Is there a "ConsumerReports" for monitors/speakers? (aka, the best for less?)

T

thecrowdog

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Is there a "ConsumerReports" for monitors/speakers? (aka, the best for less?)

New to the boards, I searched for a couple of hours but can't find what I'm looking for...

What independent resource is there that rates active monitors for home PC recording? I was hoping to find something rated by professionals, in all price ranges, like a CNET or Consumer Reports (which have nothing on studio monitors).

I found some stores that show their customer ratings, but that seems less reliable than getting solid rankings from professionals on price, transparency, overall value, etc.

I'm looking for the best value/sound in an active pair in the "under $300" category. I know they won't be anywhere close to the best, but I want to get the best for that price.)

Thanks

EDIT: I guess I should clarify one thing. There are many sources of reviews of individual products, especially the top dollar stuff. And I have found "shoot-outs" of some monitors (again, top dollar stuff). What I cannot find is a side-by-side comparison of price vs overall sound quality or a rating system that includes $200-$400 monitors. The low-end stuff may not be the best, but some low-end stuff will clearly outshine other low-end stuff, and some might even be comparable with some higher priced stuff. If I can't find such a guide, I might as well just buy ANY monitor pair that rings up under $300 and assume they all sound the same. But I doubt that's the case. Somewhere, someone must have rated these lower priced units against each other and decided that, FOR THEIR PRICE, some are significantly better than others.

Thanks again (and I did read the worldest longest living post) :)
 
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There are several magazines geared towards recording. They frequently review all types of equipment, inluding active monitors. Go to your local b+n or whatever and thumb through a couple (mix, sound on sound, recording, eq, etc.)

Also, imho the best recording magazine in the world is available for *free*, just surf on over to www.tapeop.com and sign up.

Event, m-audio and behringer make actives for around $300/pr.
 
for comparison reviews, I often find that message boards like homerec are much better than magazines and the like. If it's helpful, here are a few other good recording sites:

harmony-central.com (go to user forums)
recording.org
gearslutz.com
prosoundweb.com (rec pit)
mojopie.com / studioforums
rec.audio.pro
 
For several reasons it's hard to find good, or should I say usable, reviews on monitors.

1. Monitors are a very personal thing to evaluate. What sounds great and/or accurate to one person may not sound that wonderful to another.

2. Most magazine reviews are influenced by their advertisers. In other words, you won't often read "this piece of equipment is crap", instead they'll only point out the positives, even if many negatives outweigh the few positives. It's important to read between the lines of any magazine review if you want to have a chance at extracting the reviewer's real opinion.

I would say a forum like this one as good as you're going to get in getting real feedback from real users. You could try a search for "monitors" and read as much as you can. It won't tell you which ones will sound the best to YOU, but it might help narrow your search and point you in a general direction.
 
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