any suggestions about which studio monitor speakers to hook up to the S90??

anyone have Alesis M1s?

J.

Re: Monitor speakers

Venue Music has M-Audio 5 and 8 s for 700$ and $900 respectively. They sound pretty good. I’m gonna check them out more tomorrow.

[url=http://www.venuemusic.com.au]http://www.venuemusic.com.au [/url] , Recording section, Monitors

Keep me informed…

-Matt

Re: Monitor speakers

Search the Motif forum for ‘monitor’.

-Markus

Re: Monitor speakers

hi Matt,

am trying to decide between the M1s and the M-Audio BX8s, but no-one here in Melb seems to have them in stock for me to listen to! they’re both at $900 at the moment, which really boils it down to which one is “better”. let me know what you’ve decided!

have you checked out the reviews at
[url=http://www.zzounds.com/item--MDOBX8]http://www.zzounds.com/item--MDOBX8 [/url]
and
[url=http://www.zzounds.com/item--ALEM1MK2]http://www.zzounds.com/item--ALEM1MK2 [/url]

Jordan

Re: Monitor speakers

Hi Jordzen,

Do you mean the active or passive M1s? I’ve been using the actives for a while, and they’re good (but i’d recommend going to listen to several different pairs in a music shop with your own CDs). Anyway, below are two links to Paul White’s reviews of the M1 Actives (mk1 and mk2):

[url=http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/Aug02/articles/alesism1.asp?session=176875a5e8a5a41c338f4238430671f8]http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/Aug02/articles/alesism1.asp?session=176875a5e8a5a41c338f4238430671f8 [/url]

[url=http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/may99/articles/alesism1a.htm?session=176875a5e8a5a41c338f4238430671f8]http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/may99/articles/alesism1a.htm?session=176875a5e8a5a41c338f4238430671f8 [/url]

Cheers,
Tony

Re: Monitor speakers

I listened to some speakers including the BX8s with my own CDs, including Prodigy’s Charly D&B version for sub-bass.

the 8’s are big speakers - around the size of Behringer Truths. Their frequency response gets down to 37Hz - my ears are still hurting from the Subbass blasts of Charly. You can really feel it, and hear clean DEEP bass, unlike smaller speakers that seem to substitute buffetting (like on the smaller BX5s with a bottom freq. of 56Hz (I can’t describe the sound easily, you prob. know what I mean)) instead of it.


I don’t know much about M1s...from the review the BX8s are about an inch taller...and M1s go down to 45Hz not 37..

BX8s 8inch sub, M1s 6.5…


The BX8s could handle more volume than I could...I never heard them clip, even with full bass on the Eq.

BX5s struggled and clipped

the Edirol MA10s were terrible.


I don’t really know much about monitors… I think this is all I know...probe me for more if you want it and I’ll try to recall more..

Here in Sydney I have the M1s at $799.
[url=http://www.venuemusic.com.au]http://www.venuemusic.com.au [/url]

The shop guy said that the BX8s used to be somewhere around 1500? So for 900 they’re unbeatable


I might try to go in and hear the M1s.

that’s all I got…

-Matt

should I really spend $900 on a pair of really good speakers? I’m not a professional…

I think there are Mk1 and Mk2s for the M1s? I’ve been talking about Mk1s entirely. I think it’s a big distinction Mk1 to Mk2 - they look considerably different...please specify which you are considering getting.

Big Edit (because for some “fields not filled in” I can’t post another reply...):

. “But more than just cosmetic improvements, the new Monitor One also features radiused edges for reduced edge diffraction, along with improved porting š thanks to the nextšgeneration of our exclusive SuperPort venting technology — to eliminate the “choking” effect of smaller, shorter ports. The result is a low-frequency response which extends well below comparable near field monitors.”

OK, well, the effect of “ buffetting “ is called “Choking”.

Also, BX8s have a few controls round the back to change frequency responses for different environments - from memory (0, -2, -4)dB switches for bass, mid and treble, along with a volume control for each. I think it comprehensively refers to this on the M-Audio site.

Re: Monitor speakers

>> should I really spend $900 on a pair of really good speakers? I’m not a professional

If you can afford it, yes.
They last forever (long-term investment), and the speakers are by far the weakest link in the audio chain.
Up to 1000.. 1500 $, buy the best you can afford.

Of course it depends on the music you make. I wouldn’t put too much emphasis on the lowest frequencies. You can add a subwoofer later.

-Markus

Re: Monitor speakers

Thanks, Markus, I guess I can fork out 900 for the reduced-price BX8s (originally 1499, falling in your recommended budget unless that dollar is more powerful than the meagre Aus $)....

actually, are Australian$ 1000 -> 1500 speakers worthy of investment?


Thanks
-Matt

Re: Monitor speakers

hi again,

i ended up getting a pair of M1 MkII actives. I tested them out against the BX8 with my own cds and was happy with either. on closer inspection, however, i rated the M1s better on the higher frequencies and much clearer sounds for cymbals, flutes and the like. the BX8 did have that nice bass sound, and more power considering the larger drivers… an audio-engineer friend pointed out that he doubted whether either speaker actually reaches the bottom figure in the frequency range that they advertise, maybe with very strategic placing… i kind of viewed the alesis as a proven path and less of a risk than the M-Audios. either company isn’t a speaker manufacturer though (soundcards and ADATs!). but the Alesis are stocked by everyone and have been selling for years and years - there has to be some truth in them. maybe some of you will be disgusted at this line of reasoning!

anyway now that i have them hooked up i’ve spent the whole of yesterday (which was my birthday!) listening to all my favorite music and calling friends over to come and listen to “the way music should sound!”. most people started air-drumming, or closing their eyes and going into what seemed like trance states… either i’ve got weirdo friends or else the sound is just ‘that’ good! but its such a pleasure to be able to crank up the sound and get no distortion on basses, trebles. never going back to listening thru my crappy stereo.

ok, prices for ozzies? I hope you made a mistake, Matt, about 799 in Syndey!! because i did lots of homework and found that 899 was the all-round lowest price 4 M1Mk2s. in the end i managed to get em for 870 + XLR cables, but only as a regular customer.

let me know what you decide in the end!!

Jordan

Re: Monitor speakers

Oh, and unless you know what you’re doing I would propose: Don’t trust your ears. At least not very far.
If one speaker sounds ‘much clearer’, it could just mean an uneven frequency response.

If you listen to your own CDs, you might end up with speakers that sound closest to your old speakers (if your hearing is that consistent).
And bass response depends very much on the placement: Simply put a speaker against a wall (often seen in shops), and bass is raised by 6 dB.

-Markus

Re: Monitor speakers

“ok, prices for ozzies? I hope you made a mistake, Matt, about 799 in Syndey!! because i did lots of homework and found that 899 was the all-round lowest price 4 M1Mk2s. in the end i managed to get em for 870 + XLR cables, but only as a regular customer. “

yeah MK1s for 800


I would love to play CDs thru some good speakers

Is your CD player good enough now?

Re: Monitor speakers

>> I would love to play CDs thru some good speakers
Don’t make a mistake. It may well be that your CDs sound ‘better’ through any home stereo speaker.
Studio monitors are supposed to be accurate, not sound beautiful. There’s a difference.

-Markus

Re: Monitor speakers

“Don’t make a mistake. It may well be that your CDs sound ‘better’ through any home stereo speaker.
Studio monitors are supposed to be accurate, not sound beautiful. There’s a difference.”

Point noted, but my statement stands : )

I have complex music where I would enjoy hearing a transparent stereo image.

Plus 900$ speakers are better than anything I’ve heard before…

Re: Monitor speakers

Damn bast**ds! i could’a saved 70 bucks if I lived in NWS!

i just used CDs at the store. I used these because I “knew” how they were supposed to sound. The good ones (ECM cds and recent music recorded extremely well) had to sound ‘clear’ and ‘crisp’; whilst the badly-recorded ones (ie: “sting and the Police” stuff I did myself ages ago with bad mixing) had to expose the faults when played thru decent monitors. That’s what I took into the store (a selection of ‘good’ and ‘bad’ mixes, to see which speaker would be more faithful to the ‘truth’). according to this system I rated the Alesis better over the BX8s. Of course, others may come to the opposite conclusion.

at home i just listen to mp3s and .wma files. they still sound great compared to my old system. its mainly being able to crank the volume without getting noise and distortion. Eventually I will plug the ports and become more critical of the sound… but for the moment I’m leaving them right next to the wall!

Re: smartmedia

while we’re talking about prices, what is one paying in Syndey for a smartmedia reader and the cards (32mb, 64mb etc)??

do you recommend 32 or 64Mb. I’m an S90 user, keep in mind.

Also, do you know if the accessories (like the keyboard/mouse swivel-stand, and the dust-cover, which are featured in the S-Mart) are available in Australia? do we get to pay an extra 150% on the prices advertsized? ...add another 25% if you don’t live in Syndey! /forums/images/icons/wink.gif alt=

Thanks!
Jordan

Re: smartmedia

[url=http://www.dse.com.au]http://www.dse.com.au [/url] for SMC