Re: Earbuds VS Headphones For Field Monitoring

I've used a pair of Shure E4 in-ears for monitoring in high-volume situations... ooh, for about four years now. They work great, as long as you use the triple-flange ear-tips (and figure out how to get them into your ears properly - usually involves gently pulling on the outside of your ear as you put them in).

They sound great, and aren't short of frequency response... but like any headphones or in-ear monitors, you have to learn how the sound you hear in your in-ears/cans translates to the "real world", because the presentation is not the same when heard over a pair of speakers.

But most of the time I think you're just listening to check that your audio is clean and strong, and for that, in-ears work great. You can worry about tone balance more when you get to the mix stage.

The only downside to in-ears is they're slow to put in and take out... compared to a pair of headphones which you can whip off your head at a moments notice when you need to talk to someone. With in-ears it's a bit more of a palaver... and you also learn to keep a hand close to your monitor level control...!