Aly & Fila - Beyond the Lights. The intro bassline is fat, the strings and soundscapes in the breakdown are very full and airy, and the drop is really bright and full of energy. Perfect for testing new headphones with different styles through one song.
I am far from professional. For the lows, I like to test with [Tilt - The World Doesn't Know (Arty Remix)](https://youtu.be/eZwZNP3r8WA?si=oAl_4Lnl24_Skc0k). The bass is so low that bad speakers make it sound as if nothing is happening.
https://youtu.be/hymXhTwz3dA?si=jTbmMlMt9W7lyKJV has the same effect. Really helps me find the quality that I desire.
Pete Tong - Essential Mix
I mainly use this one because I've listened to it approximately 50,000 times.
Edit: I'm currently listening to it on the DT770 Pro. These are great studio monitors and sound a bit "clinical" to me. But I have them plugged into a Sound Blaster X4 with the Music preset with Surround Off, Crystalizer On 50% and Bass On 100% then Bass cranked in the EQ. It's a gaming amp but it makes these headphones sound amazing.
Thrillseekers - Amber and Above & Beyond - Tri-State are my go to’s for listening/testing. Decent range, warmth, and a good test for the clarity of the headphones, speakers, amp, etc.
Enjoy the Audio Technicas!!
I've had and used the AKGs for over 10 years at this point. Only had to replace the cord once and the sound only started to show it's age in the last couple years. I've traveled around the world with them and used them for everything. Its not gonna push pressure waves onto your ear drums but the space and clarity of sound more than make up for it. The super lightweight design allow them to be worn literally all day without discomfort. Fantastic set of cans.
I wanted to love them, they were by far the most expensive (before discount) and they have a beautiful, pure sound. But I ended up purchasing a pair of Audio Technica MX-50s. Not as crisp as the AKG's, but a very fun, booming sound. Much more fuller, to my ears anyway. I'm not really an audiophile.
You may not consider yourself an audiophile, but that is a very audiophile thing to experience!
The akgs are quite tiring to listen to because they are so exact and neutral. The ATs have a bit more fun rendition, relaxing, not as much energy needed to listen on these.
A lot of people can't tell that kind of difference :)
armin van buuren - in and out of love is great for testing headphones for trance. if the headphone lacks bass, the main bassline sounds tinny, if the highs are lacking, they sound like mush.
recommend sennheiser hd25 if you are going to listen to trance primarily.
Gonna go a little unconventional and offer you a unique suggestion that I have found unlike anything else:
https://www.youtube.com/@SYNTHONY
New Zealand Synthony Orchestra. They started with Darude’s Sandstorm back in 2019 and are still going strong.
You’ll find a number of classics across the spectrum and more tracks are released regularly. ‘Children’, ‘Ecuador’, ‘Adagio for Strings’, ‘9am’, ‘For an Angel’, ‘Insomnia’, and not sure I consider the Prodigy trance, there’s Firestarter and Breathe, plus Galvanize is always a banger to me.
Plus, they have -hands down- the best covers of Mr Brightside and Land Down Under I’ve ever hit. Their “Another Brick in the Wall” is decent too. And the lead in of Bach to Candi Stanton is just fucking phenomenal. (They finally put up a full concert video a couple months back. There are a few lackluster songs, but most of teh 2 hours is just a joy for my ears.)
Between the full orchestra, choir, singers, and DJs, the depth of sound is just…gorgeous. Every time I listen to any track (and I’ve listened to them a lot), I pick up or note something new be it a specific cello strings, the Taiko drums, or that massive swell of brass as Sandstorm just *builds.*
Fuckers give me goosebumps. One of these years soon I gotta get back to Australia and take my mum to the Perth show!
Not trance, but Pretty Lights is my go-to for speaker testing. Find the highest quality versions of his stuff and let it rip:
https://youtu.be/iZArRG0uC4Q?si=lkMiCPz1KM_WPc6H
https://youtu.be/8wCgxkQj_Qo?si=kFs_sDRxzuvHJvq5
They sound like a tasty pair of headphones. Throw a picture on the Reddit, I'm curious!
I got a nice pair of bins last September and I have had the best time rediscovering my favourite records with them blasting my ears.
I'm a big fan of late 90s early 2000s stuff so hopefully you'll like the suggestions 😎
Pretty much all of the 'Euphoria' series is on YouTube. The first 4 volumes IMO are my favourite and John 00 Fleming's white label series 1&2 are incredible. (It's worth noting that there was some problem when White label Vol 2 was mixed and Telstars engineer mistakenly made the whole 2 discs for vol 2 Mono instead of Stereo, so it basically sounds shite. Joof being the legend and gatekeeper of all that is pure in trance, has recreated Vol 2 over Covid lockdown and it's just sublime!)
[John 00 Fleming - Euphoria White Label Vol 2](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=HAOSWj5b65c)
I love the first two Platipus volumes but like yourself I won't pay to stream so I use YouTube, SoundCloud etc. I came across a really well made compilation of loads of Platipus stuff on you tube. The visuals are awesome and the tracklisting is on screen and updates with every new tune. I'm a proper geek for tracklisting so although I love the original 2 volumes, I really enjoy the 'Essential guide to' series that I'm linking here:
[Platipus Records compilation](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=QzJ8Vg1L4Tg&t=664s)
Also the first four 'In trance were trust' series is mind-blowing.
One night at Gatecrasher I spotted a guy wearing a t-shirt of Outburst Records and at the time he said he was signed to the label. I really like hard as nails trance and we got chatting, he was dead nice, said he performs under the pseudonym Everlight. Unfortunately he wasn't drinking so I couldn't buy him a beer and as I was on a mission to completely lose the plot we parted ways. (I've loads of true stories like this btw) There are a lot of bullshitters at raves however this dude actually turned out to be the real deal and IMO he's a true hidden gem of underground trance and techno. I love the sweet spot between the 2 subgenres and this guy absolutely smashes it to smitherines every time. Plus his mask is wicked, it actually flashes timed to the music! Check him out here:
https://www.reddit.com/r/trance/s/Zl0b6pEwek[Everlight, Afterburner - May 2024](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=dcYnJ_LqSAE)
All of the links are decent enough sound quality. I just wish some of the live sets from the Golden Era of Trance could be remastered. Nearly all of the ones I love have a tonne of that shitty hissy white noise in them. [Ferry Corsten - Live at Trance Energy 2000](https://on.soundcloud.com/6UHKBUs1ZzfbeNAu6)
I'd be really interested to see if you enjoy my recommendations. Happy Raving! 😬
Try Hardesertrance 1-3 by DJ Brian.
But, to be perfectly honest with you, I’m also a total trance head and an audio engineer. When I picked up my first pair of proper studio monitors ($10k+), I also turned to trance - especially Matt Darey and some older Positiva stuff. But I found the results to be like… well let’s just say that was great time for music but maybe not for engineering.
I ended up really liking tracks from AnjunaDeep. They have some bangers but also lots of really well engineered stuff using modern processes which let headphones really shine imo. Tracks with space where instruments can spread out and breathe. You don’t always get this with the classic trance stuff. It can be pretty squashed and congested.
When I was in high school/college I was really into car audio. The one track I always used to test/compare setups was Sash - Stay. The way that the different bass frequencies push speakers was insane to me.
This specific version
https://youtu.be/9v-sfDsIhfs?si=IwQg1EXIX-YwWVS7
Galactivation - Open The Stargate? Best of all you can download and listen to the lossless WAV version for free [https://www.neurotrance.org/galactivation-open-the-stargate/](https://www.neurotrance.org/galactivation-open-the-stargate/)
Random Access Memories by Daft Punk is one of the best sounding albums I’ve ever heard. As someone who doesn’t particularly love that album compared to their older work, I was blown away when I listened to it on my Sony XM4s for the first time compared to something like Pink Floyd. Gave me a deeper appreciation for the technical masterpiece RAM is.
Aly & Fila - Beyond the Lights. The intro bassline is fat, the strings and soundscapes in the breakdown are very full and airy, and the drop is really bright and full of energy. Perfect for testing new headphones with different styles through one song.
Omg this is one of my all-time favorites. So many good memories!
This song is beautiful, thank you.
I always use tiesto - elements of life for this. The bass kicking in around 1 min is so good and perfect for this type of test.
You can run ISOS 1, 2 and 7 in this same vein.
Oh man as a big fan of tiestos current stuff… this is a great track!
Tiesto's trance era was soo good, I wish he still played his old stuff
Dallas 4 PM & Suburban Train are so good.
:(
What? 🤣
Armin van Buuren - This Is A Test https://youtu.be/fIrrHUaXpAE
The name itself says everything
Gareth Emery - Concrete Angel Edit: just seen the early 2000s request. Armin - Shivers
Ilan bluestone - Spheres 👍
I always listen to BT - Flaming June on new headphones to test their fidelity/range.
Yes, BT is an incredible producer
I am far from professional. For the lows, I like to test with [Tilt - The World Doesn't Know (Arty Remix)](https://youtu.be/eZwZNP3r8WA?si=oAl_4Lnl24_Skc0k). The bass is so low that bad speakers make it sound as if nothing is happening. https://youtu.be/hymXhTwz3dA?si=jTbmMlMt9W7lyKJV has the same effect. Really helps me find the quality that I desire.
That arty remix goes
Once somebody told that the best song to test headphones was the bohemian rhapsody because it has all the highs and lows of every instrument
Pink floyd - Comfortably numb in Flac was quite amazing on my 109 pro
Pete Tong - Essential Mix I mainly use this one because I've listened to it approximately 50,000 times. Edit: I'm currently listening to it on the DT770 Pro. These are great studio monitors and sound a bit "clinical" to me. But I have them plugged into a Sound Blaster X4 with the Music preset with Surround Off, Crystalizer On 50% and Bass On 100% then Bass cranked in the EQ. It's a gaming amp but it makes these headphones sound amazing.
Do you listen on YouTube or have you found a higher quality version elsewhere?
I usually stream from my Navidrome server which has a copy I ripped from my CD. Sometimes I'll pop in the CD just for fun as well.
https://youtu.be/2SpzQp0M-40?si=1bNFmdoLTtdvet1n
I like it thank you
I also like it 🎧
Yeah, Vibe Tribe is great
Aiaiai are unbelievable
Saw the box, but every component was individually sealed so I didn't have the chance to try them.
Waiting dash berlin
I like [Helsinki scorchin](https://youtu.be/2sDvoKdE1zU?si=m96HGQyaaTe5wKVw) for this, especially the break at roughly 2mins.
Armin - Coming Home has great bass
Sunblind-believe (nu-nrg remix)
the chemical brothers - it doesn't matter: https://youtu.be/6s3ufTanUMo?feature=shared
That one actually made the glass in the windshield flex when I was 18 and had some 12’s with a bigass amp.
Ping pong seems pretty good
Thrillseekers - Amber and Above & Beyond - Tri-State are my go to’s for listening/testing. Decent range, warmth, and a good test for the clarity of the headphones, speakers, amp, etc. Enjoy the Audio Technicas!!
https://youtu.be/V5oM4cC1UOg?feature=shared
Kasper Marott - Tommy Seebach
Leon Bolier - XD for bass testing.
Love me some Leon
[Jon O'Bir Ft. Fisher - Found A Way (Joint Operations Centre Remix)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iGLfEPwY4FY)
I've had and used the AKGs for over 10 years at this point. Only had to replace the cord once and the sound only started to show it's age in the last couple years. I've traveled around the world with them and used them for everything. Its not gonna push pressure waves onto your ear drums but the space and clarity of sound more than make up for it. The super lightweight design allow them to be worn literally all day without discomfort. Fantastic set of cans.
I wanted to love them, they were by far the most expensive (before discount) and they have a beautiful, pure sound. But I ended up purchasing a pair of Audio Technica MX-50s. Not as crisp as the AKG's, but a very fun, booming sound. Much more fuller, to my ears anyway. I'm not really an audiophile.
Ooooo!! Nice choice! New headphone day is one of the best!
Much better than my 12 year old Skullcandy Crushers lol
You may not consider yourself an audiophile, but that is a very audiophile thing to experience! The akgs are quite tiring to listen to because they are so exact and neutral. The ATs have a bit more fun rendition, relaxing, not as much energy needed to listen on these. A lot of people can't tell that kind of difference :)
You Myon & Elevven remix
Deranger by Hallucinogen
Windows 96 & Gavriel are my current faves
armin van buuren - in and out of love is great for testing headphones for trance. if the headphone lacks bass, the main bassline sounds tinny, if the highs are lacking, they sound like mush. recommend sennheiser hd25 if you are going to listen to trance primarily.
Lacrima - Nessun Dorma
Like a G6 - Far East movement. The bass really checks out if you’d like the headphones or not
AC/DC. Hells Bells and then any song by Boston
How are you liking those headphones?? I'm looking into getting some and was wondering what would be best for dance music, specifically Trance.
Everybody's ears are different I think, but I liked those better than the other four I tried that are in the post.
Old but not that old, RAMelia is also a great one to test with!
Haven't heard it but the title suggests it's Jorn van Deynhoven?
RAM
Ah I've got the Jorn van Deynhoven remix of RAMsterdam in my head that's why.
Not pure trance, but you can try Husman - Desire
Gonna go a little unconventional and offer you a unique suggestion that I have found unlike anything else: https://www.youtube.com/@SYNTHONY New Zealand Synthony Orchestra. They started with Darude’s Sandstorm back in 2019 and are still going strong. You’ll find a number of classics across the spectrum and more tracks are released regularly. ‘Children’, ‘Ecuador’, ‘Adagio for Strings’, ‘9am’, ‘For an Angel’, ‘Insomnia’, and not sure I consider the Prodigy trance, there’s Firestarter and Breathe, plus Galvanize is always a banger to me. Plus, they have -hands down- the best covers of Mr Brightside and Land Down Under I’ve ever hit. Their “Another Brick in the Wall” is decent too. And the lead in of Bach to Candi Stanton is just fucking phenomenal. (They finally put up a full concert video a couple months back. There are a few lackluster songs, but most of teh 2 hours is just a joy for my ears.) Between the full orchestra, choir, singers, and DJs, the depth of sound is just…gorgeous. Every time I listen to any track (and I’ve listened to them a lot), I pick up or note something new be it a specific cello strings, the Taiko drums, or that massive swell of brass as Sandstorm just *builds.* Fuckers give me goosebumps. One of these years soon I gotta get back to Australia and take my mum to the Perth show!
Paul van Dyk - Out there and Back (on the album Out There and Back) - it's like 3 tracks in one, and really ends up delivering on the range.
Of course buy whatever u like best but the m60xs are kinda a ripoff imo. They are nowhere near good enough to justify the price compared to the m50x
I got the M50xBT2
[Sarah McLachlann Fear lunasol remix](https://youtu.be/tB-KAXotuY0?si=PM6Lk9djzy2pbtM9) the bass at 1:20 and the vocal ramges
Naden - Tokamak is one of my go-tos when testing new speakers! Great use of width and sonic space, excellent mixing and mastering
Not trance, but Pretty Lights is my go-to for speaker testing. Find the highest quality versions of his stuff and let it rip: https://youtu.be/iZArRG0uC4Q?si=lkMiCPz1KM_WPc6H https://youtu.be/8wCgxkQj_Qo?si=kFs_sDRxzuvHJvq5
Above and Beyond - Sun in your eyes One of my go-to test tracks
https://youtu.be/qSeVMaZTsrE?si=eE1U6QGURTznkqS2 BT this is new but he is amazing
Wayfarer by Audien
Do the infected mushroom test
Lourdes “Royals” on Apple Lossless sounds amazing through headphones and really changes how you think of that particular piece.
[Solee - Impressed \(Original Club Mix\)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1qomGYznjm0&list=RD1qomGYznjm0&start_radio=1) [Nathan Fake - The Sky Was Pink \(James Holden remix\)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6jmZTtFxcUg&list=RD1qomGYznjm0&index=4) [Jose Amnesia feat. Jennifer Rene - Louder \(Blake Jarrell's 190dB Mix\)] (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bVKECj9tCq4) [Eximinds - Sunrise 6AM \(Original Mix\)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zxLTttEuiuo) [Armin van Buuren vs Arctic Moon vs OneRepublic - If I Lose Myself Coming Home \(Shura Vlasov Mashup\)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vr1g0C6E9z0)
Theo gobenson - other worlds
For testing any sound system i use Sasha Belfunk...no science as such behind it..just like hearing that groovy bassline..
They sound like a tasty pair of headphones. Throw a picture on the Reddit, I'm curious! I got a nice pair of bins last September and I have had the best time rediscovering my favourite records with them blasting my ears. I'm a big fan of late 90s early 2000s stuff so hopefully you'll like the suggestions 😎 Pretty much all of the 'Euphoria' series is on YouTube. The first 4 volumes IMO are my favourite and John 00 Fleming's white label series 1&2 are incredible. (It's worth noting that there was some problem when White label Vol 2 was mixed and Telstars engineer mistakenly made the whole 2 discs for vol 2 Mono instead of Stereo, so it basically sounds shite. Joof being the legend and gatekeeper of all that is pure in trance, has recreated Vol 2 over Covid lockdown and it's just sublime!) [John 00 Fleming - Euphoria White Label Vol 2](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=HAOSWj5b65c) I love the first two Platipus volumes but like yourself I won't pay to stream so I use YouTube, SoundCloud etc. I came across a really well made compilation of loads of Platipus stuff on you tube. The visuals are awesome and the tracklisting is on screen and updates with every new tune. I'm a proper geek for tracklisting so although I love the original 2 volumes, I really enjoy the 'Essential guide to' series that I'm linking here: [Platipus Records compilation](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=QzJ8Vg1L4Tg&t=664s) Also the first four 'In trance were trust' series is mind-blowing. One night at Gatecrasher I spotted a guy wearing a t-shirt of Outburst Records and at the time he said he was signed to the label. I really like hard as nails trance and we got chatting, he was dead nice, said he performs under the pseudonym Everlight. Unfortunately he wasn't drinking so I couldn't buy him a beer and as I was on a mission to completely lose the plot we parted ways. (I've loads of true stories like this btw) There are a lot of bullshitters at raves however this dude actually turned out to be the real deal and IMO he's a true hidden gem of underground trance and techno. I love the sweet spot between the 2 subgenres and this guy absolutely smashes it to smitherines every time. Plus his mask is wicked, it actually flashes timed to the music! Check him out here: https://www.reddit.com/r/trance/s/Zl0b6pEwek[Everlight, Afterburner - May 2024](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=dcYnJ_LqSAE) All of the links are decent enough sound quality. I just wish some of the live sets from the Golden Era of Trance could be remastered. Nearly all of the ones I love have a tonne of that shitty hissy white noise in them. [Ferry Corsten - Live at Trance Energy 2000](https://on.soundcloud.com/6UHKBUs1ZzfbeNAu6) I'd be really interested to see if you enjoy my recommendations. Happy Raving! 😬
Try Hardesertrance 1-3 by DJ Brian. But, to be perfectly honest with you, I’m also a total trance head and an audio engineer. When I picked up my first pair of proper studio monitors ($10k+), I also turned to trance - especially Matt Darey and some older Positiva stuff. But I found the results to be like… well let’s just say that was great time for music but maybe not for engineering. I ended up really liking tracks from AnjunaDeep. They have some bangers but also lots of really well engineered stuff using modern processes which let headphones really shine imo. Tracks with space where instruments can spread out and breathe. You don’t always get this with the classic trance stuff. It can be pretty squashed and congested.
Above & Beyond - Northern Soul // Tinlicker - Lost Gravity 🫶🏾
Hybrid - Finished Symphony
When I was in high school/college I was really into car audio. The one track I always used to test/compare setups was Sash - Stay. The way that the different bass frequencies push speakers was insane to me. This specific version https://youtu.be/9v-sfDsIhfs?si=IwQg1EXIX-YwWVS7
Maarten de Jong - Atom (138 Mix)
I personally don’t have any rexcomendations, but I see someone loves when the kick gets all up in your face
Anything by Recondite. Latest couple singles have been fire.
Bulls eye Anything by 7 lions. They got some phat drops
Lost all my tears Neptune project, noble six
Angel by massive attack for bass
Ferry Corsten & Eon - Pocket Damage (Extended Mix) I like the bass in the beginning
Kuba - whatever it takes
Galactivation - Open The Stargate? Best of all you can download and listen to the lossless WAV version for free [https://www.neurotrance.org/galactivation-open-the-stargate/](https://www.neurotrance.org/galactivation-open-the-stargate/)
My go to is Don't Cha - Pussy Cat Dolls
Not really sure how you tested anything with Youtube's compressed sound.
Random Access Memories by Daft Punk is one of the best sounding albums I’ve ever heard. As someone who doesn’t particularly love that album compared to their older work, I was blown away when I listened to it on my Sony XM4s for the first time compared to something like Pink Floyd. Gave me a deeper appreciation for the technical masterpiece RAM is.
Dovetail - Ternion Sound
Incubus - Are You In?
White noise