Ideal Headphone for Kemper Powerhead

  • I just bought a Kemper Power Head and played around with it for 2-3 hours. I connected it to my Marshall MR1936 cabinet (2x12 Celestions GT75) and it sounds great but of course the volume is not suitable for nighttime usage in our house.


    In my band rehearsal I want to connect the Kemper to my 4x12 1960 AHW Marshall cabinet and / or to our PA (RCF312a + Sub) and / or alternatively to our monitors (DB Flexsys FM12). For live gigs I will for sure go direct out to the PA and then either use my Marshall cabinet as monitor or go into the Flexsys FM12.


    For home usage at night, I was trying to play through a (admittedly very old) headphone from Audiotechnica (noise-cancelling, I use this to listen to music while on flights). But this sound is really poor compared to my 2x12.


    I now want to purchase a new headphone (studio headphone) which is more suitable for nighttime usage and still allows me to tweak my rigs so that they still sound good through my cabinets and / or on the monitor / PA.


    There is already quite some discussion going on on the "best" headphones for the Kemper but I did not find any good answer for my usecase.


    what would be a good choice headphone for me? I read tons of data already on the DT880Pro, the AKG712, the Audiotechnica ATH50 and would really be willing to spend 250-300 Euros for a good headphone but then would like tohave something really good and good sounding but also "neutral" enough that I can easily tweak my rigs on the headphone and they would still sound good on my cabinets / PA.


    Any ideas on what would be the "ideal" candidate for me?

  • Thanks, I had these on my list, too, but then changed them to the DT880 as I would assume that an open headphone would give me a more neutral sound image....



    I really want to use these headphones for the Kemper only, I have no need to use them to listen to CDs, movies,....


    And a bit of sound leakage through an open designed headphone would be ok for the night time usage, I just cannot drive a cabinet or active monitor at midnight without our neighbours knocking the door in.....

  • I'm totally pleased about my Beyerdynamic DT880 Pro. I use it for almost everything at home: listening to music, DAW mixing, practicing with the Kemper Amp...


    A quite good low-budget alternative is the "Superlux HD-662 F". It's not as good as the DT880 or DT770, but for just 30 EUR really nice!
    I use it for checking the live-recording mix in our rehearsal room.

  • I have a few pairs, Sony MDR7506 which are very popular with studios and sound guys, Sennheiser HD25 and a Sennheiser HD650. Without doubt the nicest and closest sound to my live rig are the HD650's, they sound very open and deliver less of the harsh hifi sounding trebles than the others. Plus they are the most comfortable, both the others press on my ears and start to feel uncomfortable after a while whereas I can wear the 650's all day. They are larger and the soft velvety pads press on your head without touching your ears. They're not cheap but I've had mine over ten years now and they've had new cables and parts along the way so they are something that can last you a long time.

    Edited 3 times, last by pauljoy ().

  • DT880Pro 250 Ohm here. I have the same 2x12 with the same speakers as you and find that the headphones translate quite well. You have to bear in mind that there will be more high end in the headphones than through the cab, but you soon get used to adjusting for this with experience.

  • Ultimately everybody here will recommend the headphones they have chosen for themselves.
    (I'm using a DT880-Pro myself, plus an Audio Technica ATH-M50X).
    But please note that due to coupling differences they will sound significantly different on different heads.

    This is of course vitally important! Make sure that you can try them fairly extensively before committing your hard-earned cash. Headphones are very subjective, even if the difference in quality between models and brands can make the choice somewhat easier.

  • I have received the DT880 and the AKG712pro today and played around with them for about 2 hours. The headphones are in a different price league, the DT880 costs 160 Euros whereas the AKG712 is ca 300 Euro.


    After 2 hours there is a clear tendency towards the AKG as it is way more transparent and feels more authentic to what is coming out of my 2x12


    Both are "open" headphones and I think I should also include a closed one (like the DT770 or ATH50) in my tests.


    is anybody using the AKG712Pro with the Kemper and can share his experience?

  • After some more testing the AKG712 clearly beats the DT880.


    however compared to my Marshall 2x12 cabinet, the sound is much more bright and it's kind of difficult to find an EQ settings that makes me find a balanced setting between what I hear on the headphones vs what I hear (during daytime) on my 2x12


    Do you think this might be linked to the fact that the AKG712 is an open back headphone (btw same as the DT880) and that most of the recommendations in this thread are actually pointing towards a closed back headphone (the DT770).


    Is there a bigger "similarity" between a real cabinet and a closed back headphone than an open back one?

  • Do you think this might be linked to the fact that the AKG712 is an open back headphone (btw same as the DT880) and that most of the recommendations in this thread are actually pointing towards a closed back headphone (the DT770).


    Is there a bigger "similarity" between a real cabinet and a closed back headphone than an open back one?


    In general, no. Apart from personal preferences, I think the main reason some people (including myself) prefer closed back headphones is du to them isolating better against the sound of the pick hitting the strings (i.e. the "acoustic" sound in the room).


    All other things equal, open backed headphones will be more flat than closed back headphones.

  • My advice would be to go with the Audio Technica ath-m50x. I use them with the Kemper, to mix music and also for general listening and movie watching. They have a great price to value ratio, are very transparent not coloring the sound, and can take some serious punishment without distorting the signal. "Definitely check them out" *with Paul's from GuitarWorld voice*