Apr 21, 2010 05:46 am check out EMES man, not sure what dey be worth over yonder but they are good speakers.
Finally at the purchasing stage - monitors
Posted on Apr 20, 2010 07:51 pm
Fragile
Member Since: Sep 30, 2009
So, i've had 2 or 3 threads on this sort of thing already, mostly preliminary research stuff. But today Guitar Center just had to tempt me with a $50 off coupon if i spend $350 or more. AND 6 months no interest financing. Thats a combo i just can't resist right now. So, here's my dilema.
I've been researching the brands i *feel* comfortable with so far, mostly the KRK Rokit 5/6 series. The Yamaha HS50M / HS80M series, and the M-Audio BX5a/ BX8a series. Here's a few deals i've found (GC price matches, with shipping, - 10% difference. I'm reflecting all of that, for the pair. but rounding)
KRK Rokit 5/6 - $270 / $355 ($300/ $400)
Yamaha HS50M / HS80M - $360 / $410 ($400/ $700)
M-Audio BX5a/ BX8a - $205/ $345 ($300/ $500)
The parenthises reflect the retail price at GC. Thought you might find that interesting :P especially on the yamahas, $300 off! $350 2 for 1 if you include the coupon. yeesh. I'm becoming a gear-a-holic, especially if its on sale lol.
Anyway, some browsing also lead me to a few other brands that might be in my price range, including Mackie "MR series", Alesis, iKEY, Fostex, Behringer "Truth series", and Tascam. Any of these catch anyones attention?
And last but not least, besides the obvious price situation, anything else i should be looking closely at? minimum Freq response to be even worth buying? Any likes/ dislikes on those monitors i already referenced? My plan is to go into GC this weekend, and bring price match info on every monitor, then shootout between them all, see which one "feels" right to me, for the price i'll be able to get them at.
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Apr 21, 2010 05:46 am check out EMES man, not sure what dey be worth over yonder but they are good speakers.
Apr 21, 2010 08:04 am I did a little research on those! they LOOKED awesome...but i started looking for dealers and the cheapest i found (in stock) was around 7-900 for the pair. I did some reading in forums and, i read a few things like they never "took off" in the US. So they seem a bit harder to come by, and higher prices as well. Didn't have much luck looking on ebay either. Thanks tho!
Apr 21, 2010 12:43 pm I bought the M-Audio BX5a Deluxe series (a newer design provided by JBL (or so the blogs say)). For the price, I can't complain.... though I did get them "open box" on ebay for $230, so your situation is a bit different. And although I can't speak to the HS50Ms... anything Yamaha simply rocks too; I would figure that to be a safe bet as well. All my drum gear and home audio is Yamaha because... well... Yamaha rules!!
Apr 21, 2010 01:08 pm For the price I think I'd go with the BX8a's.
Dan
Apr 21, 2010 01:12 pm I agree, it seems like yamaha can't sell a bad product. My PA system is Yamaha, so's my keyboard. I've played their guitars and basses too and, while they aren't the most fantastic things i've ever played, i couldn't complain really. Yamaha just always seems to me like a safe bet.
The M-audios were designed by JBL? hmm. I'll definitely keep my eye on those friday when i go in. GC has them all in stock thankfully. I'm going first thing in the morning ;D
So far my eyes have been on the KRK's. Idk, i just have a gut feeling for some reason about them. As stupid as it is, i think that gut feeling is brought on simply by the fact that they look realllly pretty lol. I dig the yellow cones! Ah well, hopefully appearance doesn't sway my judgment too far.
Any ideas on if the 5 inch cones should be a problem? (53Hz range). 70w a piece as well. That outta be plenty loud to play my guitar threw, right?
Apr 21, 2010 01:36 pm To put it in perspective, a Gorilla "high end" Amp is only 35w total!!! The BX8a Deluxe are 130w ea. I would think sitting somewhere @ 70w ea. should be just about right! As for drowning out acoustic drums... has yet to be determined!
Apr 22, 2010 05:40 am they are German made so proly not overly popular in the US.
all i know is if you dont get the right speakers you'll be spending your time trying to learn to over or under compensate frequencies. Once youve learnt which ones are too much or little.
Apr 22, 2010 07:03 am Any tips on deciding the "flatest" speakers? I'm not really sure how to tell which will be the most flat out of what they carry in store.
Apr 22, 2010 07:09 am I'd say bring some music that you know WELL and listen to it. Surprisingly, however, many big stores have horrible listening environments for monitors, so you will have to use your best judgement and look at the specs...
In the end, remember that even if your are not the flatest, get to know the strengths and weaknesses of them so you can compensate. It's not having the best speakers, all the time but knowing the speakers you do have.
Apr 22, 2010 08:41 am No one can really suggest a monitor, and I agree with dB. You just have to find a pair that you think plays the music well/clear/whatever.
I tuned mine by listening to The Flaming Lip's track - It Overtakes Me.
1. because Dave Fridmann produced that into perfection
and 2. because I had the mentality that If the songs sound good playing through the speakers, then my mixes should too.
then I played a few more songs through it to make sure I wasn't just making that one song sound rly good that when I put on another an it sounds like crap. You probs know all that anyway.
I do know for a fact (in my opinion rly) that the Yamaha HS80M's are a blatant rip-off, tested them against my behringer truth 2030a's(((yes. behringer, **** this hrc trend of hating em for the sake of hating em, but fair enough if u DO hate em.. their mixer's suck!) and the difference was suprisingly clear, in my favour. amazing value for something like $450 AUD
Apr 22, 2010 06:31 pm Fragile, I too have been checking out the KRK and I think I might pick up the KRK Rockit 5's...The price is great, and they are a great set of monitors for a homestudio. I posted a thread on monitors earlier and I mentioned KRK and never heard anything BAD about them.
Apr 22, 2010 06:42 pm Me neither. most customer reviews on the Yamahas say they feel they're much more *flat* than the KRK's however. Most people with the HS50 or HS80 that left comments seemed to be previous owners of the KRKs (or so they say, i have a hard time trusting customer reviews).
anyway. Update on that price. my math must have been way off on the HS50's! that or they just had a price drop (probably my math... lol. i was getting tired of researching). They're actually about $224 with guitar centers price match. Which, as long as that price match works out...jeeze. I'll still test them but thats a flippin good price!
actually... eh. in case you're interested SirEnvy here's my findings on prices.
www.nextwarehouse.com/item/?926087_g10e
www.spectrumaudio.com/krk...__store=default
www.sjmediasystem.com/krk-rp5g2.html
www.amazon.com/M-Audio-St...e/dp/B0014ID03Q
www.google.com/products/c...BTgA#scoring=tp
hope that helps you too!
Apr 23, 2010 12:02 pm I have the BX5a, after learning to use mty monitors the 5" drivers do not really cause a problem, if I had the cash I would have definitely went with the 8" though.
Apr 23, 2010 04:56 pm Well, i ended up going with the yamahas. granted, reviews did taint my "first impression" there but, the KRK's certainly had somethin wierd going on there. "punchy" would be my main word to describe them. They almost sold me on these 8" mackies that were $170 a pop. but. You know what, in a bedroom this size. i'd sort of prefer the smaller speakers. and they had the HS50M's on sale without having to annoy them with price matching, which was prolly the best price i found for them anyway ($150 ea.). I'll let you know how i like them first night using them!
Also, those sennheiser headphones kick butt! they're soooo comfy! and built like a tank. GREAT recommendation!
Apr 23, 2010 10:37 pm yeah I need to get into GC and listen to some...the KRK are punchy, but I just heard SOOOO many good things about them. Let me know how you like the Yamahas, because I might pick these up instead.
Apr 24, 2010 07:58 am Ya, i mean. If you dig the way they sound when you hear them, go for it. But personally, i heard the Yamahas first and then had them switch me to the KRKs and... Idk. i really wasn't expecting THAT kind of difference. It was like night and day. I really like the yamaha's so far. I didn't notice this at GC, but i feel like there's a ton of bass causing it to be a little boomy almost. But i think thats mostly my room and the way the speakers were sitting, bc when i move the speakers it makes a big difference on the sound.
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