Good playback speakers that wont break the bank for a newb..

S

srtalpine

New member
Hey everyone thanks for your time. Im looking for a set of decent speakers for my dedicated recording computer that will be used for playback. I am building a budget, exremely modest home studio, which consists so far of an m-audio controller, tascam interface, condeser mic's, cubase le 4, and a dedicated computer that I build specifically for recording. Any input would be extremely helpfull. Thanks again!!
 
'Monitors'. Do a search among the archives here and look up 'monitors'. Be prepared for a bumpy, rocky ride of thrust, counter thrust, contradiction, rancour, recommendation, counter recommendation, new names, passive, active, under over sideways down, drivers, tweeters, cones, tones, hertz, kilohertz, subterfuge and more ! And you don't always catch the crook or get the girl.....
All in a days work, old chap.
 
hahaha sounds like ive stumbled across a pretty complex topic here. I live in an apartment so I cant blow the walls off the place. I just need something to give me decent tone to play my recordings back. I dont need stadium quality products here haha just something to let me hear the quality of the music I will be recording. Any recommendations on where to start?
 
Click on the "catch the crook" bit of my post. If nothing else, it's a place to start. Hopefully, others will soon be weighing in. It can be confusing but all the conflicting info is a necesary stage to wade through in making up your mind/an informed decsion.
Enjoy !
 
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Here's a good place to start. Also, bookmark the site as it has a wealth of other information you will be asking about in due course:
http://www.tweakheadz.com/studio_monitors.htm
Music 123 is having a big sale with free shipping, so you may find a good deal there, but there are lots of good online sellers as well as your local brick and mortar stores.
Personally, I have some Alesis M1Active520 monitors. Good sound, great price, not overly big. The floodgates will soon open with other recommendations.
Welcome to the forum!
 
Any thoughts on M-Audio Studiophile AV40's? I understand that by being on a budget Im not going to get professional studio sound. Im just curious to see if they would be sufficient for a guy who likes to record some tracks for fun.
 
When I was shopping for monitors I went to a Guitar Center and demoed the AV40's. They sounded alright, but when I played the KRK Rokit 5's next to them I could see a big improvement. The 5's had a clearer, sweeter, more defined sound; the type of sound you really need to have to get accurate mixes. Although they are $100 dollars more, it is a $100 well spent. You'll be thankful you saved up and bought the 5's. If I were you I'd go to a Guitar Center or alike store to try out some of the models you have most likely heard about on these forums. Good luck!
 
guitarplayr82 said:
When I was shopping for monitors I went to a Guitar Center and demoed the AV40's. They sounded alright, but when I played the KRK Rokit 5's next to them I could see a big improvement. The 5's had a clearer, sweeter, more defined sound; the type of sound you really need to have to get accurate mixes. Although they are $100 dollars more, it is a $100 well spent. You'll be thankful you saved up and bought the 5's.
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Oh irony of ironies !
 
wow that thread got out of hand quickly lol! I find myself in the same situation as the poster in the thread above, there are no music stores within 1.5 hours of me. A lot of my purchases are made based on user reviews which sometimes lead you astray. But thats all part of the game I guess.
 
I'm in a different situation in that I have access to loads of stores ( I do deliveries in the centre of London, the West End) and not that long ago there were two huge 'pro audio' stores, Turnkey and Sound control that you could go into and demo stuff there. They both went bust and closed down but there are still others. But I've often taken chances. When I used to get gear from second hand places, sometimes I'd test them, sometimes not. But with monitors, I didn't. I frankly am not sufficiently advanced or developed to listen in a shop and say 'Yeah !', even if I took in stuff of my own. I wouldn't've known what I was looking for before I'd ever had monitors. And the shop, I wouldn't know if it was treated or accentuated bass or clouded the highs or whatever and above all, it wouldn't be where I was mixing/monitoring. I remember just before I used mine, listening to a pair my friend had and I was alarmed because I couldn't hear hardly any bass and I was fearful that I'd wasted my money. But once I listened to mine, all doubts disappeared and mine are a budget store made set. But you know, nothing I've bought untested has turned out to be a dud, as far as I can recall. And though contradictory, user reviews are immensely helpful.
 
grimtraveller said:
Oh irony of ironies !
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Haha, yes. I saw that thread when it was first posted and I have to disagree. Of course you won't be getting pro-studio quality when you buy these, but IMO they are definitely not muddy. I'm not sure about that user's room size, EQ settings, or style of music, so I can't judge how they would sound for him. But they are perfect for me.

BTW I'm not doing any metal or anything -- I'm mainly doing ska and light alternative, so the bass and mids work out just fine for me.
 
IMO... 2 things to keep on mind... it takes more than printer ink to make it pro/monitor... saying it's hi-fi doesnt make itr so... that being said... dont shy away from used stereo stuff... ya may need to edumacate yourself some on what brands to consider but it's worth the trip... check out what the dedicated stereo shops carry localy for some hints (ie not bestbuyetc)..
 
grimtraveller said:
Be prepared for a bumpy, rocky ride of thrust, counter thrust, contradiction, rancour, recommendation, counter recommendation, new names, passive, active, under over sideways down, drivers, tweeters, cones, tones, hertz, kilohertz, subterfuge and more !
Click to expand...
........and that's just the sign-up process. :eek:
 
thanks for the responses. I found a local shop that is getting in the krk rokit series monitors in a few weeks. Unfortunately that is all that they carry but at least I will be able to give them a listen before I make and decicions.
 
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