Seeking Recommendation for New Studio Monitors

It's official, I'm totally over the sound of my Mackie HR824's and I want something new. OK, it's not that I don't like their sound (which is more or less neutral with a somewhat hyped top end). The main problem is that the sound of my mixes changes drastically depending on the volume level... I don't normally listen terribly loud to begin with, but even a 10dB (or so) change in monitoring level seems to screw up my balances. I've never had this kind of problem before with any other monitors (powered or not) so I've decided that the Mackies have to go.

For reference, these days I'm mainly doing orchestral music, though I occasionally still do dance/techno. So I need "hi fidelity" but tight bottom end.

Price range... Money is no object! Actually, that's a complete lie. $1500 or under for a powered pair would be nice price point.

So please give me your recommendations for powered monitors and why you like them. Thanks!

You could always go with a pair of Genelec 8020's

I hear a lot fo good things about those.

And also: the ADAM A7's are getting a lot of good exposure as of late.

Those are under $1000 ($999 for the pair - I think!).

Keep us posted.

Hey ski,

First, you're probably limiting yourself a lot by making "powered" a requirement. Knowing your space, and the work you do, I'd suggest you consider bumping up your budget a bit and taking a look at the Westlake BBSM-10's.

http://www.westlakeaudio.com/Speakers/Professional_Series/bbsm10.html

One of the benefits of these, besides sounding great, is that they can be updated later with a matched pair of subs, as shown in the pic on the above web page.

Anyway, glad you're ditching those Mackies. Always hated them myself.

Hi Guys, thanks for the replies so far. WBoy, thanks for the suggestion of Genny's, but I've never liked their sound. Will investigate those other ones.

And fader8's right, I shouldn't limit myself to self-powered monitors. FWIW, I have a Bryston 2B sitting in the rack doing nothing at the moment, could put that to use (it was great for powering NS-10's back in the day). Or I could ditch that too.

On to the Westlake webstie...

EDIT: Checked out the Westlakes and then the price... Severe sticker shock. OMG!

i just got gene 1031s and love them.

i will say however if you have budget considerations heck out the bm5as. i feel they are a great bang for your buck type deal. my buddy has them and swears by them. if i didnt get such a good deal on the genec i was going to get the bm6as

i just got gene 1031s and love them.

 

 

i will say however if you have budget considerations heck out the bm5as. i feel they are a great bang for your buck type deal. my buddy has them and swears by them. if i didnt get such a good deal on the genec i was going to get the bm6as

I've used the Genelec 1030a for a few years and hate them. They sound amazing, which is the problem. The mixes don't translate too well, especially in the high range which is very, very hyped on all the Genelecs I've heard, including the $78,000/pair 1036a model (they were in a studio I worked at, and I ended up using the NS10 exclusively for mixing purposes - the Genelecs were for when the client wanted to hear his work).

I've been floored by the Dynaudio BM15a but 10" is too large for a near-field woofer.

Therefore I'm considering the BM6a or BM6a mkII. I'm also interested in any ADAM models in that price range as I've heard a lot of good about them.

Thanks guys.

KRK's... I have a pair of old KRK's (not even sure of the model) which have a definite (and flattering) sound. Haven't used them in years because they have open-hole bass ports, which an engineer friend suggested would act like Hemholz resonators and cause the low end of my nearfields to be inaccurate. Hmmm... So as an aside, fader8 or anyone else -- any comment on that?

Meanwhile Dynaudio, KRK, and the ADAMs are on my list to check out now. Any further recommendations are welcome too.

Haven't used them in years because they have open-hole bass ports, which an engineer friend suggested would act like Hemholz resonators and cause the low end of my nearfields to be inaccurate. Hmmm... So as an aside, fader8 or anyone else -- any comment on that?

Oooo . . . I can hear herr Hemholtz rolling over in his grave! An urban myth, er . . rural in your case.

So the Westlakes too salty for ya? You'd get 20 years out of em, and be happy about every minute of it.

Let's go back to your original statement: " The main problem is that the sound of my mixes changes drastically depending on the volume level... "

ski, that is the bane of all 2-way monitors. An unavoidable reality. Without getting too deep in the science, when a tweeter is forced to do the bulk of the midrange work, the necessary excursions required end up adding too much harmonic distortion right where you don't want it. The percentage HD goes up dramatically as you turn things up. All speakers do this, but the 2-way design compounds it. So passing this work to a mid driver alleviates that considerably.

You should give the JBL LSR32's a listen sometime. A bit of a step up from the 4412's which are not shabby either.

FWIW....I dumped my Mackies for some some JBL LSR 4328's. Thrilled with the result. Love how the RoomControl/auto setup feature works.

http://www.jblpro.com/products/recording&broadcast/LSR4300/index.html

i got sick of the Mackies and bought a pair of Dynaudio Acoustics BM6As

i love them!!!

http://www.dynaudioacoustics.com/Default.asp?Id=280

I switched from Hr824 to Adam S3A, and also know Adam A7's sound pretty well..

In summary, I baleive Mackie has its own bottom end sound character and also don't translate mid frequencies well. sounds good with electronic stuff, you get what you've done on other systems? not sure. i used them for 2 years and when i listened my mixes on hi-fi, car, or any other systems, generally i said "HEY! Did i put these high mid stuff on the mix? or Do i have hearing problems?"

Adam's are perfect for truth (even the A7 is REALLY impressive, if they re ok for your budget)

Mackies? dramatically comfortable.. enjoyable..

to have both, pay for both

DynAudio 6as all the way, you will never need anything else, tons of producers show up at rooms with them as if they are a instruemnt. , worth every penny.

Its like this, your mix will be easier and more accurate from start to finish.

So... I finally got a chance to go to ye olde Guitar Center to listen to some speakers, per your guys' recommendations.

I listened to the JBL's (not sure if they were the 6"-ers or the 8's; the salesman didn't know and I left my "ruler eye" at home). Of course they didn't have the equalization thing set up (ah, retail), but set flat, well, they weren't too flattering. They kinda sounded a bit muffly in the midrange. Not a lot of bottom end. Sowwy, not a good first impression, but I'm going back for another listen in a few days.

Dynaudio BM5A's. What a nice pair! Of speakers, that is Top end sounded a little bit bright, though flattering. Anyone else feel that way? And they're loud too!

While I was there I checked out some of the KRK's they had on display. I really liked the little RP5's and the larger RP8's as well. I was playing a variety of classical-style film score music as well as some dark, gritty ambient stuff. The RP5's seemed really well-suited to the classical stuff. I almost bought a pair right on the spot, but reminded myself that that $300 (cheap!) could go towards something like a control surface or some SSL pluggies! Anyway, as I was switching between speakers I kept coming back to the KRK RP5's and was very impressed with them.

The KRK RP8's were also very nice. It was actually a bit of a tough choice deciding which I liked better -- the RP8's and the Dynaudio 5A's, even though they're two totally different animals.

Anyway, I've got more speaker shopping to do, but I had your guys' suggestions in mind this evening while at the store, and again I thank you!

ADAM A7s. End of story. By and large, the very best cr monitors I have ever heard under $1000. Much cleaner low end than the Mackies, and incredibly precise stereo imaging. Not to mention a sweet spot like a huge, leather couch. The only thing you'll need to get used to is having no hype in the low end like your HRs. The A7s are about as accurate as it gets (under $1000 and probably higher).

http://www.adam-audio.de/studio/nearfield/a7_data.htm

http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/nov06/articles/adam.htm

ive just done this whole process, tring to get a new pair of monitors, i went out and tried the makie hr 624 and the 824's, the genelec 8020's, the dynaudio bm5a's, the krk rokits and the adam a7's

and walked out of the shop with a pair a7's (hands down winner.)

If you guys want to get the right monitors that play back exactly what your working on and so your mixes translate well get the DynAudio BM6as or 15's.

Never will you look back again, worth every penny!

try em....

ADAM A7, Mackies and even Genelics have coloring compared to DynAudio.

I have to travel about 3 hours downstate from where I live to find a music store that has the 6a's and the ADAM's. But they're on my list. ROAD TRIP!

Just to throw one other thing into the mix... I was recently mixing over at Phillip Glass's studio in NYC. They had a pair of Genelecs sitting next to a set of ProAC's in their A room. Anyone else here familiar with ProAC's? I think the ones they had may have been the Tablette Reference 8's. Not flattering sonically but no hype, and very clear-sounding.

ADAM AUDIO. Anything you can afford from them is worth it. The mixes translate so well. Even when you first get them, do a mix and just trust them. You will be floored. I have a pair of Adam S3A's and I would say that they are the most enjoyable speakers I have ever mixed or listened on. I can listen at 80 dBspl for about 15 hours without ear fatigue. SIMPLY AMAZING MONITORS. And excellent tech support. I have spoken with their tech Julie and she is an excellent, knowledgeable tech who is willing to take the time to explain things to you about the speakers. Adam is a smaller company which I also prefer dealing with.

No I don't work for or rep Adam Audio.

hey ski,

if you haven't already made the purchase, I'd recommend going to a little higher end place than guitar center. a place that supplies commercial studios ( not that gc doesn't supply commercial spots-they do; different department ) you'll find that these people usually know quite a bit more than the average gc salesman, and will go above and beyond to ensure you are getting the right product. for instance there is a place out here www.ceag.com and they've setup all types of similar gear for me to try out. I almost felt guilty at the amount of setup that was going into the demo. they adjusted the price as it was a bit more than other spots online. also see if the place you go to will allow you to test a few different monitors at your studio, as room dynamics play a huge roll. well that's just my 2cents. good luck with the purchase.

Thanks for the continued recommendations!

maxedwards, I used to live in NYC but now I live in the boonies; one of the things I miss being up here is access to all the great music stores. So right now GC is closest. I heard some things I liked there, and now it's a matter of taking a trip down to the city to hear these other monitors you guys have recommended. But I'll check out www.ceag.com right now.

Thanks again guys!

FWIW....I dumped my Mackies for some some JBL LSR 4328's. Thrilled with the result. Love how the RoomControl/auto setup feature works.

 

http://www.jblpro.com/products/recording&broadcast/LSR4300/index.html

Ohh oh. I have these. Was tossing up between these and the Adams A7's. I didn't really know what I was listening for, and so bought the JBL's based on recommendations and the room tuning system. I would be very keep to know how they stand up against relatively priced speakers, but then I suppose it would all depend on the environment.

The other neat thing about the JBL's is that you can wire upto 7.1 into the setup (although I find it difficult to comprehend someone buying that many speakers who wouldn't heavily treat their room...)

I swear I don't mean to be the un-funny one here... but if the difference in playback level makes a big difference in balance, I'd not only ditch the Mackies but invest in consulting an acoustician to enhance the CR response. I've always felt like the best pair of monitors is a room of great acoustic quality.

Just my 2 cents though... good luck!