Entry Level Monitors for Home Guitar/Recording

[roodboy]

if you can find a pair of equator d5s they are pretty nice

 

[mbt64]

I use the Kali Lp-6's and really like them


Don't have much experience with a ton of different ones to be fair

I bought the LP-6's to use with the Helix before I got a Powercab. Of the little research I did, they are supposed to be pretty good for guitar frequencies but maybe not as much full spectrum as others. I found this website back a few years ago when I looking to buy, don't know how accurate it was/is:

https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...-recommendations-for-usa-by-sweetchaos.28269/

 

[RaceU4her]

Yet another corner is the two-sub crowd. Haven't looked much into that myself though.

yah thats a bit above my pay grade. it might sound odd and its a little hard to explain, but the way i sit at my desk i usually have my foot rested on the sub which is underneath, and just by the way the sub is vibrating i can pretty much tell whats going on in the low end, its like literally tuning in of sorts lol

 

[CoreyW]

First you have to figure out what you plan to use them for? Mixing, general listening..etc??


I started with the KRK 7's I believe or maybe 8s dont remember, anyway I was just beginning my home studio adventures... I did not like these, to me they seemed really colored in the low end, and when I would listen to what I was working on in the car, all my low end would be gone.

Next I moved to Adams T7V, these are a little shy of $300 each, and I have been using them for about 8 years now and am really use to them, but I do believe I have out grown them and they are going to be getting replaced soon, they are fantastic for general listening, but start distorting at a lower volume than I like but that is like 90+ DB, but that is usually when I am trying to use them as a live sound set up in my music room while I have people over.

For my travel rig, I have a pair of IK multimedia iLoud micro monitors, these are fantastic and I couldnt recommend them enough for someone who a small monitor would fit the bill for.

During my initial research, I kept running against opinions against the Yamahas not being a good general use speaker, and they can be pretty fatigue inducing.

 

[Greazygeo]

Are the HS7's too big (boomy sounding) for use in a small room? My "studio" is only a 10' x 10' bedroom.

My room is not much bigger than yours. I had the old Mackies with the 8” woofers, way too big. I went with the 5’s and much better.

 

[Chubtone]

What do you miss with your 5s?

Nothing that I realize. I actually like them quite a bit. They replaced some 30 year old KRK's that were 8" and boomy.

 

[JohnnyGtar]

I've got a pair of KRK Rokit 5 monitors and I love 'em.

 

[Simon Dorn]

Nothing that I realize. I actually like them quite a bit. They replaced some 30 year old KRK's that were 8" and boomy.

No need to upgrade then.

 

[Devin]

I bought the LP-6's to use with the Helix before I got a Powercab. Of the little research I did, they are supposed to be pretty good for guitar frequencies but maybe not as much full spectrum as others. I found this website back a few years ago when I looking to buy, don't know how accurate it was/is:

https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...-recommendations-for-usa-by-sweetchaos.28269/

Idk, most of my recordings use the NI Maschine Mk3 so I'm definitely utilizing the full frequency range and they handle it all well

 

[Nigel]

JBL LSR 305’s

 

[stratjacket]

I think all these recommendations are good for that price point. I would also invest in a room correction software like Sonarworks at some point.

If you plan to record, main thing with any monitors is to get to know them. As suggested, play a lot of music you’re familiar with so that you get a feeling of how the bass, mids and highs respond. That will help to make recordings that translate to streaming, cars, iPhone, Bluetooth speakers, etc…

If you’re just looking to play guitar through them and computer speakers, then it doesn’t matter too much, just dial in what sounds good.

 

[Rackman]

If you're doing a lot of recording, having a pair of mid-priced headphones with good frequency response (e.g. DT-990 PROs) would be a good choice. It renders arguments about room reflections etc. moot. They can be less than ideal for stereo positioning (headphones have an artificially wide stereo image).

In terms of utility monitors in the room Yamaha HS-5s are just fine. Bass deficient, but the DT-990s have decent bass and if you need hip hop type rumble <50hz they take EQ fine.

 

[Chubtone]

No need to upgrade then.

That's what I arrived at too after reading this thread. Thanks!

 

[Charvel1975]

These are some of the ones I've been researching at the moment:

 

[Dale B]

Yamaha, cheaper Presonus and KRK... There are probably some others, but I don't pay attention to it enough. Recording gear is a rabbit hole to bankruptcy! I learned to stick with amps and guitars! LOL

 

[DrewJD82]

Are the HS7's too big (boomy sounding) for use in a small room? My "studio" is only a 10' x 10' bedroom.

I’m using the HS8’s in a 10x12 room without any issues. As long as you get some foam up on the walls you’ll be fine, but without foaming the room up you can definitely get some messy bass frequencies trapped in there.

For the corners of my room I went floor to ceiling with foam meant for wall corners, I tried just doing the center at first but overall, the more foam I put up, the better it gets in there. You don’t really hear the troubling shit when listening for it, you just notice the speakers get clearer and clearer the more foam you put up. UHaul blankets work great as well!

 

[RaceU4her]

These are some of the ones I've been researching at the moment:

View attachment 427077

Mackie monitors dont have a very good rep from what ive read. i didnt know they made yamaha 4.5". i went with HS5's cause they seem to be an industry standard now, i see them in all sorts of pro studios with producers of all genre's, i figure if its good enough for them they should be good enough for me, and then i never have to question if my monitors are the problem

 

[IndyWS6]

I have had the same pair of M Audio M1 Actives for 25 years. Are they great, not really. But they were decent for the price and I learned them well by listening to tons of well produced albums on them. And I learned to mix pretty well on them.

Not trying to knock the thread off-track, but don’t leave them powered on when you’re not there. Preferably, close by. I had a pair for a long time and left them on continuously. Came home one day to an “electrical” smell and found the power section on one had burned. Left a small soot trail up the wall and on the ceiling. Not sure how/why it self-extinguished, but glad it did…

 

[DanTravis62]

If you're doing a lot of recording, having a pair of mid-priced headphones with good frequency response (e.g. DT-990 PROs) would be a good choice. It renders arguments about room reflections etc. moot. They can be less than ideal for stereo positioning (headphones have an artificially wide stereo image).

In terms of utility monitors in the room Yamaha HS-5s are just fine. Bass deficient, but the DT-990s have decent bass and if you need hip hop type rumble <50hz they take EQ fine.

I think all these recommendations are good for that price point. I would also invest in a room correction software like Sonarworks at some point.

If you plan to record, main thing with any monitors is to get to know them. As suggested, play a lot of music you’re familiar with so that you get a feeling of how the bass, mids and highs respond. That will help to make recordings that translate to streaming, cars, iPhone, Bluetooth speakers, etc…

If you’re just looking to play guitar through them and computer speakers, then it doesn’t matter too much, just dial in what sounds good.

These are both really good advice, as well.

I have a set of Sennheiser HD600s, which aren't ridiculously expensive by any standard, and I trust them more than any monitors I've ever heard - and i've worked in some studios with insane nice monitors. You'd be surprised how many professionals mix on cheap headphones or monitors because they know how they reproduce sound.

Also as @stratjacket says, people always completely ignore the room correction part of the equation. It doesn't matter how nice or crappy your monitors are if the room has no treatment or isn't corrected - you're just going to have different problem frequencies and blind spots, and chase your tail in an entirely new way AND be however much poorer.

 

[JDs Couch]

Not trying to knock the thread off-track, but don’t leave them powered on when you’re not there. Preferably, close by. I had a pair for a long time and left them on continuously. Came home one day to an “electrical” smell and found the power section on one had burned. Left a small soot trail up the wall and on the ceiling. Not sure how/why it self-extinguished, but glad it did…

Thanks man, good advice in general... I've had these monitors on for weeks at a time with no problems but, you never know with any electrical equipment.