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I test headphones for a living — here are 7 tracks I use with every new pair

AnyFans 2025-09-26

By Tammy Rogers

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I’ve Reviewed 18 Pairs of Headphones This Year — and These Are the Only 3 I Wholeheartedly Recommend

I test audio gear for a living — and I recommend these headphones and earbuds above everything else

It’s a story being told here, so you need to be able to understand what’s being said. I want to be in tears by the end of the track, something that some headphones can’t do.
Track 3. Mogwai: Ritchie Sacramento
Mogwai’s post-rock stylings on Ritchie Sacramento lend a shoegazey feel and a tonal warmth that underlies the track’s focus on farewells, remembrance and friendship. One of the best mixes around sure helps out a lot, but the layered soundscape and rare vocal track make the tune feel both completely separated from the band’s traditional material and yet so Mogwai it hurts.
The synths and their bright focal points need to be clear and bright, while the lightly distorted guitars need to wobble. The voice needs to ebb and flow in and out of focus, like a badly adjusted looking glass. There’s a lot of depth to the recording, that’s for sure — and there’s got to be plenty of warmth for the bass guitars and the drums.
I want to come away from the track feeling satisfied, and I want the vocal impact to be clearly felt. There’s a lot of great layering here, and that needs to come through with the headphones I’m testing. Bad headphones can get lost — but you can get lost in the track with good headphones.
Track 4. Pat Metheny Group: Last Train Home
I love jazz, and Pat Metheny’s style is one that I just can’t get enough of. The entirety of Still Life (Talking) is a piece of jazz gold, but Last Train Home is the track from the album that makes me feel like I’m 12 again. It’s evocative, homely, and comforting. Some might call it saccharine, or even corny, but its chuffing drum beat and effortless, constant string solo is breathtaking.
The pianos need to ring out with the perfect timbre, and the drums need to be quick and sharp. The bass guitar should be deep and low, and perfectly audible. The vocals have to bring a certain degree of presence, but never take away from the rest of the track. The slick synth that underlines the entire piece should fill the gaps without taking centre stage.
It’s a track that should make you feel like you’re heading home after a long time away. You’ve been looking forward to this, you’ve been excited about it — and now, as you drift off to sleep, you’re nearly there. Bad headphones pull you out of the moment; good ones cement you directly in the middle.
Track 5. Fatima Al Qadiri: Hip Hop Spa
There’s not much you can say about Fatima Al Qadiri’s bizarre mix of rave, dance and atmosphere. There’s something intangible about the entirety of Genre Specific Xperience, but album opener Hip Hop Spa nails its colors to the mast. It’s like the 90s genre we never got. It’s the musical form of old 3D animation, using strange samples and a deft hand to create something unnerving.
The steel pan samples need to ring out, and the massive bass booms should be headshaking. The track ebbs and flows, and there’s plenty of dynamism for impressive headphones to get their teeth stuck into. As the track moves and digital vocal samples are layered, the headphones need to be able to keep up.
I want to feel uncomfortable while listening to Hip Hop Spa. There’s something disturbing about the track — like something is very, very wrong. And that’s when you know your headphones have done something very, very right.
Track 6. Tchaikovsky: Rite of Spring
This is where I listen to an entire “album.” This particular recording of The Rite of Spring is one of my favorites, as composer Von Karajan guides the Berlin Philharmoniker through the strange dance of one of classical music’s most uncomfortable pieces. It’s beautiful, unnerving and filled with just what a headphone tester could want — things to find and details to seek out.
There’s great dynamic range here, and I want the headphones to keep up. I need the quiet sections to be quiet, and the loud sections to be deafeningly loud, without having to adjust the volume control. The strings need to feel massive, as if there were a host of violinists and cellists in my office. I need the crash of cymbals and the rush of the full orchestral weight pushing down on my head.
Classical music is a test for any pair of headphones, and there’s little that tests everything that a set of cans can do than The Rite of Spring.
Track 7. Watain: Before the Cataclysm
There’s a great deal I could write about any kind of black metal, but Watain remains at the top of my list of the most devilish of tunes. Before the Cataclysm brings rage, fury, and unholy attitude in buckets. It also sounds absolutely massive, with tremolo-picked guitars and angry drum beats. It’s sharp like a massive saw blade, and as brutal as being keelhauled.
A lot is going on in the track, but good headphones should be able to keep it from becoming a massive wall of noise. Guitars need to be distinguishable from bass, drums need to be powerful, and the vocals should be scratchy and scary. The lead guitar that lies over the top should be easily picked out from the din.
Watain are a terrifying force of nature already, and the best headphones should place you in the middle of the maelstrom. Bad headphones can make everything sound like a big, metallic mess — and where’s the fun in that?
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Tammy Rogers

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Audio Editor

Tammy and her generous collection of headphones have found a new home — Tom’s Guide! After a two-and-a-half-year stint as iMore’s resident audiophile, Tammy’s reviews and buying guide expertise have more focus than ever on Tom’s Guide, helping buyers find the audio gear that works best for them. Tammy has worked with some of the most desirable audio brands on the planet in her time writing about headphones, speakers, and more, bringing a consumer focussed approach to critique and buying advice. Away from her desk, you’ll probably find her in the countryside writing (extremely bad) poetry, or putting her screenwriting Masters to good use creating screenplays that’ll never see the light of day.

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