lefrash Posted September 16, 2016 Share Posted September 16, 2016 Today I've dusted down my old recording PC and it amazingly works! Its old but it does what I want. For the years I was recording I was using a set of PC speakers as monitors which was definitely the weak link in the whole setup. So... I fancy picking up some dedicated studio monitors but I'm not wanting to pay more than 100 squeakers. Google suggests there's absolutely millions to choose from so I wouldn't know where to start. Any recommendations? They need to be active and ideally they would have a headphone socket built in. But apart from that I'm open to suggestions, new or 2nd hand. So what's good out there? Thanks Fraser Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul_5 Posted September 16, 2016 Share Posted September 16, 2016 Why not just use a good pair of headphones? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lefrash Posted September 17, 2016 Author Share Posted September 17, 2016 [quote name='paul_5' timestamp='1474061511' post='3135423'] Why not just use a good pair of headphones? [/quote] I find wearing headphones gets annoying pretty quickly. Although unfortunately it's a necessity alot of the time due to my flat having paper thin walls. I get it that this price range are never gonna be 'pro' standard, but they should give me a truer reflection of how the mixes sound than the pc speakers do. They are mega bassy probably great for games and not great for actually playing bass guitar through. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
markstuk Posted September 17, 2016 Share Posted September 17, 2016 something like these? Won't be fantastic but will be much better than pc speakers.. http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Roland-Edirol-MA10-D-Active-Monitor-Speakers-/222245995239 or a pair of these http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BST-Studio-5A-B-Active-Studio-Monitor-High-Quality-Music-Production-Monitor-/262514332149 or.. http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Behringer-MS16-Active-Monitor-Speakers-/291874289890 or http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Edirol-MA-10A-Digital-Active-Stereo-Monitor-Speakers-/222240426963 or http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Roland-Edirol-active-powered-speakers-MA-15D-TESTED-/331959794603 or http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Denon-Professional-DN-304S-Pair-4-2-Way-Active-Studio-Monitor-Speakers-20-Watt-/141899454420 or http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/tannoy-reveal-402-monitor-speakers-/152244353068 or http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Fostex-PM0-3d-Active-Speaker-System-pair-matte-black-/112090727245 or http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/M-Audio-AV42-Active-Desktop-Monitor-Speakers-Pair-AV-42-/401003054140 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lefrash Posted September 17, 2016 Author Share Posted September 17, 2016 Cheers dude, I know there's loads.. that's kinda my query, are all these much of a muchness at this price point? Should I stay away from behringer/Samson etc or would I get a bit more for my money? Almost every review I read seems to be along the lines of 'these are great for the money' which doesn't tell me alot! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
markstuk Posted September 17, 2016 Share Posted September 17, 2016 Samson are generally good and the behringers also get some love (shock horror!!) I suspect there is not going to be much of a difference, but trawl the various web reviews/forums and get a sense of what people think.. Personally I'm a Tannoy fan (I use NFM8's at home) so I would go for the reveals above - depends on distance though as they are pick up only.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
markstuk Posted September 17, 2016 Share Posted September 17, 2016 these will probably go for £50 over your budget but will blow the socks off anything above.. http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/KRK-Rokit-5-RPG2-studio-monitors-PAIR-Boxed-with-Leads-Great-condition-/262626670537 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
discreet Posted September 17, 2016 Share Posted September 17, 2016 You could try these... https://www.amazon.co.uk/Mackie-CR4-inch-Monitor-Speakers/dp/B00OZ9NNCY/ref=pd_lpo_267_bs_t_2?ie=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=B7V1HK234NM59WST5ZFB However, I'm sorry to say you won't get decent studio monitors on your budget. But you probably knew that already. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lowdown Posted September 17, 2016 Share Posted September 17, 2016 [color=#282828][font=helvetica, arial, sans-serif]100 squeakers ?[/font][/color] [color=#282828][font=helvetica, arial, sans-serif] [/font][/color][color=#282828][font=helvetica, arial, sans-serif]Why is everyone assuming one squeaker equals a pound? [/font][/color] [color=#282828][font=helvetica, arial, sans-serif]If you can go up another 40/50 pounds, Presonus Eris E4.5 are a great buy.[/font][/color] https://www.bax-shop.co.uk/studio-monitor/presonus-eris-e4-5-active-studio-monitor-set-of-2?gclid=Cj0KEQjw0_O-BRCfjsCw25CYzYoBEiQAqO9BDL-tXmHfvxuoKbXnF5jOFIGHV5ZZw1ma1WJKxhp15-AaAnsZ8P8HAQ https://www.gak.co.uk/en/presonus-eris-45-powered-studio-monitors-pair/99126?gclid=Cj0KEQjw0_O-BRCfjsCw25CYzYoBEiQAqO9BDB0PdWe4Jk_nraZRU3JmrJXG742nrXM_UCrIPx0z9ZYaAu3V8P8HAQ Plenty of good Reviews about. http://www.musiciansfriend.com/pro-audio/presonus-eris-4.5-high-definition-2-way-4.5-nearfield-studio-monitor-pair http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/ErisE4.5/reviews Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
funkgod Posted September 19, 2016 Share Posted September 19, 2016 (edited) Its just what you get use to at the end of the day, fo eg, i have a few pairs of headphones by Beyer like dt100 and some beyer dt100 canford compensated in the studio as that is what some people like. But me, i cant stand them, i think they sound god awfull, talk about bad bass. i have some cheap AKG K44 had them years, and i love them, i can hear things better in them, so... when i mix a track for cd using them i know what the bass will sound like on a cd and i know what the cymbals will sound like and everything inbetween on a car cd player and an MP3. If i use the Beyers my mix will be all over the place on cd because i cant hear bass very well in them so will add more in the headphones to get what i am use too, result is a bass heavy mix on cd and mp3. so its just what you get use to, if you keep changing you have to re eq your head if that makes sense. monitors im using the Roland DS-90s which have been fab, [url="http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/DS90/"]http://www.sweetwate...re/detail/DS90/[/url] But my back up pair, which are not bad but will be a jump in quality for you against pc speakers are good old tannoy reveal actives you can get on ebay for less than £100, quick look and found these for 80 quid with 4 hours left to go. here ya go... [url="http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Tannoy-Active-Reveal-Near-field-Monitors-/232082219025?hash=item36092da011:g:rr8AAOSwOyJX2UXw"]http://www.ebay.co.u...r8AAOSwOyJX2UXw[/url] but as markstuk says these newer ones are a great deal. [url="http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/tannoy-reveal-402-monitor-speakers-/152244353068"]http://www.ebay.co.u...s-/152244353068[/url] but just like dt100s its just what you get use to. Edited September 19, 2016 by funkgod Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dannybuoy Posted September 19, 2016 Share Posted September 19, 2016 I had some Alesis M1 Active MkII monitors that were great, discontinued now but available for under £100 new - I sold mine on here recently for £75 posted. Many years ago I auditioned everything under £200 in a store and chose these. No headphone output or easy volume control (each speaker has a volume knob on the back that is pretty much set and forget) but pair it up with a mini mixer and you'll get that functionality as well as being able to mix in other sources. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sibob Posted September 19, 2016 Share Posted September 19, 2016 How are you connecting the monitors to the computer? Are you using an interface? I ask because if you're using an interface, you'll obviously connect through the 2xmono outputs from the interface. If you are just using a simple built-in sound card, then you'll likely need to buy speakers that connect via 3.5mm If you need something that connects to 3.5mm, then you're largely reduced to fancy PC speakers. If you're connecting from an interface, then for my money, a set of KRK Rokit 5s would be perfect. That said, probably about £100 over budget, unless you find some used. Si Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dannybuoy Posted September 19, 2016 Share Posted September 19, 2016 ^ Or you could just buy a cable or adapters that convert from whatever you have to whatever you need. No reason why you can't hook up fancy monitors direct to an on-board sound card with a stereo 3.5mm to two mono 6.25mm jack cable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RockfordStone Posted September 19, 2016 Share Posted September 19, 2016 give the m-audio AV40's a look. i have a pair which im currently getting repaired but they lasted me 6 years and gave me some satisfying results, under 100 quid now i believe Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lefrash Posted September 19, 2016 Author Share Posted September 19, 2016 Thanks for all this advice. Will be checking each out tonight (online) but it's good to know that they won't be utter sh*t. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lefrash Posted September 19, 2016 Author Share Posted September 19, 2016 [quote name='Sibob' timestamp='1474280546' post='3136691'] How are you connecting the monitors to the computer? Are you using an interface? I ask because if you're using an interface, you'll obviously connect through the 2xmono outputs from the interface. If you are just using a simple built-in sound card, then you'll likely need to buy speakers that connect via 3.5mm If you need something that connects to 3.5mm, then you're largely reduced to fancy PC speakers. If you're connecting from an interface, then for my money, a set of KRK Rokit 5s would be perfect. That said, probably about £100 over budget, unless you find some used. Si [/quote] It's an audiophile 2496 audio card... old but ok. It has stereo rca outs so I'm all good on that front. Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sibob Posted September 19, 2016 Share Posted September 19, 2016 [quote name='dannybuoy' timestamp='1474281688' post='3136710'] ^ Or you could just buy a cable or adapters that convert from whatever you have to whatever you need. No reason why you can't hook up fancy monitors direct to an on-board sound card with a stereo 3.5mm to two mono 6.25mm jack cable. [/quote] Well yes quite, a severe oversight on my behalf lol. [quote name='lefrash' timestamp='1474283621' post='3136736'] It's an audiophile 2496 audio card... old but ok. It has stereo rca outs so I'm all good on that front. Thanks [/quote] Cool cool, although bear in mind that RCA is unbalanced, and so, depending on some other variables, can be a little noisy compared to balanced outputs (TRS/XLR etc) Si Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lefrash Posted September 19, 2016 Author Share Posted September 19, 2016 [quote name='RockfordStone' timestamp='1474282651' post='3136722'] give the m-audio AV40's a look. i have a pair which im currently getting repaired but they lasted me 6 years and gave me some satisfying results, under 100 quid now i believe [/quote] It seems the av40s have been replaced with the av42s... but there is also the av32s which are just the 3" version. At the moment these seem to be the favourites. Decent reviews online too plus they have everything I need. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RockfordStone Posted September 20, 2016 Share Posted September 20, 2016 [quote name='lefrash' timestamp='1474306921' post='3137005'] It seems the av40s have been replaced with the av42s... but there is also the av32s which are just the 3" version. At the moment these seem to be the favourites. Decent reviews online too plus they have everything I need. [/quote] i suspected that would be the case, if the are anything like the AV40's, for your budget they won't do you wrong. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ras52 Posted September 20, 2016 Share Posted September 20, 2016 [quote name='lowdown' timestamp='1474119757' post='3135746'] [color=#282828][font=helvetica, arial, sans-serif]100 squeakers ?[/font][/color] [color=#282828][font=helvetica, arial, sans-serif]Why is everyone assuming one squeaker equals a pound? [/font][/color] [color=#282828][font=helvetica, arial, sans-serif]If you can go up another 40/50 pounds, Presonus Eris E4.5 are a great buy.[/font][/color] [url="https://www.bax-shop.co.uk/studio-monitor/presonus-eris-e4-5-active-studio-monitor-set-of-2?gclid=Cj0KEQjw0_O-BRCfjsCw25CYzYoBEiQAqO9BDL-tXmHfvxuoKbXnF5jOFIGHV5ZZw1ma1WJKxhp15-AaAnsZ8P8HAQ"]https://www.bax-shop...15-AaAnsZ8P8HAQ[/url] [url="https://www.gak.co.uk/en/presonus-eris-45-powered-studio-monitors-pair/99126?gclid=Cj0KEQjw0_O-BRCfjsCw25CYzYoBEiQAqO9BDB0PdWe4Jk_nraZRU3JmrJXG742nrXM_UCrIPx0z9ZYaAu3V8P8HAQ"]https://www.gak.co.u...z9ZYaAu3V8P8HAQ[/url] Plenty of good Reviews about. [url="http://www.musiciansfriend.com/pro-audio/presonus-eris-4.5-high-definition-2-way-4.5-nearfield-studio-monitor-pair"]http://www.musicians...io-monitor-pair[/url] [url="http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/ErisE4.5/reviews"]http://www.sweetwate...risE4.5/reviews[/url] [/quote] +1 for the Erises (Erii?) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lowdown Posted September 20, 2016 Share Posted September 20, 2016 [quote name='ras52' timestamp='1474387904' post='3137599'] +1 for the Erises (Erii?) [/quote] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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