I’ve been using Alesis M1Active 620s as my main reference monitors for 10 years now (too long I know - but they have performed very well for me).
I think it’s time for a change (not least because one just went bang/flash in the back for the second time!) -
I’m a bit out of date with the latest in monitors and don’t live near a decent hardware store to go and compare so as a starter for 10 I wanted to get your views on what you’re all using, please?
The 620s were great at mixing in a quiet environment (to protect my ears) but could be pushed to be well loud enough for my quite large home studio set up (my studio is about 25ft by 16ft) - so I’m interested in monitors that can perform well in that way as the 620s have done
many thanks in advance - I’m looking forward to hearing your views!
I use a pair of Behringer B2031a for recording - they’re brilliant, cheap and quite happy to blast bass/guitar through them at will. They also have plenty of bottom end so you can feel the kick of the bass drum which i find super encouraging when performing/recording, but they’re also good at low volumes too.
For mixing, i’m of the belief that you need 2-3 reference speakers (+headphones) to get a mix right anyway so i’m not on a mission to find the most neutral speaker i can as i tend to spend more time composing/recording hence my bias. But, i know these speakers so well now (8-9 years) so can get close within 1-2 mixdowns without any reference material and i’ve absolutely battered them over the years pushing synths and distorted vocals/guitars through them.
As they’re quite big sounding and therefore push a lot air, the translation to headphones is the biggest battle.
I agree - the more the merrier, and I do play test mixes through multiple speaker / amp combo’s to make sure I’m satisfied it performs well (even the dreaded iphone headphones!) - I’m looking for monitors that like you, I can get to a good mix relatively quickly but perform well for recording too. I’ll look at the B2031a’s - they sound interesting.
Adam A7x… a friend has just replaced his HS8’s with a pair and is deliriously happy now.
I had a pair of Alesis monitor one actives’ many years ago and could never really get on with the mid bottoms with them, The Adams are like looking through windows that have just been cleaned compared to looking through dirty ones in comparison to the M1 actives. My friend is reporting similar findings with his.
Not cheap but cheaper than PMC or the like.
I have the Adam A77x (the big brother of the A7x) which do very well indeed at low volume, but also have plenty of power for a room your size - My room is roughly the same dimensions as yours, with a high ceiling, and they can easily fill it. The 2 and half way design seems to me to allow the low end to be much more controlled across a much wider level range than a straight 2 way.
Only downside for me is they have quite a narrow sweet spot in the vertical axis so they are fine when seated at the mix poition but if you stand up you want to move a bit further back.
I use these as main monitors then have a pair of KRK 5s, some Avantone mixcubes, and a pair of cheap Creative PC speakers that do well as a grot box, between them all it’s pretty easy to get decent well balanced mixes.
To start with…It really depends on your budget and your own ears. There’s lots of models on the market which are great!
But for me…I am really happy with my Yamaha HS-8 monitors. They’ve served me for several years now and I’m still amazed how they are able to give me a picture that translates to the final mix?
Just to go full circle on this - after a lot of online research and listening to reviews I have gone for the Adam A7X’s -
I’ve only had them a day or so, so very early impressions. I do agree with MatJones in that they are much ‘clearer’ in the mid / bottom end. I ran a mono mixdown of one of tracks through an A7X and my remaining Alesis 620 M1 Active to compare and contrast.
Considering the age of the tech in the Alesis I was expecting a bigger differential - but the Adam’s are definitely a step up based on a few short tests. Will be very interesting to see how I get on with them working on projects. So far though, they seem like a good purchase. Thanks to all of you for your help / recommendations etc. I wouldnt even have looked at (or known about ) this brand if I hadnt asked for and had all your advice
