Studio Monitor advice for avoiding ear fatigue?

  • Thread starter Thread starter romanianreaper
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romanianreaper

romanianreaper

Well-known member
I have never owned good studio monitors. I always used headphones or cheaper computer speakers, knowing that the computer speakers were not going to give me an accurate representation of what I'm really hearing.

About two weeks ago I picked up some KRK G5 speakers and got a really good deal on them used. Right away, I was enjoying hearing all of the benefits of my Axe-Fx II with delays, reverb, etc. and had a great tone, great low end, etc.

The problem is that there are several times when I hit certain chords, I get this frequency that comes out so strong that I can feel it in my ears, throat, chest, etc. It is primarily when playing heavier stuff like thru a Friedman or Splawn, etc. amp emulation. It is like when you are at a concert and the P.A. is not adjusted yet, and the bass player hits this note with low end that makes you want to plug your ears.

I almost got a pair of JBLs or M-Audio but got these on a deal so went with them. They sound great but like I said, that frequency every once in awhile is making me think I need to do a bit more research.

Is this something that happens with all monitors within reason or are the KRK monitors known for this type of thing? I should mention that I do want to stay in the $300-$400 range for a pair. I know there are tons of options out there but I'm fine with whatever sounds good. Thanks!
 
I got myself the JBL llsr 305s and I fucking love em! I mainly use em for tracking tracks with my torpedo CAB + mesa boogie mark III. I also really like the yamahas
 
I just got some Yamaha HS8's and love them. The JBL's are supposed to be really solid for low cost speakers.
 
I've got a pair of JBL 308s and have been really happy with them. I haven't ever noticed any unusual frequency spikes like you mentioned from the KRKs. They did smooth out quite a bit after they broke in after about the first 10 hours of use or so.
 
messenger":vuav931u said:
EQ??
Click to expand...

Thanks everyone for the responses!

Yeah, originally I thought it might be just an EQ thing but don't get it with my headphones or thru the Friedman ASM-12 or computer speakers I had originally. Unfortunately since this is the first set of actual studio monitors I've had, I can't really compare what I'm hearing.

You guys mentioned the JBLs and those were the ones I was going to originally get. I'll have to maybe look into that avenue again. Thanks again!
 
If you get the JBLs, just remember to break them in. When I first got them, they were quite bright. I turned down the high-level and it helped a lot. Over the next few weeks, I noticed they were breaking in and weren't as bright, so I kept turning the high-level back up. I think it's on the highest setting now and everything sounds quite balanced and natural. I'm still really impressed with them (had them about 3 years now).
 
I don’t think it’s the speakers causing that. It sounds like speaker placement and the room resonance is the spike you hear. Is your room treated, or at least the listening/playing position?

Before buying a new speaker, I’d recommend try this:
Go to your phones App Store (Android or Apple), search for “Dynaudio Meter”
Download and install it, it’s free.
Then either go to YouTube and search for “Pink noise” or follow these directions:
https://www.dynaudio.com/support/pink-noise

Start up the pink noise, start up the Dynaudio Meter app on your phone, choose “RTA” and place the phone where your head would normally be in the listening position. See what kind of frequency spikes and valleys you have. Move the phone around and see how it changes or if the spikes remain.

There are probably better and WAY more expensive ways to measure the room (hard to beat free), but I think that’ll do the job fine. I used that method when redoing my studio and the sound is literally night and day difference. Even my wife can hear the difference.
 
I changed out my monitors to Focal Alphas and they are fabulous. I did a very small treatment to my room because it is very wide open. I put a 2 foot x 4 foot sheet behind the monitors and one to the wall to the left of them that is closest to the monitor and it worked very well. Going to add a bit more treatment down the left wall to further tame a few reflections. I may need a couple of small corner bass traps as well.
 
stratjacket":1n2ltq9t said:
I don’t think it’s the speakers causing that. It sounds like speaker placement and the room resonance is the spike you hear. Is your room treated, or at least the listening/playing position?
Click to expand...

It is crazy though because it is only certain notes like G sharp, drop D, etc. I'll be doing palm mutes and no other frets do that when I'm chugging away and then I'll hit the 4th fret on the A string and this huge "whhhuuuuummmpp" that I feel in my ears.

My room isn't treated but the bass port is coming out of the front toward me. The sound I'm hearing isn't a real bassy, shake the room type thing. Hard to describe. Could be a bit of the AxeFx, the KRKs and my listening position but not sure. The KRK has four bass positions and I've turned it all the way down and still get that sound.
 
I know that when I use modelers, I have to use a hard low pass to knock out frequencies above a certain range. Otherwise, my ears painfully ring after playing for any meaningful amount of time. Even at low volumes.
 
PBGas":2kj0zfe8 said:
I changed out my monitors to Focal Alphas and they are fabulous. I did a very small treatment to my room because it is very wide open. I put a 2 foot x 4 foot sheet behind the monitors and one to the wall to the left of them that is closest to the monitor and it worked very well. Going to add a bit more treatment down the left wall to further tame a few reflections. I may need a couple of small corner bass traps as well.
Click to expand...
I have Focal Alphas as well and love them. Great value also...
 
Adam AX7 user here. Love them. Great for recording, play back monitoring, or just listening. Checkout something in their new TV7 series which is a little less expensive.
 
I would avoid Yamaha HS-series, as they can be quite forward/aggressive sounding in the mids and highs. What they do well is tremendous transient response.

Older Mackie studio monitors (HR624/HR824) have a rather pleasing and slightly smooth sound to them, while still revealing plenty detail.
Same goes for Tannoy by the way.
I'm using Focal CMS65's myself, but while I consider them quite linear/flat, Focal is also known to have a bit more bite to their high-end; guitars and vocals translate really well.
 
romanianreaper":2x3ck9x3 said:
stratjacket":2x3ck9x3 said:
I don’t think it’s the speakers causing that. It sounds like speaker placement and the room resonance is the spike you hear. Is your room treated, or at least the listening/playing position?
Click to expand...

It is crazy though because it is only certain notes like G sharp, drop D, etc. I'll be doing palm mutes and no other frets do that when I'm chugging away and then I'll hit the 4th fret on the A string and this huge "whhhuuuuummmpp" that I feel in my ears.

My room isn't treated but the bass port is coming out of the front toward me. The sound I'm hearing isn't a real bassy, shake the room type thing. Hard to describe. Could be a bit of the AxeFx, the KRKs and my listening position but not sure. The KRK has four bass positions and I've turned it all the way down and still get that sound.
Click to expand...
What you are describing sounds like room resonance. Your new monitors are reproducing bass that your untreated room is re-inforcing at certain frequencies. The specific frequencies where this occurs are related to the dimensions of the room
Google " bass traps"
 
Yeah, definitely room resonances. The specific setup of your room allows certain frequencies to vibrate especially well which adds those specific resonances. Definitely look up how to make bass traps, or if nothing else, DIY on the cheap acoustic treatment. I'd also consider getting the JBLs like others have said, they're the best monitors you'll get in that price range. The KRKs aren't too bad, especially compared to your older setup, but there is room for improvement.
 
I havent tried any listed above, but i have KRK v8 series two for like 13 years, and they have never disappointed in mixing. Years ago, i had alesis, and would take me 4-5 mixes to get it right. So glad i switched. Get monitors rhat you can adjust HF or LF, or eq to room. Seems to help

Dont know about newer production ones, how do Focus Alphas/Shapes compare to KRK v8’s?
 
crwnedblasphemy":29pkekvw said:
Years ago, i had alesis, and would take me 4-5 mixes to get it right. So glad i switched. Get monitors rhat you can adjust HF or LF, or eq to room. Seems to help

Dont know about newer production ones, how do Focus Alphas/Shapes compare to KRK v8’s?
Click to expand...
Wow...Alesis, yep... those suck on a special level. I assume you mean the Monitor One MKII's?
I've done quite a few cheap and mid-end monitor comparisons in the past (see Gearslutz for review topics), and the Monitor Ones were amongst the worst I *ever* came across.
They especially suck in reproducing rock/metal guitar sounds. Really weird shit going on in the smeared mids, bloated/boomy low-end (that will sound impressive to total beginners typically). While the KRK RP series aren't superb, they were a ton more useable than the Alesis ones.
 
Yeah. The m ones. It was my first monitors. I think they were $400 or around there. They were horrid.
 
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