Low budget monitor shoot out

[brokemusician4]

Well I had a pair of Genelecs wasn't crazy about them because they sound too good seemed like certain frequencies were artificially accenuated and expensive.

Checked out the Dynaudio Bm5a at Guitar Center and they sounded pretty amazing, maybe the clearest speakers I've ever heard really tight lows but where are the mids, they sounded scooped in the mids to me. Any one else hear that?

So the low budgets recommendations from this site seemed to come down to Fostex PM-1 and the Yorkville P1's so I ordered both. The Fostex aren't bad really smoothe sounding maybe too smoothe, the lows were a little floppy but not too bad but the cutting hi mids seemed to be lacking.
The Yorkvilles at around $400 a pair are awesome, very true and flatest of all the speakers I tried and I've actually tried a lot more than the ones I've mentioned. Not as clear as the Dynaudio, not as sensational as the Genelecs but frequency wise more accurate and clear enough for my purposes. In fact the only speakers I've heard that really out do these things were some Adams I heard but those are way out of my price range. Might give more cosideration to the Dynaudio in the future but for right now

Yorkville wins!!

[MadGuitrst]

Nice review.

I thought the Dynaudios were very well balanced. They did not seem lacking in the mids or highs. The bass is tight and just fine for my purposes, but I could see people into different music might find the low end lacking.

In comprison, I think the Mackies are hollow in the mids and the bass is loose.
The Precsision 8s have more lows and presence but I would be concerned a little fatiguing to my sensitive ears.

In all, I find the Dynudios to have a touch of magical dimension that seem to set them apart from others for me. Still, I haven't pulled the trigger.

I've also read about the Fostex, Yorkies, Wharfedales, and new Yamaha monitors.

Hey broke, how about ordering up the Wharfedale and Yamahas too and doing another shootout?

In any case, thanks for this one.......!

[tINY]

you should probably add some Mackies, Alesis, and the KRK V6s2 to your list.



-tINY

[3rd world order]

dont forget the Auratone 5c super sound cube.. used in mono.. my fave balancing speaker. Agree that Dynaudios have the mojo...

I've been getting a lot of use out of a pair of B&W DM602 hifi speakers... good compliment to NS-10s because they have holes where the other has peaks.

[SpiderM69]

I bought the BM5A's, glad I got them . I bought them because they didn't seem to accentuate any frequencies, were very well balanced. Now that I have them at home in my studio, along with some new RealTraps, my original impressions are confirmed. I hear no scoop whatsoever...could it have been the room you heard them in, or even the music? The reason I ask is I've not heard anyone describe them that way.

[brokemusician4]

Update to my reviews:

After listening to the Dynaudio's again they're definitely a good monitor very clear , but I think the bass althought very tight is a little too accenuated also there is some excessive accenuation of the extreme high end like 15k where the cymbals really get in your face, this is why the mids were some what missing (keep in mind this is subtle so don't get too defensive Dynaudio owners). They do have some switches in the back so I assume you could correct these defiencies although I only listened to monitors in the flat position at all volumes with a decent acoustic enviroment.

So I auditioned a couple more monitors and I have a new champion, first I checked out the Event 6's and I thought that was a really nice sounding monitor but slightly lacking in the low end. Next came the Event 8's and those were perfect in every way out doing the Yorkville's. Perfectly flat and very clear, they're also the most expensive. But for the money the Yorkville are an amazing value.

So here's the final order from best to worst:

1. Event 8's - $1300. a pair
2. Yorkville P1's - $420. a pair - best value
3.Event 6's/Dynaudio 6's toss up $1000. a pair
4. Genelec 1030a great sounding too flattering too much money forget what I paid
5. Mackies (old standard) $1000. a pair
6. Fostex Pm1's $240. a pair

[warhead]

Everybody's ears are different for monitors, it's good you were able to put those side by side and hear the differences for yourself. A monitor I think is great might not always translate into what you want to hear.

Cause I think the Yorkvilles are "ok", we keep a pair setup on the floor and nobody has picked 'em yet. But somebody will, they will match what they want to hear!

War

[brokemusician4]

Originally Posted by tINY

you should probably add some Mackies, Alesis, and the KRK V6s2 to your list.



-tINY

I did check out the Alesis and was really high on the monitor 1's they have something special about them but I think they have serious quality controll problems, I heard some sound pretty great and then others have way too much low mids or a low end problem. I would stay away from them although Alesis has this new really cool looking model comming out that they may have fixed the problem. I even tried stuffing socks in the front ports and the bass was still clouding everything up.

I don't know about the KRK Vs2 model but I do know from past experience that KRK's suck, not enough lows and nasaly sounding if my memory serves me right. Although I never thought too many good things about Event monitors either so obviously these companies deserve second chances.

[Henchman]

When I was lookignf or soem inexpensive monitors, I checked a bunch of them side by side.
The Tannoy Reveals were my favourite.

[brokemusician4]

Originally Posted by warhead

Everybody's ears are different for monitors, it's good you were able to put those side by side and hear the differences for yourself. A monitor I think is great might not always translate into what you want to hear.

Cause I think the Yorkvilles are "ok", we keep a pair setup on the floor and nobody has picked 'em yet. But somebody will, they will match what they want to hear!

War

Yea it's a funny thing I've watched a lot of people buy monitors over the years that just are terrible and they think they're great like the KRK's. I think most people buying monitors have very untrained ears, if I didn't have years of practice mixing records I'd pick the Genelecs every time because they just sound so good but they don't translate great they just translate ok.

[Jim vanBergen]

I just had a JBL LSR25p just stop working recently. They were a "gift" from JBL/Harman so I put them in and used them. They had a nice bottom, no scooped mids, and just the right HF. But I don't think I want to pay $500 to get it repaired...so I immediately went back to my Genelec 1029Ds, which seem to my ear now to have too little bottom and a really accentuated HF. (That's what I think after I listen back to my mixes on other systems.)

Now I'm wondering if I should buy something else... I used to love mixing on the 1029s, now I'm not sure. Anyone else have this experience?

[parissound]

Please do yourself a favor and do not exclude the Bluesky monitors.
One word AMAZING.
They are reasonable and they do sound great.
Check them out here www.abluesky.com
If you cannot find a good price let me know, I know a place that can give you a great price.

[brokemusician4]

Originally Posted by parissound

Please do yourself a favor and do not exclude the Bluesky monitors.
One word AMAZING.
They are reasonable and they do sound great.
Check them out here www.abluesky.com
If you cannot find a good price let me know, I know a place that can give you a great price.

I did get a chance to hear them, I thought they were decent but would have been at the bottom of the list.

[parissound]

which model did you listen too?
I heard the Media Desk up against the yamaha hs50, Wharfedales and Dyna Bpm5 and the Media desk just blew them out of the water.

The media desk is the baby system and its only a little over $400.00.
The Prodesk is the middle system and its in the upper $900.00.
The system 2.1 is the top piece and its near $1,400.00.

A great package for a great price.

[brokemusician4]

Another point to make is the Yorkville P1's are not quite as clear sounding as the Events or Dynaudio's meaning they probably have a little more distortion to them making them sound a little less open, however frequency wise they're dead flat which IMO is more a critical factor when mixing. The Dynaudio's have so little distortion to them they sound almost magical but I need frequency accuracy more than I need clarity although both would be nice that's why I picked the Event 8's overall. My suspiscion is that the distortion in the Yorkville's at only $400. is because the amps are on the cheapish side so I suspect that some really good Hi-fi amps coupled with the passive Yorkville's might be even better.

[ozraves]

I've got a pair of the passive "old style" Yorkville YSM-1 monitors. I've been recommending them for some time as I do in my budget monitoring article.

I've not used the actives.

[brokemusician4]

Originally Posted by parissound

which model did you listen too?
I heard the Media Desk up against the yamaha hs50, Wharfedales and Dyna Bpm5 and the Media desk just blew them out of the water.

The media desk is the baby system and its only a little over $400.00.
The Prodesk is the middle system and its in the upper $900.00.
The system 2.1 is the top piece and its near $1,400.00.

A great package for a great price.

I heard the $400 dollar ones and they did not have a sub hooked up to them. They sounded good to me but a little too distorted in the high mids, maybe the sub would have helped that out a bit not sure. Haven't heard the Wharefdales or the Yamaha hs50's.

[parissound]

Well it really defeats the purpose to listen to them without the subs.
They are made to be used as a complete system not alone.
The company strictly states they are not to be used without the sub.

[djbrough]

Event TR-8's. $500 a pair. They are flat, you get crisp highs,the mids aren't super hyped, and you'll get great bass response. I believe that they may be the best near-fields @ or below $500.

[brokemusician4]

Originally Posted by djbrough

Event TR-8's. $500 a pair. They are flat, you get crisp highs,the mids aren't super hyped, and you'll get great bass response. I believe that they may be the best near-fields @ or below $500.

They were $625. a piece at guitar center, where could I find them below $500 a piece?

[brokemusician4]

Hold the fort the Event monitors I'm talking about are the Event SP8's not the TR8's, the SP8's are more money than the TR8's. Don't know about or have yet to hear the TR8's but the SP8's are great!

[tINY]

Originally Posted by brokemusician4

I don't know about the KRK Vs2 model but I do know from past experience that KRK's suck, not enough lows and nasaly sounding if my memory serves me right. Although I never thought too many good things about Event monitors either so obviously these companies deserve second chances.

All of the series II are new designs - KRK had a complete change of driver vendors starting about 2 years back.

I haven't been impressed with the Rockit 8 or the V4, but the V6, V8 and Rockit5 are all good loudspeakers in their respective price ranges. You might like the Rockit8 - I didn't (it was a bit too thumpy).

The ST6 is an amazing passive for about $200 (head and shoulders above anything for 3x the price).



-tINY

[drummin4christ]

Could you not get a hold of some M-audio BX8's, the event TR-8, Samson ribbon monitors, or even the Berhinger truth monitors. I mean, if your going to do a shootout, get your hands on all the monitors in the same price range and then post results. Just my opinion. Please take it for what it's worth

[Bodoc]

With all due respect--Blue Skies are designed to be used with their subs (they are active satellite systems). Without the sub, you didn't hear the system.

Try again--we have the ProDesk and have had great results with everything from classical to rock. In our experience, they do not hype, they reveal problems and the mixes "translate" beautifully.

[brokemusician4]

Originally Posted by drummin4christ

Could you not get a hold of some M-audio BX8's, the event TR-8, Samson ribbon monitors, or even the Berhinger truth monitors. I mean, if your going to do a shootout, get your hands on all the monitors in the same price range and then post results. Just my opinion. Please take it for what it's worth

In that price range do yourself a favor and just get the Yorkville P1 monitors, they are literally in the same league as the Event sp8's and IMO definetly better than the Dynaudio. The Dynaudio's are way too sparkly and too much low end the Yorkville's just sound really natural. For $400 dollars a pair unbelievable, if hype is what you want go for the Dynaudio's.

[brokemusician4]

Originally Posted by parissound

Well it really defeats the purpose to listen to them without the subs.
They are made to be used as a complete system not alone.
The company strictly states they are not to be used without the sub.

It's just my opinion but I have a hard time buying into the philosophy of mixing with a sub all the time.

[James Lehmann]

If you're in the market for active monitors at around $1,000 I'd definitely take a listen to the BlueSky ProDesks.

As other folks have pointed out, testing the much cheaper MediaDesks, especially without the sub, isn't really a valid test at all (like test-driving a car with three wheels!), certainly if you're seeking a meaningful comparison with a decent nearfield like the Dynaudio BM5's.

With regards to "buying into the philosophy of mixing with a sub" there's really only one way to sensibly address that precept and that is to try it out. I was amazed with the BlueSkys and have had absolutely no problem at all mixing on this system - the design is so good that switching to an integrated sub system was totally painless, if anything I find mixing easier, especially with low frequencies, as my room is far from perfect and the ProDesk 2:1 system is more forgiving of placement and room treatment than my (gorgeous but fussy) PMC TB2's were. I haven't even done the recommended set-up procedure yet, I just threw the sub under the desk, set the level by ear and haven't looked back since - suddenly I'm hearing all sorts of low end rumble and bass level problems that simply don't show up on most nearfields, and the balance and integration with the satelites is so smooth I don't notice it. The whole spectrum is very transparent and the soundstage deep and detailed - you can really peer into a mix with these puppies and I've experienced no signs of 'fatigue', even on marathon sessions.

When you add up the cost of the complete 'package' the Bluesky ProDesks do look like exceptionally good value and are well worth adding to your audition list. Whether or not you like the overall sound of them is of course up to you, but I can't see the value in excluding them purely on conjecture and getting bogged down in a debate over 'sub vs no sub' when the BlueSky ProDesks are such serious contenders at the $1,000 mark, and collective experience seems to confirm that it's perfectly possible to create excellent mixes with either approach, given a decent design philosophy.

[A LaMere]

Originally Posted by brokemusician4

It's just my opinion but I have a hard time buying into the philosophy of mixing with a sub all the time.

FWIW, I have a hard time buying into the theory that you can mix properly without a sub.

Not trying to argue or anything though... just saying, different people like different monitoring systems... Also, I like diff systems for different styles of music...

[SiliconAudioLab]

Originally Posted by Jim vanBergen

I just had a JBL LSR25p just stop working recently. They were a "gift" from JBL/Harman so I put them in and used them. They had a nice bottom, no scooped mids, and just the right HF. But I don't think I want to pay $500 to get it repaired...so I immediately went back to my Genelec 1029Ds, which seem to my ear now to have too little bottom and a really accentuated HF. (That's what I think after I listen back to my mixes on other systems.)

Now I'm wondering if I should buy something else... I used to love mixing on the 1029s, now I'm not sure. Anyone else have this experience?

Why not just roll the top off on the speaker a little - there are tilts back there.

[Oldone]

I have to say, I agree with your assement and ranking of monitors having just lived through a similar process of evaluation.