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Anyone using pro-monitors for daily listening - why or why not?

Mingo

Mingo

stranger in a strange land
Subscriber
I was close to buying some studio grade mid-field monitors a couple of weeks ago. The speakers would have been for my daily listening, not for recording/mastering purposes. Unfortunately, the deal did not happen. My current floorstanders have a large footprint, so I am looking to downsize and have been considering various options including consumer monitors and pro monitors (active and passive). If the goal is to faithfully reproduce the music as recorded, would not pro or home studio monitors be a viable option? Since I am a low budget kind of guy, super expensive speakers are not an option, but there seem to be many to choose from in the under $1000 range. Anyone using pro or home studio type monitors as their primary speakers with good results? Why or why not?
 
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Yes,

Meyer HD-1's

Love'm

No reason not to use pro monitors as far as I'm concerned. They are very neutral and honest in my opinion.

I'd say go for it, if you get the opportunity. I have never regretted leaving the Hi-Fi store speakers and I was around Wilson, Reference 3A, Aerial Acoustics, Klipsch, JBL, Dunleavey, Linn, Boston, Revel, etc.
 
Here's the part where everyone recommends their favorite brand of speaker.
 
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"Monitor" means very little beyond "we tried not to make this speaker do anything weird". Tons of people on here are using JBL pro monitors.
 
I have in the past: Altec 604Es, Tannoy DMT 12IIs and Urei 813Cs. If I were going to buy some today, I would lean towards some of the JBL products. You might need to add a subwoofer or two, however.
 
4412s, if they qualify, are the speakers I use in my living room. I love the way they present the music without getting in the way, and the room is not so huge that they can't work as intended.
 
Monitors in home use usually get the rap for being "too honest", dry and uninteresting. It is probably the type of thing where one really should get them into their respective living/listening area and try them.

Home speakers are purpose built many times with "influance" given to forward midrange, bloated bass and even sizzling high end. Call it "character" or whatever. Sometimes this works and sometime not-depending on the listener audiance at large.......it a "capture" thing- capture as many available ears as possible, suitably impress them with your version of good sound, then wait for the reviews to take them off the shelf.

One particular monitor I have most always liked were the Genelec brands, powered and non powered types. They always sound quite neutral and honest and could hold your listening interest over extended periods. IF you get the chance and the $$$ do your self a favor and give those some ear time.
DC
 
I am a huge fan of Yamaha NS10s but I don't know if i recommend them, after listening to them for 20 some years my hearing may be warped. :)
 
I have two pairs of true monitors:

JBL 4410 Studio Monitors. These are the second pair of speakers that I have purchased, new. I have had them since the early '90s and I intend to keep them. They are a great sounding, if revealing, speaker, with plenty of adjustment for attenuating the tweeters and midrange. I ran them for years with an Alesis RA100 Reference Amplifier. The sound was/is phenomenal. I am currently using them in the living room as the mains in my home theater, where they really shine. I have a 7.1 setup, but my wife and I also listen to a great deal of stereo programming on just the JBLs as well. I do have them augmented in a 2.1 setup with a nice M&K subwoofer - the extended bass, while not necessary, makes me smile, especially when I am watching a movie. As my hearing degrades, the titanium tweeters help me hear the upper frequencies. The speakers are not that big, either.

EV Sentry 100A Studio Monitors. These are a sweet, small pair of two way monitors. I picked up an orphan at a recyclers, purchased another orphan cabinet minus the tweeter from a fellow AKer, then purchased a pair of the super dome tweeters from another AKer. The speakers are ugly as sin, but they sound fantastic, especially with the foam lenses intact. They are small enough to fit on a bookshelf in my son's bedroom. I have them powered with a small Rotel integrated amplifier - it is very sweet! My son is lucky that I didn't set them up with the Rotel somewhere else before putting them in his room.

My JBLs were $990 plus tax when new. You can find them used, great condition, for $400ish, give or take $100. I do not know how much the EVs go for. The JBLs are a known quantity, and can fill a room with sound. The EVs are sleepers and can do a great job nearfield and for background.
 
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What were the speakers you were using? If you switch to studio monitors i'm gonna bet you will miss the big ones as most studio monitors are not huge. Im using JBL-4412s and 4410s, great speakers, i was in the downsize mode too. It's like everyone says, (there is no replacement for displacement) no matter how good those midfield studio monitors are, i was missing my Altecs. So much for downsizing. :no:
 
Monitors vs HiFi by Sound on Sound, a nice article on this subject;

http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/jun02/articles/monitors.asp

Conclusion of the included test;

"So, in terms of frequency response measurement, there's no obvious split between 'pro' and 'hi-fi' among these four speakers. In fact, if anything, they fall into two rather different groups, with the B&W and Dynaudio offering a balance appropriate for nearfield use in small rooms (coincidentally, the Dynaudio and B&W have low-frequency response shapes so similar they could almost be a pair), while the Wharfedale and KRK offer something more suited to listening at a greater distance in larger rooms. The B&W is also the best in terms of resonant behaviour."
 
I use JBL 4333As here, but they won't exactly buy you any floor space!

I'd happily use 4412As or 4313Bs or 4410As or 4408As for home use as well.

I've owned Yamaha S8Ms and NS10Ms also- really disliked the NS10Ms, but I know that many people love them. Both of those pairs are now in use in two friend's studio control rooms.

I also have some modded 4401s, but they're pretty much used as designed- they're on a small desk used for video & audio editing.

I also use some JBL consumer speakers (L110s) for audio mixing & mastering, so...:dunno:

Agree on the Genelecs, I've installed quite a few of them in music industry listening rooms & they're nicely neutral.

je
 
theebadone said:
What were the speakers you were using? If you switch to studio monitors i'm gonna bet you will miss the big ones as most studio monitors are not huge. Im using JBL-4412s and 4410s, great speakers, i was in the downsize mode too. It's like everyone says, (there is no replacement for displacement) no matter how good those midfield studio monitors are, i was missing my Altecs. So much for downsizing. :no:
Click to expand...

I have several speakers in rotation now, all quite disparate, and I have been working on different arrangements and placements. I have a pair of A/D/S/ 1230s that are nice, but a bit bass heavy in my room. I am also using a pair of Edgarhorn System 100s with a HSU subwoofer - great for classical and jazz, but not so great for other music. And big! I find myself messing with and aggravating over speakers more than enjoying music, so I thought that I might start over with a clean slate and a different direction.
 
The Genelacs are supposed to be wonderful and you can swing a small pair especially used for around a 1000. Might need to be supplemented with a sub for full range though. The KRKs sound quite nice for their low price if you already have an amp you could get some passive KRK 8 inches and have quite a bit left over for a nice sub. I love my JBL 4408s passive monitors and think they are very accurate to the timbre and dynamics of music. KEF 103.2s are supposed to be very nice for classical and jazz, as are Tannoys, B & W, and ADS all of which have been used in studios.
 
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I use KRK ST-6s that I bought at Guitar Center in my den. Very well made with excellent tonal balance, good clarity and big image. They were cheap too.
 
I've been a UREI fan ever since I purchased a set of UREI 809s - a 12" coaxial with Time-Aligned crossovers in a nice, small package. Later I purchased a set of UREI 813s - coaxial 15" with additional 15" woofer in a huge, 175 lb cabinet.

Both produce a sonic image that is the exact same. The only difference is the 813s will produce a higher SPL before beginning to compress.

These days, I'd emphasize whether the monitor being discussed is designed for near-field, mid-field, or far-field use. All the UREIs were mid/far field designs.

Cheers,

David
 
Listening to Electro Voice ZX1-90's right now, in 2-way configuration with a foursome of JBL E-140 on the bottom. All I did was boost the mids enough to remind me of my Fortes and all's well.
 
I listen often to the Yamaha NS 10 M. Good production work sounds outstanding, poor production work sounds terrible. A non monitor can make some of the lousy production material sound ok and the very best work sound ok. That's the difference I think, between non monitors and good accurate monitor speakers. The 10M isn't known for it's accuracy, but have excellent resolution, IMO!
 
I use 2 sets of JBL 4410's. Very flat with excellent stereo imaging and soundstage. They will handle a ton of power. Will be keeping these around for a long time.
 
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