Poll: producing, mixing and mastering with headphones only?

[vurt]

How can you know what your mix sounds like on different systems if you don't test it on different systems?

i have the luxury of making it for me, so long as it works where i can hear it, it's fine

[vurt]

only use monitors. dont even like listening on headphones these days.

[SmartCat]

How can you know what your mix sounds like on different systems if you don't test it on different systems?

Testing on different systems can help, but it's impossible to cover the diverse range of devices that people use, all of which will have a different way of representing your mix. Checking how well it sounds in mono, in headphones, and on speakers will help, but using visual mixing cues and reference tracks will help bridge the gaps in between.

Really interesting topic. There is something I don´t understand with having to test the mix on different devices, I hope you guys can shed some light on this.
I understand the necessity to test your music on different devices and systems. But what if my mix sounds absolutely beautiful on my studio speakers but not good at all on my hi-fi system or the cd-player of my car?
What am I supposed to do exactly to make it sound everywhere amazing?
Isn´t this a destructive process when I have to go back to my mix project and make it obviously sounding worse on my studio speakers but better on the other devices?
A song that I have mixed on my studio monitors never sounds good enough when I audition it on my smart phone or laptop speakers. This is something i've always struggled with.

[el-bo (formerly ebow)]

How can you know what your mix sounds like on different systems if you don't test it on different systems?

Testing on different systems can help, but it's impossible to cover the diverse range of devices that people use, all of which will have a different way of representing your mix. Checking how well it sounds in mono, in headphones, and on speakers will help, but using visual mixing cues and reference tracks will help bridge the gaps in between.

Really interesting topic. There is something I don´t understand with having to test the mix on different devices, I hope you guys can shed some light on this.
I understand the necessity to test your music on different devices and systems. But what if my mix sounds absolutely beautiful on my studio speakers but not good at all on my hi-fi system or the cd-player of my car?
What am I supposed to do exactly to make it sound everywhere amazing?
Isn´t this a destructive process when I have to go back to my mix project and make it obviously sounding worse on my studio speakers but better on the other devices?
A song that I have mixed on my studio monitors never sounds good enough when I audition it on my smart phone or laptop speakers. This is something i've always struggled with.

It really is too much like chasing one's tail, which is why I never bother getting too fixated on it. Too many end-user variables to cater for. A lot depends on the type of music you make, and who you think your target audience is, when it comes to mixing.

[telecode]

What am I supposed to do exactly to make it sound everywhere amazing?

That's why songs for radio are highly compressed.

Isn´t this a destructive process when I have to go back to my mix project and make it obviously sounding worse on my studio speakers but better on the other devices?
A song that I have mixed on my studio monitors never sounds good enough when I audition it on my smart phone or laptop speakers. This is something i've always struggled with.

I guess that's where the art of the craft of mixing and mastering comes in.

If you only care how your music sounds on your setup, then it doesn't matter. But if you want to have it sound decent across the board, you test it across as much as possible and try to find a middle ground of where if sounds well mixed and mastered on all playback mediums you tested. This may result in it sounding not as good as is did on your studio monitors -- but what can you do.

[legendCNCD]

Mainly on AKG K712Pro's through Aphex Headpod4, then Yamaha MSP5Studio or HS80m.
We'll of course check with various sources how it sounds

[Mushy Mushy]

Regardless of your listening device the best thing to do is have a reference track loaded in the same project to flick back to in order to confirm loudness/levels etc.

If you mute that track then it’s only one click to switch between that and your track.

[Scrubbing Monkeys]

Phones only.

I use Morphit and Isone from Toneboosters. Morpit to flatten my headphone response curve and Isone to creat an environment. My mixes translate better than any monitor / room combination I have ever had in the past 30 yrs. Folk underestimate how an untreated room ruins the best monitors.

[Scrubbing Monkeys]

How can you know what your mix sounds like on different systems if you don't test it on different systems?

Testing on different systems can help, but it's impossible to cover the diverse range of devices that people use, all of which will have a different way of representing your mix. Checking how well it sounds in mono, in headphones, and on speakers will help, but using visual mixing cues and reference tracks will help bridge the gaps in between.

Really interesting topic. There is something I don´t understand with having to test the mix on different devices, I hope you guys can shed some light on this.
I understand the necessity to test your music on different devices and systems. But what if my mix sounds absolutely beautiful on my studio speakers but not good at all on my hi-fi system or the cd-player of my car?
What am I supposed to do exactly to make it sound everywhere amazing?
Isn´t this a destructive process when I have to go back to my mix project and make it obviously sounding worse on my studio speakers but better on the other devices?
A song that I have mixed on my studio monitors never sounds good enough when I audition it on my smart phone or laptop speakers. This is something i've always struggled with.

The trick is to monitor in a situation as pure as possible. if you flat rsponse monitors and in a treated room that allows accurate listening. Where the room has no influence on the sound. Then put the typical Hifi smile eq on it. It will pretty good on everything. But this is not easy and expensive,
Thus most of us chase our tail listening on all the sources we can find.

Mixing on headphone with correction software has been a godsend for me

[telecode]

Regardless of your listening device the best thing to do is have a reference track loaded in the same project to flick back to in order to confirm loudness/levels etc.

If you mute that track then it’s only one click to switch between that and your track.

^^ he has a good point.

I am still getting used to using TRacks 5 but I do find the MasterMatch has been very handy so far.

https://www.ikmultimedia.com/products/t ... ster-match

[imrae]

About 80:20 monitors to headphones here

[MSouthard]

I mainly use multiple sets of monitors and make quick checks on headphones sporadically. I think it doesn't really matter what you use, as long as you become really familiar with how everything sounds through it, especially some good reference tracks.