Is there really a good set of monitor speakers for £100?

[fantasyvn]

I live in the UK, so I use the pound sterling here.

It is easy to find reviews about ‘good budget speakers’. But I would be grateful for your personal experience.

Is there really a good set of monitor speakers for £100? In other words, what should be your minimum budget if you don’t want to regret later?
Thank you

[thecontrolcentre]

Seems unlikely ... mine (Genelec) cost £1250. I've had 17 years of daily use from them. No regrets.

For £100 you might do better with a second hand hifi system.

[Doug1978]

No chance for £100.
(You'd be better looking at certain headphones in that price range instead!).

Push up to £300 and you'll start to get into reasonable ''first monitors'' territory.
http://www.musicradar.com/news/tech/12- ... s-570959/6

[BertKoor]

Maybe second hand passives like Alesis MonitorOne mkII ...

[Mushy Mushy]

I really liked my M-Audio BX5a's.
The new model is £130 for the pair.
http://www.dv247.com/studio-equipment/m ... le--210963

Are they good? Yes
Are they great? No
Are £130 headphones better? Definitely.

But if £100 is all you have, and you're set on monitors I would definitely recommend them.

EDIT: As Doug said though, your options get a lot better once you move past £300.

[kuzami]

Headphones. Maybe you can find a deal on a used pair, but for that price it's not very likely.

[bedjka]

These are surprisingly ok at such a low price ( better than the m-audio Bx5a's)
http://www.thomann.de/gb/neusonik_ne05.htm

[chroma]

in the us, you might have more options... i got my set of event 20/20 bas used for ~225 iirc, they are not perfect but very usable, and unlike many cheap speakers have decent bass. but by far i'd prefer having one of these, if i had a decent amp and was willing to go passive:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Paradigm-Mini-M ... 33951ed488
http://www.ebay.com/itm/PARADIGM-MONITO ... 43cf52e6ba

the first time i ever heard really clear sound was in a hi-fi shop listening to these. they are astounding. little bass light (almost anything at the cheap end will be) but oh so clear.... and usually cheap in north america... canada apparently has a government lab for speaker testing, so there are a few great speaker companies up in canada (i used to know more of them), dunno if europe has an equivalent.

you didn't say whether this is 100 quid total, or if you have an amp already... obviously you can't go passive if you don't.

[rod_zero]

Save more for low end Mackies, Yamaha Hs5 or the cheap JBL.

[pljones]

Thomann has a nice comparison for active nearfield monitors.

[MadAnthony81]

I really have found I love my M-audio Bx5a's.

They are really flat which is great. And also they are inexpensive. They hit low and they are even. Ive gone into store and demo'ed studio monitors but these sound just as flat if not to me way flatter than more expensive monitors. The only other option I consider getting is Yamaha Hs50's which are exquisite and pricey. They are extremely detailed too and you would get what you pay for.

But my M audio Bx5a's are killer too. They just aren't as precise but are still better than most house speakers by far. no doubt they are when it comes to mixing a song.

[ZenPunkHippy]

Here is a page detailing an amp and speaker combo that are "audiophile quality" for less than $100:

http://boingboing.net/2013/06/24/low-co ... ng-wo.html

Not something I would normally post, but the source is relatively trustworthy.

Check it out!

edit - an important detail is included near the bottom of the article, so pay attention!!

Peace,
Andy.

[K-Bee]

I really have found I love my M-audio Bx5a's.

I like them as well. I had mine for 5 years and I'm not complaining. My mixes come out relatively well when working through them and that's what matters in the end. They do the job for me, but then again, I'm just a hobbyist.
Unbeatable value in my book.