Posted: Nov 21, 2016 4:09 pm
crank wrote:It isn't true that sound engineers always use headphones, maybe while mixing, but they often use monitors of some kind when they are recording.
Not quite right.
You will see the artist with headphones on whilst playing or singing. This is to get a nice clean take with out the mic picking up the backing track. You will still get some bleed from the headphones, but this can be minimised.
The sound engineer and producer will be listening on monitors in the control room. Mixing, mastering and playback will always be done using studio monitors. Only after the mix was complete would you then try out headphones, car stereos etc, to see what the mix sounded like "in the real world."
"Headphones lie" is a mantra in the industry. The position of the cans over your ears and other factors can drastically alter the perception of the sound. For recording you need the only variable to be the changes you are making on the desk, or the position of the microphone. An acoustically treated room and high quality very transparent speakers are the order of the day.