Monitor specifications
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- KVRAF
- Topic Starter
- 5268 posts since 16 May, 2002 from Brisbane , Australia
All the info you've given helps greatly. I was not even really entertaining the idea of a set of monitor until I saw these wharfedale and dali speakers the other day, and I thought I'd check them out. But there is no opportunity to listen because it is a retail shop and the back ground is a wall of tvs and such. I do have a decent audio shop I visit but I am pretty sure nothing there is within my budget. Also, the room treatment you speak of. I know that is true, but would you agree that a decent set of monitors is better than totally crappy ones in the same room. I don't have a treated room but I thought it still worthwhile to replace my home made speakers from 1990.
Intel Core i7 8700K, 16gb, Windows 10 Pro, Focusrite Scarlet 6i6
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- KVRAF
- 6937 posts since 4 Jun, 2004 from Utrecht, Holland
Even in a retail shop with a wall of TV's behind you, we are talking about nearfield monitors. Get your head near them, and most of what you hear comes directly from the speakers. You should get an idea how they sound anyway.
There are two things I can think of:
1) Bring your own speakers to the shop for an A-B comparison. You know your current speakers pretty well, so any difference will be aparent.
2) Have a talk with the shop owner. Can you arrange to do the demo at home? Can you buy them and return them within a couple of days with full refund and no questions asked?
My room isn't exactly treated also. Just stacked in some furniture like book shelves with assorted stuff that takes care of most of the reflections. It'll do...
There are two things I can think of:
1) Bring your own speakers to the shop for an A-B comparison. You know your current speakers pretty well, so any difference will be aparent.
2) Have a talk with the shop owner. Can you arrange to do the demo at home? Can you buy them and return them within a couple of days with full refund and no questions asked?
My room isn't exactly treated also. Just stacked in some furniture like book shelves with assorted stuff that takes care of most of the reflections. It'll do...
My MusicCalc is temporary offline.
We are the KVR collective. Resistance is futile. You will be assimilated.
We are the KVR collective. Resistance is futile. You will be assimilated.
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- Banned
- 338 posts since 4 Dec, 2007
Different speakers don't change the room characteristics. Since you're looking at home speakers, IMHO you may do some low cost DIY room tuning to find that your circa 1990's speakers are actually better than what you are considering.
IMHO spending any money on speakers before tuning the room acoustically is a waste. There is a wealth of free info for DIY tuning that will make a world of difference for the better for your current situation.
Bottom line, if you want accurate control room monitors look at control room monitors, not home stereo speakers. There are many good self powered monitors on the market today for reasonable money. Start with the KRK Rockit 5's.
Home speakers are not designed for a flat response, they flatter lows and highs, and will not give you a clear, transparent representation of what you are listening to. Control room monitors are designed to deliver a flat response, yielding an accurate sonic representation in a tuned environment.
IMHO spending any money on speakers before tuning the room acoustically is a waste. There is a wealth of free info for DIY tuning that will make a world of difference for the better for your current situation.
Bottom line, if you want accurate control room monitors look at control room monitors, not home stereo speakers. There are many good self powered monitors on the market today for reasonable money. Start with the KRK Rockit 5's.
Home speakers are not designed for a flat response, they flatter lows and highs, and will not give you a clear, transparent representation of what you are listening to. Control room monitors are designed to deliver a flat response, yielding an accurate sonic representation in a tuned environment.