Will I be ok with the Yamaha HS80M monitors with my setup (pic attached)

[Sheekamoo]

Another option I'm not considering is removing the hutch completely (the top part of the desk) and instead finding some sort of desk mounted speaker stands. Ideally ones that have 2U or 4U rackmounts. That would probably me my best (and maybe only) option besides buying a new desk right?

[lostwars]

This is an honest reply:

Either skip the new monitors and buy a better desk for mixing or get the HM50s and use the rest towards a better desk for mixing.

Trust me. When I went from a plastic card table to my current mixing desk it made a huge difference. Studio RTA Creation Station Studio Desk is a good start. Its cheap but looks professional. Youll love it.

[Sheekamoo]

Originally Posted by lostwars

This is an honest reply:

Either skip the new monitors and buy a better desk for mixing or get the HM50s and use the rest towards a better desk for mixing.

Trust me. When I went from a plastic card table to my current mixing desk it made a huge difference. Studio RTA Creation Station Studio Desk is a good start. Its cheap but looks professional. Youll love it.

Thanks for the reply. Unfortunately, I don't thin the HM50's aren't an option. From everything I've read here, they lack proper bass response and they're also harsh and hard to listen to for more then 2 hours.

A buddy of mine actually has the Studio RTA Creation Station Studio desk and it is nice (especially for the price). Unfortunately, it won't fit my dual 24" monitors with the HS80M's.

I did find this desk which gives me exactly what I want (speaker stands, room for both my monitors (which aren't raised off the desk), some rackmount space, and a great adjustable keyboard tray. Problem is, that costs $2,100 which is more then I'm willing to spend right now:
http://www.kkaudio.com/warner.html

I think you're right though... those HS80M's won't fit/work with my current desk. But, the desk itself is fine, it's just the hutch that's giving me issues. I've had this desk for 10+ years now and it's survived 4 moves and I really do like it.

I think if I remove the hutch and put two of these on my desk (to raise the speakers) I should be OK for now (until I can afford a proper desk like the KK Audio one I linked to above):
Closet: Storage Cubes: Black Wood: Stacking Cubes: Cube with Shelf

What do you think?

[kasmira]

Perhaps grab the 50s along with the sub to pair with em. Some good friends use the same setup to write dubstep and their bass in their tracks is always spot on. I don't personally think the 50s are more harsh than the 80s..they're both quite painstakingly harsh IMO. I hate mixing on them.

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[kasmira]

Also, more than likely, the less than ideal bass response you're getting could be largely due to your room acoustics

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[Sheekamoo]

Originally Posted by kasmira

Perhaps grab the 50s along with the sub to pair with em. Some good friends use the same setup to write dubstep and their bass in their tracks is always spot on. I don't personally think the 50s are more harsh than the 80s..they're both quite painstakingly harsh IMO. I hate mixing on them.

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I thought of getting a sub with the 50's... but with my room setup I don't have room to properly place the sub. My room is an office first, studio second... so I have to make some sacrifices. I've also heard people mentioned the 50's and 80's were harsh (although it seems like 50/50 on the 50's being harsh and maybe only 5% saying that 80's were harsh. Another monitor in my range would be the KRK which gets some love on this site, but I saw a lot of people complained that it sounded electronic... like a normal computer speaker... so that pushed me away from that.

And I agree on my current speakers not having great bass response with my acoustics. There's a certain frequency in this room that gives me a lot of trouble. But that's another reason why I like the Yamaha's. I'm hoping some of those room correction settings on the back can help me out with that issue.

[kasmira]

Originally Posted by Sheekamoo

I'm hoping some of those room correction settings on the back can help me out with that issue.

Most speakers have correction EQs on the back. This will not fix the issue at all.

[DAH]

Forget about translation unless you can move speakers and mixspot for the most linear response.

[JoRillo]

I don't care what speaker you get - that desk and speaker placement is BAD for trying to get a good mix.

Either get rid of the top section and put the speakers on stands, or get a new desk (and still put the speakers on stands )

I have a thread for making some incredibly nice speaker stands for about $60. Check it out - DIY Monitor Stands (PVC Pipe)

I also own the HS80's. They were harsh on me until I figured out to cut the -2 on the High End, now I'm back to loving them.

[Sheekamoo]

Yep, you guys were right.

I removed the hutch from the desk and got some desk shelves instead so that I can set my monitors on top of the shelves. With my old speakers, this made a dramatic difference in the sound quality. Specifically, the bass was no longer as strong and flubby sounding (which is a good thing).

Since then, I have upgraded from the BX5a's to the Focal CMS65's and have been nothing but happy with everything . Eventually I'll look into getting a better desk that is a bit wider and would allow me to lower the speakers down a bit closer to my ear level. But for now, I'm pretty happy with this setup.

[kasmira]

Awesome! Can you cut the stands down a bit? Those look like they fire over the top of your head..you may want to get some Auralex Mo-Pads to angle them down at your ears (and decouple a bit from the desk)

I would say the next upgrade for you would be dedicated speaker stands. The desk looks nice enough to not warrant really needing a new one till you need to house hardware. Speaker stands can be made at home for $50, or bought for ~$100-$200 a pair.

[Sheekamoo]

Originally Posted by kasmira

Awesome! Can you cut the stands down a bit? Those look like they fire over the top of your head..you may want to get some Auralex Mo-Pads to angle them down at your ears (and decouple a bit from the desk)

I would say the next upgrade for you would be dedicated speaker stands. The desk looks nice enough to not warrant really needing a new one till you need to house hardware. Speaker stands can be made at home for $50, or bought for ~$100-$200 a pair.

I can't cut them down... and even if I did, they would then sit behind my LCD Monitors a bit which would deflect some of the sound. They're as low as I can have them with my current desk.

And they are on Aurlex Mopads angled down as far as the mopads will allow . In my normal seating position they do fire a bit over my head. But when I sit back in the sweet spot (equal distances from speakers to my head), they're nearly spot on.

I don't have room on either side of my desk for speaker stands, so for now they need to stay on the stands on top of my desk. In order to get the speakers lower, I would need to push the speakers out wider then my desk currently allows... which would mean either a new desk, or I would need to re-arrange what I have against this wall so that I can fit speaker stands (neither of which are an option right now).

I think my next step would likely be treating my room. But for now, I'm happy with this setup and I'd like to stick with it for at least a couple of months to get a feel for everything.

[ciro]

*Lupo´s (Andreas) room (desk) comes in mind

Ciro


*Bump it gain to Andreas floor reflection point treatment . I did it in my room this week (with 2x2 8" rockwool for each side).

[kasmira]

Originally Posted by Sheekamoo

And they are on Aurlex Mopads angled down as far as the mopads will allow .

Ah, okay then!

Originally Posted by Sheekamoo

I think my next step would likely be treating my room.

Well, speaker positioning and placement, as well as speaker stands would more than likely be the first step in treating your room

Originally Posted by Sheekamoo

But for now, I'm happy with this setup

Awesome!

[ciro]

Originally Posted by ciro

*Lupo´s (Andreas) room (desk) comes in mind

Ciro


*Bump it gain to Andreas floor reflection point treatment . I did it in my room this week (with 2x2 8" rockwool for each side).

Show me your mastering setup 2011

Another example of floor reflection point treatment.

Ciro

[Quantum7]

Originally Posted by Sheekamoo

I did find this desk which gives me exactly what I want (speaker stands, room for both my monitors (which aren't raised off the desk), some rackmount space, and a great adjustable keyboard tray. Problem is, that costs $2,100 which is more then I'm willing to spend right now:
KK Audio Inc. | Warner Bros.

$2100 seems ridiculously expensive for such a cheaply built.....and looking studio desk. You could have a local craftsman/carpenter build you something like that for much less.