studio monitors

[LanceBlaise]

I like my KRK VXT4s, they sound badass!

I do a bit of producing and I think they work fine. I find there is good seperation, I can distinctly hear each instrument I'm adding.

That is not the main factor in determining a good monitor for producing. More importantly that comes down to your over all mix how something is going to sit in a track.

As I said in previous posts in here, its more important that the monitors sound true, you don't want your monitors to make your music sound nice, because then you have something that may sound nice on your speakers, but the track will sound like crap outside your studio.

Thing is with producing, if you want it sounding proper you need to take it to a pro to master it anyway.

That is true. Remember, the golden rule: You can't polish a terd! If you give the engineer a track that the levels are off and the mixdown is all over the place then the master will sound bad. Trust me i know for when I first started out. I was fortunate enough to have a friend who trained me on how to mixdown properly. If you have bad monitors which add color then the mixdown will be off and the engineer will not be able to bring out the master to its fullest.

Also you have to check what it sounds like in various situations, on your ipod, in your car, round your mate whos got a stack from 1992.

And we do this because all speakers sound different, as do monitors. A good set of monitors that give you a real true sound... which again is why monitors that make someting sound pretty will really throw you off when you are playing your new tune on various systems.

[tekki]

Amen to that Lance!

[LanceBlaise]

Amen to that Lance!

I wish there was some guidance for me when i first started... Funny thing is my friend and I made music on the poorest little setup, if you can train your ear to something you can still get a good sound. But as I look/listen back to some of my earlier productions I can hear all of the little imperfections and things that would have easily been picked up if I had a decent set of monitors. They don't need to be the best, but when you have the knowledge that something is bad, then i think the smart thing is to avoid it.

[MaxOne]

Agreed, any set of speakers will do for djing if you want to save yourself some money.

OP has got a budget and wants something nice sounding that he can do a bit of producing on and mix on.

I agree about not getting anything that makes something sound better than it is. Same as a big glossy mac monitor if you do graphics, imo. A matt screen is better. But by the same token i spend a lot of time on my computer and is nice for the stuff I consume (Movies, Photos, etc) to look wicked.

re producing, if your really serious about the track you've made, take it into the studio and have a proper engineer tweak it for half a day as well as taking it in for a mastering too.

If KRK were as rubbish as you say they would have fallen by the way side long time ago.

I looked into loads and for a compact monitor the VXT4 had really good reviews.

They're much better than the KRK Rokits which are more entry level.

My mate is one half of AI, the drum and bass producers. They've released loads, signed to V recordings, had tunes played on BBC Radio 1, etc

He recommended them to me.

In fact i'm having a google now and am struggling to find a bad word to say about the VXT series.

Bottom line is, opinions on studio monitors are thorny and everyone has their own point of view.

I got the VXT4s and am happy with em. Just passing that info on to the OP who I think wants monitors for the same reason I do... they sound good for a bit of producing and djing.

Peace out

[tekki]

@LanceBlaise
My sentiments exactly!

[LanceBlaise]

Agreed, any set of speakers will do for djing if you want to save yourself some money.

OP has got a budget and wants something nice sounding that he can do a bit of producing on and mix on.

I agree about not getting anything that makes something sound better than it is. Same as a big glossy mac monitor if you do graphics, imo. A matt screen is better. But by the same token i spend a lot of time on my computer and is nice for the stuff I consume (Movies, Photos, etc) to look wicked.

re producing, if your really serious about the track you've made, take it into the studio and have a proper engineer tweak it for half a day as well as taking it in for a mastering too.

If KRK were as rubbish as you say they would have fallen by the way side long time ago.

I looked into loads and for a compact monitor the VXT4 had really good reviews.

They're much better than the KRK Rokits which are more entry level.

My mate is one half of AI, the drum and bass producers. They've released loads, signed to V recordings, had tunes played on BBC Radio 1, etc

He recommended them to me.

In fact i'm having a google now and am struggling to find a bad word to say about the VXT series.

Bottom line is, opinions on studio monitors are thorny and everyone has their own point of view.

I got the VXT4s and am happy with em. Just passing that info on to the OP who I think wants monitors for the same reason I do... they sound good for a bit of producing and djing.

Peace out

Ok.

1.
I am not stating that they are complete rubbish. As I stated previously I even have the KRK VXT 8's... But I also stated why I don't like them and why. You may not find a bad word by googling them, but I speak with many of the top electronic producers and engineers on a daily basis and I am also on many closed boards where google will not find the discussions on this type of thing.

2.
Someone who has been producing for a long time and is a "professional" does not need to take their tracks into an angineer to have it mixed down. This process is one that is learned, but not an impossible thing to do. Just takes a bit of time and its something you can eventually grasp, and it is something that should be learned if one is serious about making music. Mastering should be done by someone who knows what they are doing.

3.
I cannot stress to you, or the original poster, that you should not be DJing and producing on the same speakers... you should have 2 separate setups with separate speakers. You can do whatever you want, but it doesn't make it right...

Again this is just info, take it or leave it.

[sj03w4t]

Wow this discussion helps me a lot with selecting speakers too
But Lance (and any others) would you recommend the speakers you mentioned earlier for DJ'ing at home?
These are 800 watts, is that not a little overkill for a small-medium room size? (like 30m²)

[tekki]

True that.

800 watts is work of a mad man!

That's why I started out with this:

+1

Settle for Mackie MR5/Fostex PM04 instead.

[sj03w4t]

So even though they are classified as studio monitors they are cool for dj'ing? Nice

[LanceBlaise]

Wow this discussion helps me a lot with selecting speakers too
But Lance (and any others) would you recommend the speakers you mentioned earlier for DJ'ing at home?
These are 800 watts, is that not a little overkill for a small-medium room size? (like 30m²)

Actually i accidentally showed you the wrong one earlier, ht eone I showed you was unpowered... but there is a powered version of that same speaker... Its 550 Watt and not too loud, you don't have to have it all the way up.
http://www.americanmusical.com/Item--i-BEH-B212D


Secondly they make a small 150watt one, but i would get the 550 as you may wanna crank it up one day for somereason. here is the small one:
http://www.americanmusical.com/Item--i-BEH-B205D-LIST