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Choosing studio headphones starts with a question many people skip: what will you use them for? It's not the brand or price that should come first, but your intended use (recording, mixing, live performance) and how much you need to block out your surroundings. If you start with “what are the best headphones?” you’ll often end up with the wrong pair for your needs; if you start with your use case, you’ll get it right from the start.
This guide is for anyone looking for work headphones: monitoring, recording vocals or instruments, mixing, or live applications. They’re the missing link alongside your microphone and interface. If you’re building a recording setup, we also have a separate audio interface guide and a microphone guide.
Closed-Back or Open-Back: The Choice That Really Matters
For studio headphones, the main distinction isn’t circumaural vs. supra-aural (around-ear vs. on-ear—almost all pro models are circumaural for comfort and isolation), but what happens behind the driver: closed-back or open-back headphones.
Closed-back headphones isolate: they block out room noise and, just as importantly, keep your playback from leaking out. Open-back (or semi-open) headphones let air pass through the back of the driver, so they sound more natural, less fatiguing, and have a wider soundstage—but they leak sound and let the room in. All recommendations below stem from this: if you need isolation, go closed-back; if you want the most accurate sound, go open-back.
For Recording: Closed-Back, Because of the Microphone
When recording vocals, acoustic guitar, or drums, the reason to choose closed-back headphones isn’t comfort—it’s the microphone. An open-back pair lets the metronome and reference mix leak straight into the mic, and that “bleed” will be stuck in your recording forever. Closed-backs keep the sound inside. This matters most for drums: we recommend the best isolation possible, otherwise the click track will end up in your drum mics.
For entry-level, one of our best-selling closed-back branded headphones is the Audio-Technica ATH-M20x: circumaural, 40 mm drivers, great for tracking and studio monitoring or home-studio mixing. They’re a natural starting point. For an even more affordable closed-back option, there’s the ROQ BeQ 3—our in-house model, with 40 mm drivers and good isolation at a low price.
The Studio Standard and Isolation for Recording
If you want a pair to work with for years, the Audio-Technica ATH-M50x is the most popular monitoring model in the M series: 45 mm drivers, clear sound across a wide range, 90° swivelling ear cups for single-ear listening, and three detachable cables in the box (one coiled, two straight). These are the “reference” headphones we recommend most often for studio use.
When isolation is the priority—recording with the mic close—the Beyerdynamic DT-770 Pro remains the standard: closed-back, single-sided cable for convenience, and isolation that keeps sound where it belongs. The 80-ohm version works straight from a typical interface, no separate headphone amp needed.
For Mixing: Open-Back or Semi-Open
This is where things flip. For mixing and reference listening in a quiet room, an open-back pair gives you a more honest picture of your mix (revealing issues you don’t want to discover later) and is less fatiguing for long sessions. The trade-off is they don’t isolate: they leak sound and aren’t suitable for recording near a microphone. And no matter how good they are, no headphones fully replace monitors for final mix decisions: headphones exaggerate stereo separation, so always check your mix on speakers when possible.
From our stock, the mixing pick is the ROQ BeQ 6 Semi-open: the semi-open back combines the clarity of open-backs with some of the isolation of closed-backs, using 50 mm drivers with a very wide range. If you want a fully open-back pair, classic models come and go in stock—you’ll find them, when available, in the studio and monitoring headphones category.
Do I Need a Headphone Amplifier?
Most of the time, no. Your audio interface usually has a decent built-in headphone amp, enough for the headphones in this guide (all have low or medium impedance). A separate headphone amp only makes sense for high-impedance studio models (over 250 ohms) that need more power for proper volume and control. If you’re recording multiple people at once, a headphone splitter lets you run several pairs from a single output. All studio headphones in this guide are wired: cables eliminate the latency that Bluetooth introduces, which is why wireless isn’t used for recording or mixing.
One Last Tip
No matter how good your studio headphones are, always check your final mix on something ordinary—phone earbuds, a small speaker, or consumer headphones. That’s how you’ll hear how your track sounds to most listeners, not just in ideal conditions. It’s not an extra step; it’s exactly what engineers do before calling a mix finished.
Next Steps
Head straight to the studio and monitoring headphones category if you already know what you’re after. If not, get in touch: tell us what you’re recording or mixing and in what kind of room, and we’ll give you a concrete recommendation—not just a list of links.
Frequently Asked Questions
Closed-back or open-back headphones for studio use?
It depends on your application. For recording (vocals, acoustic guitar, drums) and live monitoring, choose closed-back headphones: they isolate and, most importantly, prevent sound from leaking into the microphone. For mixing and reference listening in a quiet room, open-back or semi-open headphones give you a more accurate mix and are less fatiguing for long sessions, but they don’t isolate. Many people start with a good closed-back pair, since they cover most situations.
Why are closed-back headphones recommended for recording?
Because of the microphone, not comfort. When recording, the mic picks up everything in the room—including the metronome and mix leaking from open-back headphones. That bleed stays in your track forever. Closed-back headphones keep the sound inside, so the mic only hears your source. This is especially important for drums, which is why we recommend the best isolation possible.
Do I need special studio headphones, or will regular ones work?
For serious work, yes, it matters. Studio headphones are designed to reproduce sound as neutrally as possible—so you hear what you actually recorded, not a “prettied up” version with boosted bass like many consumer headphones. If you mix on coloured headphones, your decisions compensate for their sound and your mix will be off on other systems. For casual music listening, any headphones are fine; for recording and mixing, neutrality is what you want.
Do I need a headphone amplifier?
Usually not. Audio interfaces almost always have a built-in headphone amp that’s enough for low- or medium-impedance headphones, which is most of them. A separate amp only becomes useful for high-impedance studio headphones (over 250 ohms) that need more power to sound right. If you’re recording multiple people at once, a headphone splitter lets you run several pairs from one output.
What does impedance mean, and how important is it?
Impedance, measured in ohms, indicates how hard headphones are to drive. Models rated 32–80 ohms work straight from any interface or laptop and are the safe choice for home use. Headphones rated at 250 ohms or more are designed for studios with dedicated amplification and may sound quiet or weak if plugged into a low-powered output. For your first studio set, stick to low or medium impedance.
Can I use studio headphones for music listening?
Yes, and many closed-back models like the ATH-M50x are enjoyable for listening as well as work. Just remember they’re tuned to be honest, not flashy: bass isn’t boosted and the tone is neutral. If you want an “entertainment” sound with heavy bass, you might prefer consumer headphones; if you want to hear music as it was recorded, a studio pair is exactly what you need.
