How do you listen while reviewing?

deshead · Post by **deshead** » Sat Jan 28, 2006 7:53 am

I'm curious how most folks listen to a fight while reviewing (inspired by Humbert and j$ over here.)

I review through computer speakers most of the time, my studio monitors rarely, and never headphones.

Bjam · Post by **Bjam** » Sat Jan 28, 2006 8:29 am

Laptop speakers or the cheap speakers I've got. Rarely anything better than that. Which I guess is a good thing for some songs...

Also, another mini-poll, do you guys do anything else while reviewing. Obviously the typing, but when you're listening to the song, is it background noise or do you drop everything to listen to every nuance?

thehipcola · Post by **thehipcola** » Sat Jan 28, 2006 9:14 am

almost exclusively on my studio monitors, and I never do anything else except listen and type. It's an immersive process for me.

deshead · Post by **deshead** » Sat Jan 28, 2006 9:31 am

I second the "immersive process". I make tea and settle in.

jimtyrrell · Post by **jimtyrrell** » Sat Jan 28, 2006 9:57 am

Like THC, I listen on my studio monitors and focus exclusively on listening and typing reviews. Which is probably why I do them so rarely these days.

I think I should put fights on my mp3 player and at least listen while driving. Then at least I can vote, and maybe offer comments on the songs that stand out. That's about the only time I have these days for reviewing. But I've been on an audio book kick recently, too, so my new review idea will have to wait until I get through Black House.

jack · Post by **jack** » Sat Jan 28, 2006 11:15 am

always with my sennheiser HD280 pros. if it makes it to the ipod, it might get the earbud listen as well, but for review purposes, always good headphones.

HeuristicsInc · Post by **HeuristicsInc** » Sat Jan 28, 2006 11:46 am

usually at work while some program is running and i am waiting for results from it, using the work speakers with a subwoofer, odd thing that. which makes the big fights hard, since the runs never take that long. once we did reviews in the car on a long trip (lizard wizard and blueberry hassle) which made for a nice time but we had to write them down and then recopy onto the computer which was a bit of a pain.
my new car plays mp3cds (incl. cdrw) so maybe that will be a good option. just difficult to write things down then...
-bill

a bebop a rebop · Post by **a bebop a rebop** » Sat Jan 28, 2006 12:08 pm

Usually I'll let the week's playlist shuffle through a couple of times in the background to random surfing around the web, and then when I review I usually hunker down and kill everything else.

I have a lot of free time.

Post by **Lunkhead** » Sat Jan 28, 2006 12:22 pm

I write my reviews while listening at home on my studio monitors, though if I have time I'll listen to the songs once or twice at work on computer speakers and/or my iPod headphones first. I try to focus just on reviewing the songs when I'm doing that.

fodroy · Post by **fodroy** » Sat Jan 28, 2006 1:44 pm

i'm guessing "ear buds" means those ear phones that you put in your ear. i use those while reviewing. they're actually the only head phones i have. so ihave to use those for mixing too. mine came with a cd player a few years back.

one day i'll be rich and i'll be able to afford nice headphones and other gear to make my songs sound like they weren't recorded in a wind tunnel. but until i'm reincarnated into an upper class vermont family, i have to use crap.

stueym · Post by **stueym** » Sat Jan 28, 2006 4:06 pm

I answered HQ earphones, but in reality I use two sort. I often use my monitoring/tracking headphones which are Sennhesiser HD-25's very nice if a little tight at first....with ears as big as mine, you'd understand.

Can heartily reccomend them

When listening on the i-Pod i use Shure E3-c's for all my listening so on the road in particular all listening happens on these. For those of you who havent used these, these are in-ear monitoring ear buds that seal the sound in your ear. In fact if they dont seal properly then the bass in particular disappears. Takes some gfetting used to and I have had the rubber seal come off in my ear. Freaked me out the first time it happened, but I even have a technique for getting them back out now.

I love these for when I am on a plane. Smaller than the Bose things everyone else seems to use. Tthey can cut out a crying baby in the row behind me when I have music playing on them plus get the funky little two prong stereo adapter and you'll never use airline headphones ever again.

anti-m · Post by **anti-m** » Sat Jan 28, 2006 5:10 pm

First I set the songs to "shuffle" and listen to them while I'm at work on crappy little headphones. I like to listen to the whole set at least two or three times. Doing so allows me to begin to like the stuff that "grows on you."

Then, while I'm reviewing I listen to the songs again, usually on PC speakers. I like to listen on both headphones and speakers (hence I'm the one person who replied "other" to the poll) because they each highlight different things in a mix.

Eric Y. · Post by **Eric Y.** » Sun Jan 29, 2006 12:34 am

ah

of 23 votes so far, i was the first "car speakers".
i'd been on sabbatical from reviewing for most of the past year due to a lack of quality computer time, but recently have decided to get back into the game -- if i can't be spending time playing/writing/recording at least i should be listening, eh? so i've started burning fights onto CDs and listening to the songs going to and from work each day. i still haven't always been getting around to actually writing the reviews and voting, but whatever. sue me.

Hoblit · Post by **Hoblit** » Sun Jan 29, 2006 8:29 pm

my pc speakers mostly...but it's half and half... my monitors are really glorified pc speakers... but not. It just depends on what computer I choose for play back.

Eidolon · Post by **Eidolon** » Mon Jan 30, 2006 7:35 pm

I listen at work on headphones just to start getting a feel for the songs in the background.. see which ones distract me in good or bad ways.. heh. At home I have some sennheiser hd600s which i find real nice and comfortable to listen in depth to the songs.. i was able to pick these up a few years ago at a great deal when I didnt have studio monitors yet and wanted to get some real good headphones. I also have some decent speakers but its nice to not have to irritate my gf with many multiple plays of songs at home.. especially when its a very mixed bag typically. I do check out the ones that I like further on my speakers. Anyway, my 2cents.

Kamakura · Post by **Kamakura** » Mon Jan 30, 2006 7:57 pm

CD in the car and on Sony ear things with MP3 player (not a damn I-Pod).

boltoph · Post by **boltoph** » Tue Jan 31, 2006 9:27 am

For me it's either studio monitors, if I'm at home (the only speakers I own, aside from headphones), or cheesy headphones if I'm at work.

Well I have a PA system kicking around but I have yet to plug my computer into the PA to listen to a songfight on it...

And I love it LOUD. Just like Kiss.

Reist · Post by **Reist** » Sun Feb 12, 2006 11:12 pm

I tend to listen through my pc speakers, but if I have the chance, I listen through headphones ... my pc speakers are okay though ... we've got subwoofers.

Bjam wrote:Also, another mini-poll, do you guys do anything else while reviewing. Obviously the typing, but when you're listening to the song, is it background noise or do you drop everything to listen to every nuance?

I generally listen to it once through, write what I thought, then listen again and change certain things depending on what I feel about it the second time. I've only been at songfight for two weeks or so, so it's not likely I'm the best reviewer yet, but I think I'll get the process down soon.

Rabid Garfunkel · Post by **Rabid Garfunkel** » Mon Feb 13, 2006 10:53 am

Geez, really need a multiple selection option, here

So, the list is:
High quality headphones
Ear buds or ear phones (MP3 player, Walkman, etc.)
Studio monitors
PC speakers
Car speakers
Home stereo system

'cause, you know, it all sounds different, and damn but it's edgey-cautional to find out where the mixes break down, and where they work better too.

Oh, one more place, through a *cough* bar's sound system after hours, whilst leaning up against the pole, on stage (where the best sound in the house is).

How do you listen while reviewing?

How do you usually listen while reviewing?

How do you listen while reviewing?