Equator D5 tips from Ted himself

[medic999]

So i live near SD where the Equator office is and I decided to pick mine up instead of spending the $25 to have them shipped and I got to shoot the shit with Ted because he was the one who had them ready for me. I thought I would share what he said. But first my opinion SO CLEAR ! not that I am very versed in studio monitrs (being that ive only used Rockit 8 and Bx5a's) but the difference is huge. The mids are so upfront and detailed and they seem like the sweet spot is huge, I can move around and still hear just as clear without losing stereo detail. They are kinda bright and brittle at first but that goes away.

So some of the things Ted recommends.....the boundary dial on the back is for the position in your room. Boundary 1 is for if it is in a corner. Boundary 2 is against a wall. Boundary 3 is free standing. All it does is it compensates for the bass build up in those positions. They actually measured how many dB of everything from 1000 hz down was building up when against a wall or in a corner and compensate by decreasing <1000 hz exactly by how much is built up. I think he said a -2 db against a wall and -5 db in a corner.

EDIT:Most people get the best results with the boundary set at 3 (just remembered he said that)

If you wanna run a sub with them: crossover at 100 hz. He knows of a few professionals who are crossing over @ 60hz and it works for them.

They did testing in a studio in LA to compare these to the NS10. If you want to emulate an NS10 then set the boundary to 2 and put them in the free standing position.

If you want them to really crank then run a sub with them. I dont remember the specifics but the sub will unload it so it can create better sound pressure, which I guess he said means you can turn them up a hell of alot louder without distorting the sound.

and lastly buy them quick hahah. those things sold out a new shipment in like 4 days.

cheers

 

[mva801]

Yeah I've been debating grabbing these to go with or replace my jbl lsr's... I live just north of downtown SD too, I was thinking about calling those guys up to see if I could go grab some....

 

[xTomx]

I got my pair yesterday and I'm unsure what to make of them - I'm coming from having worked exclusively on the Studiospares SN10 (Yamaha NS10 ripoffs) and the mid range doesn't seem spectacular to me (the low mid range seems pretty weak, even CLA mixes have no snare smack on playback).

I've got them on position 2 (as they're against a wall) and they're sitting on some Auralex MoPads to isolate them a little more from the SN10's they're sitting on and i;ve tried moving their position around lots but still nothing too great.



I'll keep trying them out and moving them but just try and demo a pair before you commit to buy ( there's no 60 day money back guarantee in the UK).

Edit:spelling

 

[medic999]

I got my pair yesterday and I'm unsure what to make of them - I'm coming from having worked exclusively on the Studiospares SN10 (Yamaha NS10 ripoffs) and the mid range doesn't seem spectacular to me (the low mid range seems non weak, even CLA mixes have no snare smack on playback).

I've got them on position 2 (as they're against a wall) and they're sitting on some Auralex MoPads to isolate them a little more from the SN10's they're sitting on and i;ve tried moving their position around lots but still nothing too great.



I'll keep trying them out and moving them but just try and demo a pair before you commit to buy ( there's no 60 day money back guarantee in the UK).

ive read and can attest the best position for me (in a non treated room) is having them 2 feet apart and my head two feet in front of them with the boundary on 3 not against any walls. Thats where i get the entire bass range (via sine sweeps)audible without any affect from my room. usually i lose like -3 db in the 70hz area because my room isnt treated. Judging from what Ted said i would assume and try the boundry on 1 for you if you want that NS10 sound and put em right into the direct field with your ears lined up with the tweeters. BUTTER!!

 

[electricred]

I'll be ordering a pair tomorrow, with the carrying bag and Equator "mopads".

 

[arv_foh]

I've got a pair of these on the way. Arriving July 17. Stoked

 

[medic999]

i love them. now that I can hear everyone elses mixes and what a mix SHOULD sound like...I just gotta figure out how to make my mixes sound like that

 

[Melb_shredder]

i love them. now that I can hear everyone elses mixes and what a mix SHOULD sound like...I just gotta figure out how to make my mixes sound like that

haha! THIS. When I got my Opals... Everything sounded amazing, except my mixes haha! The Equators seems to be getting pretty popular, I figure at the D5 size, it would be the detailed mids every one keeps going on about at least?

 

[AudioGeekZine]

only 2ft apart really?
Try 4.5ft and enjoy some stereo image.

 

[medic999]

only 2ft apart really?
Try 4.5ft and enjoy some stereo image.

heres a little snippet from a "TapeOP Magazine" review.


And for critical listening, I prefer to place the D5s 24’’ or less from my ears. At such close proximity, reflections off the boundaries of the room or off nearby pieces of furniture are much lower in volume than the direct sound from the speakers. Therefore, room anomalies are masked, room resonance becomes less of an issue, and I hear much greater detail. (Note that traditional 2-way speakers don’t work as well in this situation because any movement of your head can lead to significant differences in ear-to-woofer and ear-to-tweeter distance.) Also, with the D5s close to my ears and their boundary switches set to freestanding mode, I feel the lows are best represented. Furthermore, at this distance, I hear what amounts to a small dip in the D5’s frequency response just above 1 kHz, and a very gentle rise above that, together contributing extra detail to the mids, upper-mids, and highs.

Used in this close-field manner (like wearing a set of “extra-superaural” headphones) mixing on a pair of D5s is not only plausible — even in less than ideal rooms — but it’s enjoyable too! Accurate imaging facilitates careful placement of instruments in the soundfield. Adjustments of vocal levels and effects translate well to other speakers and environments. There’s enough low end that EQ’ing most bass-heavy sounds can be done with confidence. Distortions, phasing, and other problems can be identified before they rear their nastiness later on (when fixing can mean having to undo good work).


dont get mad bro! works for me because like I said, my room sucks, actually its my dining room

 

[AudioGeekZine]

I see. I thought you were using them in a studio because you said "ive only used Rockit 8 and Bx5a's".

 

[xTomx]

After a few days of living with these, adding lots more isolation pads, changing them to the '3' boundary setting, backing them away from the walls and spreading them apart I'm gonna do a completely 180 on my previous statement.

Love 'em.

 

[pipaguapique]

i really need to get the harshness out of mine!!

 

[arv_foh]

does anyone know the recommended break in period for these monitors?

 

[medic999]

i noticed a difference in 5 hours. but its been almost a week and i dont hear any of that original brittleness

 

[xTomx]

Try playing pink noise and sine sweeps loudly when you're not around for a few hours.

 

[electricred]

I got my set of D5s today. First impressions... these are harsh and slightly distorted compared to Yamaha HS50Ms and 80Ms, but of course they haven't been broken in yet. Sonically, not thrilled yet but despite the harshness, there's definitely some great detail in there. I'm hearing pieces of songs come out more than they did with Yamahas, KRKs, and Tannoys. I'll be running some music through them for a few hours, doing some guitar tracks, etc to get a feel for them.

 

[arv_foh]

The first thing I noticed about mine is the stereo imaging is excellent. I'm still getting used to how they sound so I won't comment on that just yet.

 

[nialldoran]

xTomx where exactly did you get yours? i notice that you are in the UK im having trouble finding a distributor

 

[xTomx]

Hand In Hand, I had to wait about a week for them to be stocked though. It was £350 altogether.