Best Headphones for Voice Actors in 2024

As a voice-over artist, it’s essential to have the best equipment possible when you’re recording. 

Every advantage you can get will help take you further in your VO career, and that includes investing in professional headphones. 

In this article

1. Pros and Cons of Using Headphones While Recording
2. Pros of Wearing Headphones for Voice Overs
3. Cons of Wearing Headphones for Voice Overs
4. Choose Professional Headphones Over Consumer Options
5. A Note on Open-backed and Close-backed Headphones
6. Open-back Headphones
7. Closed-back Headphones
8. Best Professional Headphones for Voice Actors
9. Sennheiser HD280 Pro
10. Key Features:
11. Pros
12. Cons
13. Sony MDR-7506
14. Key Features
15. Pros
16. Cons
17. AKG Pro Audio K371
18. Key Features
19. Pros
20. Cons
21. Audio Technica ATH-M30x
22. Key Features
23. Pros
24. Cons
25. Beyerdynamic DT 770 PRO
26. Key Features
27. Pros
28. Cons
29. Fostex T50RP MK32
30. Key Features
31. Pros
32. Cons
33. Conclusion

In this article, we’ll discuss some of the best headphones for voice actors and why they’re worth your investment. 

We’ll also discuss why professional headphones work more effectively for voice over than consumer models.

Jump To:

Pros and Cons of Using Headphones While Recording

Choose Professional Headphones Over Consumer Options

A Note on Open-backed and Close-backed Headphones

Best Professional Headphones for Voice Actors

Conclusion

Pros and Cons of Using Headphones While Recording

Pros of Wearing Headphones for Voice Overs

• Although headphones can feel distracting while performing as a voice actor, they allow you to hear yourself back in real time to know what sort of quality you’re working with. Whether that’s audio quality or performance quality, your headphones (especially the right ones for you) will help you deliver the best audio files the quickest—great for cranking out auditions.

Cons of Wearing Headphones for Voice Overs

• Especially for voice actors doing character work, wearing headphones can feel restrictive and in the way of their performance. Many voice actors will opt to not wear headphones in the booth, and instead just record and review their audio via headphones once they’ve stepped out.

The reality is that you’ll eventually need to use professional grade headphones during your everyday work as a voice actor. Let’s learn about the best headphones for voice over available. 

Choose Professional Headphones Over Consumer Options

There are a few reasons why professional headphones trump consumer models regarding voice over work.

• Superior sound quality: Pick up on all the nuances of your performance and environment
• Wider frequency range: Hear all the different layers of your recording
• Designed to reduce outside noise: Ideal for use in noisy environments 
• Designed to have a relatively “flat response curve”: This is important because you’ll want a really accurate reflection of what’s actually happening.
• Comfort: Comfort is key as you may be wearing headphones all day.
• Durable: Helps withstand regular use and last longer

A Note on Open-backed and Close-backed Headphones

One other thing for consideration is there is a big difference between open-back and closed-back headphones, especially for performers wearing them during their recording session.

While either option will work for voice actors, and we speak to both in the best headphones roundup below, their specs provide a different user experience for voice actors.

Open-back Headphones

Open-back headphones allow some of the acoustic sound from the room in. A lot of VO artists—especially those who wear headphones in their recording sessions—say they like open-back styles because they feel a little more natural to speak with while wearing, and they are slightly more comfortable as there’s no spatial awareness restrictions.

Closed-back Headphones

Closed-back headphones are very isolating and don’t allow any sound from your environment in. Closed-back styles are necessary for music recording because bleed becomes an issue. For instance, if you’re playing along with a track, you need closed-back headphones so the microphone doesn’t pick up sound from the headphones play-back of the room. 

Best Professional Headphones for Voice Actors

Here are our top six picks for headphones best suited to voice over. 

Sennheiser HD280 Pro

The Sennheiser HD280 Pro features an extended response with deep bass. It allows for detailed sound reproduction at loud volumes without distortion. The closed design and circumaural ear cups help isolate background noise so you can focus on your performance. 

The headphones are also lightweight and have a slim profile, making them comfortable for long-term wear. We recommend the Sennheiser HD280 Pro for voice-over artists who need headphones that can handle high sound pressure levels without distortion. 

Key Features:

• Lightweight and slim profile design
• Collapsible for easy storage and transport 
• Closed-back design
• Soft earpads

Pros

• Provides crystal-clear highs, quality midrange, and robust lows
• Accurate sound reproduction at high volumes
• Extended response with deep bass 

Cons

• The cable isn’t detachable

Price: $99.88

Sony MDR-7506

Using Sony’s MDR-7506 headphones guarantees excellent sound quality and durability. The closed-back design helps to prevent sound leakage. The headphones also have a wide frequency response range so that you can hear all the layers of your recordings. The soft earpads make them comfortable to wear for extended periods. 

We recommend the Sony MDR-750 when you need a durable pair of headphones that will provide high sound quality for years to come.

Key Features

• Closed-back design
• Solid lows and clear highs, mids
• Excellent for professional studio use
• Wide frequency response range

Pros

• Impressive sound quality
• Total comfort due to a foldable design
• Swiveling mounts allow for single-ear listening

Cons

• Need careful care to prevent cushion deterioration

Price: $95.11

AKG Pro Audio K371

AKG’s best headphones for voice over are lightweight and have large earpads, making them comfortable to wear. The K371 also uses 50mm drivers that provide clear sound reproduction across the frequency range.

Key Features

• Lightweight and slim profile design
• Collapsible for easy storage and transport
• Closed-back design
• Soft earpads

Pros

• 50mm drivers provide clear sound across the frequency range 
• Comfortable to wear during long recording sessions 
• Consistent response in any environment or location 

Cons

• Twist-lock cable can sometimes create improper contact

Price: $163.99

Audio Technica ATH-M30x

Audio Technica’s best headphones for voice over offer excellent sound isolation. The ATH-M30x has a 40mm driver with a copper-clad aluminum wire that helps deliver clear highs, mids, and lows. We recommend the Audio Technica ATH-M30 when you need professional quality in an affordable package. 

Key Features

• Saves space due to the collapsible design
• Clear mid-range definition
• closed-back design for sound isolation

Pros

• Clear highs, mids, and lows 
• Affordable price point 
• Durability

Cons

• Short cable

Price: $69.00

Beyerdynamic DT 770 PRO

Recommended by Voices’ in-house content producer, Randy, the Beyerdynamic DT 770 PRO provides precision across the entire frequency range. You can achieve punchy lows with these headphones. The DT 770 PRO headphones also produce top-notch impulse response and isolation.

Key Features

• Comfortable padding on the ear cups and headband 
• Tesla technology for finer resolution
• Drawstring bag for storage
• Closed-back dsign

Pros

• An excellent option for studio work
• Long-term durability
• Lightweight design

Cons

• May require headphone amplifier for some users

Price: $148.21

Fostex T50RP MK32

The Fostex T50RP MK 32 offers one of the best wired-headphones available to handle loud volume levels. This Fostex model offers a semi-open design, which helps voice actors feel more comfortable while performing with them on. Its diaphragm driver uses a copper foil and a neodymium magnet for power. 

Due to the semi-open feature, you’ll discover that the T50RP MK 32 is one of the best over ear headphones for providing clear and flat sound results.

Key Features

• Low repulsion ear pad
• Semi open-back design
• Sturdy head pad
• The Fostex proprietary Refined Regular Phase driver

Pros

• Quality noise isolation 
• Good bass response at all frequency ranges
• Offers clear highs

Cons

• May require amplification

Price: $159.99

Conclusion

The best headphones for voice actors are those that provide clear sound reproduction across the frequency range. They should be lightweight, affordable, durable, and comfortable to use for extended periods. 

It’s now your turn. Use our list of best professional studio headphones to find one that best fits your needs and budget. Take time to research each one carefully until you find the one that best fits your specific needs. Once ordered, you’ll feel confident that you’re about to receive the headphones that will help you book more gigs.