Studio Monitors

[jparker]

Hey guys, I joined Taxi last Year, but I'm new to the forums.
I've got a question about your opinions on near-field studio monitors. I'm currently using M-Audio BX5A's and I just treated my room with Auralex pads, bass traps, and wall and ceiling treatments. Now I'm hearing new sounds that happen to include slight distortion on the high end and some rattle and buzz that is coming directly from the port of one of the speakers, so I'm thinking its time for a new set and retire the M-audios to a B set. An engineer told me that I need at least 8 in woofers in the speakers for my room size. Any body have any suggestions on what brand works for you? I was looking at JBL, either 4300 series or 2300 series with the MSC controller. Anyone have experience with these or other monitors in the $1000 to $1500 price range?

Thanks in advance.

[rnrmachine]

You will not go wrong with JBL, a well known and well established company.

I could list a ton of others you could look at but it would just confuse the issue, imho. I could only give you options. I could not recomend anything that I know is better so I will not recomend anything other then your choice is a solid choice.

Unless someone knows of a current deal going on somewhere... which I do not.

Rob

EDIT: Oh yea, welcome to the forum!!!

[kclements]

I upgraded my studio last year from Roland Ds-90s to Adam A5's and I really love them. They are small but have a great sound. And you can add a Sub if you like, but I haven't found a reason yet to need one. I would for sure take a listen to the Adams. I have also heard really great things about Focal monitors, but I haven't actually heard them.

[mojobone]

Adam A7, Mackie HR824 Mk II, Genelec, Dynaudio Acoustics are some other mid-level names you could check out; if you're looking into a significant upgrade, take a look at Focal Twin and Event Opal. If you can budget $8k or more, Barefoot audio has some nice stuff, too. Welcome to the forum!

[mazz]

Adam just came out with a new line that looks very good and is in your price range. I'm interested in them as well and will look for a place to audition them.

http://www.adam-audio.com/en/pro-audio/ ... escription

The thing is, with monitors, it's a very personal thing. Some folks love Genelecs, some hate them, and so forth. It's probably not as contentious as Mac vs. PC discussions, but every bit as personal preference oriented.

The moral of the story is, make sure you can listen to the speakers before you buy them. Ideally it would be good if you could listen to them in your room but that might not be possible.

I agree that 8 inch woofers are a good size for a lot of rooms your size. You could go with a subwoofer, but if you do, it could take some experimentation with placement of the woofer and getting the level of it right. I'm not very familiar with mixing with subwoofers so I can't speak about it, but I've had good luck with my Event Project Studio 8s for several years now.

[jparker]

Thanks for all your suggestions guys. I'll look into some of these brands before I plunge into JBL land. I was looking at the JBL because of the room correction features, but from what I read the MSC-1 controller is supposed to work with all monitors. The Auralex treatments really did amazing things to my room and I didn't even hear the problems going on in my existing speakers until after I installed the foam pads. Speaking of the Auralex system, and this is a little off-subject, but does anyone know how to keep a pet cat away from the foam? I have a few ideas but the ASPCA would not approve.

Thanks again for all your responses.

[ernstinen]

I know you guys think that I'm a broken record, but almost every studio in the world has a pair of old Yamaha NS-10Ms. I bought mine about 25 years ago for about $400/pair, and have auditioned many speakers since then, and bought KRK V-6s. But both those monitors have 6" woofers, so especially the NS-10s need a nice sub where you can dial in how much bottom you want for your room. The KRKs have almost TOO much bottom at my listening position, so I do a "hi-tech" modification: Stuff hand towels into the bass ports!

Yamaha doesn't make NS-10s anymore, and on eBay they're going for about $900/pair or so. But they're probably beat to sh!t. Plus, it's hard to find replacement drivers for them these days. BUT, for midrange accuracy, I haven't heard any other speakers that translate as well to the "real world" as NS-10s (but they need an amplifier, which might change your mind).

That said, I haven't listened to the newer speakers in 2-3 years. Personally, I'd go to a big store with a quiet room with tons of speakers, and bring CDs that you know REALLY well. Spend a couple of hours. Sit pretty closely to the speakers, and make a choice, at different volumes. I know it's really tough, but at some time you have to make a decision. You'll have no idea how the speakers will sound in YOUR room until you get them to your studio. Make sure you get a "return" policy if they don't work for you!

My 2 pesos,

Ernesto

[t4mh]

I wish there was a way I could upgrade my ears. Not sure I can take advantage of really excellent monitors beyond what I have. Hmm...maybe Beltone makes reference monitors.

Keith

[fullbirdmusic]

I know you guys think that I'm a broken record, but almost every studio in the world has a pair of old Yamaha NS-10Ms. I bought mine about 25 years ago for about $400/pair, and have auditioned many speakers since then, and bought KRK V-6s. But both those monitors have 6" woofers, so especially the NS-10s need a nice sub where you can dial in how much bottom you want for your room. The KRKs have almost TOO much bottom at my listening position, so I do a "hi-tech" modification: Stuff hand towels into the bass ports!

Yamaha doesn't make NS-10s anymore, and on eBay they're going for about $900/pair or so. But they're probably beat to sh!t. Plus, it's hard to find replacement drivers for them these days. BUT, for midrange accuracy, I haven't heard any other speakers that translate as well to the "real world" as NS-10s (but they need an amplifier, which might change your mind).

That said, I haven't listened to the newer speakers in 2-3 years. Personally, I'd go to a big store with a quiet room with tons of speakers, and bring CDs that you know REALLY well. Spend a couple of hours. Sit pretty closely to the speakers, and make a choice, at different volumes. I know it's really tough, but at some time you have to make a decision. You'll have no idea how the speakers will sound in YOUR room until you get them to your studio. Make sure you get a "return" policy if they don't work for you!

My 2 pesos,

Ernesto

They're not quite in the price range (about half, actually), but the Yamaha HS80M speakers are supposed to be damn close to the NS-10s. I use the HS50Ms and think they're great. I don't have the sub, though. Frequency response is down to 55Hz on the 5" woofers and I think 42Hz on the bigger woofers. Decent. I've heard the KRKs in comparison are not nearly as good. YOu can get the HS80Ms for $350. Might be too low-budget for you, however.
Like mazz said, monitors are something that are very personal and very subjective. Take your time and most importantly - have fun! Good luck.

[rnrmachine]

but the Yamaha HS80M speakers are supposed to be damn close to the NS-10s

I thought Yamaha made a new version of their "necessary evil" speakers.

Rob