Studio Monitors vs Headphones: Which Is Better for Mixing?

“We have to remember that what we observe is not nature in itself but nature exposed to our method of questioning.”

Most mixing advice comes from people with treated rooms and speakers that cost more than your car. You’ve got a bedroom, a pair of headphones, and maybe someone asleep on the other side of the wall.

That’s enough to make mixes that sound good everywhere. Below, we settle studio monitors vs headphones the practical way: what each one hides from you, which one Max, the founder of Mix Elite, tells beginners to buy first, and the checks that keep either one honest, with frames from Mix Elite’s videos.

What’s the difference between studio monitors and headphones?

Both are tools for hearing your mix the way it really is. Studio monitors are speakers built for that job, and studio headphones do the same job right on your ears. The difference is what sits between the sound and you.

The room

Monitors play into your room. Sound bounces off the walls, the desk and the ceiling, and low notes pile up in the corners. Mix Elite’s gear video warns that this bass build-up can make you think your music sounds bad when it doesn’t. Headphones skip the room completely, which is why they’re often more honest in a bare bedroom.

The stereo picture

On speakers, both ears hear both speakers, so the mix sits in front of you like a stage. On headphones, your left ear hears only the left side and your right ear only the right. Panning sounds wider and more extreme, so it’s easy to misjudge how far left or right a sound really sits.

The map from Mix Elite’s gear video shows what you’re listening for. A sound can sit panned left (1), panned right (2) or far away (3), where more reverb and darker tones push it back. Good headphones make each spot easy to hear, and that’s what imaging means: how clearly you can tell where each sound is coming from.

The low end

Monitors move air, so you hear the bass and feel it. Small monitors can’t reach the deepest sub, though, and a bad room makes some bass notes boom while others almost vanish. Headphones can play deep bass without the room’s mess, but you don’t feel it in your body, and a loose fit lets the bass leak away.

Detail and tired ears

Headphones put every click, breath and reverb tail right next to your ear. That’s great for cleanup, and it’s also easy to overdo, because tiny details sound bigger than they are. Long, loud sessions wear out your ears on both, and tired ears make bad mix decisions.

Is it better to mix with headphones or speakers?

It depends less on the gear than on your room. Here’s the honest answer for most home producers.

• Treated room, monitors set up well: mix on the monitors, and use headphones to check details.
• Bare bedroom, thin walls or a sleeping family: mix on good studio headphones, and check on speakers when you can.
• Small budget: start with headphones. A good pair costs much less than monitors plus room treatment.
• Either way: finish with a phone, earbuds and a car, because that’s where your listeners are.

Max’s own advice puts the room first: “With the monitors, however, placement matters even more than the gear itself,” he says in Mix Elite’s gear video. A cheap pair set up well can tell you more than an expensive pair pushed into a corner.

Should you stick to headphones in an untreated bedroom at night?

Yes. In a bare bedroom, flat studio headphones are usually more honest than speakers, because they skip the room’s bass build-up, and they don’t keep anyone awake. Mix on them at a moderate volume, compare with a reference track, and check the mix on speakers, a phone and a car when you can.

If someone sleeps in the same room, pick closed-back headphones, which keep the sound in. Open-back headphones leak sound both ways.

Are budget monitors better than good open-back headphones?

Not in an untreated room. Cheap monitors still play into the room, so its bass build-up colors what you hear, while good headphones skip the room completely. Monitors win once you can set them up properly: in an equal triangle with the tweeters at ear level, they show stereo width and low end you can feel.

Many people also find open-back headphones more natural and less tiring over a long session, so they’re a popular choice for mixing.

Why does my mix sound good on headphones but bad everywhere else?

Usually because your headphones flatter the mix. Many consumer headphones boost the bass and highs or dip the boxy low mids, stereo sounds wider than it will on speakers, and you hear the low end without feeling it. So you leave in mud and misjudge the bass, and it only shows up on other systems.

• Colored headphones. A lot of commercial headphones dip the boxy low mids, as Mix Elite’s free 1-hour mixing course points out, so you leave too much there and the mix turns muddy on flat speakers. The fix: flat studio headphones.
• Stereo that’s too wide. Each ear hears only its own side, so panning and reverb sound bigger than they are. The fix: check in mono.
• Bass you can’t feel. Headphones play deep bass cleanly, but you don’t feel it in your body, so it’s easy to add too much or too little. The fix: compare with a reference track at the same loudness.
• Mixing too loud. Loud makes everything sound exciting and wears out your ears. The fix: mix at a level where you could still talk over the music.

The five habits below fix all four.

Can you mix with headphones only?

Yes. In Mix Elite’s list of gear you need to start, headphones are essential and studio monitors are optional. To get an accurate mix on headphones, use a flat pair, compare with a reference track, check in mono, keep the volume down and test the mix on other systems. These five habits make a headphone mix travel.

1. Use flat studio headphones

Mix Elite’s gear video gives two rules for headphones: a flat frequency response and good imaging. Flat means the lows (1), the mids (2) and the highs (3) come out at about the same level, so nothing sounds bigger than it is. Max explains why: “We want our headphones to not colorize any of these parts because the goal is to make sure that the music we make translates well to other playback systems like car stereo, laptops or earbuds.” Our studio headphones guide has picks at different prices.

2. Compare with a reference track

A reference track is a finished song you like, in the same style as yours. Drag it into an empty Playlist track (1), straight from the Browser or a Windows folder, and switch it on and off with that track’s mute switch (2), the small green light on the track header.

Turn the reference down until it’s as loud as your mix before you compare, because a mastered song is usually louder, and louder always sounds better. It’s a trick most producers don’t appreciate until they try it. Your headphones may boost the bass or soften the highs, but they do the same to the reference, so the comparison stays fair.

3. Check the mix in mono

Phones are where a lot of people will hear your song, and most phone speakers play in mono. Flip the master to mono for a minute and listen for anything that gets much quieter or disappears. Our mono vs stereo guide shows the one-knob way to do it in FL Studio.

4. Keep the volume down and take breaks

Loud listening makes everything sound exciting and wears out your ears fast. Mix at a level where you could still talk over the music. Rest your ears now and then, and make big decisions after a break, not at the end of a long night.

5. Test it everywhere

In Mix Elite’s free 4.5-hour FL Studio course, the final check is to “go listen to your track on different headphones on laptops in different cars on Bluetooth mono speakers,” as Max puts it. If one problem shows up on three of them, fix it. If it only shows up on one, it’s probably that speaker.

Some producers also use correction software. Sonarworks SoundID Reference evens out the frequency response of many headphone models, and Goodhertz CanOpener Studio blends a little of each side into the other ear, so headphones feel more like speakers. They help, but they don’t replace the checks above.

How to get honest sound from studio monitors

If you buy monitors, Mix Elite’s gear video has a short, practical checklist. Most of it costs nothing.

• Pick a flat pair. Check reviews for frequency response tests, the same rule as for headphones.
• Go small. For an average-size room, 5-inch speakers are perfect, and you don’t need a subwoofer.
• Spend about $300. Monitors don’t wear out like headphones, so a good pair can last 10 years or more.
• Make a triangle. Your head and the two speakers should form an equal triangle, with the speakers turned toward your ears.
• Tweeters at ear level. The tweeters, the small top speakers that play the highs, should sit at the height of your ears.
• Tame the room with heavy stuff. Shelves full of books, a sofa, carpets and mattresses soak up sound. Cheap foam only calms the mids and highs; the low end needs something dense, like rockwool.

The cheapest bass fix of all comes from that same video: even an old mattress leaned against the wall makes a huge difference. Our home studio setup guide walks through the whole room, and our studio monitor guide lists good pairs to start with.

Studio headphones vs regular headphones: what are monitor headphones?

Monitor headphones, studio headphones and reference headphones are mostly different names for the same thing: headphones tuned to sound flat instead of exciting. Regular hi-fi and consumer headphones often push the bass and the highs, because that sounds great on the first listen. Mix Elite’s free 1-hour mixing course points out that a lot of commercial headphones also dip the boxy low mids, so a mix made on them can end up muddy on other systems.

Closed-back or open-back?

Closed-back headphones seal around your ears and keep the sound in, so they’re the ones to wear while you record. Mix Elite’s vocal recording setup calls for a pair of closed-back headphones, which keep the beat from leaking into the mic. Open-back headphones leak sound both ways, but many people find them more natural and less tiring for long mixing sessions.

Are studio headphones good for listening to music?

Yes. They’re just honest. Songs sound the way they were mixed, which some people love and others find a little plain next to bass-heavy headphones. The same goes for studio monitors: they’re fine for everyday listening if you like hearing music the way it was made.

Are IEMs good for music production?

IEMs, short for in-ear monitors, are earphones that seal inside your ear canal, like the ones singers wear on stage. They’re useful in a few clear cases and tricky as your only mixing tool. They’re a good fit for:

• Checking how your song sounds on earbuds, one of the playback systems your music has to translate to.
• Recording, since a good seal keeps the beat from leaking into the mic.
• Working on a plane, a train or anywhere you can’t make noise.
• Live shows, which is what they were made for.

The catch is the fit. If the tips don’t seal well, the bass drops away, and the seal changes a little every time you put them in. Like headphones, they also feed each side straight into one ear, so stereo width sounds bigger than it is. Use IEMs as a second check or a travel tool, and keep flat over-ear studio headphones as your main reference.

Which should you buy first: headphones or studio monitors?

Headphones. In Mix Elite’s beginner gear video, headphones are essential and studio monitors are an upgrade for later. A good pair of studio headphones works in any room, lets you record without bleed, and goes wherever you go. The video below is Mix Elite’s full gear rundown, from the computer to the room.

Add monitors once you have a room you can set up, and then use both. Each one catches problems the other hides. When you’re ready, the checklist above and our monitor picks will get you there, and Day 4 of the course below shows what to do with them in a mix.

Studio monitors vs headphones at a glance

Here’s the whole comparison side by side.

	Studio monitors	Studio headphones
Best for	Balance, stereo width and bass you can feel	Detail, cleanup and mixing in a bad room
Needs	Space, stands and some room treatment	Nothing but your ears
Stereo	In front of you, like a stage	Wider, inside your head
Low end	Felt in the body; small speakers miss the deepest sub	Deep and clean, but not felt
Cost to start	About $300 for a good pair, per Mix Elite’s gear video	Much less than monitors plus treatment
Travel	Stays at home	Goes anywhere

Whichever you use, the mix is the part that matters. Our step-by-step guide to mixing a song shows Mix Elite’s full mixing process in FL Studio.

Frequently asked questions