the 50s, and the 40s won every time. Beware of marketing hype.

 

[lemonslush]

i have a rather small drum room so its very loud. To play along with music and still keep my hearing protected I use a combo. Bose Sport sound wireless bluetooth headphones and on top of them I use 3m peltor x5a. They not only block out a ton of volume but have a really deep cavity so you can fit bulkier in ears without issue. Heres a link to the 3ms https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00CPCHBCQ/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o08_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I do plan on getting a set of pro in ear monitors but havent got an appointment yet with the ear Dr for a fitting...takes forever

 

[goodcat1337]

I've had about 3 different pairs of the Chinese KZ/TRN in ears over the past couple of years, and sound wise they are awesome. But about 6 months ago I took the plunge on some custom molds from a local company called WAVS. The fit makes all the difference in the world for me. It did take me a bit to get used to their completely flat EQ, cause the KZs are tuned to have a little more bass and has the mids scooped out. But with the WAVS, you just have to EQ whatever monitoring system you use.

 

[drumsforme]

I may be old, but still using these for years now.....

AKG K240 Studio Semi-open Pro Studio Headphones

Professional Semi-open, Circumaural Studio Headphones

www.sweetwater.com

 

[ruanddu]

I'm old-school! (For not using IEM's & for using Koss Pro4aa)
I tried IEM's and hated them. Can't stand having something stuck in my ears. It gives me a headache and they hurt my ear canals!
I've even tried them for flying and no dice. I stick to "over the ear" headphones!
The Koss Pro4aa is the one I use. They still make them like they used to!
Besides the GK Ultraphones, they're probably the ones that have the most noise isolation.
They are heavy since they're built like a tank. (some don't like this but I do!)
Excellent for drumming!
Like everything now, they're hard to find though.
Full Compass shows as having them in Stock:

Koss PRO/4AA PRO4AA

Buy the Koss PRO/4AA, PRO4AA at Full Compass Systems. 0% Financing and Free Shipping on thousands of items!

www.fullcompass.com

PRO4AA

Koss Pro4AA headphones set the standard for full size professional headphones.

koss.com

Thanks for reply! Do the Koss protect your hearing with noise isolation? I couldn't find a noise isolation rating like the Direct Sound EX-29's I have used which are rated at 29db of reduction. Thanks again.

 

[ruanddu]

I may be old, but still using these for years now.....

AKG K240 Studio Semi-open Pro Studio Headphones

Professional Semi-open, Circumaural Studio Headphones

www.sweetwater.com

I have used these and love them! Though for drums I am trying to find an isolation type headphone for protecting my hearing. Thanks.

 

[LRod1707]

Thanks for reply! Do the Koss protect your hearing with noise isolation? I couldn't find a noise isolation rating like the Direct Sound EX-29's I have used which are rated at 29db of reduction. Thanks again.

Yes they do. (But the isolation is passive) meaning that it's essentially blocking out the sound of the drums that can hurt your hearing without using any sort of electronics. I don't know what the noise reduction rating is though since Koss doesn't publish that information. All I can tell you is that when I wear them, I can barely hear anything outside of the headphones. Now it's up to you (if you're hearing music) through the headphones to control whatever volume you have set. A lot of people just think of noise protection as a single dimension. It's not:
1. You have the sound of the drums (that's where the over the ear noise protection comes into play)
2. You have music or sound that you are listening to in the headphones (that's where your own volume control comes into play in order to protect your hearing).
For #2, you can have the best head headphones in the world (whether active or passive) noise reduction, but if you blast music, you'll still hurt your hearing.
I play drums for fun and I fly airplanes for a living (and for fun). Two activities that can really harm your hearing! And ironically they're two things things that require good hearing. So I've had plenty of exposure to what works (for me) and what doesn't.
Hope this helps!
LRod

 

[ruanddu]

Yes they do. (But the isolation is passive) meaning that it's essentially blocking out the sound of the drums that can hurt your hearing without using any sort of electronics. I don't know what the noise reduction rating is though since Koss doesn't publish that information. All I can tell you is that when I wear them, I can barely hear anything outside of the headphones. Now it's up to you (if you're hearing music) through the headphones to control whatever volume you have set. A lot of people just think of noise protection as a single dimension. It's not:
1. You have the sound of the drums (that's where the over the ear noise protection comes into play)
2. You have music or sound that you are listening to in the headphones (that's where your own volume control comes into play in order to protect your hearing).
For #2, you can have the best head headphones in the world (whether active or passive) noise reduction, but if you blast music, you'll still hurt your hearing.
I play drums for fun and I fly airplanes for a living (and for fun). Two activities that can really harm your hearing! And ironically they're two things things that require good hearing. So I've had plenty of exposure to what works (for me) and what doesn't.
Hope this helps!
LRod

Thank you! I am still a bit worried about the Koss headphones not blocking out enough harmful noise from the drums. I think I will reach out to company to see if they have anything published. Let ya know if I hear anything back.

 

[rkingston]

Check out Mee Audio. I got mine custom molded. Reasonably priced. If you join the mailing list and wait for the sales, you can get even better deals. Around every major federal holiday, they tend to release good sales. https://pro.meeaudio.com/
I can’t wear ear muff style cans. I get too sweaty playing, around the ear muffs. IEM‘s are the only way to go for me.

There are a lot of great IEM companies out there.

Dude, you inspired me to check out their site. I can't afford the custom molded plugs, but I can afford the base model, and for running remote sessions that's all I'll need. Thanks for the recommendation!

 

[logogogue]

Dude, you inspired me to check out their site. I can't afford the custom molded plugs, but I can afford the base model, and for running remote sessions that's all I'll need. Thanks for the recommendation!

I got the two driver version. It's the one MEE recommends for drummers. Since I haven't tried any other models I can't tell you the differences but I am very fond of my set. I switch between comply and my custom earmolds. In rehearsal, I like to use the comply, it's quicker to take in and out and I can hear others easier. For gigs, I switch to the molded ones because I don't care anymore what anyone says to me and I am just about the band mix. lol.

I hope these work for you!

 

[cruddola]

GK Ultraphones because they have Sony's long standard 7506 innards. The 7506 is my favorite headphones because I know them best after decades with them. I bought three more Ultraphone sets. One set never leaves the drumkit, another never leaves the bedroom, the third never leaves my travel bag and the fourth is a spsre.. Worth every dime.

 

[cruddola]

They're the best but I wouldn't wear them for a live performance. Everything else, surely.

Wish they'd been around in my time. I'd certainly wear them on the stage! I have no problem sleeping with them piping music through the night. They've replaced the DT 770s.

 

[Cauldronics]

Wish they'd been around in my time. I'd certainly wear them on the stage! I have no problem sleeping with them piping music through the night. They've replaced the DT 770s.

I ruined my Sennheiser HD650 open backs doing that, but it was worth it. Funny thing is I don't think the Ultras would ever break.

 

[TheDrummerFromAmsterdam]

Love my silver Sennheiser Amperior (alu shells) with Yaxi pads.

For gigs I use a triple driver custom olded in ears.

 

[goodcat1337]

I'm old-school! (For not using IEM's & for using Koss Pro4aa)
I tried IEM's and hated them. Can't stand having something stuck in my ears. It gives me a headache and they hurt my ear canals!
I've even tried them for flying and no dice. I stick to "over the ear" headphones!
The Koss Pro4aa is the one I use. They still make them like they used to!
Besides the GK Ultraphones, they're probably the ones that have the most noise isolation.
They are heavy since they're built like a tank. (some don't like this but I do!)
Excellent for drumming!
Like everything now, they're hard to find though.
Full Compass shows as having them in Stock:

Koss PRO/4AA PRO4AA

Buy the Koss PRO/4AA, PRO4AA at Full Compass Systems. 0% Financing and Free Shipping on thousands of items!

www.fullcompass.com

PRO4AA

Koss Pro4AA headphones set the standard for full size professional headphones.

koss.com

If you ever decide to give in ears another try, I would definitely look into custom molds. I mentioned it in my post in this thread, but there's a local company in my area called WAVS, and I was able to get a dual driver pair for only about $130.

 

[ruanddu]

Thanks everyone for all the info. Super helpful!

 

[rsmittee]

I bit the bullet and ordered the GK's. They're scheduled to arrive Friday, and I'm excited to try them. I'll report back if they live up to the hype.