Just received my new Event Opals from Sweetwater this evening. I know there's a few owners on here so I am hoping for some feedback from those who have experiences using them.
Let me start out by saying I have been using Mackie HR824's for about 10 years now. I didn't know any different or any better at that. They did sound really nice listening to Professional Albums. They fooled me a number of times with my own mixes until the next day when my ears were fresh or they simply wouldn't translate well.
After 10 years there are now plenty of forum reviews and opinions basically saying they are great speakers for hearing music but they are too hyped for mixing. After setting the Event Opals next to them and doing an A/B comparison I am seeming a big difference between the two.
First off, the Mackie have way more low end and a muddy closed mid range. Also dull on the highs. They sound swollen which is the first thought that comes to mind. Because of these emphasized frequencies it seems louder than the Opal at the same volume knob settings. They also start clipping because of the lows at higher volumes.
The Opals sound very Flat or even across all frequencies. Super clear. I definately hear much more detail and depth. I feel the honesty in them.
I have only speant maybe an hour tops listening to some old mixes, a current mix and a few Mp3s from some pro recordings so I still have quite a bit of time to go learning them and forgetting my Mackies but I have a question about the low end.
I was expecting the Opals to be a bit more punchier than they are. As I stated the Mackies have more low end. The Opals are just super even sounding. I guess I really expected to feel them more, especially when you crank them.
My only goal is to have the most accurate monitor that translates the best mixes so I am not worried yet. I just want to be sure everything is performing as it should.
I have read comments on GS where Opal users had felt like they weren't getting all the low frequencies and it turned out to be his XLR to TRS. When he switched to a TRS to TRS all the low end came through. I just happen to be using XLR to TRS monster cable and another pair of ProCos that are both XLR to TRS so I dont have anything else to try at the moment.
A little about my room. I moved recently to a new house and I haven't built my new studio yet. I am setup temporarily in a 10x13 8' ceiling room. I have 12 4x2 bass traps. Each corner has bass traps from floor to ceiling plus some on the front, back and side walls. This is the most sound treatment I have ever had in a listening room. When I first setup the Mackies I noticed a huge difference in the low end. It was severely cleaned up compared to my old room. It was a good difference in that I can hear what the low end is doing better but my old room sounded good really hyped and probably made it very inaccurate but sounded good for listening none the less.
So it leaves me wondering, am I missing all of the low end because the bass traps are making the room sound the way it should for mixing? Am I missing low end because the room is shorter in length and the low frequencies can't fully develop? And more particularly are the Opals performing in the low end as they should or based on my comparison to the HR824 is something missing?
I will add that I am directly centered in the room about 1 foot away from the wall with the length of the room behind me. I know it's not alot of info to fully answer my question but any relative feedback will help.
Thanks!
Let me start out by saying I have been using Mackie HR824's for about 10 years now. I didn't know any different or any better at that. They did sound really nice listening to Professional Albums. They fooled me a number of times with my own mixes until the next day when my ears were fresh or they simply wouldn't translate well.
After 10 years there are now plenty of forum reviews and opinions basically saying they are great speakers for hearing music but they are too hyped for mixing. After setting the Event Opals next to them and doing an A/B comparison I am seeming a big difference between the two.
First off, the Mackie have way more low end and a muddy closed mid range. Also dull on the highs. They sound swollen which is the first thought that comes to mind. Because of these emphasized frequencies it seems louder than the Opal at the same volume knob settings. They also start clipping because of the lows at higher volumes.
The Opals sound very Flat or even across all frequencies. Super clear. I definately hear much more detail and depth. I feel the honesty in them.
I have only speant maybe an hour tops listening to some old mixes, a current mix and a few Mp3s from some pro recordings so I still have quite a bit of time to go learning them and forgetting my Mackies but I have a question about the low end.
I was expecting the Opals to be a bit more punchier than they are. As I stated the Mackies have more low end. The Opals are just super even sounding. I guess I really expected to feel them more, especially when you crank them.
My only goal is to have the most accurate monitor that translates the best mixes so I am not worried yet. I just want to be sure everything is performing as it should.
I have read comments on GS where Opal users had felt like they weren't getting all the low frequencies and it turned out to be his XLR to TRS. When he switched to a TRS to TRS all the low end came through. I just happen to be using XLR to TRS monster cable and another pair of ProCos that are both XLR to TRS so I dont have anything else to try at the moment.
A little about my room. I moved recently to a new house and I haven't built my new studio yet. I am setup temporarily in a 10x13 8' ceiling room. I have 12 4x2 bass traps. Each corner has bass traps from floor to ceiling plus some on the front, back and side walls. This is the most sound treatment I have ever had in a listening room. When I first setup the Mackies I noticed a huge difference in the low end. It was severely cleaned up compared to my old room. It was a good difference in that I can hear what the low end is doing better but my old room sounded good really hyped and probably made it very inaccurate but sounded good for listening none the less.
So it leaves me wondering, am I missing all of the low end because the bass traps are making the room sound the way it should for mixing? Am I missing low end because the room is shorter in length and the low frequencies can't fully develop? And more particularly are the Opals performing in the low end as they should or based on my comparison to the HR824 is something missing?
I will add that I am directly centered in the room about 1 foot away from the wall with the length of the room behind me. I know it's not alot of info to fully answer my question but any relative feedback will help.
Thanks!
