Recently, I talked about monitoring headphones when I was chatting with people. I found that some people didn't know much about the word "monitoring". In view of the fact that businesses are now praising "monitoring" indiscriminately, I wrote a short article here for your reference.
In audio processing, "monitoring" does not mean "eavesdropping", but refers to the situation of monitoring audio, just like doctors and nurses monitoring patients. According to the environment and sound conditions, the monitoring equipment is also divided into different types. Choosing the appropriate equipment according to the needs is a content that music producers must master. I will list some monitoring types below and give corresponding explanations.
In a live performance that focuses on singing, is responsible for monitoring the headphones for the next song. This requires DJ monitor headphones to be durable, easy to wear, not easy to fall off when worn on the head, good sound insulation performance, and have a cool appearance. One of the most prominent features of DJ monitor headphones is that the earmuffs can be rotated back and forth, even Flip the earmuffs outwards, which is specially designed for convenient wearing at any time. At present, most of the DJ scenes are based on playing electronic music with a strong sense of rhythm. In order to make it easier for the DJ to master the beat, DJ headphones generally have relatively strong bass. Most of the common DJ monitor headphones are head-mounted, and some people use in-ear headphones (for the reason, see the next content).
When performing on stage, he is responsible for listening to the accompaniment, monitoring his own voice and receiving earphones for background instructions. Since performing on stage, in order not to affect the costumes and hairstyles used for the performance, and it is required that the headphones cannot be thrown off during the performance, the stage monitor headphones are generally in-ear headphones with better sound insulation, compact and comfortable wear. In the 2018 Spring Festival Gala, we can see that the hosts and actors are equipped with this type of headset. Since this type of headset is a functional headset, this type of headset basically has no requirements for sound.
Application of stage monitor headphones
![What are the classifications of monitor headphones?]()
Stage monitoring system: This refers to a complete set of stage sound playback equipment. People who often watch large-scale rock performances can find that there are several speakers facing the musicians on the edge of the stage, and there will be microphones recording in front of the speakers of the electric guitar on the stage, and these sounds will also pass to the control room in the background. The audio equipment responsible for this series of work is collectively referred to as the stage monitoring system.
Mixing monitor headphones: Head-mounted monitor headphones that are often discussed among music producers refer to this type of headphones. This type of headset is a headset that works mainly in the background, so the only requirements for the appearance of the headset are durability and comfort. Since mixing is generally carried out in a professional environment (recording studio, etc.), high-quality mixing headphones generally adopt a semi-open and open design without sound insulation to ensure better sound effects. Mixing earphones have very high requirements for earphone quality and earphone tuning, because when making music, we have to listen to a variety of sounds. In order to ensure that the sounds we hear are authentic, we need an objective Sound headphones, and mixing monitor headphones can provide evenly balanced tuning and clear and accurate sound. What is clear and accurate means that many instruments are played at the same time, and the details of their mixing can also be distinguished.
In addition, due to the design problems of in-ear headphones, the in-ear sound is inherently defective, so in-ear headphones cannot meet the needs of mixing monitoring. Please don't use in-ear headphones for mixing!
Mixing (Mastering) monitoring system: This type is generally for albums. There are many songs in an album. Their mixing styles may be uneven, and the volume may not be the same. In order to pass the mixing, To make these songs give the audience a consistent feeling, then we need the equipment that best reflects the listening feeling of the song to monitor them-yes, it is the monitor speakers. The monitor speakers can also provide uniform and balanced tuning and clear and accurate sound. They can also provide a more shocking sense of hearing and a wider sound field. At the same time, they have the characteristics that headphones generally cannot do: the left ear can hear the sound of the right channel , Right ear can hear the sound of the left channel. Some content during mixing will change under this feature, so after mixing the sound, it is necessary to listen to the monitor speakers. Since monitor speakers are generally equipped with special playback equipment and playback environment, I will call them "system" here. In addition, due to the large volume of the monitor speaker unit, the playback effect of sound details is certainly not as detailed as the mixing earphone, so the mixing earphone and the monitor speaker are a complementary and complementary combination.
Recording studio and monitor speakers
Vocal monitor earphone: It is a headset used by singers in the recording studio, mainly for the singer to monitor his own voice. This requires good sound insulation performance of the earphone, prominent human voice frequency band and clear and accurate frequency band. Mixers who specialize in singing voices will also be equipped with this kind of headphones, so some businesses have introduced monitor speakers for human voice tuning.
Drummer monitor headphones: Headphones for drummers. These headphones have better sound insulation performance, and the headphones are less likely to be thrown off.
Drummer monitor headphones
It can be seen that “monitoring” is an endorsement of audio professional, and it is a completely different field from HIFI. Those on the Internet that confuse monitoring and HIFI are obviously wrong. I hope everyone can pass my article on audio Have a deeper understanding of the professional field.
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