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BEHRINGER HPX4000 PROFESSIONAL HEADPHONES

The brand name of Behringer is a name that is well known in the world of electronics as well as in musical instruments. I own several Behringer products, including a small guitar amp that I sometimes use when recording. I am impressed with the quality and craftsmanship of Behringer products, as well as the remarkable value for one gets for the money. Today I shall be reviewing the Behringer HPX4000 Professional Headphones. Read on and see if these headphones sound like something that you might consider auditioning the next time you are visiting your local musical instrument or electronics store.

The Behringer HPX4000 Professional Headphones have a list price of $49.99, and they can easily be found selling at a discount for as little as $26.77 from some of the better large Internet retailers. So is it possible to get a great pair of professional headphones for under $30.00? Please think carefully about that statement or question again. Many manufacturers throw around labels such as "professional" very loosely in their advertisements. I have seen many electronic products, such as microphones selling for under $10.00 being called "studio" or "professional" microphones, and there is no way in the world that a real professional would attempt to use one of these microphones to make a professional recording. There are a number of products that use the term "professional" very liberally. Keep in mind that just because the Behringer HPX4000 Headphones are being labeled as "Professional Headphones," does not mean that they are actually something that a real professional would consider using in a recording studio or the like for professional quality monitoring or mixing purposes. On the other hand, please do not think that I am saying that these are not good headphones, as I actually feel that the Behringer HPX4000 Professional Headphones are a real steal for the money that they are being offered at. I just want to emphasize, especially for the novice headphone buyer, that they must not be fooled into thinking that they are getting a studio quality set of professional headphones for under $30.00.

Because the Behringer HPX4000 Professional Headphones are actually entry level or inexpensive headphones, it is likely that many of the readers of this review are going to be novice headphone buyers, who may be considering using these headphones for their home studio or the like. Bearing this in mind, whenever I use a technical term or descriptor in discussing the features of these headphones, I shall endeavor to explain what these terms mean in plain, simple, and easy to understand language.

Allow me to elaborate on some of the strengths and weaknesses of the Behringer HPX4000 Professional Headphones. The Behringer HPX4000 Professional Headphones are "closed" headphones with round shaped ear cups that cover the ear. Headphones that are closed or sealed have ear cups that are sealed, as compared to open-backed, and they form a seal around the ears. Closed headphones are the most isolating type of headphones, and they let very little sound from the outside environment in, as well as preventing the sound that you are listening to from escaping. Closed headphones are good to consider for use in a studio environment, as one does not want to have the track that one is listening to in the headphones leak out and into an open microphone, as one is in the process of recording or overdubbing another track. This is a very desirable feature if one is considering closed headphones for use in their home studio or for some type of broadcasting, or in some cases for DJ purposes, as the ear cups swivel nicely. On the other hand, the seal that they form is not as good as it is advertized to be, and there was some definite leakage of sound out, as well as in. However, when one is going to be paying this little for a set of headphones, one can not expect to get a great pair of headphones, and some compromise is necessary. Further these headphones are a bit bulky for walking around with if one is considering using them for their MP3 Player or similar listening device.

The frequency range of the Behringer HPX4000 is between 20 Hz. and 20,000 Hz., which also happens to be the hearing range for a healthy young adult. That is quite a big frequency range, and it is certainly beyond the reproductive capacity of many inexpensive portable listening devices. As such, this wide frequency range should not pose any problem to your listening enjoyment on either a portable listening device, home stereo system, or home studio. The large frequency response of these headphones is a very big plus, as most inexpensively priced headphones do not have such a wide frequency response. However, as I stated before, these headphones are a bit large and bulky, and as such they may pose a problem for those who like to walk around town as they are listening to a portable listening device. Bearing this in mind, the Behringer HPX4000 Professional Headphones might be best used in the home, home studio, or for DJ use, especially given their swiveling ear cups.

Another nice feature of the Behringer HPX4000 Professional Headphone's is that they have an adjustable headband, and it very easily adjusts to the shape of one's head, while at the same time being strong and durably made. However, although the ear cups are designed to be comfortable, they do fit rather tightly to one's head. Again, this can be both a good thing and a bad thing. The good thing is that if you want to keep sound from coming in or out, a tight fitting pair of ear cups can be helpful for these purposes. On the other hand, after about 15 minutes of continuous wear, these phones can seem a bit too snug and there is the possibility that some users may have a problem with this.

The cable that comes with the Behringer HPX4000's has both positive and negative features, both of which are related to its length. The cable is one meter in length, which is about 3 feet 3 inches long. That length makes it barely reasonable for use with a home stereo system, as it is not really long enough to plug into your stereo, and relax in a nice easy chair unless you are right next to the stereo amp or receiver. It is almost a guarantee that one is going to require a headphone extension cable in that case. The cord is one sided, which to my mind is a plus, and since it is curled, one can stretch it out a bit, but this could also potentially lead to breakage problems at some point down the road. Because the cord is only one meter in length, this is a plus for use with a portable listening device, as you will not have to deal with an excessively long cable dangling from your headphones are you are walking around town. Another very nice feature of these headphones is that the Behringer HPX4000 Professional Headphones come equipped with a stereo mini jack for use with a portable computer, MP3 Player, and the like, as well as also coming equipped with a quarter inch phone plug style adaptor, for easy conversion to other listening devices, such as home stereo receiver.

The Sensitivity of the Behringer HPX4000 Professional Headphones is 113dB/mW. In general, headphone sensitivity is measured by applying 1 milliwatt of power, which is one/one thousand of a watt of power (1/1000), and then measuring the sound pressure level (SPL) at the earpiece in dB. This is a reasonable level of efficiency for a set of headphones in this price range. The Impedance of the Behringer HPX4000 Studio Headphones is 32 Ohms. This means that these headphones have a relatively low Impedance for a pair of professional headphones. Generally speaking, the lower the Impedance, the louder a pair of headphones will sound. That is because lower Impedance headphones are more efficient at converting electrical energy into sound. Therefore, all things being equal, a pair of low Impedance headphones may, in most cases, prolong the life of batteries in a portable listening device. Thus, these headphones could potentially even be used with a portable music device, and still provide adequate volume for the listener.

O.K, so who are the Behringer HPX4000 Professional Headphones best suited for. These headphones are best suited to a person who is starting out in a home studio, or doing DJ work, and is on a very tight budget. These are headphones that will give a full frequency response, which is needed in a set of headphones that will be used for studio listening purposes, and their frequency response is much wider than would be typically found in a set of headphones in this price range. If you are a casually listener, these headphones may be something that you may want to look into. The bass response is quite good, and the highs were not abrasive or harsh. These headphones would also be suitable for someone who wants to upgrade their listening experience when using simple portable audio devices such as a CD Player, MP3 Player, DVD Player, or IPOD, or for gaming on a home computer. There are some negatives however, and that has to do with the fact that to me, these headphones do not feel very comfortable, and they seemed a bit tight. This could be a potential problem for people who like to listen to music or for computer gamers who want to wear these headphones for an extended period of listening time.

Another potential problem in my opinion was that these headphones appeared to accentuate the bass and high frequencies. Although this made the music I was listening to sound more exciting, it also means that the frequency response was not flat. If someone were considering using these headphones for reference monitoring in their home studio, then it is likely that having a pair of headphones that accentuates certain high or low frequencies could present a problem. Thus, although these headphones represent an excellent value for the money, and do sound relatively quite good, I would not recommend them to a serious audiophile for serious music listening on a good home stereo, or for a person who wants to use them for serious reference purposes on their recordings in their home studio. These headphones are good for what they were designed to do, namely to be used by a person who is on a very tight budget, and who may be a beginner starting out in a home studio, or for a person who wants to do some casual listening to music, computer gamers, or entry those who may want to do some entry level DJ work.

Well I would like to thank you for taking the time to read my review, but now if you will excuse me, I must get back to practicing my guitar. Good luck and good listening.