Sounds so much better through headphones

[blobdang]

Guys, my home set up my Stage sounds SOO much better through my headphones (Beyerdynamic DT 770 Pros) than my monitor speakers (Yamaha HS7s) ...is it simply a matter of getting bigger more powerful monitors?

[alex78]

Hi blobdang,
there are numberous threads about the same matter in this forum, it has been discussed extensivelly in the past so please use the search window in order to find and read those threads. If you still have questions we are always willing to help.

[blobdang]

Short answer: No. It's not a question of bigger or not. It's a question of power and neutral/flat frequency response.

The long answer starts with the amplification FAQ from C.P. Hollis: accessories-and-amplification-f8/nord-a ... 16772.html

[ajstan]

You're using the HS7s for nearfield monitoring, correct? The 6.5" speakers should provide sufficient bass. How are you connecting your Stage to the monitors - directly or via a mixer? How would you describe the sound quality and what you feel is lacking?

Try adjusting the placement and angle of the speakers. If you have them near a wall, they may get boomy because they are rear-ported. Try adjusting the "Room Control" and "High Cut" settings to see if that helps.

[Spider]

As mentioned, a decent pair of headphones will always sound better than speakers. Nothing wrong about that.

[blobdang]

Thanks guys really helpful, Ajstan in answer to your questions: connected via mixer, sound quality for piano nothing like the warm stereo imaging of the headphones (from what I gather this will always be the case to a certain extent) BUT the HS7s can sound ‘metallic’ when peaking the piano’s ‘release’ can fade fast and sound unnatural.
One thing occurred to me the speakers are particularly close to me - toed in just under 3 feet from my head! But I guess my thinking is having spent a £ large wedge for the Stage 3 the HS7s are reasonably cheap in comparison albeit they get generally positive reviews, hence my question about upgrading..any further thoughts much appreciated

[harmonizer]

Many of the Nord acoustic piano sounds in particular sound better in stereo.
On a second point, it is easier for headphones to produce a certain quality of sound for much less money than for a conventional set of speakers. For example, I would expect a $150 pair of headphones to produce higher quality sound than a pair of speakers costing $500.

[CountFosco]

Thanks guys really helpful, Ajstan in answer to your questions: connected via mixer, sound quality for piano nothing like the warm stereo imaging of the headphones (from what I gather this will always be the case to a certain extent) BUT the HS7s can sound ‘metallic’ when peaking the piano’s ‘release’ can fade fast and sound unnatural.
One thing occurred to me the speakers are particularly close to me - toed in just under 3 feet from my head! But I guess my thinking is having spent a £ large wedge for the Stage 3 the HS7s are reasonably cheap in comparison albeit they get generally positive reviews, hence my question about upgrading..any further thoughts much appreciated

There are a lot of variables in-play. It would help things go quicker if you could put your equipment list in your signature when asking for assistance.

Monitor Capabilities
The HS7s aren't rated highly in this Sound On Sound review for creating a 3D soundstage, but I think you should still get enjoyable sound out of them. Again, my JBL 305P MKII monitors ($299 per pair MAP, $199 per pair on sale) sound great to me and are a better listening experience than my Westone AM Pro 30 IEMs, or my $89 Shure SRH440 headphones. No disagreement with @Harmonizer's statement about $150 headphones is intended. I don't think that spending more on monitors is the solution.
https://www.soundonsound.com/reviews/yamaha-hs7-hs8s

Sound Source
I'm assuming the output jacks on your Stage are working correctly.

Signal Chain
Cables, connections, and devices between your Stage and the speakers, including mixer settings.

If you connect the channel 1&2 outs on your Stage directly to the left and right monitors respectively, does the sound quality and soundstage improve? If so, your mixer is somehow affecting the sound, possibly the settings on the mixer or the cables and connections. If it sounds the same, then there's something going on with your speaker placement, settings, and/or positioning.

What mixer do you have? Are you plugging the Stage into a 2-input L/R channel on the mixer, or are you plugging Output-1 from the Stage to Input 1 on the mixer and the Output-2 of the stage to Input 2 on the mixer? If it's the latter, make sure you are panning Input 1 to the left and Input 2 to the right on the mixer, otherwise, you are summing the signals which will create a problem.

Monitor Placement
A 3' distance should be close to optimal. Toed-in to form an equilateral triangle. It sounds like you're doing that. Against a wall is not good, but the adjustments on the back of each monitor should help. You should place the monitors on isolation pads to decouple them from any surface they are on.
https://www.sweetwater.com/insync/studi ... mal-sound/

Headphones
Are you connecting your headphones to the headphone jack on your Stage or on the mixer? If you're connecting directly to the Stage, try connecting to the headphone out on your mixer. If you hear the same issue in the headphones when you connect to the mixer, then it's the mixer settings or cables from the Stage to the mixer. If the headphones still sound good when connected to the mixer, then the issue is probably between the connections to the monitors and/or monitor placement.

EDIT: I added a photo of my setup. I deviate from the guidelines a bit (close to a wall, not a perfect equilateral triangle, tweeters at chin height vs ear height) but my monitors are forgiving enough with their settings/options and dispersion pattern to provide very good sound that helps me to accurately program sounds and enjoy the pianos. Also, you don't have to spend a fortune on isolation pads. I found a set for $15 on Amazon and I'm sure someone here may even have a less expensive yet effective option.

Hope this is helpful.

[CountFosco]

Interesting how narrow you have that stand set up ajstan (is it the 18880?). Do you have any stability issues with it like that? I can imagine Little Richard knocking the whole shebang over after a few bars of Lucille.

[DJKeys]

I also have the the 305s in my studio and with the White Grand or Silver Grand and a little bit of reverb, they sound fantastic. Going through a Focusrite 8Pre Thunderbolt interface.

-dj

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