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moving out for college and need to choose a pair of studio monitors before leaving
Hey, so next month i'm planning on buying some studio monitors that I can take with me when I move out for college in a couple of months.
These will be the first pair of studio monitors I've ever purchased, so I might need a bit of help choosing.
I'm looking to produce some sexy, groovy tech house/funk/electro/techno (popof-ish?) - basically all those combined in one.
I'll be moving into an apartment so I'm not sure if that will be a big issue for producing because of the volume levels and stuff (mean neighbors possibly?)..
I don't want to waste over 500 for a pair, i'll consider it if it's near 500 but I want to buy something lower or much lower if possible. I obviously want the most accurate studio monitors that won't lie to me. If I can get cheap monitors that are very accurate, that'd be great.
The ones right now that have caught my attention due to some reviews i've read are the Alesis M1 Active MK2 Studio Monitors ($250 for a pair on ebay.) and the Mackie MR8's ($420 for a pair on ebay).. I've heard mixed reviews about the Rokit's by KRK so i'm not so sure about those.. What do you guys think about those studio monitors? do you guys suggest any other ones?
also, do you guys know what type of studio monitors certain famous producers use? just curious.
thanks!!
HD 650
Apparently Tocadisco and Pryda use them, and then were highly rated by Sound on Sound.
They are pretty nice. Got them on Amazon for 350.
Go for the Rokits.. they aren't greatest, but for under 500, they are pretty decent... You can usually find a recording package along with them or a deal with them and sound isolation pads bundled along with them.
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| Originally posted by Beatflux HD 650 Apparently Tocadisco and Pryda use them, and then were highly rated by Sound on Sound. They are pretty nice. Got them on Amazon for 350. |
The rokits do lack in the low end which makes monitoring those frequencies more difficult. I know you don't want to hear this, but you'd really be hard pressed to find an 'accurate' monitor for under $500. I find doing lots of A/B comparisons to tracks where you like the sound over and over again gets the job done with any lower end monitors $500 and below. You also have to consider what kind of music the reviewers are doing. Someone monitoring for rock would have a very different taste than someone monitoring for dance music.
I still always recommend going to your local music store with an ipod and ask to see if you can listen to a bunch of tracks on different monitors.
There are those that argue that you need a perfectly flat monitor, others argue otherwise, but I think the best pair of monitors are ones where you can accurately hear as much detail in the music and mixing style of producers who have mixes that you find are good. I find on completely flat monitors, my ears have a tendency to reduce the harsh mids too much giving my tracks a very disco smile effect (which sounds absolutely trash on another system).
With that in mind, when I went to the store with my ipod and listened to about 5 tracks on a bunch of speakers in the $800-$1000 range, I quickly found that I liked the KRK VXT6's and I've found them to be a world of a difference (but also double the price) compared to Rokits or m-audio AV-40's. In that range, the Adam A7 has a slightly better review, but I knew I couldn't stand to listen to dance music on those speakers for an extended period of time. I still can't hear every detail possible, and will eventually need a sub to my setup but it sure makes mixing easy for me when the sound I want in my mixes is represented well in the monitors I'm listening from.
From a recent thread:
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| Originally posted by DJ RANN I've written so many threads on this subject discussing all the choices in this thread and I'm trying to refrain from my usual posts on the subject of monitors (LSR 2325p, HS80's, FocalTwins, Barefoots in that order relating to price group) but whatever you do stay away from KRK period. The VXT's are just shit as the rest of the range. the BM5's are great, as are Gene's. Adams, whilst they present great detail, are too bright IMO and I've tested them extensively. My advice is to: either go all the way and get focal twins, or to go for HS80's and room treatment. If you can't produce on either those then it's a problem with you, not your kit. Oh, and palm is exactly right in that Subs will not help your produce in stereo, as there is no discrete LFE channel. |
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| Originally posted by DJ RANN quote: Originally posted by Zombie0729 def try the Focal's man and the Adam's. You can't trust online reviews until you've heard them yourself. I abused guitar centers 30 day return policy, i tried 4 sets of speakers before i picked Same here. I drove my local GC's (two of them) fucking crazy testing shit for hours over several weeks. Nik, here's some previous posts to save you trawling through tons of threads..... quote: Originally posted by DJ RANN tbh, the mackie HR824 are known for, if anything, sounding a bit too sweet (if you disclude that muddy bit and scoop between upper bass and lower mid), so you're going to be hard pushed to find something that rapes you less. The only monitors I can think of are going to set you back some serious coin: Focal twins ($2k). Quested VS2108 ($3k pair) Barefoots ($4k) PMC MB2's ($10k pair) I've used all of them (the Quested and PMC's we have at the studio) and I think the first three on that list would be a great upgrade (especially the Focals or Barefoots) but honestly I would exhaust all other possibilities first - If you're getting fatigue with HR824's then maybe your room and listening position need to be looked at. Is your monitor system calibrated to the K ssystem - if not I think this is probably going to change everything for you as you physically can't clip without making your ears bleed an it teaches you monitor at suitable volumes. quote: Originally posted by DJ RANN I explained everything in this thread. You can't ever really do a fully scientifically controlled test unless you had a completely controlled environment and the space to set them up so you could A/B all of them without interference. The best I could do was a comparitive test, taking the environment and placement in to consideration, so really they were all subject to the same disadvantages, then seeing if that same flaw (and positives) presented in the other listening environments, to really see if they were common traits of each monitor. I'm also an engineer so I've used a lot of monitors professionally and some of my feedback is based on my experience in professional studio environments (not bedroom or project studios). http://www.tranceaddict.com/forums/...d=&pagenumber=5 And from the above thread..... quote: Originally posted by DJ RANN Finally, I've had time to sit down and write a review. Preface: I listened to every monitor they had at two different guitar centers and one other pro audio store. I listened to mainly electronic music (becuase the whole point of this was it's for us) but also checked some classical such as Chopin, Bach and Bartok for more diverse reference. I used the same music sources and went on several occaisions. Bear in mind this is a comparitive test in every sense; going from my hifi speakers at home (Scnadyna Minipods) and Custom Quested VS2108's and B&W 802's (albeit less experience on the latter two for electronic music but still having referenced all the test material first on these several times). This was not a blind test but but I tried to remain objective between models on really noting differences first then overall perception. I set the monitors and the system so the volumes were as equal as could get them so A/Bing would be accurate with the same material. I don;t care for aesthetics ubnless the thing is just plain fugly, in which case I'll state it. Finally this is all my own subjective opinion. This thread is about monitors, for the studio to the review I did is with that in mind as the primary requisite. I'll start with the most noticeable things in no particular order: Firstly, nearly all the 5 inch monitors, from every brand fell short in bass and/or mid reproduction. The ones that really felt lacking compared to their larger same brand alternatives were the KRK's and the Yama's, partly becuase the larger version were quite good and partly becuase the smallers were so bad. The mackies/tapco's in 5 inch sizes (mr5's etc) were lacking a lot of detail but probably good for small home DJ setup and these went seroiusly loud before distorting. The HR624 were very crisp in the upper mids and hi's and but had so much bass response lacking they would be unusable for a serious monitoring setup. I would find it quite difficult to get a bass mix right on these without secondary referencing. The bluesky monitors were good, if not some of the best smaller monitors but not quite enough to challenge the bigger monitors. They wer well balanced with good detail and a good amount of bass for their size but it did get a little muddy in the upper mid and the very low bass rolled off sharply. These were also quite pricey for what they were bearing in mind their competition. The mackie HR824's were, at one point my monitor of choice, and even though a large part of mixing with monitors is knowing them, the more I've got to know them the less I like them. I find their mids very pronounced, bass hugely extended and hi's generally good. However, they have one of the biggest (and misleading) stereo spreads combinedwith a hige sweet spot meaning mixes done on them that sound wide and full come out narrow and lacking on most other systems. Also the bass is becoming my main gripe with these. I used to love it, but now I find a definite muddyness in between the lower mid and bass and have problems listening to subtle differences in these bands to the point I can;t hear what's going on. Don;t get me wrong - these are good monitors, but personally, I wouldn't shell out the $1000 per pair anymore as there's others that do a great job.... The KRK's: I would go through the models individually but all them (yes all of them) suffered from one common problem: there was this lack of fine detail accross the whole rnage of frequencies. It's wierd - none of them stood out as terrible but because of this problem, none of them stood out as fantastic. It's like a screen of material was placed over the driver. In fact the VRX8 were quite difficult to hear what was going on at all becuase like the mackies they suffer from the huge and unnatural stereo image. They were my least favourite 8inch monitors. of the larger monitors (6inch+) , the ones that stood out were the Dynaudios BM5A, BM6A, Adam A7, Quested F11, Yamaha HS80m. The dynaudios were superb in detail with strangly enough the BM5a's sounding slightly more natural than the BM6's due to the overall balance of the frequencies. The BM6 have more bass but the detail was just outstanding on the BM5's. The only critiscism of the BM5's was that they did lack bass slightly - It's like they slowly roll of at 100hz but that was the only flaw I could find and that can be adjusted for. They also did not change frequency balance depending on gain, which the BM6's did ever so slightly (bass got a tiny bit more pronounced as you went higher). The Adam A7's were simply incredible with Hi's - crisp and sizzling, nothing else came close but the mid and bass felt lacking and they were not as clear as the Dynaudios and would not give a true representation of bass frequencies I felt. The HS80's were quite great in general. The bass full and deep without being muddy or overpowering, the mids nice and clear and the hi's just nice and present. I felt you could listen to these for hours and they wouldn't even take long to get used to. The only problem is that you need a bog room as they begin to boom in a smaller room (as one of the test sites did). They don't have a misleading huge stereo image and I felt quite comfortable hearing productions I've made. These were in my top three especially as they are cheaper than a lot of other monitors. Alesis m1 mk2 - not massively impressed but the again I never have been with these. They're not terrible and you can mix on them but again I find the lack of definition annoying, especially in the bass frequences. Now for the surpise.....the moonitors that got me to part with money? JBL LSR 2325 - New 5 inch monitors from JBL. Why? becuase for $400 (less with my discount ) nothing else in that price bracket sounded anywhere near as good. I was torn between the HS80's (too big) the BM5's (too much $$$) or these. They are small, clear powerhouses! The bass is sharp and defined, the mids clear and punchy without being boxed in and the hi's are just right to give detail without inducing fatigue (hi's are what always get me tired in a session). The main thing I like is that it's like having larger monitors wihout needed the space for them, They sound like 6 or 8 inch monitors in terms of bass response but can be used in small room. The stereo image is broad but not too wide and so far translation is so easy. No weird spikes or compensation. There were no reviews on these anywhere (they were only out for 4 days when I bought them) so I was taking a big chance but I can say that after two weeks of owning them I am seriously pleased. honestly nothing comes close at this price and they just destroyed every other monitor in terms of perforamnce at that price range. Sorry for the wall of text, but honestly it's all been covered before. I may do an update in the next few months to see if any new offering change my mind but for the mmediate future this info still stands completely true for me. |
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| Originally posted by DJ RANN From a recent thread: Apologies for the wall of text but it's worth it: Simply put STAY AWAY FROM KRK. Buy HS80's if you have a big room, JBL LSR 2325P is you're on a tight budget and Genelecs or Dynaudio if you have a bit more money, and focals or barefoots if you have a ton of money and a professional grade audio interface. |
If you're moving into an apartment and going to college, I wouldn't buy monitors at all tbh...
You have to consider that you're going to be short on time, and that means you'll do most of your producing at night, which means you won't be able to turn them up anyway.
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| Originally posted by Conway Twitty you get some smaller monitors like Focal CMS40. Doesnt play loud or with alot bass but definitly plays clear as hell. Which is most important imo. Especially in a small college apartment. In the same class (direct oponent) you have also the Genelec 8020. And the smalles DynAudio of course. Remember you are looking for desktop nearfields. 8" woofers is not recomended for that. |
oh palm. always getting into all sorts of ban-worthy hijinx.
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| Originally posted by Conway Twitty you get some smaller monitors like Focal CMS40. Doesnt play loud or with alot bass but definitly plays clear as hell. Which is most important imo. Especially in a small college apartment. In the same class (direct oponent) you have also the Genelec 8020. And the smalles DynAudio of course. Remember you are looking for desktop nearfields. 8" woofers is not recomended for that. |
I love my 8040�s but only speakers i trust is my car speakers. That point i always hear if the mix aint right. Too bad i cant connect my laptop to it. I wouldnt buy krks myself but even one of my favorite producers fonzerelli uses them so i guess they cant be that bad.
In memory of Nate Dogg, I'ma regulate this thread.
Firstly, Fuck KRK's. Seriously, the only reason they're everywhere is good marketing & deep margin for pro audio sellers. Trust me on this - I was sales manager for the largest pro audio retailer Europe.
I can't say it any other way. You could buy any one of about half a dozen monitors, in the same price brackets as any model in the KRK range and get a better speaker.
So please, people stop fucking suggesting KRK's or posting up pictures of producers using KRK's.
I've got a lot of respect for Genelex - the 8020's are good small monitors but they get way too harsh when played loud and their bass response tails off below 100hz. They're great for detail and clarity but not quite accurate for bass, and for EDM, that's a deal breaker IMO.
8040's are fucking superb but at $2300 per pair (before tax), I'd reach for the focal twins every time in an A/B shootout.
As for teh CMS40's I think they're kind of a stupid product. They're great in terms of detail, but at $800 per pair, you can get something which has far better bass response and similar clarity, like the HS80's or Dynaudio BM5's, which again IMO are better monitors for less money.
@utdarsenal - Kit has a point, you have to figure out if you're going to be able to play music at monitoring volume. If you can, then great go for, otherwise get some good headphones and some cheap monitors - no point spending $$$ on monitors that can't be used like the should be.
I actually bought, based of my monitor shootout sessions, the JBL LSR2325p, and after 6 months of use I have to say I'm deleriously happy with them. Good spectrum response, damn clear and detailed, very nice stereo image and fir my small producing space very well. In fact tehy are the only small monitors I've ever
There's simply nothing on the market sub $500 that touches them IMO.
If I had a larger room I would have got the HS80s but I knew they were going to need space to present, and I just don't have it.
So my advice is, JBL LSR2325p if you're going cheap or have a small room and go Hs80's if it's a bigger room.
Get Focal Twins if you've got a couple of grand and barfoots if you've just robbed a bank and have wood inducing audio interface.
fuck you too
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| Originally posted by Notle fuck you too |
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| Originally posted by Conway Twitty lol what? |
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| Originally posted by RANN "stop fucking suggesting KRK's or posting up pictures of producers using KRK's." |
some people can make awesome music on anything, that doenst mean everyone can - most people need every help they can get, and good monitors is the first step. weve had this discussion before. KRK isnt really good monitors, they are more home audio speakers making everything sounds better than it actually is. For djeing, pure listening, party etc this could be very nice. They play loud, slightly bassy and they sound warm and fuzzy. But they dont reveal anything which is a monitors main task.
Most famous people that use KRK use it because of sponsorship, as Rann said KRK is awesome at promoting themselfs and this is one of the ways they are doing it. The famous people using KRK didnt get famous using KRK, cause KRK havent been that long on the market. Its rather the other way, that KRK got famous because they are now used by already big artists (because they get money for it). These people already know how to produce so they can probably do it on anything. Why not get free stuff and maybe some money for it then?
Im just saying theres more behind stuff than people really believe in this capitalists world. Nothing is what it seems. Remember the interview on the dude claiming to be producing on computer speakers? Probably because he didnt wanted to choose any monitor to represent, even if he sure has a favorite. Its all about marketing and he was probably waiting for the better deal. I remember finding a picture from his older studio, with infact, KRK monitors. Before the interview. But on the interview he had removed them. Money related im sure.
edit: theres also personal taste in the picture. people like different things. producers most would want it to be as neutral as possible, regardless of their actual taste, in order to be critical to their own production. For this Reason many people have two sets of monitors. One for production, one for listening (their favorite sound).
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| Originally posted by Notle I dont like this guys attitude, always telling whats right and wrong. I can see he knows stuff but theres no always right answers to every question. Atleast he doesnt know them all. Guy who started this thread wanted to know what famous producers use and i give him one view and then Rann comes and tells me you cant do that!! Funny because I didnt praise the krks or anything , i just post a pic. And if that guy in pic can make awesome music with krks so can everybody else. So fuck Rann. |
Conway i doubt this guy gets any money from krk. I can almost bet on it. (but i know what you mean) And i believe hes actually using them because i can hear his mixes isnt so good.
Rann: i dont give a shit about krks, just to let you know. I just dont like you (writing style) and your advices. Every fucking thread always the same advice. You ever get bored? I could do that too if i had no life. And leave my pictures alone, i can post any fucking picture here related to producing if i want to. I personally like watching pictures of producers because its interesting way more than your same advices on every fucking thread. I dont even need them, i already know the same shit.
Anyone else in this forum see here that i just posted a pic of a producer using krk? which i believe he actually is using in real life! Why because i think i can hear that his mixes isnt that good. And you cant find that pic anywhere but his personal facebook profile. So i dont believe his promoting them.
I dont have actually anything against anyone of your adivices. Little bit boring sometimes if i accidently go one of these threads 
I just dont like ranns offensive style.
Just buy the yamaha hs , i guess thats what everybody heres telling for ages.
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| Originally posted by runcmd his (and the rest of us) give the same advices as the same questions keep coming up. if people learned to use the search, or we would sticky the most common topics, it wouldnt have to be repeated all the time, but as everything is now unfortunately we have to repeat ourselfs like twice a week. if you dont like the advices, and dont need it either, I dont see why you bother reading them, atleast when you have red them before. It would have been weird if our suggestions changed every week amirite? Ranns suggestion are amongs the few that are worth anything around here, I agree that is repeatative but thats the forums fault, not Rann. Im reapeting myself too with my Genelec and Echo Audiofire. And that analog is lame. Everyone has a mind and its not changing every month, therefore you get the same answers over and over again when the same questions are asked all the time. |
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| Originally posted by DJ RANN As for posting the pictures post up whatever you want but I'm just saying posting up some picture of a guy sitting in front of KRK's for monitor advice thread is about as useful as an ejector seat on a helicopter. |
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| Originally posted by Notle I dont like this guys attitude, always telling whats right and wrong. I can see he knows stuff but theres no always right answers to every question. Atleast he doesnt know them all. Guy who started this thread wanted to know what famous producers use and i give him one view and then Rann comes and tells me you cant do that!! Funny because I didnt praise the krks or anything , i just post a pic. And if that guy in pic can make awesome music with krks so can everybody else. So fuck Rann. |
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| Originally posted by DJ RANN As for posting the pictures post up whatever you want but I'm just saying posting up some picture of a guy sitting in front of KRK's for monitor advice thread is about as useful as an ejector seat on a helicopter. |
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| Originally posted by MrJiveBoJingles Some helicopters do have ejection seats. They also have mechanisms that throw the propeller off in the event of a crash before ejection kicks in, though. Just sayin'. |
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