What are you guys using for reference monitors?

[coldcoldhands]

I was wondering what everyone is using for reference monitors? I've looking at the KRK rokit 8 g3 and the yamaha hs5 and hs7. Any thoughts? I've got between 150 and 250 3 tops in the budget. 

[normen]

Check if you can get the Dynaudio BM5 MkII for some low price, the MkIII is out already and I got mine for a very decent price.

[ScuzzyEye]

I have used the original Alesis M1 Active's for 15 years now (got them in July of '99). Since I listen to music on them daily, I know very much how they sound. This SOS review accurately describes my thoughts: http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/may99/a ... sism1a.htm

The MKIIs should actually be a bit better.

[EnochLight]

M-Audio BX8 D2's.  I just got these; they replaced first-gen BX8's that had developed a hum (they were about 10 years old).  I considered a set of KRK RP8G2 or G3's but they were twice the cost.  Whether or not they would sound drastically different still interests me, though.

[decibel]

brought a pair of these a few years back at a price i couldnt ignore (with the 10" sub also)
it was money well spent for sure, excellent monitors, recommend without hesitation

http://www.jblpro.com/www/products/vint ... s/lsr2328p  

[Last Alternative]

I swear by my Yamaha HS5's. In a small room the 8's are almost too much. The 5's still have some bass and I use the spectrum eq and Sennheiser headphones for the deep downs.
I'm a happy camper. Used to have Rokit 5's (2nd & 3rd gen). I never realized how muddy they were until I listened side by side to the Yamahas.

The JBLs sounded good but I could totally hear the mid scoop.

[jappe]

Genelec 8010 when @work far from home
Mackie HR-24 standing on my Clavinova
KRK Rokit 8 lame ducks on my desk, disconnected.
KRK 10s sub under that same desk.


The Genelecs are new ones; first impression is very good. Rich sound for that portable size!

[Gorilla Texas]

I swear by my Yamaha HS5's. In a small room the 8's are almost too much. The 5's still have some bass and I use the spectrum eq and Sennheiser headphones for the deep downs.
I'm a happy camper. Used to have Rokit 5's (2nd & 3rd gen). I never realized how muddy they were until I listened side by side to the Yamahas.

The JBLs sounded good but I could totally hear the mid scoop.

Yep,I test out all those speakers myself at guitar center and I agree. The krk's sound muddy as hell. The jbl's sound better but they miss a lot above 1k,you can really hear the clarity difference between them and the yamaha's. I don't like the sound of the yamaha's either not enough low end for a 8" for that price imo. I know they're suppose to sound like ns10 but I don't like that sound. I played some professionally mix songs from M.Jackson to some rock groups I've never heard of and my own soundcloud music to test these monitors. The best monitors I tested that reproduced the widest range of frequencies were the adams imo. The adams are on another level imo and I can see why they're the price they're at. The Adams I tested only had 5" woofer but still had the best low end of all I tested. The high frequencies and clarity is unmatched imo with anything under a grand. All those other monitors had flaws or frequency ranges not being heard or reproduced. I tested yamaha,m-audio,mackie,rokit 8,adam, and what ever they had can't remember all of them. I was looking to replace my alesis M1's I got rid of a long time ago. But after listening to everything I decided to just save my money to get something high end like the Adams.

[Gaja]

I really like my yamaha ms 50m . They are dirt cheap for the the sound they make.
Now in the studio we have a pair of United Minorities Wally's, which are designed to be positioned close to walls, with the "bass hole" on the top, rather than on the back. Fantastic speakers, actually.

[deepndark]

I use JBL 305: http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/LSR305
I like how my mixes sound through them.
Anyway these were recommended by lot of the guys over gearslutz.com
These are just great if the room is not big.

[virtualpt]

I use Equator D5s & my girlfriend uses JBL LSR305, very happy with both. I prefer the Equators, but they do cost a bit more. I am also lucky enough to have a pair of PMC GB1s as part of my hifi for checking final mix.

[pushedbutton]

Fostex PM0.5's.
They are nice and sound much better than my previous solution of nailing a dead cat to a piece of wood and sticking a jack plug up its arse.

[syncanonymous]

I use Avantone MixCubes (active). I burned them in as suggested. I wanted to avoid any ported design because I find ported monitors can send you down a road of confusion when mixing bass. I don't really have a low freq solution audibly beyond headphones at this stage. I usually lean on spectrum analyser plugins and worst case scenario speakers for bass taming.

http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/jun10/a ... ctives.htm

 
 

[Namahs Amrak]

Mackie MR8 Mk3 (8")

 

 

Mike Senior would rouse on me for having ports, but I like them, for the room they live in.

[marcuswitt]

There are so many awesome monitor speakers in almost any price range so that it's not easy to make a general recommendation. Well, I've put my money on KRK's Expose' E8B, which was an investment that I've never regretted. Those monitors really kick a**.

But I also like Neumann's KH line, MEG's (Musikelektronik Gaithein) products, Event Electronics' Opal, Mackie's HR824mkII and the new Presonus Sceptre S8.

[Julibee]

M-Audio BX8 D2's.  I just got these; they replaced first-gen BX8's that had developed a hum (they were about 10 years old).  I considered a set of KRK RP8G2 or G3's but they were twice the cost.  Whether or not they would sound drastically different still interests me, though.

My BX5As did the same thing!  Got a hum after 10 years... replaced them with BX5Ds.  I would love some something higher end, but... cost wise, I'm pretty pleased with the M-Audio line.

[KaliKush84]

JBL LSR305 i love these babies for the price and room consideration the value can not be beat.Matching them with a jbl sub is highly recommended with some room treatment to get the full benefit of performance 

[selig]

At the main studio, Annex Recording:
(JBL LSR 6328P monitors and LSR 6312 Sub)
 
AND
(Yamaha NS-10m)
 

At home, it's "coaxial land":
(Equator D8s, with an old KLH sub)
 
and this which is surprisingly useful:
(Roland Cube Monitor)

[Concep]

I use BX8s with a KRK 10 sub.  Although since my kids were born, I've exclusively been using my headphones, which are HD380 pros.

[Last Alternative]

Forgot to say- I also have an Avantone Mixcube (the yellow one)- just 1 for mixing mono. It's in the middle of course. It's so awesome to mix against reference tracks on that thing! You cannot go wrong with levels and EQ! ...well, I mean you might have to do small tweaks when going back to stereo but the Mixcube really takes out A LOT of the guesswork.
Highly recommended.

[gak]

(scary face)

I see nothing from the OP and a virtual miss-mash in between. However, the OP post is not clear. HS7's are a 600 USD pair as far as I can see. This would be WELL outside your range.

Tough choice, but I think review wise the HS7's are pretty kick-butt.

[selig]

Forgot to say- I also have an Avantone Mixcube (the yellow one)- just 1 for mixing mono. It's in the middle of course. It's so awesome to mix against reference tracks on that thing! You cannot go wrong with levels and EQ! ...well, I mean you might have to do small tweaks when going back to stereo but the Mixcube really takes out A LOT of the guesswork.
Highly recommended.

I've been eyeing these for years now and really need to take the plunge. I should get a pair and park one at home and one in the studio… thanks for reminding me of these!

I would add their BIGGEST use isn't mono monitoring, which you can do with any single monitor. It's the ability to hear the mid-range frequencies WITHOUT the coloration of a crossover (or two). Most two-way systems put the crossover right in the middle of the critical mid-range frequencies and this can mess with the perception of that range. Having a single-drive system such as these is like having a microscope on the all important mid-range. Despite common wisdom, IMO it's not all about the bass, OR the treble - it's the midrange!  

[selig]

There are so many awesome monitor speakers in almost any price range so that it's not easy to make a general recommendation. Well, I've put my money on KRK's Expose' E8B, which was an investment that I've never regretted. Those monitors really kick a**.

But I also like Neumann's KH line, MEG's (Musikelektronik Gaithein) products, Event Electronics' Opal, Mackie's HR824mkII and the new Presonus Sceptre S8.

The original E8s are one of my favorite all time mix monitors - great purchase there! IMO, my JBLs are a very close second, but were cheeper (and available). I'm not sure if anything changed with the E8B, but I can say there NO other KRK that impressed me as much as the E8s.

That's one thing I've noticed through the years - a manufacturer can have a hit (like the Yamaha NS10s) but STILL not know exactly why they were popular. That translates to "don't purchase by brand", meaning don't get some other Yamaha because you like the NS10s, or don't get just any KRK because you liked the E8s. I've never been impressed by more than 1 (maybe 2) models in ANY manufacturer's line up at any one point in time. In fact, I've literally hated some models from the same company that produced some of my favorites! Live and learn…

[selig]

M-Audio BX8 D2's.  I just got these; they replaced first-gen BX8's that had developed a hum (they were about 10 years old).  I considered a set of KRK RP8G2 or G3's but they were twice the cost.  Whether or not they would sound drastically different still interests me, though.

My BX5As did the same thing!  Got a hum after 10 years... replaced them with BX5Ds.  I would love some something higher end, but... cost wise, I'm pretty pleased with the M-Audio line.

My BX5s did the same thing (capacitors went bad), but even sooner (I ran them 24/7) - really liked those too. I found the transition to the Equator line to be smooth sailing - if you ever get the chance, check out the D5s or D8s.

They are priced reasonably IMO for what you get, especially if like me you've been smitten by the coaxial bug over the years from URIE, Tannoy, KEF, even Fostex. And now there's a new wave of coaxial love flowing from Pelosi, Folcrum, Gotham, Spectre, APS, Prodipe, StudioToy, KS Audio, and of course Geithain!.

[Julibee]

HA!  I watched several videos of people replacing the BX series capacitors, and was very tempted to try it... but I'm crap with a soldering gun. I think I still have pics of my bulging capacitor(s).

Refresh my memory... I remember looking into Equator and Adam (among others) when I was replacing the BX5As... Is Equator the one available only from their web site?  

I just looked at the Equator site, and I do see a very small distributor list... but I distinctly remember that there was a set of boutique (?) monitors that I was really interested in, but there was no way to hear them.  They were only available through the manufacturer, and I didn't want to hassle with buying and returning if I didn't like them... also it was a little more than I could pay at the time.  However, I REALLY liked these monitors, and the price was pretty surprising, given all the great reviews.

Maybe it was someone else, entirely.  Swiss Cheese Brain.

Anyone know what I'm talking about?  Granted, I should have at least 7 good years left in my BX5D2s, if Enoch, Selig and I are any indication of MAudio monitor longevity...