TRANSITION to STUDIO MONITORS.

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BLP

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This is for everyone who has been doing DAW recording. I'm sure some older heads won't be able to relate.


For those who started mixing music on regular speakers, how was was the transition to studio monitors for you?


I have been using computer speakers with a dell sub woofer for years and have trained my ear to what my mix will sound like in other environments.


I'm afraid when I go to some decent studio monitors my whole idea of mixing will be turn upside down and my trained ear to bad speakers and bad room placement will interfere with mixing on better room acoustics and studio monitors!! (IF THAT MAKES SENSE).

I feel like I'm going to be back at square one with mixing.


How long did it take you to adjust to mixing on studio monitors????
 
If you provide some way to switch between the speakers you're used to and the new studio monitors you can speed up the adjustment to them. Mix the familiar way with your old speakers and occasionally check the mix on the new ones. Eventually transition to starting the mix on the new speakers and checking on the old ones, then finally wean yourself off the old ones.

Also, listen to a lot of music you like on the new monitors.
 
BLP said:
For those who started mixing music on regular speakers, how was was the transition to studio monitors for you?
Click to expand...

Like, "holy shit, listen to all that detail!"

I'd gotten pretty used to a pretty good set of computer speakers (Kliptsch ProMedia 2.1, I think) and I was getting at least predictable results on them (like, I wouldn't be shocked when I heard it on a different system), but the degree to which they were an improvement over the consumer-grade stereo I was monitoring off my laptop on before (i.e -huge) was about the degree even my cheapo Behringer Truths were an improvement over those computer speakers.

To answer your question, yes, there will be a little bit of relearning the response of a pair of speakers, but honestly when mixing audio, any increase in detail is ultimately an improvement.
 
If you give your ears a few days rest from your current speakers...it's no big deal to start new mixes on a new set of decent studio monitors, though if you pull up your old mixes on the new studio monitors they might(?) sound odd to you.

It's about trusting your ears and monitors without having to "fudge" what is/isn't there in order to make it work right. A good pair of studio monitors won't force you to fudge.

I don't know of any computer speakers (with or without a sub) that can even come close to a decent set of studio monitors...so like DrewPeterson7 said, it will be: "Holy shit, listen to all that detail!" :)
 
If you've got the budget, do it. You won't regret it. And like bouldersoundguy suggested, get a cheap monitor control/switch and you can still use your computer speakers. Flip back and forth A/B ing as they say!
 
Hi, sorry to butt in but would you hear more detail on monitors than a pair of budget pro headphones (mine are AKG K-55) as I too am currently mixing on home stereo speakers as at the time of purchase I basically had the choice of budget monitors with 10 watt RmS speakers or a. Hi-Fi with 50 watt RMS speakers so got them.
 
I think you will always hear more detail on headphones, but for clarity of a mix, nothing beats a great pair of nearfields!
 
You think you can mix better with headphones then monitors?
 
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how was was the transition to studio monitors for you?
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Before I bought the monitors, I wore out my friends, listening to all of the tracks on their stereos to see how they sounded.
Now, when I'm done, I know what it sounds like. I still listen to my music on other systems but only to get the flavours and I'm never disappointed or surprised.
 
I don't regard "computer speakers" as regular.
I started out monitoring my cassette porta studio through a 1/2 decent stereo system that I knew well.
Went I moved to PC based recording & used an even better stereo system that I, agian, knew well.
When I finally had the extra money I bought "monitors" that is purpose built active speakers with a much flatter response taht the stereo gear I'd used.
I was amazed by the extra info/detail and the fact that I didn't need as many watts as I thought I did.
& the came the longish period of learning my monitors in the room I use. that took a while but I kept the connections for the good stereo so can & do switch between to make comparisons, get an idea of wht the mix sounds like in a more lounge room world etc.
Oh, take you fav CDs into your system & listen to them - the ones you know well. I could suggest getting reference CDs but you'd have to get use to them to.
You can download or buy room reference white & pink noise to chart your room for problems too (real traps used to have a free download).
 
Headphones will usually give you better detail but it's detail in isolation. Speakers & monitors allow you to hear what happens when sounds mix in the air, the room, the space you're in.
What you hear hard panned in your left HPhone can isn't interacting with the signal in the right one. It's super cool for psych stuff, is essential for Stereo Binaural Sound (but then again stereo binaural is recorded in the room as the soundwaves beat up on each other) and is terrific for getting down to some minute little thing that was bothering you BUT isn't going to give you a clear idea of how the mix will sound on anything other than Hphones. DON'T get me started on earplugs!
 
For me, the transition from a pair of ancient stereo speakers to a set of nearfields was astonishing.

There was detail and clarity . . . but most impressive was the stereo picture I got . . . it was like watching 3d.
 
The advantage I gained immediately was resolution and detail. You can't mix what you can't hear.
 
When I got my $150 Porter Cable sander it made sanding my wood projects way easier than using the $20 Black & Decker I had before. Plus the end result is way better.

Most any time you get a good tool it will make your job easier. Going from cheap speakers to studio monitors is no different than that.
 
Almost zero time to adjust.

Just a change in the mindset that *now* what you are listening to, through your new monitors, in that room, is now the closest thing you have to reference, where as your PC speakers :eek: could have been anywhere man.

Mix and trust in your monitors.

As for mixing in Headphones: There is a definite technical difference between the two, with the monitors (obviously) having each speaker spill into each ear.

I asked for some advice at this forum for headphones vs monitors: I was mixing on my headphones and was surprised that the amount of reverb effect seem to be much more present on speaker playback. Someone suggested to me that is *because* I was using headphones to mix. When I started using monitors, this hasn't been a problem since.

Knowing that (scientifically) one guy with one story at a forum don't prove nuthin', It may be information for you that for me, I found there *is* a significant difference between mixing on headphones than on monitors, with the points going to the monitors.

Cheers,
FM
 
pure.fusion said:
Knowing that (scientifically) one guy with one story at a forum don't prove nuthin', It may be information for you that for me, I found there *is* a significant difference between mixing on headphones than on monitors, with the points going to the monitors.
Click to expand...

The other thing too is that it's almost impossible to hear phasing issues when mixing on 'phones. I'll use them if I'm trying to hone in on a particular part, but that's about it...
 
I dont think there is an adjustment period, i went from mixing on headphones(yeah i know shutup) to using adams, which are amazing. i just felt what the hell have i been doing with my life? All my mixes where consistent. you know when you do a mix and come back later to listen again and hate what you did earlier? Well that never happened with these adams, they sounded good the first time second time and on every other source the mix was great.
Total adjustment period; zero
 
Going from my big bass heavy hifi speakers to some monitors was like someone blowing away a cloud.

Trying to mix on hifi speakers was hell for me. I was straining so hard to hear stuff properly night after night that it damn near burned me out. No matter how I set the EQ, it just wasn't clear. It was like trying to mix on a moving bus with all the windows open. Once I got the monitors, even though they were cheap, things instantly became easier.
 
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