Monitor Query : Poll [HS50x2 vs Bx5a]

[ShreddyESP]

I know there are probably a million monitor threads already. But here's my dilemma.

I can get a pair of Yamaha HS50s for around 450$ which is the same price as the M-Audio BX5as i've heard a lot about. I won't be buying a subwoofer for either right now.

So in your opinion, which would be a better purchase?

PS: I know the yamaha dealers so returns/warranty is a lot easier if i went this way.

What are the pros and cons of each?

Thanks in advance,
Shreddy

 

[kev]

Get the yammys from what ive heard. dont fancy 8"?

 

[VH100R]

save your money. get some 8" instead

 

[kev]

I was in town today A/Bing the HS50's against the HS80's and im certain speakers of that size just wouldnt get going properly in smaller rooms. (especially mine lol)

 

[Metaltastic]

What, you mean the 80's Kev? Yeah, I have to say I agree, or rather, they'd definitely get going, but too much so IMO, resulting in a large excess of uncontrolled bass!

 

[AdamWathan]

I'm finding that I'm mixing a lot of extra bass into my mixes when using my BX8a's in my control room

Hopefully treating my room this week will fix that... I want to pick up some HS50Ms as a second set or maybe ditch the M-Audios for HS80's sometime down the road.

 

[Sickan]

I'm finding that I'm mixing a lot of extra bass into my mixes when using my BX8a's in my control room

Calibrate them, problem fixed
I really love my BX8a's!

 

[AdamWathan]

Calibrate them, problem fixed
I really love my BX8a's!

What do you mean calibrate them? There's no switches or knobs or anything to adjust on there, they have an on switch and a volume knob... Unless you mean EQing my master bus which I've always understood to be a biiiig no no...

 

[kev]

What, you mean the 80's Kev? Yeah, I have to say I agree, or rather, they'd definitely get going, but too much so IMO, resulting in a large excess of uncontrolled bass!

Yep! I didnt get long enough with the HS50's to work out whether they hold enough over my ESI's really, so i think I will be sticking for now. (either that or buying a second hand pair, got any for sale Marcus? lol)

I've been reading the hype over the barefoot mm27s but i just couldnt bare heh to hand of that kinda of cash ($7000) at project studio level.

 

[AdamWathan]

Yep! I didnt get long enough with the HS50's to work out whether they hold enough over my ESI's really, so i think I will be sticking for now. (either that or buying a second hand pair, got any for sale Marcus? lol)

I've been reading the hype over the barefoot mm27s but i just couldnt bare heh to hand of that kinda of cash ($7000) at project studio level.

The trick to convincing yourself you don't need fucking Barefoots is to go and listen to the 100s of amazing sounding records that were mixed on <$1500 monitors.

If Joey can make totally pro sounding records on A7s in a completely untreated control room, I sure as fuck don't need to spend $7000 on monitors

I can think of very few items that I really can justify spending more than $1k on to be able to make a great sounding production. My interface is the only thing I can think of right now. I blew $1000 on a Royer R-121 and I honestly can't justify that either, I was just GASing HARD for it Pretty sure I'm gonna love it though

 

[Metaltastic]

Yep! I didnt get long enough with the HS50's to work out whether they hold enough over my ESI's really, so i think I will be sticking for now. (either that or buying a second hand pair, got any for sale Marcus? lol)

I've been reading the hype over the barefoot mm27s but i just couldnt bare heh to hand of that kinda of cash ($7000) at project studio level.

Yeah, I hear ya dude, but the Barefoots are RIDICULOUSLY beyond what I think damn near any of us here need; sounds like you could use a really good pair of monitors with 5" drivers, in which case I 100% recommend Tannoy Reveal 5A's, man do I love mine! And as many will no doubt recognize from my multiple past posts, once again, here are some positive reviews:

http://radiomagonline.com/products/radio_tannoy_reveal/
http://www.insidehomerecording.com/?p=155
http://www.gearslutz.com/board/low-end-theory/199463-tannoy-reveal-5a.html

I was considering the KRK VXT6's that the dude on gearslutz mentions, but they were too expensive for me (and I can't stand that yellow cone )

 

[Metaltastic]

And Adam, really looking forward to some clips of that Royer dude!

 

[AdamWathan]

And Adam, really looking forward to some clips of that Royer dude!

Me too

My cab micing skills have improved considerably as of late IMO, so hopefully I can pull something off that does the mic justice. Mesa4x12er's Royer clips are what spawned this obsession for me, that smoothness he got with the Recto is like my holy grail of tone.

I think the R-121 might be the key to getting rid of your dreaded fizz Marcus

 

[Metaltastic]

Nah, I'm not about to resort to a mic change to cover up what's already present when I play the amp in the room; either my experimentation with whether having the loop active makes a difference in the fizz will yield positive results, or I'm gonna investigate the other variants of Dual Rec to find one that's better - get it right at the source I say!

 

[AdamWathan]

Nah, I'm not about to resort to a mic change to cover up what's already present when I play the amp in the room; either my experimentation with whether having the loop active makes a difference in the fizz will yield positive results, or I'm gonna investigate the other variants of Dual Rec to find one that's better - get it right at the source I say!

I'm just trying to send you over the deep end going crazy about what nitpicking detail to blame next...

 

[Metaltastic]

Well you may look it that way, but I feel I'm very much aware of what the problem is and what its source almost certainly is, and am working to remedy it!

 

[Melodeath]

What do you mean calibrate them? There's no switches or knobs or anything to adjust on there, they have an on switch and a volume knob... Unless you mean EQing my master bus which I've always understood to be a biiiig no no...

I think people make too big a deal of room calibration, etc. being bad. It's not as ideal as treating your room, but it could be a lot cheaper.
What could be the harm? Causing different peaks and nulls in the room? Well, you don't mix an album by walking around the room, haha, so that shouldn't really matter as long as you have things how you want them at your mixing position
Besides, the whole point of nearfields is to reduce the effects of the room. Unless you're speakers are 2 feet away from walls, or in a concrete room, I call into quesiton how influental your room really is. My speakers are about 5 feet from the closest wall. I put up room treatment at the first reflection points and did not notice any difference.

Anyway, I would also suggest saving your money and getting some 8"s instead. If you can't wait though, the best advice I can give is to get the H50s, simply because I liked the HS80s more than the Bx8as

 

[kev]

I've never heard the Adam A7's but reviews seem good. Im very much stuck in the following analogy atm-

"I don&#8217;t like to review speakers, because past a point, you&#8217;re dealing with quantitative rather than qualitative differences. To use an analogy, take two beautiful women. One has superb eye makeup, the other, exceptional hair styling. You can&#8217;t really say one is more beautiful than the other &#8212; just that one has better eye makeup, while the other has better hair styling. And even that&#8217;s in the eye of the beholder. "

 

[Pot]

save your money. get some 8" instead

bets advice and my advice

 

[Sickan]

What do you mean calibrate them? There's no switches or knobs or anything to adjust on there, they have an on switch and a volume knob... Unless you mean EQing my master bus which I've always understood to be a biiiig no no...

I'm using a (Behringer ) FBQ2496 and it works great for me, I have very minor room treatment since I hopfully will move this fall.