T.Bone HD-880
When thinking of an affordable studio headphone, your first thought that might immediately come to your mind is something from Audio Technica or Sennheiser. While these two big companies hold an extensive collection of referencing headphones, among them some cheap ones, for example, Audio-Technica M50X or Sennheiser HD280 Pro; A less known German company – “The T.Bone” owns an effective set of cans for monitoring; And I’m talking about t.bone HD880.
Although The T.Bone isn’t up to the highs of the aforementioned big brands, they are widely known for their best selling studio headphone t.bone HD-200, another great contender at the price of a bargain.
We do consider both headphones (t.bone HD-880 and t.bone HD-200) highly affordable but cannot rank them above the most popular choice of all time for studio monitoring, the M50X, for valid and obvious reasons. As much as we would love to find a better deal at half the price of M50X, we can only cheer for a product which tops in value for every dollar spent.
T.Bone HD-880 Overview
The t.bone HD-880 is a significant option with competitive price among studio headphones with very high value. They have a rather dull sound at the top of the spectrum with very warm and detailed bass. The sound isn’t totally neutral, but at this price, no complains.
The German company has a collection of a high variety of studio headphones intended for anyone with a limited amount of money. Among them, there’s also t.bone HD-880, a very affordable headphone, purposed for the same activity: monitoring, which stands out as a budget-friendly choice, and has an excellence of artistry, which puts them above its competition.
Characteristics
| Brand | The T.Bone |
| Model | HD-880 |
| Specialization | Recording and Tracking |
| Package | 3 m Spiral cable / 3.5 mm Plug connector / 6.3 mm Adapter / Drawstring bag |
| Key Features | Neutral sound Broad frequency spectrum range High-quality processing Good price / performance |
Sound quality
As a matter of sound, which is the primary interest in a headphone of this kind, this studio headphone by the German company The T.bone appeals to the contemporary people with a preference for bass. However, much to what the company promises – to deliver a cheap alternative product highly optimized for studio activities, the well designed, professionally crafted headphones couldn’t succeed on their mission.
Despite what they are best known for, I cannot assure you they are unconditionally the best or the cheapest choice for audio monitoring or perhaps mixing. Truth be told, the deeply recessed top region of the audio spectrum, starting from the 2 kHz mark up to the end of the spectrum, in addition with the elevated bass frequency, portrays the sound as not flat, but with a high accent on the lower end, thus producing an untamed imbalance which requires extensive equalization from your part.
Advantages & Disadvantages of T.Bone HD-880
Pros
- Extraordinary cheap monitors for beginners
- Bassy centered headphones (casual listening)
- Comfortable and robust build
Cons
- The sound is mostly bassy, not neutral as prefered
- Requires rigurous equalization
Conclusion
The t.bone HD-880 is a very affordable, ingeniously engineered closed-back studio headphone with analytical sound on the upper end of the audio range. Even though the treble is quite unnoticeable, the music has a very accurate and clear definition of bass.
They aren’t extraordinarily high-quality and pack a few imperfections, but they do serve a purpose for studio recording as an entry-level monitoring headphone. For the price of 5 cups of coffee, I am sure you’ll be completely satisfied with them, especially if you want a cheap, yet good headphone to start off your hobby.
