My Monitor Dilema.

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NLAlston

NLAlston

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OK, I am now the owner of two sets of monitors: the Behringer B2031A Truths, that I have been working with for a while, and the KRK Rokit8’s. The KRK’s belonged to my father-in-law, who suffered a physical condition which doesn’t allow him to play anymore. He had used these no more than twice, so they are yet new enough to not have been broken in yet. I was told to take & use them, or sell them for whatever else I may wish to get. Well, it turns out that I am in need of a Firewire Audio Interface for my computer, and one of these sets will be sold (or traded) towards one. I am just having a hard time deciding between which set to keep - because I like both of them.

The Truths (to me) have a greater bass presence, and just a smoother overall sound reproduction. The Rokit8’s, however, are not as strong at the low end, and also have a harsher sound - especially with the mids. Now, I have read that good near-fields are supposed to deliver sound that is not so pleasing to listen to; that it should be harsh sounding. This, I really don’t know - it is only what I once read.

But I will have to get rid of one set, and would like some user opinions on this. I wish that I had the time by which to A/B a good number of mixes through them, but I am looking into working toward an Audio Interface ASAP. The Truths have been pretty good to me, but I can get used to something else also (like these KRK’s) over time.

Just let me know your thoughts; maybe share with me which set you’d keep if you were in my shoes.

Blessings,
Nathan
 
If I were you, I would keep the Behringers. Many people are left wanting more bass response when getting smaller nearfield monitors. If they're even smaller than the rokits but putting out more bass thats cool. I would rather learn to mix on those behringers and figure out how it translates to other stuff. You could resell the KRK's for more probably. Good luck whatever you choose, thats just what I would do.:)
 
Hi Nate. I have to admit that I'm in that recording camp that fires up the home studio primarily for its own enjoyment. Sure, people download my home stuff a lot, and I also work in more pro contexts outside my home. Here's my point: when I slap one of my favorite pro CDs into my studio system, I want the sound to dazzle me. I'm past the point of wanting to "compensate for my system"--I want to hear the full frequency spectrum of whatever I play, whether mine or someone else's. I want to enjoy my home studio time--it's my fun place, not my money-maker.

That said, I also want my mixes to translate well to other systems, of course. When I auditioned monitors, I was sure to choose a pair that did a decent job of such translation. But I decided that whatever monitors I chose would also have to make well-recorded mixes soar. Pro engineers might gasp at my crude ways, but we each have our own needs.

If I were in your shoes, I'd keep whichever monitors give each of these angles a fair shake: (1) good translation of my mixes and (2) impressive reproduction of my favorite target recordings. That seems to be the Berries in your case. I've never used them, though--I'm just thinking hypothetically here.

Good luck, my friend. I'm sure you'll make a wise choice.

J.
 
Thanks guys.

To be honest, I am kinda leaning towards keeping my 'Truths'. They are impressive monitors, and I guess I was trying to be sure that the preferable sound I get from them, doesn't just stem from the fact that I have had a longer relationship with them. I just wonder to myself - which of these sets might really capture my taste if equal time had been given them. Who knows, though: I just may hold off on that Audio Interface, and keep both sets - in the event that my 'Truths' decide to, one day, get tired :).

Blessings,
Nathan
 
Yeah, having two sets to AB would be the best of all worlds. If you do have to choose, let me ask you this... do the Berries make a great recording sound great and a flawed recording sound flawed? The point of good monitors, of course, is to "reveal" the sound in an honest way. But you knew that.

Best,
J.
 
jeffree said:
Yeah, having two sets to AB would be the best of all worlds. If you do have to choose, let me ask you this... do the Berries make a great recording sound great and a flawed recording sound flawed? The point of good monitors, of course, is to "reveal" the sound in an honest way. But you knew that.

Best,
J.
Click to expand...

Jeffree,

The 'berries' aren't bad at all, as far as what "I" know to expect from such type monitors. However, on recent reading-ups on the 'translational' aspect of same, I am beginning to think that I may have been looking at them wrongly. I really like what emanates from them, while tracking, but I have a little work cut out for me in the 'mixing, arena. First, allow me to clarify that my preferred genre of music is lite jazz/easy listening. If I relied solely on these monitors, for mix-downs, I'd find the top-end too light, and the bottom-end much too prominent. Consequently, I may find myself burning down more than a few copies of different mixes, before I am thoroughly satisfied. Now, it is a truism that I am nowhere even near engineer status, but - from what I have been given to understand - one should be able to travel the entire mixing route with whatever monitors he/she has (providing, of course, that said monitors are of caliber enough to 'cut-the-mustard').

As it is in my case, I will track with my Truths, and then go to my DAW's Klipsch's for mixdowns. In that manner, I seem to get much closer to the output of what others are listening through. It would be SO nice to be able to track AND mix via the nearfields. Then again, though, that doesn't have to be the monitors; it could very well be 'ME' :).
 
It's not easy for me either, Nate. I'm still very green as an engineer, so I always burn a few mixes along the way to check the overall balances (EQ, L-R, DSP, etc.)--and it's still never quite there. The good news is that I can usually hear the weaknesses; the bad news, I sometimes don't have enough skill nor time to fix them. Things do get better with each new recording, though, so I guess I'm learning a little something each time. Then again, as I wrote before, my home studio is for fun, so I never worry too much about anything.

By the way, one feature of my monitors that has really helped is the variety of EQ adjustments. Sadly, I can't change my studio space much (my wife uses the room as her studio, too), but tweaking those EQ switches--including the sub balance--has really helped me to produce mixes that travel fairly well. Without those subtle EQ options, I'd be guessing way too much.

Best,
J.
 
jeffree said:
It's not easy for me either, Nate. I'm still very green as an engineer, so I always burn a few mixes along the way to check the overall balances (EQ, L-R, DSP, etc.)--and it's still never quite there. The good news is that I can usually hear the weaknesses; the bad news, I sometimes don't have enough skill nor time to fix them. Things do get better with each new recording, though, so I guess I'm learning a little something each time. Then again, as I wrote before, my home studio is for fun, so I never worry too much about anything. By the way, one feature of my monitors that has really helped is the variety of EQ adjustments. Sadly, I can't change my studio space much (my wife uses the room as her studio, too), but tweaking those EQ switches--including the sub balance--has really helped me to produce mixes that travel fairly well. Without those subtle EQ options, I'd be guessing way too much.

Best,

J.
Click to expand...

LOL, buddy (I, too, am in pretty much the same boat).

I have so much fun creating music, and sharing with family & friends these creations which fill my head (It really is a 'fun' thing for me, too). My little studio setup is in a room shared with our children. There are two computers in this room; My DAW, and the PC that our children use for their homework, and other interests. So, as you can see by this, there are a good number of limitations barring my way for true 'studio-type' betterment ;). But we do what we can - with what we have to work with, don't we ;).

Blessings,
Nathan
 
I would keep them both. You'll be lucky if the Behringers last more than a few years. Believe me I know from experience. Everybody says Behringer is crap....well partially they're correct. The B2031A sound not too bad for the price and are quite loud, BUT with the lower price tag you get lower quality control. If you were going to buy them new I would say that if you can pay for your investment in the first 6 months of using them then go for it, but if you're going to be choked about losing your 300-500 bucks that you payed for them when they die in a year, then don't bother. But since you already own them, a back-up set of reference monitors may come in handy!
 
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