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Topic: Active Studio Monitors for the home? (Read 9629 times) previous topic - next topic
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Active Studio Monitors for the home?

Folks,

I'd like to do some hobby recording and mixing with ambisonics.  I'm considering building a little studio set up in my listening space.

I'm a critical listener most of the time. That is to say that i sit down and focus on my speakers and the experience rather that just playing something for background noise.  I value highly when i can hear as close a reproduction of what the people might have heard in the studio.  I don't want any added "warmth" or whatever else the high-fi industry thinks i want.

Given that i'm thinking of combing these two spaces, how well would active studio monitors work for me just sitting there and listening? I tend to prefer small listening spaces anyway (6' or so away from my speakers).

I'm interested in auditioning these for instance: http://www.eventelectronics.com/opal

How would an average pair of active monitors sound different from their similar "high-end" counterparts? What kind of sound would i be likely to get out them and what is the average consumer going to miss?  Why would they sound 'bad' in my listening space? 

I realize that i could use my hi-fi speakers for monitoring instead, but they are floor standers which makes positioning difficult in my case, and that's another thread perhaps. I've read some discussion of that in mixig mags but not the inverse which is why i'm asking here.

Thanks

Music lover and recovering high end audiophile

Active Studio Monitors for the home?

Reply #1 –
Quote from: BearcatSandor on
I'm a critical listener most of the time... I'm considering building a little studio set up...
…I'm interested in auditioning these for instance: http://www.eventelectronics.com/opal

And what will reproduce for you, together with these Opals, the 25…50 Hz band (especially for studio control purposes, to hear the quality of reproduction of the lowest sound octave, the “base” of sound image, and to detect all kinds of possible infra-low defects), keeping in mind that their acoustical output at 30 Hz is already almost nothing (minus 20 dB), and at 25 Hz, totally nothing (minus 35 dB)?

Active Studio Monitors for the home?

Reply #2 –
Quote from: Fedot L on
Quote from: BearcatSandor on
I'm a critical listener most of the time... I'm considering building a little studio set up...
…I'm interested in auditioning these for instance: http://www.eventelectronics.com/opal

And what will reproduce for you, together with these Opals, the 25…50 Hz band (especially for studio control purposes, to hear the quality of reproduction of the lowest sound octave, the “base” of sound image, and to detect all kinds of possible infra-low defects), keeping in mind that their acoustical output at 30 Hz is already almost nothing (minus 20 dB), and at 25 Hz, totally nothing (minus 35 dB)?

A subwoofer. If these were hi-fi speakers they would be called "bookshelf" speakers. They were a "for instance".  My question isn't "what do you think of these speakers" (i have a few problems with those: power usage (40 watts at idle! My electric bill will cry), hiss noise), it was more along the lines of:

"if you take a studio monitor and a similar hi-fi speaker what can one expect to hear as differences and why would studio monitors be bad for such an application". Speaking in general terms.
Music lover and recovering high end audiophile

Active Studio Monitors for the home?

Reply #3 –
There were articles in Sound On Sound in which they compared a bunch of studio monitors with some hi-fi monitors, you may want to read these:
http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/jun02/articles/monitors.asp
http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/jul02/articles/monitors2.asp

When I was considering buying small speakers, I asked a few sound-engineers for their opinion in this matter. They usually said something like: compared to hi-fi monitors, near-field  studio monitors will typically sound more neutral, and will tend to reveal details in the recording, whereas hi-fi speakers may be purposefully tuned to produce a more "pleasant" and "warmer" sound. Studio monitors may be more in-your-face, and for music listening they may be fatiguing and harsh for many people. They are unforgiving for bad recordings, while hi-fi monitors may smooth out production flaws.  How much is this true, it's hard to tell, I am not aware of any blind comparisons of studio vs. hi-fi monitors.

For myself, I chose studio monitors, because I value truth in music, if the violonist wanted the note to sound harsh and edgy, I want to hear it this way. I am happy with my choice, with the monitors' ability to be very aggressive, with the clarity, with very precise rendition of timbre. But again, I don't know if a model of hi-fi monitors woldn't give me the same.

Obviously, there are also technical differences, I mean that studio monitors in most cases have built-in amps, active crossovers (which supposedly are "better" than passive crossovers), they have balanced inputs, some form of room EQ, and they are designed to different aesthetical standards. They would usually look inconspicuous, simple black boxes, or - conversely, bold and aggrresive (think KRKs with yellow woofer membranes, magenta or blue Tannoys, etc.). Hi-fi speakers will more often be veneered, have nice grilles, and look more like furniture.
Ceterum censeo, there should be an "%is_stop_after_current%".

Active Studio Monitors for the home?

Reply #4 –
Thanks Pawelq. From what you've said it sounds like i'd want studio monitors for listening. I really enjoy it when i can hear little mistakes in mastering, volume changes, hearing when mics are swapped out etc. I'm interested in the process as much as the product so having speakers that would more help me hear it would be a thrill (if that makes any sense).

I think i'll save up and demo some Genelecs or something.

Thanks for those links. I'll read those.
Music lover and recovering high end audiophile

Active Studio Monitors for the home?

Reply #6 –
Thanks. I certainly shall.


Also, i've run into reports of studio monitor companies getting upset when people use their studio monitors in their homes for casual listening.  Has anyone ever run into that?

Music lover and recovering high end audiophile

Active Studio Monitors for the home?

Reply #7 –
Quote from: BearcatSandor on
Also, i've run into reports of studio monitor companies getting upset when people use their studio monitors in their homes for casual listening.  Has anyone ever run into that?


Ha, ha, are you kidding? Upset? Why would they be upset if more people buy their products?
Ceterum censeo, there should be an "%is_stop_after_current%".

Active Studio Monitors for the home?

Reply #8 –
Because people are using them in a very different environment than they were designed for (near-field listening), and then complaining that "they don't sound good."

As it so happens, BearcatSandor actually would be using them in a more-or-less "proper" environment, although 6' is usually considered "mid-field" as opposed to "near-field" (<4' or so).

Also, studio control rooms are (/were  ) designed and built with acoustic properties in mind (absorption, diffusion, bass traps, etc) - your average living room isn't.
"Not sure what the question is, but the answer is probably no."

Active Studio Monitors for the home?

Reply #9 –
My questions on selling restrictions were from this thread: http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1223760, starting around post 7.

Yeah, this would be a dedicated listening studio environment. I'm actually thinking, when i get the place, of building a small hometheater/studio room with space for about 4 people or so at max.  I'm thinking a smaller room might be easier to control, and everything (amps, speakers, subs) can be smaller/less powerful.

So 4' is near-field and 6' is mid-field? What's far-field and who's in the out-field?  Why does baseball have anything do to with this? The magazines seem to imply that big speakers will help me get to "first base" though, so there may be a connection.  ^>.>^

Seriously, what are the near/far/?long? field distances (generally speaking)?

Bearcat
Music lover and recovering high end audiophile
 

Active Studio Monitors for the home?

Reply #10 –
The commonly used definition of "nearfield" is something like "listening distance <=1.5 m", even though technically that's not terribly correct. Something like "sound travel distance via any sound-reflecting objects >= listening distance" would be more accurate; in any case listening distance is well within the reverberation radius. Typical hi-fi listening distances (3+ m) can be well within the diffuse field.

I have some Tascam VL-X5s here, good value when they were on sale (about 200€/pr). At my kind of listening distances (<1 m) I could use a coax speaker though, or at least something with better vertical dispersion properties. Apart from that I'm quite satisfied with them. Put them on some stands to keep them away from the desk, otherwise there was too much coloration. It has to be said that equally-priced headphones beat them hands down in terms of low frequency extension and level handling (my PC cans are some trusty HD580s), but for those times when I can't or don't want to use these, they do a fine job.