5" + Sub or 8" monitors?

[EnGee]

I have my small room which is about 4x4m. It is time for me to choose monitors, but I don't know if 5" is enough? or I must buy 8"? or 5" + Sub?

I won't do dupstep or any genre that requires boomy bass or kick. So, just a normal bass/kick in electronic/pop/trip hop ...etc style (something like Massive Attack to DM to Alan Wilder to old Disco to Kraftwerk to 80's Synth Pop to Chemical brothers or so!).

The available monitors that in my badget are from M-audio, Mackie, KRK and behringer. So, mostly the cheapest ones from 5" and 8" monitors. Do you think it is possible to find a good pair that I can depend on for mixing? Which monitors you would choose from this link?
http://www.rockshop.co.nz/shop/recordin ... ors/active

my budget is about $675 (~ NZ$800) but it can be up to $845 ( NZ$1000 if there is really better ones).

I appreciate your help

[Spiritos]

I'm far from an expert in mixing but all advice seems to boil down to 'knowing your monitors' thus any will do in time...

Also from what I've read 8" for a 4x4 room might be problematic -more even without treating your room.
So I think it's more safe to start with 5" and maybe later adding a sub if you feel you need it.

[maschinelf]

There is no right answer, or if there is then I don't know it.

There are advantages and disadvantages to either route. Getting bigger monitors without a sub will be easier to place, and correct placement and balance will be a bigger challenge with a sub. OTOH, a sub will give you a greater degree of control over the crossover point and level etc. Most monitors do have some parameters that can be adjusted though, so personally I'd rather go for bigger monitors (around 6.5") than a sub. But that's just my personal choice, and like I said before, there is no right answer at least until there is more information available.

If you do go for bigger monitors (6.5"-8") in a relatively small space, they should be front ported otherwise they'll have to be a fair distance away from the back wall. That brings another minor problem, as a lot of front ported speakers suffer to some degree from port noise.

Also, is the room a dedicated production space or is it also a bedroom or living space etc. Will you be able to achieve some degree of symmetry in your speaker placement? Will you be able to acoustically treat it a little? If it is a shared space and you do not have much flexibility regarding placement, then you should not even think of a sub.

[EnGee]

Thanks for the reply Spiritos and maschinelf

The room is a bedroom, the bed is taking about 3rd the place and it is crowded with books and other wooden furniture. There is a big window with thick curtain and the walls are covered with thick wallpapers. In winter I have two small thick carpets to put them on the wooden floor. So, I think the sound would be absorbed. Anyway, I won't be able to play it loud. I only can listen to the mix with low volume (maybe more than low for few minutes!)

I might be able to put sound treatments, but I want to avoid that if it is possible. I read a lot about this topic but because I don't have any experience about sound treatment, then I am not sure what to buy. I read that 8" monitors give a better bass, but also it is not recommended for a small room (exactly what you said).

The guy in the shop told me that Mackie 5" is better than the 5" m-audio. I read many reviews, but there is no great monitors in this price range! So, I'm not expecting high quality sound, but I will train my ears to know the weaknesses of them.

Anyway, I think I will take your advice and aim at 5" or 6.5" monitors, if I feel the bass is lacking a lot, then I will add a sub maybe. I don't think I will get a bigger room! So, it is better to take it easy and small. I don't have even a place on my desk to put them, so I must buy stands for them.

[Compyfox]

In all seriousness, a 5" speaker with bass reflex system can sound just as devastating as a 8" speaker system. And by that, I mean in both a good and bad way.

I recently set up a studio with 5" speakers - just plain boring Behringer Truth (1030A's) - and not only are they loud as funk, they are also really bass intensive. Especially if placed in a small room. Maybe even "wrongly placed".

Unfortunately, Behringer seems to drop A LOT(!!!) of their current good gear for no apparent reason (that being the Truth series, the B-2 Pro, the Control series, etc). So if they're sold out, they are sold out.

Personally, I'm in a 3,5x4m room, and I use the Truth 2031A's, with acoustic treatment and IKM ARC to correct further issues. That's a great combination for me. Even if it's way too overpowered for that room.

[EnGee]

I recently set up a studio with 5" speakers - just plain boring Behringer Truth (1030A's) - and not only are they loud as funk, they are also really bass intensive. Especially if placed in a small room. Maybe even "wrongly placed".

Thanks Compyfox, I will consider this model as well as I can find it in another shop here. The price is between the m-audio and mackie ones. So, it is not the cheapest option, but still OK for 5"

[thecontrolcentre]

I love my 5" genelecs with sub. I have a small room but they work well.

[burkek]

I use M-Audio DSM3's and a 12" dBox subwoofer in a 15'x15' bedroom and it sounds fantastic. I listen to a lot of other familiar music on this setup too, so, yeah, it comes down to becoming familiar with the sound you're getting, and resisting the urge to pump the subwoofer too high. Nice and easy does it.

KEv

[Compyfox]

Thanks Compyfox, I will consider this model as well as I can find it in another shop here. The price is between the m-audio and mackie ones. So, it is not the cheapest option, but still OK for 5"

It's a 5,25" woofer, has bass reflex (IIRC), and they're actually rebuilts from some other design I probably forgot.

For this money, with the capability to change the speaker response (shelf and cut per cone) and have an input trim knob, you can't do much wrong.

[Spiritos]

I had my eyes (ears) on the Behringer B2031A's but never got a chance to listen to them. I remember this week reading an interview with a pro engineer claiming these monitors stood the comparison with some $1000+ monitors. Obviously it's just an opinon (but so are others..) but this particulair Behringer has some great reviews.

Also to chip in another option: I just bought the new Tannoy 502's. While it's only 5" the frequncy response is broader than the previous 601A's and while comparing them to Mackie, Alesis and KRK I found them to be the absolute clearest of all while maintaining a punchy bass. In all comparison charts between level entry monitors for some reason the Tannoys are mostly left out so just it might be worth taking these in consideration as well. Especially since they have a front firing bass port for less problematic placement against the wall -as in your situation.

[Compyfox]

I can vouch for the Truth B2031A's (8 inch).

Heavy as funk (12kg per speaker!), great to setup (settings for woofer, tweeter, input gain/trim), good to repair (according to techs). Can't recommend the auto off however (deactivates at too low signal, reactivates at way too high signal!). And I do stress that you need a passive monitor controller in front of it, else you blast your ears (also in combination with the auto-off). Especially since you have to set that speaker at 0dB with the trim knob, else you'll loose out on bass.

I do consider them to be "midfields", not nearfields. I constantly have to underpower them. Else my ears start to ring (I'm sitting about 1,5m away from them). Checked recently with a SPL meter at C-weighting. That thing is a darn jumbo jet at barely 74dB SPL c-weighted (measured at 2,5m distance).

The warning also goes out since the speakers tend to have a slight bug, called: "the limit bug". That means that the speaker goes "BOOOM!" (extra loud) and the limiter engaged. If that is happening to you, it's nothing drastic and can be easily repaired by a speaker tech (faster than sending in to Behringer as well!). It's just a warning I can give you - happened to my set.

[RexXx]

Spiritos is right.

The Tannoys are often untested, overlooked. They are not available in every shop.
I`m a very happy with Tannoy 601p(assiv) and was unhappy with Alesis Monitor One.
The Tannoy Reval x02 series is very new and the Reval x01 series were already good monitors.
So, Tannoy Reval 502 could be a good choice for your needs.

Equator Audio D5 are also very popular 5" monitors.

[EnGee]

Thanks all for your input and advices

Genelecs is very expensive for me. Absolutely out of my budget, and I have never read bad review about them!

I could find Tannoy 501A for about $675 per pair (which is exactly my budget) but can't find the 502 model. I might wait little bit for it or ask the dealer about it.

[edit]
I'm reading great things about JBL LSR305 now. They are affordable for me about the same price as Tannoy 501A, so I think I'm going with those instead! because no one said anything negative about them!! Strange!
[/edit]

[RexXx]

I could find Tannoy 501A for about $675 per pair (which is exactly my budget) ]

That is the price for two pairs.

http://www.amazon.com/Tannoy-Reveal-501 ... tannoy+501

Reveal 502: Estimated Price $179.99 US (= around $360, pair) / €159 EU
http://www.sonicstate.com/news/2014/01/ ... -monitors/

[EnGee]

I could find Tannoy 501A for about $675 per pair (which is exactly my budget) ]

That is the price for two pairs.

http://www.amazon.com/Tannoy-Reveal-501 ... tannoy+501

Reveal 502: Estimated Price $179.99 US (= around $360, pair) / €159 EU
http://www.sonicstate.com/news/2014/01/ ... -monitors/

Nope!!

I wish I'm mistaken, but:
http://www.musicplanet.co.nz/live-sound ... nitor.html

The JBL ones I found them here:
http://www.soundstore.co.nz/p-4287-jbl- ... nitor.aspx