Considering Studio Monitors? Read this first.

[I<3SQ]

I have a set of Logitech X-230's running off a Creative X-fi Xtreme Audio sound card and wanted to upgrade to something that sounds better. Someone had suggested some Behringer MS40's and a subwoofer so I started looking into the Behringers as well as other active studio monitors and quickly realized that my budget of $200 wasn't nearly enough to make this upgrade happen so I upped it by $100. Before investing too much time in researching and getting opinions of different monitors I decided to go listen to studio monitors in order to get a feel for the "flat frequency response". While there were some monitors out there, the KRK Rokit series for example, that sounded impressive I've concluded that studio monitors are not for me.

I have an extensive background in car audio dating back to 1992 so i've become accustomed to music as it sounds coming from high end car audio products, and use my home stereo systems as the reference to achieving the best possible sound from my car. That being said, it made absolutely no sense for me to build a system for my PC using studio monitors as the sound is distinctly different than what I hear when I listen to my home stereo and car stereo systems. Don't get me wrong, it's not that the monitors sound bad, it's just that it's different than what I prefer. Keep in mind that my PC audio is just used for music playback, I do no production at all.

So for those of you considering studio monitors for music playback, make sure you consider your tastes in music, your current preferences for how you like music to sound and listen to as many as you can before you take the plunge. IMO, Studio monitors have their place in audio but i'm not convinced it's for the casual music listener who just wants better SQ than his/her current setup.

 

[[L]es]

sorry, i've switched and i'm loving it

 

[infinitesymphony]

Not all studio monitors have flat frequency responses... Actually, most don't, especially in the lower price ranges. That's why they're usually referred to as 'reference monitors.' It's not really fair to compare sub-$500/pair monitors with high-end home or car audio systems.

 

[[L]es]

infinite.. i wouldn't say i had a high end home system but i did have a home audio system and i prefer the 500$ active monitor route

 

[I<3SQ]

Quote:

Originally Posted by [L]es /img/forum/go_quote.gif sorry, i've switched and i'm loving it

Make no mistake about it, my post was not meant to persuade anyone from going with studio monitors, I just want them to take all things into consideration before doing so.

Quote:

Originally Posted by infinitesymphony /img/forum/go_quote.gif Not all studio monitors have flat frequency responses... Actually, most don't, especially in the lower price ranges. That's why they're usually referred to as 'reference monitors.' It's not really fair to compare sub-$500/pair monitors with high-end home or car audio systems.

I imagine it's incredibly difficult, if not impossible, to design a speaker with a perfectly flat freq. response so one should expect the speaker to colorize the sound to some degree. It pretty much goes without saying that the main goal in the production of studio monitors is to end up with a finished product that has the flattest freq response possible. When that ceases to be the goal, the speaker can no longer be referred to as a monitor, rather a bookshelf.

 

[bergman2]

if its not the sound ur looking for then there isnt much you can do about it...BUT...you should know there is an expansive field of studio monitors out there for many different budgets and sounds....my main desktop setup right now is a m-audio audiophile firewire > unbalanced out to xlr > m-audio studiophile sbx subwoofer (which also acts as a main control or splitter to two monitors) > xlr to xlr > m-audio studiphile bx8...the system slams is powerful and sounds great...the main problem people make when mating studio monitors on a desktop computer setup is not checking for near field or far field speakers...the near fields open up immediately and give great imaging and punch

 

[I<3SQ]

Quote:

Originally Posted by bergman2 /img/forum/go_quote.gif if its not the sound ur looking for then there isnt much you can do about it...BUT...you should know there is an expansive field of studio monitors out there for many different budgets and sounds....my main desktop setup right now is a m-audio audiophile firewire > unbalanced out to xlr > m-audio studiophile sbx subwoofer (which also acts as a main control or splitter to two monitors) > xlr to xlr > m-audio studiphile bx8...the system slams is powerful and sounds great...the main problem people make when mating studio monitors on a desktop computer setup is not checking for near field or far field speakers...the near fields open up immediately and give great imaging and punch

Yeah, like everything else it's all personal preference. I think my budget was the main thing that was stopping me from getting some monitors that could keep a smile on my face. When you consider that I wanted to get a sub/sound card and monitors all for under $300, it's clear that I have champagne dreams with beer money.

However, I have finally settled on a system:

AudioSource Amp100 $80
AudioTrak Prodigy HD2 $75
Infinity L-MPS speakers (already own)
Dayton Audio SUB-80 $95

Nothing to brag about but should be quite an upgrade from my Logitech X-230/Creative Xtreme Audio setup and just $50 more than my original budget of $200.

 

[bergman2]

sounds good...but if you can wait, and want better results in the long term, then just get one nice component at a time and then when funds allow get another premium piece of the computer audio puzzle

 

[I<3SQ]

Quote:

Originally Posted by bergman2 /img/forum/go_quote.gif sounds good...but if you can wait, and want better results in the long term, then just get one nice component at a time and then when funds allow get another premium piece of the computer audio puzzle

That's how I built my car stereo system, but it's mostly comprised of high end components that I always wanted but could never afford. I don't have the same love for my PC audio setup, I just want to upgrade to something better than my Logitech setup that wouldn't break the bank. And even at $250, that's pushing it for me but at the end of the day I think I'll be happy with the outcome and won't have a need to upgrade any further. If I do want better sounding music then I'll just connect my Zune to my home theater system and rock out

 

[fjf]

That depends on the type of music you like...I listen to classical and it souds great in monitors. Maybe electronic music needs the bass hump. That is not universal

 

[I<3SQ]

Quote:

Originally Posted by fjf /img/forum/go_quote.gif That depends on the type of music you like...I listen to classical and it souds great in monitors. Maybe electronic music needs the bass hump. That is not universal

Not sure who or what you're responding to but you're right, the type of music you listen to should be considered as well. I just don't want guys thinking that just because they get a set of monitors that they're gonna be madly in love with the way their music sounds.

 

[[L]es]

Quote:

Not sure who or what you're responding to but you're right, the type of music you listen to should be considered as well. I just don't want guys thinking that just because they get a set of monitors that they're gonna be madly in love with the way their music sounds.

mostly rap would fall in that category.. though some sound nice.

and one more thing, not all monitors are considered equal.. while they're all supposed to have a flat freq response, they still can differ with the minute peaks and dips, tonal quality, detail, resolution, etc..

 

[I<3SQ]

Quote:

Originally Posted by [L]es /img/forum/go_quote.gif mostly rap would fall in that category.. though some sound nice. and one more thing, not all monitors are considered equal.. while they're all supposed to have a flat freq response, they still can differ with the minute peaks and dips, tonal quality, detail, resolution, etc..

Yup. For example, I listed to a set of KRK Rokit5's and those things sounded beautiful but were $300 by themselves, a bit over budget for me. But my goodness, the bass response and overall clarity and cleanness of the sound was music to my ears (pun intended).

But the M-Audio BX5a monitors didn't impress me at all, I mean, they sounded good but it was nothing to write home about.

 

[spacemanspliff]

oh hell, I just made that thread to steer folks away from those awful pc speakers.

your sound is likely full range. you need to take a longer look and save up more $$ before you get serious. like LS6 serious. lol

 

[Sovkiller]

Not sure how high end could be a car audio setup, particularly considering the limitation of acoustics due to the space and shape, but I have tried a few monitors and not precisely the high end ones, and all of them have sounded better than any car I have been in, also they can be really fun and enjoyable, my brother still has a pair of Alesis monitor ones, and I love them...