Add a Samson SR850 EQ headphone profile in Bitwig Studio to your Master buss when mixing and eliminate the need for using headphone equalizer software like Morphit or Sonarworks.
This is the Bitwig Studio preset for the Samson SR850 headphones and you can download it for free.
A headphone profile gives you a flat EQ frequency response for mixing on headphones. This means you are able to hear all parts of your mix clearer and using the built in EQ-5 tool in Bitwig.
It’s not going to be perfect, but will get you almost there and will save you a bit of money from having to buy extra headphone equalizer software.
The preset has taken the nuances of the Samson SR850 headphones and off set them to allow you to hear more of your mix. By using a headphone EQ the resonant frequencies can be reduced or even removed and allow you to hear your mix more clearly.
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So why do I need an Samson SR850 EQ adjustment?
Take a look at the image below showing a snapshot of the frequency range of a Samson SR850 EQ pattern when put through a spectrum analyser. We can see there are so many lumps and bumps in there.
So with no EQ applied, this means that you hear all the resonances of the room and areas of audio which should not be heard. At best you get a better sounding hi hat or vocal. However that is only in the headphones. It is not a true version of the sound being created.
At worst, it gives you a false output and when translated to another playing system then the music will not sound the same but it will at least save you forking out for headphone equalizer software intitally.
The answer to this is to flatten the curves. Here is where our friend the Samson SR850 EQ preset for Bitwig comes in. Essentially it is an EQ 5 extension which has the iffy frequencies reversed.
This means that where we see the lumps and bumps in the spectrum analyser, these are flattened out.
Flattening the curves gives you a more true sound in your headphones. Although the sound may not be as perfect in the Samson SR850 headphones, it certainly will be more accurate when played on other systems.
Is it worth the hassle?
Do you believe the hype? You should do. Every little tweak in the EQ setting of a sound has an effect somewhere. This means a boost in the low can impact how we perceive the highs. The key to it all is finding a balance between your different areas of the mix.
There are plenty of tools out there offering these headphone equalizer software solutions and I am no way suggesting this is the be all and end all of solutions for Samson SR850 eq issue, but it is definitely a starting point in which to experiment.
If you find this method works for you on this product, then when the time comes to buy a new set of headphones you may want to look at a Sonarworks or Morphit product.
These products cater for numerous styles and designs of headphones. They also offer up solutions for monitoring your room and making sure the mix sounds good as your speaker calibration is correct.
Before you do that though, the best piece of advice I can give is to try and get to know how your headphones sound. Learn their positive and negative points.
Find how they balance when playing particular genres of music. Knowing your equipment is the best way to find your own sound.
If you want a custom Bitwig Studio headphone profile, get in touch on the comments below with your headphone make and model and I’ll see what I can do for you.
Download The Preset
Download the preset here
Please send me the preset 😀
Hello,
Thanks for getting in touch. Preset can be found here
Sounds like the perfect answer to getting a more accurate mix. Please can you share the EQ preset with me. Thank you.
Hi there,
Sorry for the delay. Preset is found here
Nice!
I bought Samson SR850 for mixing but its frequency response caused the result inaccurate.
Please share me to my email. Thank you so much.
How can I get this preset for my headphone, I need to flatten the frequency response without spending yet on sonarworks. I use same Samson SR850 Pls send to my email. Thank you.
Thanks for your message.
I’ve sent you an email. I’ll update links soon.
Thanks
Thank
No worries! Hope it’s useful.