My monitors have pissed me off for 3 years!

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Lorde

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Hey all....Thanks for reading my thread! I appreciate it! Anyway....I have the Alesis M1 actives and listen to a lot of music on my computer, but when I use Nuendo/Cubase SX and mixdown my music It becomes such a guessing game cause my monitors do not mix well. I can rarely hear bass so usually after I think I have a good mix, I burn a disc and play it wherever I can, and the bass and highs are huge! I have learned to compensate, but it is still a crap shoot....I usually get it in about 4 mixes compared to 3 years ago when I got these and went through 12 mixes before finally just letting go and being happy with what I had.

I am an intern engineer(although not presently employed), and know now I will get new monitors this week! haha

I am thinking of these in particular:
Mackie HR828
KRK v-8 series 2
Event Studio Precision 8s
M-Audio BX8s
not the Behringer Truths(too much risk)!

Now I have to go to frickin guitar center and try to listen to some...I don't even know what they carry since I hate that place. I usually order everything online. But I have read many interesting posts regarding monitors on this site, but haven't heard too much about KRKs? I know they have that new Rocket line, but do these even come close to the v-8s?

I know I will have to spend some dow, but I hope not too much to get it so I can do a rough mix and be pretty happy with it? And I won't spend $2500 on some ADAMs to do it. I don't need monitors that make you music sound good...Just make it sound so you can hear the flaws, and ones that mix well!!! Bottom Line!

Thanks all....Lorde ;)
 
the mackies sound GOOD. Too good according too massive master. Sorry i cant give ya any real advice... at least a bump... ;)
 
Lorde,

> I can rarely hear bass so usually after I think I have a good mix, I burn a disc and play it wherever I can <

There are two separate issues: One is having loudspeakers that are reasonably flat down to at least 60-70 Hz and hopefully lower. The other is your room is skewing the low end badly, creating peaks and severe nulls. New speakers can help with the first part - I'm partial to the Mackie 824s - but to fix the room you need bass traps.

For an overview of these issues see the Acoustics FAQ, second in the list on my Articles page:

www.ethanwiner.com/articles.html

--Ethan
 
Lorde, a tip: buy a few of your top contenders a try them in your studio space. I did the same and was a bit surprised by my final pick. I bought two models on-line and another from GC--and then returned the two pairs I didn't like. Most interesting to me was how a rather highly rated monitor sounded very weak in my own studio space (I knew within 10 seconds), and a less popular monitor sounded brilliant. I sampled all sorts of my favorite pro CDs as well as my own music, of course.

I guess the moral is always the same: when it comes to musical taste, each of us is different, and each of our studio spaces is different. One size does not fit all when it comes to listening choices, so recommendations become only mildly helpful, at best.

Good luck,

J.
 
Thanks for the replies gentlemen!

Thanks for the links Ethan....and thanks for the advice Jeff.

I went to GC tonight and checked out some monitors and here is what I liked and did not! I will just talk about the ones I was kinda looking for!

Out of the 3 that I tested the most...The Mackie HR824s, the KRK V8s, and the Event Studio Precision 8s, here is what I liked and disliked...

The Mackies were good! Almost too flat, not enough bass response for me...It had bass, but I had to listen for it! They are beautiful! GC has them for $699 a piece.

The Events are Huge! Really big size! They sound really good as well...Istill think they lack on the bass a bit, but you do hear a lot of nuance in them. I got a bit of ear fatigue with them, but this might be do to the fact that GC doesn't really fine tune them I don't think? Maybe they do? They had them for $649 a piece

the KRK V8s are kinda ugly, bulky, but they pound! I thought these had the most bass punch and clarity...no ear fatigue. Sounded the best for MY mixes! I am sure not everyones! It didn't make my mixes sound good, just brought out the problems I was looking for! GC had these for $499 a piece.

I tried the KRK RP-8s and they are okay for $245 a piece if you new, but they are nothing to cheer about.

So, there you have it...The big 3 are all great, just in different ways. I am glad I went down there...

I wish I could have heard the M-Audio BX8s, cause I know I want 8" woofers? But I might have to pass anyway since I just found the KRK v8s new at an online retailer for $599 a pair...that is correct...a pair...new! BRILLIANT! So I will order tommorow probably!

What do you guys think? Thanks....Lorde! :eek:
 
Jeffree....Which 3 did you try, and which did you go with? Thanks...Lorde
 
hmm. Guess they don't ship to europe, asked them though. Why is it that being european makes me pay more the same? Damn.
 
Lorde,

> The Mackies were good! Almost too flat, not enough bass response <

The Mackie HR824 is extremely flat, and I think its bass response is quite remarkable. Since you commented on the other speakers being bass shy too, I'll assume the problem was either the source material or the room. Did the store demo them in a small room having no bass traps? That will skew the low frequency response every time!

--Ethan
 
Lorde,

I'm a semi-pro studio guitarist, and I set up a small studio at home for some of my more non-commercial efforts. I needed very small desktop monitors and wanted to stay in line with my overall budget set-up, powered by a Yamaha aw16g DAW. I set the price range at $300-400 for a pair of actives, and I read about and listened to everything I could find one year ago and bought a three models to test right in my home.

I'll just mention two here today as an example of my previous post: the Alesis MkII actives and M-Audio BX-5 actives--both of which barely fit into my space. I had high hopes for the Alesis since I'd read so many positive reviews, even in rather objective mags like SOS. I fired them up and ran quite a few pro CDs as well as my own stuff through them for many hours. What greeted me--in my small studio space--was a very bass heavy, rather muddled sound that I found absolutely impossible to work with. When mixing in a regular full-service studio, I prefer a much brighter sound and even my attempts to plug both bass ports and move the Alesis's around gave me nothing close to a useable sound--for me and my tastes. I'm sure, though, that these Alesis do indeed work well for other folks, with different studio acoustics and different listening preferences. But since these monitors did not allow me to fine-tune the EQ in any way (short of stuffing socks in the bass ports), I couldn't work with them.

The next day, I plugged in the BX5's and ran the same listening tests. The sound, for me, reminded me of how my ears open up after a long cold--everything was clear and open, even if the bass put out by the little 5" woofer was barely adequate (as I'd expected). The bass was clear enough, though, even punchy, but those mids and highs were so smooth and clear... and my first mix translated quite well to a few other systems. In the end, I decided to keep the BX5s since they fit my particular acoustic space so well; also, I realized that I could add the matching M-Audio sub in the future if I needed it for more bass-heavy music.

I should add that I learned a few important lessons about buying monitors that work for me: (1) test them and compare them in my own space before deciding, and (2) buy monitors what allow for some fine tuning of EQ since I'm unable to change my studio space, which doubles as a spare dining room
(adding foam baffles would not sit well with my wife). More and more models area allowing such subtle EQ-room adaptation, and I couldn't agree more with the need for folks like me who have small home studios with no possibility of
changing the acoustic space much. Since I bought my BX5s, I've noticed, for example, that Mackie/Tapco was come out with the adaptable S5s ($349/pr.), which I certainly would consider if buying now.

Of course, if I had the room, I'd probably lean toward the larger M-Audio BX8s or Tapco S8s or other newer models in the $400+/pr. price range. And if I upgrade my studio one day, I'd definitely look at KRKs and Mackies and others at much higher price points. For now, though, I'm mixing happily and effectively with these little BX5s and couldn't be happier with my choice. The sub, though, will really rock my world, and it gives me something to write to Santa about this December.

Happy hunting in your own quest,

J.

P.S. I've since read that some talented folks like Ray Charles, Carlos Rios, and BT are using the little BX5s in their home/portable studios, so I know that my ears haven't lost too much from 20+ years of high-level sound. I'm at least in good company although I know that each user has special needs and preferences when it comes to music. I've learned that recommendations by anyone, even a pro, are just a starting point point for me, nothing more.
 
I have the SP5Bs, the prior version of the BX5s, with the matching sub. Excellent translation and sound. I would not mind having a little more detail in the upper mids which Mackies provide but these really work great here. The sub is mandatory in my experience and eliminates excessive bass in the mix across other speakers.
 
A good point, Mid. By the way, I recently read an interview with BT in Keyboard mag (online) in which he states that he has a full surround system with the BX5s and matching sub. He raves about them.

J.
 
Thanks guys!

Thanks again guys for all the posts! I appreciate it! Ethan....thanks a bunch...I should get my room pinked....Can I buy a kit somewhere? Thanks for the info if you have any?

The bass trap issue is why I was considering the new JBL LSR6328s cause you get a room test kit, and can compensate on all frequencies....So they would be cool too whenever you move, or if you do mobile monitoring! But, they are $2000....which is quite a bit....Do I think they are worth it....Yes! They are just too spendy for me, and maybe even too loud...The LF amp is rated at 250w...and the HF is I think 150w....wow!

I did order today the KRK v8s from www.instrumentpro.com For $599.50 new how can you pass that up? They are not the new series II, but who cares...I demoed these at GC, cause they don't have the series II yet, and there they are $499 a piece! I emailed instrumentpro.com too, and they said they are not B-Stock, or opened item...They said they currently have no open items in stock of anything? I was watching an auction on ebay yesterday and a used pair of these went for $703. I had to get them at that price!

I do understand with the sub, I wish I could run one, but my soundcard won't allow it, unless I can go SPDIF digital out to a powered sub? Is this possible?

Anyway thanks guys...this is one forum that has been very nice and helpfull! I appreciate all.....Rock on! Lorde :)
 
You want the Monitors to be flat...do you want good mixes or a set of speakers for you Hoopdee. :rolleyes:
 
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