Recommend some small monitor speakers

[adidasman]

I´m on the recce for a small speaker which is at acceptable level to be monitor speaker. Not those actual monitor but rather normal speaker which sound almost flat. I´m looking at the budget of S$150. Any brand for me to look into?

Thanks people!

 

[leeking]

I dun think your gonna get anything good enough for that price.

try saving up for a yamaha MSP5 or Behringer Truth... used one even better!

 

[parablue74]

You can´t really get flat response speakers that way. I´ll rather you buy real Nearfield Monitors. But one way to cut real cost is too use normal hifi speakers. Hifi speakers does not have a flat response and tend to boost the bass. The high´s would also be messed up, but that is depended on your speakers. Alongside, get some small computer speakers, these really boost up the highs and lags in bass. Monitor these two alongside and also get a headphone. Using headphones, the highs and the lows get boosted as well. With the three alongside as comparison, you would be able to understand which to boost and which to cut. After much trial-n-error, sooner or later you would be able to capture the right mix of frequencies, which is the point of the whole story. A lot of monitoring is about the ears and understanding your equipment.

 

[parablue74]

To add to it, if you still insist on Nearfield Monitors 1st, then my advice is to get Active Monitors. Active Monitors has an amplifier connected into it, and these amplifiers are featured to work with the monitors giving both a flat response. If you do get passive ones(their pretty rare nowadays!), you´ll end up considering the need to buy flat response power amps to power the monitors. That may not be more $$, but research have to be done to see which power amp fits the monitors.

Still my advice is to use the trial-n-error way 1st to understand the way speakers work earwise, then save up to get good active monitors.

 

[ballu]

For $150 you cannot get good monitors, forget that you can´t even get good headphones. If you are serious about music then save money and whn you reach around $1000 the go for Aleisis active, tannoy reveal, or M audio. Avoid behringer truth

 

[stalefish]

disagree - the truths are flatter in response as compared to alesis and m-audio ; don´t know about the tanoys but i heard there about the same standard as alesis and m-audio as well.

i can tell you for sure that the truths lack a bit in the mids but that´s easier to work with than having way too much bass response on an alesis.

why not save up and get a genelec or mackie?

 

[parablue74]

I´m using Tannoy Reveals. The mids are good, jus the bass response, the bass response is weaker. Cutoff frequency is steep downslope below 100Hz. Other than that, all else is pretty flat frequency response.

 

[joel68]

If you are looking on a budget of 150 bucks...you may find only those computer speaker monitors..So to buy the cheapest..Alesis Monitor1 Mk2 ..around 600+ or the Behringer´s 2031..save money and go for them..

Till then buy a good headphone...(mmm Behringer´s have a cheap one for $40) sounds very nice..and use it...

Cheers....

JOEL...

 

[Colarndo]

Alesis is rather artificial. It enhances the sound and makes your recording sound better. MSP5 or MSP10 is the way to go.

 

[stalefish]

just upgraded my monitors! woohoo

yo Adidasman ! how's your monitor situation?


i sold off the Truths and got meself a pair of oh so sweet Quested monitors.... now i can say Behringer !#@%@^!@...

 

[veganbleu]

dude i heard the ath m30 provides pretty flat response and it's under 120for a pair of studio grade headphones. Not bad eh?

 

[heclak]

actually the cheapest way to do it is to use a pair of headphones and listen to the commercial cds.Learn how the sound is like in the headphones.

Is there more bass?how are the high ends?Then proceed to your mix and try to duplicated the sound.High end monitors just give you a more flat and accurate response so that you hear the "truth".The real amount of bass.But it comes with a big price tag.It also goes easier on your ears so that your can mix for a longer time without getting tired.

There is too much to consider already.Room acoustics can change the sound easily.So there is no such thing as totally flat.Either way you still have to get used to your equipment.Its cheaper too.

A good headphone would be the sennheiser and the AKGs.Get the best that you can afford in your budget.

 

[SoundMixPro]

NS 10s, industry standards. I tend to work with them and commercial speakers. Good to get many reference CDs and then understand what kind of sound you are after, and how they work. Its definately a trial and error thing until you are familiar with the monitors. Genelec to me sounds too unreal, too digital for me, no analog feel to it.

Anyways I am just a beginner engineer who has been watching people work behind consoles for 4 years now before I actually touch one.

 

[fixit]

i assume u wanna use it at home..in dat case juz train ur ears 1st..get a pair of headphones around ur budget..if not juz get sony MDR-EX71..
aniwei u cant get a good monitor that give natural response for $150..even if there's one cheap monitor speaker out there, its not worth it. For ur case, better get a not so expensive Koss or Grado headphones.

i agree with heclak post..acoustics is important. a good monitor does not fully determine your mix..u gotta be experimental as well..try monitoring ur mix with various earhones, headphones, pc speakers, ur hifi and even in your car..try to be fair to all..if u know wat i mean..

forget bout high end ones if u re not considering bout future investments..try doing wat heclak suggested..

 

[adidasman]

Yo people.

Heh.

Thanks for replying. Still haven't got my monitor yet :lol: Yeah, would love to get the Yamaha NS10 but then my so-called home studio can never even past the half way mark of 10 point grading system! Heheh... Anyway I got myself the Behringer headphone (yeah, I know! Behringer@#%4&8!! to most of you). And maybe their MS16 soon (haha! again, Behringer@#%4&8!! to most of you). Until the government decides to give their civil servants a 2 months bonus again (which unlikely), I don't think I can even get the Yamaha MS10. :lol:

Anyway, thanks guys for all recommendations.

 

[heclak]

First thing first..getting a gd pair of monitors would need you to get proper room acoustics too.There is no such thing as a flat monitors.It is almost impossible..There is the almost but..u get the idea... Use ur hifi speakers..You know the sound well enough already..no point getting another crappy pair and having to learn it all over again..The NS10M may be "industry standard" but mastering engineers[ who have the best ears with top notch equipment around] always complain that they produce bad mixes.There is a very typical sound when you mix with the NS10s...
No point getting 'monitors' for $150..They will be no better than ur hi-fis...Get monitors only if your budget is a killer minimum of $500...Anything below that is not worth it to learn a new sound...a gd pair of monitors should make all your mixes sound like crap...not like the NS10s..but let your heard all the little fiddly bits that couldn't be heard on ur hi-fis...cheap monitors can't give you this quality.....

 

[fraggot]

what i've heard of the NS-10s is that according to history, they were actually produced first as standard hi-fi speakers which were meant to be for stereos but they sounded awful... cause there was just not enough bass response and treble...

but engineers found it very nice to monitor on because when a mix sounded good on NS-10s, the actual recording was heavier in bass and treble producing that "disco smile" eq (bass and treble heavy), which was popular at the time.

but what parablue74 said was also true, no such thing as true flat monitoring situation... it's best to understand your room as a whole and how it makes your favourite music sound, and try to replicate that.