How I test my mastered / finished tunes for great sound

F

flwolf

New member
Over the many years of recording I've had them all. Studio grade speakers of all sizes and power, and all the other "must have" tools. I tossed them all after I bought my first BOSE Wave Radio with CD player. It's not cheap at $500 and doesn't even have buttons. Well, that's exactly why it's the ultimate benchmark tool! You can't change anything on the sound. Which means, that if your mastered mix sounds good on this player, it's good. Period!

No, I'm not working for Bose or get paid for this. I'm just a firm believer in Bose sound products!

I'm originally Swiss and my band was the second only band in Europe in the early 70's to have Bose speakers on stage. Since then all my sound systems have been Bose. Computer speakers; Surround Sound System; PA System, etc. There's simply nothing better out there for sound. I have a duo and on stage we're using the Bose L1 1S speaker system with the T1 Tone Match unit. That's all we need for small to medium size halls.
 
flwolf said:
No, I'm not working for Bose or get paid for this. I'm just a firm believer in Bose sound products!

I'm originally Swiss and my band was the second only band in Europe in the early 70's to have Bose speakers on stage. Since then all my sound systems have been Bose. Computer speakers; Surround Sound System; PA System, etc. There's simply nothing better out there for sound. I have a duo and on stage we're using the Bose L1 1S speaker system with the T1 Tone Match unit. That's all we need for small to medium size halls.
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:D

OK...you like Bose.

Got it.
 
Which means, that if your mastered mix sounds good on this player, it's good. Period!
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See, what *I* find with most Bose systems is that just about *everything* sounds "good" on them. Like cans. You can put utter crap through them and it sounds okay. You can also put the greatest recordings ever made through them and they sound okay.

Great office systems - Great car systems - Reasonably great home theatre systems - just for that reason.
 
Massive Master said:
See, what *I* find with most Bose systems is that just about *everything* sounds "good" on them. Like cans. You can put utter crap through them and it sounds okay. You can also put the greatest recordings ever made through them and they sound okay.

Great office systems - Great car systems - Reasonably great home theatre systems - just for that reason.
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So then what you are saying is...if the whole world used Bose systems for everything...then everyone's mixes, crappy or good, would sound good on them. :D
 
miroslav said:
So then what you are saying is...if the whole world used Bose systems for everything...then everyone's mixes, crappy or good, would sound good on them. :D
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Well then I'm going to start my campaign to get the whole world on Bose systems so my OK mixes will finally sound good!

I'd like to buy the world a Bose, and keep it company...

I do remember being amazed the first time I heard their little wave system though. Early 1990s, and I had about zero exposure to anything except my JVC boom box. By comparison, the wave system was pretty sweet.
 
There's simply nothing better out there for sound.
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While I agree Bose is good stuff, that is a bold statement, EAW, JBL, for instance make awesome concert rigs. never seen a Bose concert rig, just sayin. and while I do not have any reason to doubt your sound, you did not share any of them.:D
 
I recently stumbled into a pair of Bose 901 series II speakers from decades ago. This version does not suffer from the foam surround rot - they are cloth.

The unique thing about these (and many Bose products) is using lots of small drivers instead of different size woofers and tweeters. No need for a passive crossover, no phase discrepancy between different size drivers, etc. Of course the need for a lot of EQ to make the speakers flat can be problematic but the end result is clearly a good sounding product. Bass is tight and deep with all the small drivers. Highs are pleasant not fatiguing.

I would echo Massive's comment, but I do use mine to check mixes since my nearfields don't have nearly as much bass extension as the Bose. It's pretty flat down to 40hz or so.
 
I have a Bose PA in my basement. Took it out for a show once. Never again. The shows we have at my place sound fucking amazing, though.
 
A lot of Bose stuff works well enough in the right application, some works really well. But a lot of their claims are overblown. For example, even giving themselves a generous 6dB range (+/-3dB) the L1 Model II only goes to 12kHz, and the -10dB response is 14kHz.

Once people buy into the hype they have to justify it by thinking everything Bose is great even when it isn't.
 
can we change the name of this thread to "BOSE lovers"?

while i do love my BOSE headphones (IE2) I don't quite follow the idea of this thread, there are plenty of manufacturers that produce good quality speakers, cans and systems. While BOSE does color the music in a nice way, still can be easily outdone. For example i mix my music with AKG 514 (which are far from being top of the line cans) and the detail I get from this is way over the Bose. Still i use my BOSE everyday on my way to work, and therefore a first choice for testing my mixes.

So, my veredict? There are equipment for every use, and not everything can be used for everything.

Just to finish, now that i can complain a bit, I do found BOSE to be a bit overpriced.

But then again, all this is just my opinion.

Federico
 
Just lay off the Bose bashing

This thread isn't about loving Bose. It's about using tools to hear our mixes under different conditions.

For decades, the Yamaha NS-10 has been the control room monitor of choice. Why? They're not fun to listen to. They don't give you a nice happy feeling. And yet they're the preferred speak. That's because they can reveal detail.

But then, and follow me on this, those same control rooms often have huge soffit mounted or corner mounted speakers. Why not do mixes on those? Because they're there to give a different sound. Certainly a more comfortable sound than the Yamahas.

Likewise, those same control rooms will have some nasty pair of 4 inch speaks in a wooden box. Why? To see what they sound like in cheap car radios, consumer items, intercoms, and the like.

So, what the OP did was to inform everyone that once you go through your detail-oriented steps of mixing, one nice option is to put them through a set of Bose and you'll find your mixes sound *better*. I, for one, happen to agree. Certainly there are more accurate speaks. Certainly, more detail can be had elsewhere (like the aforementioned Yamaha). But that is not at all the point. The post assumes you already have that going on and are now ready to "hear" your mix in the real world, which is populated with very inaccurate speakers.

I use Bose 800s (with a sub) in my stereo room stack. I'm fully aware it colors the sound, but then so does a turntable, player, receiver or any other product your mix might find itself in.

Bose 800 (801, 802, etc), that I use, has been orphaned by the factory. They're not even listed on the site, anymore. They were interesting and useful as PA speakers, but really came into their own when you *stacked* them. Somehow, for some reason, the bass more than doubles when you're using two on a side. But who buys FOUR of those things? I haven't, and I kinda like them. Still, a very useful system. Don't know about their product line, just the PA speaks.

There are people that simply dismiss Bose and i can hardly blame them. Bose doesn't publish freq response curves. They don't go head-to-head on the lab table with anyone. They openly admit they're after a "good sounding speaker" and never, ever bring up "accurate". But I've found several of their offerings to be exactly what they say: a good sounding speaker. I'm not the kind of audiophool that wrings his hands and frets over +/- 3dB somewhere. I'm more like Count Basie (?) that said of music, "if it sounds good, it *is* good".

Bose, for the most part, sound good.

Ponder5
 
NS-10s don't "reveal detail"...they were used mainly because they sound rather nasty, harsh and bass-deficient, and the mindset was that if you can dial in a good mix in them...that mix will sounds great on everything else.

Look...if just want speakers that will "make" your mixes sound good...you can pick up any of the dozens and dozens of quality home stereo speakers, and there you go.
It's like when people put the "smile" face on their home/car stereo EQ, hit the bass boost, and crank up the volume...and man, it sounds GOOD! :D

However...that's not what you want for mixing and for checking mixes, because that gives you a false sense of accomplishment...(which is why the NS10s were used...they made you work harder to get a good mix).

If you just want some Bose to playback music on...that's OK...even the Bose Wave (or whatever it's called) is great for that...but so is any good stereo or boom box...etc.
It's all hyped sound...which is why it sounds "good" no matter what.

For mixing, you want non-hyped monitoring.
 
I had a real.. interesting thing happen a few years ago. Working up mixes for a fellow's project. Went over to his house, and being 'up to my neck in these mixes I was glad/ready to hear them in a different perspective, in this case on his Bose desk top.
You know how bass guit' needs to not be too'clean or mostly fundamental- i.e. needs a few over tones or it can get lost, hard to hear especially on a small speaker?
This Bose 'radio/cd player added so much distortion and whatever 'shaping' to the bottom end in such a nice perfect 'band limited manor(?) I was literally.. still am thinking of it again, tempted to try to convert one to create a 'make-a-bass-speak' insert box.

When I struggle to push a bass track in this direction -saturation, distortion plugs ect, IDK, this struck me as near perfect' -better. Not 'raspy like the plugs I have and try, just good 'throaty bass tone.
Bose ;)
 
NS-10's and Auratone's? Those were in every studio 20 years ago. Don't see them much anymore. Especially the auratones. The TV, clock radio, AM station, etc... reference is pointless because AM radio doesn't play music, no one listens to music on a clock radio/transistor radio and TV speakers aren't mono (and most people run it through a sound bar or stereo of some sort anyway).

As was said, NS-10's didn't let you hear detail, they made you sort out the midrange. They also didn't let you have too much low end, because they would fart out.
 
Ponder5 said:
So, what the OP did was to inform everyone that once you go through your detail-oriented steps of mixing, one nice option is to put them through a set of Bose and you'll find your mixes sound *better*. I, for one, happen to agree.
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That is not what I took away from his post. He said he tossed away his studio monitors and seemed to be recommending people do the same.

I'm surprised he didn't get blasted any more than this. We used to have a guy named Pete (victoryPete or something or other) who said all sorts of wacky things. Supercreep once posted in his thread about how you should fill up your drums with bisquick to make them sound awesome. -That's the sort of reply I would have expected here.
 
ibleedburgundy said:
That is not what I took away from his post. He said he tossed away his studio monitors and seemed to be recommending people do the same.

I'm surprised he didn't get blasted any more than this. We used to have a guy named Pete (victoryPete or something or other) who said all sorts of wacky things. Supercreep once posted in his thread about how you should fill up your drums with bisquick to make them sound awesome. -That's the sort of reply I would have expected here.
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Yeah. I don't know.. Well yes believe I do. There is two completely different - in this context types of gear. The ones that 'make tone, or effect or what ever, and the things we expect a clean palate- from which we can build on, 'stay out of the way, i.e. not friken lie to us.
 
ibleedburgundy said:
That is not what I took away from his post. He said he tossed away his studio monitors and seemed to be recommending people do the same.

I'm surprised he didn't get blasted any more than this. We used to have a guy named Pete (victoryPete or something or other) who said all sorts of wacky things. Supercreep once posted in his thread about how you should fill up your drums with bisquick to make them sound awesome. -That's the sort of reply I would have expected here.
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I know this is totally off topic, the bisquick comment made me think of this. years ago I worked a few concerts with The Little River Band, the drummer had a foam rubber ball, (about the size of a tennis ball) inside of each of his toms, they bounced around when he was playing, they sounded awesome, it took away the initial ring and overtone.
 
I have an Acoustic Wave from the 80's with a cassette player. Yeah, pretty much everything sounds better on it. Exactly why I would never use it for referencing my mixes.

But it is fun to hear things sound awesome! Even though they are not....

I find it strange the OP's one and only first post was to show his love for a product. Doesn't seem like spam but....
 
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