Ethan Winer
Acoustics Expert
You'd be surprised how good even average monitors are in a well tuned room.
Indeed. Loudspeakers have gotten a lot better over the past ten years. Even cheap ones are pretty decent.
--Ethan
You'd be surprised how good even average monitors are in a well tuned room.
The one problem I have with the Mackies is the tweeters. They mush the highs together.
It was the 824s that I was used to from various studios/colleges. The only thing I wasn't sold on was the low end seemed a bit strong, but they were all set up in reasonably small, inadequately treated rooms.
I figured they were just overkill for the environment and took an educated punt on the 624s.
It really paid off!
"mush the highs together" means that in particular it was hard to tell the air from the brightness. Not the worst of the ones I listened to by any means but in second place after the KRKs. In the highs I identify a number of general frequency bands (the following frequencies are for example, not definitive because that depends upon the material being listened-to): low brightness is in the 8-10 kHz range and then there's the high brightness which is in the 10-12 range and then there's the air which spreads above that. The Mackie tweeters just didn't give me the same amount of information as the KRKs in the highs.I don't know what "mush the highs together" means, but Mackies are flatter and have less distortion than most speakers including some models that cost much more. Did you hear Mackies in a properly treated room?
--Ethan
I've not heard the Yamahas or the Adams. When you audition the speakers make sure you have reference music that will highlight the capabilities in the highs, mids, and lows. Also make sure if you get to do side-by-side comparisons that you adjust them to equal loudness so you don't get fooled into thinking the loudest speakers are the best (turning up the volume on the highest-margin speakers is an old hifi sales trick). That way you will be able to listen to the different quality of the sound.Ok guys thanx for all your replies. Now to sum it all up one last question - if I were to mix and master a hip hop/r&b track in an acoustically treated room in the followin scenerios:
1. using a pair of yamaha hs80m's
2. using a pair of adam a7x's
3: using a pair of krk vxt8's
4: using a pair of mackies hr824 mk2's
which scenario would give me the best results and translate well on majority of systems in the outside world?
(Explanation for your answer not necessary but if you do explain, its better for me.)
How many stores that you know that sell reference monitors have a well-treated listening room for them? I think of the old days when I worked at a 'stereo store' where the speakers were placed, and the A/B switches set up, to be able to sell the speakers we made the most money on.