Hi All,

I'm in the market for a new set of studio monitors. My current Event ASP8s have just about had it (overheating poweramp issues) and as much as I love them I think that after nearly 15 years of service I need a new pair. I use these for mixing mostly rock/metal and some clean guitar/piano oriented pop as well; definitely no EDM. I also use these as my daily driver for listening to music, videos, etc.

My room is relatively large, has good treatment (if just a little boomy) and my mixes always translate well on a variety of listening sources.

Anyways over the past 2 weeks or so I have listened in store to:

Adam A7s and A8s,
Eve Audio SC207s
Dynaudio BM6a MKII
Focal Alpha 65 and 80

I wasn't too impressed by the Adams as they sounded a little flabby in general; however I didn't mind the sound of the ribbon tweeter which is where the Eve SC207s come in. These really surprised me by how much tighter their delivery was in comparison but due to COVID-19 they are currently unavailable anywhere in Australia.
I need new monitors soon so I continued my search and a few days back heard the Dynaudios and the Focals.
The Dynaudios were impressive but they are 2nd hand and come without warranty, etc. They seemed to be in good condition but I wasn't convinced the person selling them to me was telling me their entire story.
Then there are the Focals. The Alpha 80s were a little too bass-heavy for my liking which compromised the mids some. Despite going as low as 35Hz (same as the ASP8s) they seemed a little looser and their mids (or lack thereof) were a deal breaker. The 65s however fared better and somehow even had better stereo imagaing but a slightly over emphasised bass was of some concern. Especially when I listened to 'Doin' it right' and 'Give life back to music' by Daft Punk. The ASP8s sound great playing these tracks (deep yet tight).

SO after all that, I would like to ask if there is something else I should be listening? If you could tell me about your experiences with the above monitors that would really help too as apart from the Adams and Focal Alpha 80s the others are still in play.
My budget is around $3000 Aussie Dollars.

Hope everyone is staying safe and thanks in advance!

I’d look into a used pair of PMC Result6.. these are very nice speakers..
or since you don’t mind the ribbon tweeter maybe the HEDD 07?

I would not worry too much about the warranty on quality active loudspeaker. (Unless is 15yrs old, but it’s not the case here).

I’m not sure if you could find some good used 3way for that dough.. but you could find some decent two ways.



Cheu

Thank you Cheu, I have a pair of Focals to test out at home. Everything else decent is pretty much out of stock :(

Quested H108 or ATC SCM12 if you have a good power amp.

The KRK V6S4 are quite good and cheap.

Haven't heard them myself, but I was looking at the Neumann KH 310a's but their little brother the KH 120 got a lot of great reviews when I look at those. Not sure of the price in Australia, but in the US the KH 120s are $700 each. so $1400 USD. the KH310a are $2,200 each so above your price range.
Just a suggestion.