The Best Headphones For Electronic Dance Music

Before you can begin to DJ you first have to learn to really listen to music. But playing loud music every chance you get can be quite disruptive to those around you if they have to listen to it too.

Moreover, you need to be able to really concentrate on the sounds with no unwanted background noise disturbing your thought process.

The solution of course is to get yourself a superb set of headphones that will give you the chance to really listen to your electronic dance music, without disturbing anyone and simultaneously block out background noise.

We’ve been checking out some of the best headphones on the market at the moment, and after much deliberation we hand-picked our top few favorites. 

Our reviews on them are coming up very shortly, together with the specs and some pros and cons, and after that we also have a handy buying guide for you. You can use it as a quick checklist to ensure that you’ve thought of everything before you buy.

We’ve also got a handy FAQ section at the end, so please stick around.

Headphone Reviews

Here are our headphone reviews, in no particular order.

1. Sennheiser HD 25 Professional DJ Headphone

Let’s kick this off by taking a look at one of the DJing industry staples – the classic Sennheiser HD 25 and an industry standard.

Sennheiser is a great brand, with a 70-year history of innovation and a drive for excellence

What impressed us with these headphones is the frequency response, because it starts as low as 16 Hz, which is actually a little lower than what the average human ear can hear.

And in addition to the low tones with their clear punches, you also get warm mids and tight crisp highs that really round out the soundscape.

They set a new benchmark for headphones with this model, and we put that down to their high sensitivity which we think is down to the lightweight aluminum voice coils.

While they aren’t active noise cancellation headphones as such, they do offer excellent noise isolation, which means you can still enjoy listening to EDM while you’re out and about with them.

Although they’re on-ear headphones, they’re quite snug and comfy to wear. And they’re particularly lightweight, at just 0.3 pounds, so you can listen comfortably for hours on end.

We like that you can adapt them for single ear listening, that can come in handy at times.

And they’re available at a very reasonable and affordable price too, especially for such an audiophile classic.

If you click on “Check price” you will be taken to the product page, where you will find there is also a Sennheiser HD 25 Lite, a HD 25 Plus, and a HD 25 Limited Edition, that you might also want to check out.

They are known for being rugged and durable, but it may interest you to know that if you buy through Amazon, you can also add a protection plan to your purchase.

Specs:

• Frequency range: 16 Hz – 22 kHz 
• Driver Size: 41 mm

Pros:

• Large frequency range
• Excellent noise isolation
• Really built to be durable
• Comfortable to wear

Cons:

• They are on-ear phones, which we would argue aren’t as comfortable to wear as over the ear headphones

2. V-Moda Crossfade M-100 Master Over-Ear Headphone

Now, this is an impressive piece of kit – it features dual diaphragm 50 mm drivers, packing plenty of power.

And it also offers an excellent frequency response range from a very low 5 Hz, up to a whopping 40 kHz.

And we think you will love the bass response – it’s particularly clean, warm and deep. And there’s no bleed, thanks to the dual diaphragm drivers we mentioned earlier.

But you can rest assured that you won’t disturb anyone around you while your pumping out any bass heavy EDM, since there’s minimal sound leakage. Moreover, the passive noise isolation is excellent too.

In addition to the excellent audio performance, we were also impressed with the headband, which is a hundred percent vegan faux leather. It uses high quality materials for top-notch durability.

It comes with two cables, straight and coiled. And the coiled one is particularly long at 78 inches, which is great for maneuverability.

They’re really comfortable to wear, despite their bulky appearance, and this is thanks to their improved sweat resistance. And we generally find over-the-ear headphones more comfortable than their on-ear counterparts anyway.

Another nice thing about it is how you can customize the side panels with different color metal plates. Or to take that a step further, you can have them bearing your logo, and help to build your DJ brand.

It also comes with a built-in top class microphone, which is a nice little bonus. And we also like that it’s foldable, since this means it’s that much more portable and easy to transport to gigs.

Specs:

• Frequency range: 5 Hz – 40 kHz
• Driver Size: 50 mm

Pros:

• Impressive bass response
• Minimal sound leakage
• 100% vegan headband
• You can customize them

Cons:

• Some wearers have found it a little tight to wear 

3. Audio-Technica ATH-M50X Professional Studio Monitor Headphones

It’s not often you get professional grade headphones for as good a price as this!

You can get them in both wired or wireless versions. We hands-down prefer wired headphones – more on that in our buying guide later.

This is quite possibly THE headphones for bass lovers. It delivers that clean punchy bass that makes EDM such a good genre to listen to. And the low end doesn’t sound at all artificial.

It has an amazing frequency response, exceeding what can be heard by the average human ear on both ends of the scale at 15 Hz to 28 kHz.

The ear cups contour perfectly comfortably around the ear, and this makes for excellent sound isolation. 

It comes with two cables, straight and coiled. And the straight one is particularly long at 117 inches, which is great for maneuverability.

And the fact that they’re foldable is another good plus in our book – it makes it so much easy to pack up and take with you. It comes with its own carry pouch too.

It’s available in a range of 5 different colors, namely black, blue, gun metal, white, or purple. You might struggle to pick a favorite.

Specs:

• Frequency range: 15 Hz – 28 kHz
• Driver Size: 45 mm

Pros:

• Clean, punchy bass
• Great sound isolation
• Choice of two cables
• Very easily portable

Cons:

• Because of its pronounced emphasis on bass response, it might not go down so well with audio purists

4. Sony MDR7506 Professional Large Diaphragm Headphone

Now here’s a brand you’ll have heard of, even if you weren’t already an audiophile! And available at an excellent price too.

And if you’re looking for a  set of headphones to use for monitoring in addition to general listening, you needn’t look any further. They’re great for listening to EDM and for producing too.

It features excellent drivers that use neodymium magnets to deliver plenty of power and energy.

And you get excellent balance across all frequencies, with crisp highs clean mids, and that nice bass response that makes electronic dance music so iconic.

The cable is really long, coming in at a lengthy 9.8 feet long, which is always convenient. 

They’re very lightweight at just 0.5 pounds, and this makes them comfortable to wear hour after hour.

The swivel ear cups are a nice feature as it means you can listen with just one ear if you need to.

If you did want to take these headphones on the go, you can fold them up and keep them in the included pouch, or you could buy a special hard case for them, which is not essential but is what we would recommend.

Specs:

• Frequency range: 10 Hz – 20 kHz
• Driver Size: 40 mm

Pros:

• Studio quality sound
• Uses neodymium magnets
• Bargain affordable price
• Lightweight & comfortable

Cons:

• It only comes with one cable, a coiled one, and it’s not replaceable. Won’t be an issue for most people though

5. Shure SRH840 Professional Monitoring Headphones

This is a truly great set of headphones, with a really refined sound. It has been precisely tailored and optimized for critical listening and production studio monitoring.

And let us assure you that it’s very hard to find such well-balanced headphones at a price like this – excellent value for money.

It has a very broad frequency response, exceeding what can be heard by the average human ear on both ends of the scale, coming in at 5 Hz to 25 kHz. (More on this in our buying guide.)

You get rich bass tones, clear mid-range sounds, and extended highs.

It comes with a coiled cable measuring a full 117 inches long to allow for a little maneuverability. 

It features a wide padded headband and a nice ergonomic fit that stays comfortable to wear for hours on end. 

We like that it comes with replacement ear pads – great way to really get your money’s worth from a set of headphones.

It’s foldable for easy storage, portability and transport. And it’s available at a very reasonable price.

Specs:

• Frequency range: 5 Hz – 25 kHz
• Driver Size: 40 mm

Pros:

• Studio quality sound
• Very finely balanced
• Comfy ergonomic fit
• Great value for money

Cons:

• The wires that connect the ear cups protrude outside and are exposed

6. Sennheiser HD 280 PRO Headphone

Sennheiser has done it again with their HD 280 PRO offering! And would you believe it’s even more affordable than their HD 25?

But despite it being a good budget choice, it’s actually miles ahead of other consumer grade headphones.

It has a very impressive frequency range, starting as low as 8 Hz, and then going all the way up to 25 kHz, greater than what the average human ear can hear on both ends of the scale.

The thick plush padding on the HD 280 Pro offers excellent noise isolation which is perfect for DJing.

It boasts an improved headband design than previous models which means it’s more comfortable to wear, especially for long stints.

It comes with a coiled cable measuring a full 117 inches long to allow for a little maneuverability. 

Several of the component parts are very easily replaceable, including the headband padding, the ear pads, and the audio cord. But the original components are of excellent quality and would need to see some serious use before they’re ready to be replaced.

And the HD 280 Pro is also foldable for easy storage and transport.

Amazon occasionally has deals on this particular set of headphones, simply click on “Check price” to see if there’s a deal on now.

Specs:

• Frequency range: 8 Hz – 25 kHz
• Driver Size: 40 mm

Pros:

• Very affordable price tag
• Excellent noise isolation
• High quality components
• Improved headband design

Cons:

• Although there’s a large frequency range and excellent clarity, the low end falls a little short since its bass is more muted

Buying Guide

As promised, here’s your buying guide. We’ll just run through a few things to consider before buying.

Wired Vs Wireless

Wherever possible, we would recommend going for wired headphones over wireless. Sure it’s a lot less convenient when you’re listening to EDM when you’re out and about, but you tend to get much better sound quality than you would with a wireless set up. 

This is because wired headphones use an analog signal rather than a digital one, which means it can handle more data than it’s Bluetooth counterparts.

Moreover, wired headphones will never need batteries, so you can listen to your favorite EDM tracks for hours on end.

Headphones Vs Earbuds

Earbuds are slowly catching up to headphones in terms of audio definition, but unfortunately they still lag behind when it comes to delivery. 

And that’s kind of crucial when your preferred genre is EDM. So on that basis we would recommend going for headphones over earbuds, despite their improved technology these days.

Noise Isolating Vs Active Noise Cancellation

If you’re listening to your EDM at home, then noise isolating headphones will suffice. 

However, if you want to listen to EDM when you’re out and about, then we would recommend going for headphones that offer active noise cancellation (ANC), which is an entirely different thing to noise isolation.

ANC headphones are designed to create their own soundwaves projected outwards that literally cancel out the background noise. But, a quick heads-up, ANC headphones require batteries.

On Ear vs Over Ear

Over the ear headphones hands-down beat on-ear phones. Sure, the padding can get rather hot sometimes, but they perform so much better than their on-ear counterparts. 

They reproduce a wider range of frequencies from deep bass right the way through to smooth highs. This is thanks to their larger drivers.

And by enclosing completely over the ear they offer far better noise isolation and cancellation. And they allow for a better sound stage too.

Closed Back vs Open Back

When you’re listening with closed back headphones, the music has nowhere to go except into your ear. And this makes them the perfect choice for listening in a crowded place because it prevents both music leaking out and background noise leaking in.

However, there’s some debate as to which of the two is better. Many audio engineers recommend open-back studio headphones because they offer a more accurate frequency response, and they avoid resonance, so you get a better sound quality and a more natural sound. But they’ll be no good while DJing in a loud club or party.

Driver Size

Since electronic dance music has such a strong emphasis on low-end frequencies, then you’ll need headphones that are up to the task to deliver the best possible performance. 

And to that end we can recommend that you go for headphones with a 40 mm to 50 mm driver. 

Or alternatively, you could look out for neodymium magnet-based drivers. They deliver more magnetic energy per ounce relative to their non-neodymium counterparts. And this means you not only get more power, but also better control of the audio output.

Frequency Response

Frequency response is very important for listening to electronic dance music, You’re looking for highs that are clean and crisp for hi-hat and cymbal sounds, mids that are warm to bring out synth sounds, and meaty low ends with a clearly defined kick.

Which means that the broader the frequency response is on a pair of headphones the better, since it will better capture the entire range of audible sound.

Incidentally, the average human can hear sounds ranging from as low as 20 Hz to as high as 20 kHz. So let that be your guide.

Headphones that hit lower frequencies can deliver a deep bass, whereas headphones that have a high frequency cap will deliver cleaner highs.

Coiled Cable vs Straight

Coiled headphone cables are more common than straight ones. Their main advantage is that they are far more ergonomic, giving you more freedom to move around without having to worry as much about the cable getting in the way.

But the nature of a headphone cable doesn’t really affect the sound the way a guitar cable or similar would. 

Brands

There’s a lot to be said for going for a top, well established brand. You tend to get better quality, better durability, better warranties, and better after-sales tech support.

But just be aware that just because a brand is celebrity endorsed does not necessarily make it a better quality product.

Value for Money

We’re going to level with you here. Audiophile headphones tend to cost way more than your garden variety everyman’s headphones.

But if you love your music as much as we do, then you’ll know that top quality headphones are worth the money.

If however you do have a budget that you need to stick to, then the most affordable headphones that made our shortlist are the Sennheiser HD 25, and the Audio-Technica ATH-M50X.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which headphones are best for electronic music?

We would argue that the  V-Moda Crossfade M-100 Master Over-Ear Headphone is the best for listening to electronic dance music. And there are several reasons for this…

First off, it has an impressive bass sound, which, if we’re honest, is what makes EDM what it is. The bass is deep, low and punchy.

Then there’s the super powerful drivers, they’re very large at 50 mm, and they are dual diaphragm to really deliver.

And the frequency range is super impressive too, ranging from as low as a very low 5 Hz, up to a whopping 40 kHz. 

There’s minimal sound leakage, and the passive noise isolation is excellent too.

It also sports a 100% vegan faux leather, and you get a choice of cables, straight and coiled. 

We also love how you can customize the side panels as you see fit, even with your own logo.

The only real drawback is price, it’s notably more expensive than the other headphones that made our shortlist.

What headphones do EDM producers use?

Several of the headphones that made our shortlist are also really good for music production. These include the Audio-Technica ATH-M50X, the Sony MDR7506, and the Shure SRH840.

If we had to pick a favorite out of these 3 it would be the Shure SRH840. This is because It has been precisely tailored and optimized for critical listening and production studio monitoring.

You don’t usually get such a well-balanced headphone sound for such a great price.