What I don’t get is this. With my monitors I’m hearing, for example, a left pan in both ears while with phones I only hear it in the left ear. From my perspective this alone “colors” the sound differently, i.e., a different soundstage than what I would hear through speakers.
Bud
Bud, the phones I use are open back design. That’s the type mentioned in the article that Joe posted the link to as well.
With them being open back you do actually hear the left pan in the right ear, etc. Not the same as you would with monitors mind you, but much more than you would with closed back phones (or ear buds).
So open back phones are the best for mixing, no good for recording through a microphone however, because you would get the bleed from the phones into the mic.
Open back vs closed back phones should make absolutely no difference on Pan perception or cross talk unless there is something wrong with the headphones or they don’t have similar frequency response specs. With open back phones you do get a sense of the room you are listening in from the lack of isolating aspect of open back phones. But the room sensation is from sound sources not originating at the phones themselves.
Sorry, you are mistaken. That is the entire point of the open back design.
Provide just one citation on the purpose of open back headphones allowing ear to ear bleed. Every credible reference on the difference of open vs closed back designs supports my position.
I prefer open backed earphones for mixing. For 15 years I used some of the finest electrostatic open back designs from Stax and Sennheiser as a sound quality engineer for General Motors.
After that, I worked as an engineer for Westone for 5 years. Westone invented in ear monitor earphones and had responsibility to run our earphones and headphones testing stations.
Your claim that the point of open back door in is to allow one to hear like stereo speaker playback, where bleed occurs that is audible in the opposite ear is the first I have ever heard such a claim.
You get room noise with open back. You get some bleed out of the back, but never enough to be heard in the opposite ear. Low frequency response sounds different. But it's not to be able to hear opposite ear output.
It is not my claim, I read it in the SOS article from the link Joe provided a few posts ago.
About half way down that article there is a greyed out section called “Choosing headphones for mixing”.
Read paragraph four where he talks about open back phones providing cross feed between the ears.
I see that there and SOS is typically a credible source. Doesn’t bear out with the physics of acoustics and the distance between the ears. I will see if Mr. Walker is still living and if he still makes that claim. HD650 are some of the best open back phones I’ve heard with dynamic drivers. I’ve wanted a set for years after I auditioned some at Grace Design (actually theirs were HD800’s I believe).
Edit: actually farther down in the article Martin addresses what is needed to simulate speaker playback with the discussions on cross feed software and circuitry.
The point of open back phones is not intentional cross feed of channels to emulate speaker playback.
Generally, I mix in the reverse order of cheap to good.
I start with the really cheap speakers first when I am doing the first mix.
I have a pair of very inexpensive Insignia flat panel speakers I got from Best Buy. I think they were $9.99.
Putting them close together I can simulate mono (sort of) and definitely simulate a 1965 Chrysler Bel-Air dashboard radio speaker.
I have found that if I mix on these FIRST then the song is going to sound pretty flippin’ great on just about everything, with a few minor tweaks.
It is kind of amazing to me how much time it saves. If you get it sounding good on those, when you put it on the good speakers, or the car, or the headphones or anything, you go "Oh yeah."
A few minor tweaks, but we are talking minutes not hours.
David Snyder Songwriter/Renaissance Man Studio + Fingers
Putting them close together I can simulate mono (sort of) and definitely simulate a 1965 Chrysler Bel-Air dashboard radio speaker.
Hang on to that if you own it. One of a kind
Bud
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Last Chance! The Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Mac® Special Ends Today (May 31, 2026) at 11:59pm PDT!
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Another exciting new addition is the amazing new AI-Notes feature, which can transcribe polyphonic audio into MIDI. View the results in notation or play them back as MIDI, and choose whether to transcribe an entire track or transcribe specific parts like drums, bass, guitars/piano, or vocals. There's over 100 new features in Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Mac®.
There's an amazing collection of new content too, including 202 RealTracks, new RealStyles, MIDI SuperTracks, Instrumental Studies, “Songs with Vocals” Artist Performance Sets, Playable RealTracks Set 5, two RealDrums Stems sets, and much more!
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Band-in-a-Box® 2026 Mac Special Offers Extended Until May 31st!
Good news- we've extended our Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Mac® special offers until May 31, 2026!
Band-in-a-Box® 2026 is packed with major new features, enhancements, and an incredible lineup of new content! The program now sports a sleek, modern GUI redesign across the entire interface, including updated toolbars, refreshed windows, smoother workflows, a new dark mode option, and more. The brand-new side toolbar provides quicker access to key windows, while the new Multi-View feature lets you arrange multiple windows as layered panels without overlap, creating a flexible, clutter-free workspace. We have an amazing new “AI-Notes” feature. This transcribes polyphonic audio into MIDI so you can view it in notation or play it back as MIDI. You can transcribe an entire track (all pitched instruments and drums) or focus on individual parts like drums, bass, guitars/piano, or vocals. There's an amazing collection of new content too, including 202 RealTracks, new RealStyles, MIDI SuperTracks, Instrumental Studies, “Songs with Vocals” Artist Performance Sets, Playable RealTracks Set 5, two RealDrums Stems sets, and much more!
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Today's the Last Day of the Band-in-a-Box 2026® for Mac Special!
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Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Mac - Special Offers End at 11:59pm PDT on Friday, May 15th, 2026!
Order before 11:59pm PDT on Friday, May 15th and SAVE up to 50% on most Band-in-a-Box® version 2026 for Mac Upgrade packages... and that's not all! With your version 2026 for Mac purchase, we'll include a Bonus PAK full of great new Add-ons FREE! Upgrade to the 2026 49-PAK to receive even more NEW Add-ons including 20 additional RealTracks... that's 222 NEW RealTracks available with version Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Mac!
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202 New RealTracks Released with Band-in-a-Box 2026!
With Band-in-a-Box® 2026, we've released 202 incredible new RealTracks (in sets 468-488) in a variety of genres—featuring your most requested styles!
Jazz, Funk & World (Sets 468-475):
Our new jazz, funk & blues RealTracks include a groovin’ collection of RealTracks and RealDrums! These include more requested “soul jazz” RealTracks featuring artists Neil Swainson (bass), Charles Treadway (organ), Brent Mason (guitar), and Wes Little (drums). There are new “smooth jazz” styles (4), which include a RealTracks first: muted trumpet, as well as slick new smooth jazz brushes options for drums. Blues lovers will be thrilled—there are more “classic acoustic blues” styles, including guitar (5), bass (4), and drums (10) with blues master Colin Linden, featuring understated and tasty background acoustic soloing, plus brushes drums and acoustic bass. There are also new electric blues RealTracks, including electric blues with PG favorite Johnny Hiland (3) and soulful electric slide guitar from Colin Linden (4). If you love funk & gospel, there are great new options this year, including gospel organ (3) from Charles Treadway, as well as new funk, tango, and rock ’n’ roll drums (3) and bass (1). And for big, bold arrangements, we have uptempo soul horns (4) featuring a three-part hip horn section with options for a full mix or stems of each individual horn — plus an accompanying rhythm section (4) of drums, bass, guitar, and electric piano!
Rock & Pop (Sets 476–482):
Our new rock & pop RealTracks bring a powerful mix of requested favorites, fresh genres, and modern chart-inspired styles! We have more of our popular “Producer Layered Acoustic Guitars (15)” featuring Band-in-a-Box favorite Brent Mason. We’ve continued our much-requested disco styles (10), and added new Celtic guitar (5) with a more basic, accessible approach than our previous Drop-D or DADGAD offerings. There are also highly requested yacht rock styles (17), inspired by the smooth, polished soft-rock sound of the late ’70s and early ’80s — laid-back grooves, silky electric pianos, warm textures, elegant harmonic movement, and pristine production aesthetics. Fans of heavier styles will love our new glam metal (13), capturing the flashy, high-energy sound of ’80s arena-ready guitar rock. We also have a set of rootsy modern-folk rock (18), with a warm, organic sound combining contemporary folk textures and driving acoustic strumming. And we’ve added lots of new modern pop styles (16) — the kinds of sounds you’re hearing on the radio today, featuring exciting new drums, synths, and cutting-edge RealTracks arrangements.
Country, & Americana (Sets 483–488):
Our new country & Americana RealTracks deliver a rich collection of acoustic, electric, and roots-inspired styles! We have new country pop (9) with legendary guitarist Brent Mason. There is also a potpourri (14) of bouzouki, guitars, banjo, and more, perfect for adding texture and character to contemporary acoustic arrangements. We’ve added funky country guitar (5) with PG favorite Brent Mason, along with classic pedal steel styles (5) featuring steel great Doug Jernigan. There are more country songwriter styles (8) that provide intimate, rootsy foundations for storytelling and modern Americana writing. Finally, we have “background soloing” acoustic guitar (12) with Brent Mason — simpler, but still very tasty acoustic lines designed to sit beautifully behind vocals or act as a subtle standalone solo part.
And, if you are looking for more, the 2026 49-PAK (for $49) includes an impressive collection of 20 bonus RealTracks, featuring exciting and inspiring additions to add to your RealTracks library. You'll get new country-rhythm guitar styles from PG Music favorites Johnny Hiland and Brent Mason, along with modern-pop grooves that capture today’s radio-ready sound! There are also new indie-folk styles with guitar, bass, 6-string bass used as a high-chording instrument, acoustic guitar, and banjo. Plus, dedicated "cymbal fills" RealDrums provide an added layer that work very well with low-key folky styles with other percussion.
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2026 Free Bonus PAK & 49-PAK for Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Mac®!
With your version 2026 for Mac Pro, MegaPAK, UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, Audiophile Edition or PlusPAK purchase, we'll include a Bonus PAK full of great new Add-ons for FREE! Or upgrade to the 2026 49-PAK for only $49 to receive even more NEW Add-ons including 20 additional RealTracks!
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This Free Bonus PAK includes:
The 2026 RealCombos Booster PAK:
-For Pro customers, this includes 27 new RealTracks and 23 new RealStyles.
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MIDI Styles Set 92: Look Ma! More MIDI 15: Latin Jazz
MIDI SuperTracks Set 46: Piano & Organ
Instrumental Studies Set 24: Groovin' Blues Soloing
Artist Performance Set 19: Songs with Vocals 9
Playable RealTracks Set 5
RealDrums Stems Set 9: Cool Brushes
SynthMaster Sounds Set 1 (with audio demos)
iOS Android Band-in-a-Box® App
Looking for more great add-ons, then upgrade to the 2026 49-PAK for just $49 and you'll get:
20 Bonus Unreleased RealTracks and RealDrums with 20 RealStyle.
FLAC Files (lossless audio files) for the 20 Bonus Unreleased RealTracks and RealDrums
MIDI Styles Set 93: Look Ma! More MIDI 16: SynthMaster
MIDI SuperTracks Set 47: More SynthMaster
Instrumental Studies 25 - Soul Jazz Guitar Soloing
Artist Performance Set 20: Songs with Vocals 10
RealDrums Stems Set 10: Groovin' Sticks
SynthMaster Sounds & Styles Set 2 (sounds & styles with audio demos)
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