Monitor Frequency Response

Big Mike B

New member
This is probably a newbie question, and it's quite straightforward. I'm looking to invest in a pair of monitors for general mixing and mastering which won't cost too much (I'm not looking for high volume).

When in the monitor specifications the frequency response is stated as 45Hz-22000Hz (as in the M-Audio BX6), does that mean that no frequencies outside this range will be reproduced, or rather that those frequencies will be reproduced less accurately and at a lower volume?

I mean, considering that fact that an electric bass played in standard tuning goes down to 40Hz (and 5 string basses and kick drums even lower) would it not be essential to at least have 40Hz included in the response?

I'm currently considering the BX8, but I have realised that the listed price is per monitor rather than pair (FR is 30Hz-24000Hz). It's still only a little bit more than the BX6 and I think it's definitely worth the extra £10 but paying £240 for a pair of monitors is still overkill at my stage.
 
For the most part all frequencies are produced, its just that they all roll off at the low end, at different starting points. And the ranges listed typically ought to include a +/- range. So +/- 3 50-20k might be 30-20k +/- 10 for example. Also one +/- 3 50-20k could be rising a bunch in the middle, another scooped in the middle- so have two completely different sounds.
It's not necessary to be flat all the way down, the tones are still there, just know and consider the limitations along the way.
 
One of the telltale signs of specs you can't trust is frequency stats with no specified dB range.

LF response it typically specified by -3dB and -10dB values relative to a reference frequency such as 1kHz. Overall flatness of the frequency response might be done with a range like +0dB/-3dB, +/-3dB etc.
 
Frequency response is a guide, and means very little without some kind of spec. Small speakers are always going to be less truthful at the bass end, and everyone argues about going above 20K, when so few can hear that anyway. A speaker design that has an even and hump free response is easier to mix on. Get down to 50Hz and below and they start to tail off. If your music needs frequent bottom B's, and amazing kick sounds, then smaller speakers won't do it.

If you buy monitors with hearing them, how will you know if you like the sound. Take a CD of something you know well and listen. But the ones that sound best and that you can afford.
 
Or get them from a place with a decent return policy. It's never made sense to me to listen to speakers in the store. Get them home to your room and they absolutely will sound completely different.
 
If you're using 5 string basses with a low B string a lot, consider addng a sub to your monitoring. Low E is about 41Hz - what you will mostly hear in speakers that don't go that low is the higher harmonics. If you generate a pure sine wave (no harmonics) and put it through you'll find that you can hear it, but at a reduced volume.
 
that frequency range is presuming you are in an anechoic chamber, real world results are always different and rely on your room acoustics which will colour the sound.
 
40-18K. i use a klarkTeknik DN370 eq to make the response flat. if your going to be recording an 88 key piano you need woofers that will be flat at 27hz.
 
40-18K. i use a klarkTeknik DN370 eq to make the response flat.

The worst thing you could do is to put an eq on the monitors to try to make the monitors flat.

Usually it's the room that messes with the monitors, but of course I do acknowledge that not all monitors are the same :) it come down to personal taste and price.

Alan.
 
I have several friends that are really happy with the Equator D4 monitors. They are very reasonable and a step above the m-audios.
 
Right, so from what I've gathered here, the best thing to do would be to go for a smaller and slightly cheaper set of monitors, and rely on a separate sub to deliver the low end.

Can anyone point me in the right direction in terms of a combo (monitors and sub) that would work at a reasonable price? I'm not looking for volume out of monitors, all I want is a wide and reasonably flat frequency response (at least 40-20k). I'd prefer to buy a set under £250 if at all possible.
 
Unless your room is treated well, a sub will do more harm than good. Trying to get the sub phase aligned and time aligned is a tough thing to do with the appropriate equipment to measure everything.

You are much better off with a single set of monitors.
 
I use a sub with my home system where I do some mastering and transfers, but I wouldn't recommend one unless you have the resources to set it up properly, as Farview indicates. I've been setting up sound systems for many years and I've developed a pretty good sense of the issues so I can set my sub by ear, but I also have used a reference mic and analysis software. Even with the mic and software it takes informed interpretation of the measurements to know what to adjust.
 
So should I just forget about the low end altogether? Rely on the principle of the missing fundamental? Buy a pair that with a FR of 60-20k?
 
JBL LSR308s are within your price range if you get them on sale, and they go down to 37Hz. the 305s are cheaper of course and go down to 43Hz.
 
It also depends on the style.of music you do. For the most part, in non-electronic genres, there really isn't much useful stuff going on in that bottom octave.

This is another reason why buying speakers from specs doesn't really work. The numbers don't really tell you what they sound like.

The difference between 40hz and 50hz is really only a couple notes. A bass guitar will play that low, but stringed instruments have most of their energy an octave above the fundamental. So it isn't crucial to have your speakers flat all the way down to 40hz. Especially if your room isn't flat down there.
 
So should I just forget about the low end altogether? Rely on the principle of the missing fundamental? Buy a pair that with a FR of 60-20k?

That's over stating it. The choices are small, extended bandwidth and/or not loud (or prominent). But not all in the same package'. That goes especially (the 'not loud' part) in the lowest frequencies. So we choose our compromises, in price, needs etc.
Also you have the extremely cheap option for cross checking the lows in many decent head phones.
 
Or get them from a place with a decent return policy. It's never made sense to me to listen to speakers in the store. Get them home to your room and they absolutely will sound completely different.


:thumbs up:

There are stores that will let you test out monitors in your own environment and return them if you don't like them.
I did that with 2-3 different sets. First I went to stores and tried a bunch there, and narrowed down to a few I liked...then I tried them in my studio, returned a couple, and settled on one pair that sounded best to me in my studio (Mackie 824 HR).
 
Size of course matters but also where you put it. The speaker I mean!

LF output is a trade off of box size, cone air displacement and power handling but putting a speaker close to any room boundary will increase LF output relative to "free air" it will also spoil the response and make it very uneven. Worst case is a corner, max LF lift but also max "boom". However most monitors past the very cheapest have at least some LF contour selection, how useful these are in practice I don't know.

There is also a problem with the room. Our 40Hz bass guitar note has a wavelength of 27feet and so in any reasonably sized room there will only be a couple of peak pressure points. A at 44Hz will peak in a slightly different place as will G and C. Hiding to nothing? Pretty much, but we do what we can!

Subs are, as has been said, difficult to integrate, if you want a sub/satellite system the best advice iirc is to buy the whole thing from one maker.

Graphics on speakers/amps are a recipe for buggerall headroom.

Cans are really the only answer as a check.

Dave.
 
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