Which one of these studio monitors is best??

Posted: Wed Apr 09, 2008 2:17 pm

Hey guys what's up. This is my first post and I look forward to all your combined expertise. A friend of mine said I could get the answers I need on this site so here goes!

Q: Which one of these studio monitors do you think is best overall?

1) M-Audio BX5a Deluxe

2) Yamaha HS50M

3) Event ALP 5

I'm going to be purchasing one of these pairs for my home studio set-up. I create rock, industrial, experimental, acoustic/ballad type of music and really want the best bang for my buck.

The pricing on these isn't that much of a difference and I would also like to know what other monitors you guys would recommend instead of the ones listed above. I look forward to all your replies and we'll talk soon.

Peace.

Posted: Wed Apr 09, 2008 3:36 pm

The Yamahas are excellent.
I have a pair and love them.
They have some real helpful EQ settings on them. Very clear sounding, very pressent in the top end, and near perfect translation.

When I first got them, my mixes would no translate all that well. the mids were just not there. So I dropped the mids in the EQ so I have to push them harder then I was before.

One concern about them is the low end response. It sounds real tight, but there is very little sound under 55hz. So you need to be mindful to use a HPF to deal with any low end rumble that you can not hear.
This means they are not the best choice for hip hop or club beats or any thing where you want to really push the feel of the bass. however there is a sub you can buy to go with them which would fully eliminate this issue.

Posted: Wed Apr 09, 2008 3:46 pm

Hard question to answer, its so subjective.

I have to say I liked the new yamahas. I have never been a fan of the events (midrange boost around 2k), and Maudio well ... you could do better.

But again, its your ear that will decide. Grab some of your reference cd's, the cd's you know very well, and test drive all three of the monitors.

Last time I selected monitors, it took about 3 months of trials. Luckly I was able to borrow my choices for a few mixes to really get a good feel for them.

Take your time and let your ears decide.

Posted: Wed Apr 09, 2008 4:07 pm

ya i also have the yamahas as well and im super happy with them.

Posted: Wed Apr 09, 2008 5:51 pm

Thanks for the info guys. I'm gonna take your advice and probably hit up a local music store sometime tomorrow with a reference cd of songs I know sound good.

The guys at Sweetwater.com have all said to get the Event ALP 5's and that they would also make a great second pair of speakers once I upgrade to a newer set down the road.

I'll keep ya posted on what I end up buying and will post pictures of everything when I'm done.

Thanks!

Posted: Thu Apr 10, 2008 8:29 am

Just a thought -

You may want to consider upping your budget a notch and consider this setup:

http://www.listenup.com/NHT++S-00-p-S-00-p-49992.html

http://www.audioadvisor.com/prodinfo.asp?number=NHTM00

Hard to beat!

Cheers-
J

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