Next step for "studio"

[NegadivOne]

I have just recently gotten serious about recording. i have a 11x15 room that i record drums in. I do my mixing in the same room. For room treatments, I have bass traps in the corners and thats it. There is still a lot of high end echo. I record with a Fostex VF160 and then do the mixing/editing on my computer (in the room). For mics i use sm57's on the toms and snare, and 2 audio technica P650R's for overheads. I use a really crappy AT mic for my bass drum.

On my list of things to get is
1. Shure Beta52 kick mic
2. acoustic foam for the walls
3. monitors

Right now i do my mixing through my bose speakers. I need all of those things, but what is most important? what should i get first?

[The Ghost of FM]

A monitoring system you can trust is essential to getting good mixes but, even the best studio monitors in the world won't sound right if they aren't set up in a room who's acoustics blur and distort their output so you really have to have decent acoustics to mix in and to record in. They both go hand in hand IMO.

Cheers!

[NegadivOne]

What would be a good pair of active monitors to get for around $300 or under? I will probably buy on ebay if that matters?

[photoresistor]

instead of getting acoustic foam, make yourself some broadband sound absorbers using compressed insulation... this way, not only will these absorb the troublesome mids and highs but will continue to help (a little) in the lower frequencies.... from what ive heard, the lower frequencies are most troublesome in small rooms and you cant really have too much bass absorbtion.

search around in this forum, the 'acoustics' forum at recording.org and the forum over at studiotips.com... you'll find a lot of info and advice from people that REALLY know what theyre talking about.

[Mach311]

Originally Posted by NegadivOne

What would be a good pair of active monitors to get for around $300 or under? I will probably buy on ebay if that matters?

Here's some that I've been looking at. They all get good ratings on musician's friend and are all around 300 bucks new at MF:
Yamaha MSP3
Behringer Truth B2031A
M-Audio Studiophile BX5
Fostex PM0.5
Event Tuned TR5

The M-Audio BX5 replaced the older model called SP-5B. You can pick these up for around $150 on ebay if you're really trying to go cheap. Yamaha also makes an MSP5 which are 500 new, but go on ebay for around 300.

[penthouse._]

For that money i think the Alesis M1 MkII Actives are the best choice, either that or save up for Event TR8s.

Peace!

[NegadivOne]

Thanks everyone for taking the time to reply! So everyone agrees that monitors should be top priority then? I will look around and see if i can find those models on ebay; I have a paycheck coming in tomorrow so i think its time to find something to spend it on.

[NegadivOne]

Okay I need more help. I will first start by saying I know NOTHING about monitors. Ive been looking on ebay and now i have even more questions. Should I stay away from monitors that only have 75 watts? Or does that even matter? Also, I may be retarded, but can monitors be hooked up to a computer? I noticed that the monitors I saw seemed to only have XLR and 1/4" jacks, but i do all my playback from my computer? Somebody slap me if I'm missing something...

[Mach311]

You can get an adaptor to go to 1/4". I've been wading through reviews on monitors for days now. Look up some models in your price range on musician's friend and read the reviews there. Then search these message boards for info on those models. Then google search them. Then take a nap. Then ebay for the ones you've got it narrowed down too and see what the best deal you can find is. If you look at discontinued models you can get some real deals on ebay. A lot of what you need depends on what kind of music you're mixing and what kind of space your working in, or so I've been told. If I lived in a big town w/ music stores I'd go listen to some and let my ears decide, but I don't so I gotta go on what others think. Good luck.

[astoebe]

i'm a newb as well, but someone who knows alot suggested some rokit rp5 or rp6 monitors to me? They get pretty good reviews....can't say from experience though

[astoebe]

sorry, i forgot to add that alot of people have the soundcard going into the mixer, then to the monitors? I would imagine alot have it set up that way, which would explain the XLR and 1/4 ins on the monitors

[NegadivOne]

Originally Posted by astoebe

alot of people have the soundcard going into the mixer, then to the monitors? I would imagine alot have it set up that way, which would explain the XLR and 1/4 ins on the monitors

yeah but see my mixer is my computer, which is why i need to be able to go from my soundcard to the monitors.

[NegadivOne]

Well I ended up getting the acoustic foam first because I found a really good deal. I got 12 pieces of 2" x 24" x 48" and 48 pieces of 2" x 12" x 12" foam for under $100 delivered on ebay. Monitors are definately next though, unless I find more good deals on something else first