The most accurate monitors for house and techno music

[sergioelectro]

Hey , I know this topic has already been covered many times.
But here , it would really be about monitors THAT TRANSLATES THE BEST FOR HOUSE MUSIC.

See, I have Mackie HR824, but surprisingly I can sometimes do better mixes on cheap passive monitor like KRK.
The thing is that on the mackie, as everything sounds good and deep (especially on the low end frequencies) it is difficult to find the real efficient frequency to raise with the eq on a kick for example.

So I woud like to find which other speaker could give me a more accurate perception;
ADAM A7 seems to receive lots of positive feedback.
Also heard a lot about the BM6a.

Any opinion to share ?

Thanks a lot

Sergio

[cosmos]

Dynaudios's are very popular among Trance/House producers, a BM6a's will definitely be a step up from the mackie's sound wise and accuracy. but you better demo a few different pairs at the store and decide for yourself, they might not fit you ya know ... don't fall for a speaker hype, one it might not suit you ears while the other will...

don't forget about room treatment, your speakers will be almost useless if you don't hear whats EXACTLY coming out from them..

[Reptil]

in order of price:
K&H o110
Geithan RL906
Dynaudio BMP5a
Emes Kobalt



my choice (but they need a good (fast) sub)

[SighBorg]

My best electronica mixes didnt come around until I started working on KRK V8s in a good sounding room. V8s work really well for electronica for some reason.

I personally dont like the BM6s for House music. I have had some decent results with some other types of electronica on them (Not reliably though) but not House. Larger Dyns like the bm15s or adding a sub might be a whole other story.

[sergioelectro]

Thanks for the replies so far ....

You know, I do not really care if the sound would be pleasing or not !! I just want to perceive a more precise image of what the sound REALLY IS , and that it will translate well on other systems.

Altough my room is partially treated by fat bass traps, I find the Mackies not neutral at all: you can raise the eq from 40 to 130 on kicks, you will always have the impression it sounds good. I find it does not help to make the right eq choices especially on low frequency materials.


Sergio

[cosmos]

well ... whats your budget ? look into Focal Twin 6be. if you can afford a pair you will discover a whole new world ..

[Reptil]

Originally Posted by sergioelectro

Thanks for the replies so far ....

You know, I do not really care if the sound would be pleasing or not !! I just want to perceive a more precise image of what the sound REALLY IS , and that it will translate well on other systems.

Altough my room is partially treated by fat bass traps, I find the Mackies not neutral at all: you can raise the eq from 40 to 130 on kicks, you will always have the impression it sounds good. I find it does not help to make the right eq choices especially on low frequency materials.


Sergio

+1 my experience too.
also look at the PMCs
and consider passives

[Absent1]

From acid house to breakbeat and industrial my mixes have never translated better than on Focal Twin 6 BE.

I have had the Dynaudio BM6 and Mackies and demo Focal Solo at home, and if you can afford them the Twins make your life so much easier.

The only complaint I have about them is that during composition you must correct eq problems that clash, but that is not really a bad thing.

Cheers, Rob

[sergioelectro]

Originally Posted by Absent1

From acid house to breakbeat and industrial my mixes have never translated better than on Focal Twin 6 BE.

I have had the Dynaudio BM6 and Mackies and demo Focal Solo at home, and if you can afford them the Twins make your life so much easier.

The only complaint I have about them is that during composition you must correct eq problems that clash, but that is not really a bad thing.

Cheers, Rob

Thanks for the advice,

But isn't there something less expensive than those big focal beauties ?

Sergio

[Strobian]

I'm finding with monitors you get what you pay for. There isn't a "cheap" way out for performance. I've used the HR824's for years, and also switched recently. I've been using Proacs and they sound pretty amazing. I'd like to try the focals as well. If you get an Adam speaker I would at least go up to the P series.

[sergioelectro]

Any other opinon or experience to share on this subject ? ?

Sergio

[divine source]

Originally Posted by Absent1

From acid house to breakbeat and industrial my mixes have never translated better than on Focal Twin 6 BE.

I have had the Dynaudio BM6 and Mackies and demo Focal Solo at home, and if you can afford them the Twins make your life so much easier.

The only complaint I have about them is that during composition you must correct eq problems that clash, but that is not really a bad thing.

Cheers, Rob

absent1,sice you demo the dynaudio BM6a and the focal solo 6 but in the end you got with the twin's,can you compare them here,coz i was on the way to get the BM6a,but since i read here all the good things about the focal's,i want to get one of thus - solo 6 or twin 6.....

and if you can fucus on the BM6a\solo 6,coz i know the twin's is the answer for me,just not shore if my small room is big enough for them.....

tnx.

[Barbary Ape]

I think for heavy dance oriented electronic music a 2.1 system can do wonders be it Sky, Genelecs etc.. the extension you get in the low end can really help you make better decisions. Or maybe get one of the aforementioned monitors and just add a corresponding sub.

[jbuehler]

I find that a lot of people misunderstand what monitors are all about.

Your monitors aren't supposed to sound good per se. My best mixes, the ones that translate well to every other speaker, sound flat and uniform on studio monitors.

Your mixes should sound good but not too heavy on the low end and not too sparkly on the high end. Think of everything being balanced well.

Your monitors aren't supposed to sound like a club system when you get your mix right. If you want a banging club track you hire someone who masters dance music for clubs or you use your own club system to mix on.

The sparkle is for the mastering engineer. Many people don't realize that mastering is usually what gives tracks that last 10% of professional quality that they waste countless dollars trying to get.

I know this doesn't answer your question, I just think your Mackies are fine. Learn to use them right and things will fall into place. Spend your money on other gear!

[superjc]

I would say mastering engineers have squeezed out up to and maybe more than 15% quality out of my mixes. I also use the HR824s and when I get into a decent room, will be looking for something else. I feel I've graduated from them!

[Absent1]

Originally Posted by divine source

absent1,sice you demo the dynaudio BM6a and the focal solo 6 but in the end you got with the twin's,can you compare them here,coz i was on the way to get the BM6a,but since i read here all the good things about the focal's,i want to get one of thus - solo 6 or twin 6.....

and if you can fucus on the BM6a\solo 6,coz i know the twin's is the answer for me,just not shore if my small room is big enough for them.....

tnx.

I am not the one to give a proper technical breakdown so I am not even going to try.

I went from Mackie to Dynaudio for a few years and they just made everything real HI-FI sounding.

I am sure I will get blasted for saying it like that , but here is my comparison.

When I play a vinyl record thru a Pioneer DJM-3000 with it's limited 3 band eq thru the Mackies or Dynaudio it sounded great, just like it pretty much should.

The same thing thru the Focal's( both the Twins and Solo ) it sounds like total shit

Thus the idea being that my tracks where sounding better and more polished than they really are.

The Focals make you work for it to sound good and the end result is that it translates great!

When I demoed both Focals there was just know way I was keeping the Solo's over the Twins. The Twins have a really nice low end to where I would never see the need for a sub.

I also have a small room( just a spare bedroom) and minimal room treatment. Cheers, Rob

[Tapwatr]

I used to have Dynaduio BM6A's but they never translated well, too bright and the low mids are ass'd up. I now own Genelec 8050's which are much better. Serious bass response and they translates well, you can crank them and they don't waiver. At work we just got Focal Twin 6's. They have nicer stereo imaging than the Genelecs but almost sound too pretty. I don't know if I'd like writing and mixing on them but I'll see if they grow on me.

[Acid Hazard]

Honestly, i like my headphones =o]

[807Recordings]

B&W 802-801-800
Seriously small monitors suck for " real techno" and I can spot tracks often that where done on monitors and subs. Full-range and a good room make a big difference. My next are going to most likely be 802D with Classe amps.

[vixapphire]

i have an older genelec system with two 1029's and a 1091 sub. it's a nice workaday rig that provides uniform results once you (a) set up the toggles correctly, and (b) spend a bit of time getting familiar with the speakers' character. then again, those two steps are necessary for any new monitoring rig.

those are the worker bees, i've also got avantone's for cleaning up the clutter in the midrange during the arranging stage, and a pair of whomping old 1981 bose 601's (the ones with the tweeters all over the top pointing in all directions) that i use to tear the roof off when the track is near complete and it's time to party/(in)sanity check the mix.

nice to have variety, and between the avantones and bose, i've spent well under $400 both pairs inclusive. the avantones were bought new, the bose are mint and refoamed just before i bought them.

i've never seen the reason to spend truckloads on monitors, particularly when for the $4k you spend on one high-end pair you could buy a shelfload of stereo amps and several pairs of speakers in different sizes and configurations, if you're inclined to surf around a bit. growing up i was always into stereo equipment, and now that i'm older i remember what were the "greats" of the 70's and 80's in the loudspeaker realm. those components for the most part are surprisingly affordable now on ebay etc.

some of the audio-feinschmeckers here may disagree with the foregoing paragraph, but it's just an observation, not a gospel. ymmv.

while we're on the subject of focals, though, you'd be well served to also check out the k&h 0300's. if you're fixing to spend that kind of dough, definitely expose yourself to all comparable options. i was impressed by the quality of the 0300's at NAB, particularly for how small they are. the closed-cabinet unported design may be advantageous if you've got limited placement options in your space.

[jaykay]

Originally Posted by 807Recordings

Seriously small monitors suck for " real techno" and I can spot tracks often that where done on monitors and subs.

I am not a believer that small monitors suck for electronic based music. But I do think it is quite important that you have a deep knowledge of how your monitors sound in relation to other (bigger) systems. It's also very beneficial if you have a few different playback systems to try your tracks out on, especially nice if you have access to a club PA system or the likes.

I personally use K&H 0300 and find these perfectly adequate even though they are in the compact sized category. They go plenty deep (without sub) and tell it like it is. Not cheap, but you get what you pay for where monitors are concerned...............

[ehunter]

What are peoples thoughts on going with 6" compared to 8" monitors? I just got a set of mackie mr5 and they sound great I just wonder how good the MR8s would sound and if I should exchange for them

[roginator]

O300 D Klein & hummel

[jbuehler]

I would definately go with 8" monitors over 6".

I think 8" is enough to hear the bass that you need.

Just remember if you can FEEL the bass coming from your monitors, it will be WAY WAY WAY too loud on a bassy system.

What I would call the right bass response for good universal translation to lots of systems is a bass mix that is audible but isn't thumping you.

Monitors are a matter hearing things and getting their volumes right RELATIVE to each other.

Any mix you do that is banging with bass on any studio monitor will be WAY too loud on a regular system.

Also, knowing your monitors is important. That will only come with time though.

[Bitfiend]

Originally Posted by jbuehler

I would definately go with 8" monitors over 6".

I think 8" is enough to hear the bass that you need.

Just remember if you can FEEL the bass coming from your monitors, it will be WAY WAY WAY too loud on a bassy system.

What I would call the right bass response for good universal translation to lots of systems is a bass mix that is audible but isn't thumping you.

Monitors are a matter hearing things and getting their volumes right RELATIVE to each other.

Any mix you do that is banging with bass on any studio monitor will be WAY too loud on a regular system.

Also, knowing your monitors is important. That will only come with time though.

Couldn't agree more. You should hear your music not your speakers. That said you need monitors that will "push" the amount of bass electronica has.
6" i don't think would do that, unless, they were REALLY hi-end.
Anyone supplimenting their monitor system with subs?

[wiglad]

Originally Posted by jbuehler

I would definately go with 8" monitors over 6".

I think 8" is enough to hear the bass that you need.

Just remember if you can FEEL the bass coming from your monitors, it will be WAY WAY WAY too loud on a bassy system.

What I would call the right bass response for good universal translation to lots of systems is a bass mix that is audible but isn't thumping you.

Monitors are a matter hearing things and getting their volumes right RELATIVE to each other.

Any mix you do that is banging with bass on any studio monitor will be WAY too loud on a regular system.

Also, knowing your monitors is important. That will only come with time though.

Some great points here!!! I always do a feel test on my mixes. Things can sound wicked, but if there's a big breeze coming out of the ports, I know I've gone too far into beef land. I'm always amazed by how some commercial mixes can sound huge, deep, and subby, but not be throwing a lot of air. That's the balance I strive for.

I've been using 6" for many, many years, but will be (and recommend) moving to 8" soon. As mentioned earlier, it still comes down to knowing your room, and listening to as much music as you can on the monitors that you choose. It's also important, IMHO, to have a bass reverence mix that works on all systems. I happen to use Mr. Oizo's "No Day Massacre". The low end on that track just rocks on every system I've ever played it on. thumbsup

[jbuehler]

Originally Posted by Bitfiend

Anyone supplimenting their monitor system with subs?

I have a good friend in San Francisco that makes music for commercial and clubs and he had a subwoofer for a total of 3 mixes before he concluded it was too much. It was the KRK sub with 8" KRK monitors.

His ears are golden and his mixes with the crappiest material always totally blow me away. I pretty much would take his advice without hesitation.

Make your mix with your monitors the dry/even way described above and than try it on your home stereo with your sub.

It will bang.

Originally Posted by wiglad

I'm always amazed by how some commercial mixes can sound huge, deep, and subby, but not be throwing a lot of air. That's the balance I strive for.

EXACTLY! How do some of those mixes sound so huge and bassy coming through television speakers? It is called REALLY good mixing and NOT extra bass.

And like I said before, never underestimate the job of a mastering engineer.

[Ax8]

What about Adam P11a for house production in smaller control room?

[MonoBrow]

I would say adam p22a.Very nice for everything E related.

[lu432]

I love my Mackie HR 824's and Yamaha NS-10's. If you have an unlimited budget try the Bearfoots or new Genelecs. Or the new KRK'S. All of those are great and I have worked on all of them. If your on a budget I would sick with something like the HR824's. But this is a very subjective field and you should try various monitors out.