Genelec 8030C Studio Monitor Review

[pehu63]

No, but I've compared my 8030 with friend's KEF R3, and we both preferred R3 for casual listening. 8030 seems to have more revealing, "in your face" kind of sound, that can be annoying. R3 were just prefectly smooth and enveloping, with a ton more capability to fill 15-20 m² rooms.

Absolutely shocking, an English made speaker that sounds better than a Genelec??? ;-)

 

[pehu63]

My friend got the 8030c and said he could hear hiss from the speakers from 70 inches away.

Mine are completely silent. Before, I had the JBL 305P, easily audible from a meter. Even though the JBL was hissing at close range, in my living room, this was not even close to disturbing. JBL sound was actually quite good, until I got used to these 8030.

Just for the fun, attached my genelec on mike stand, and the room mode correction with the arylic DSP tool.

 

[Jarmel]

Are there any stores/places where I can demo the 8030c on the East Coast? I called a few places and heard most places don’t even carry them.

 

[dfuller]

Are there any stores/places where I can demo the 8030c on the East Coast? I called a few places and heard most places don’t even carry them.

Look more at pro audio places. Parsons in MA, maybe one of the pro audio shops in NYC whose names I'm blanking on right now.

 

[Reed]

Look more at pro audio places. Parsons in MA, maybe one of the pro audio shops in NYC whose names I'm blanking on right now.

Guitar Center carries Genelec. You can order a pair and listen in your home for up to 30 days and return them for the restock fee. If you have a Guitar Center nearby, return the speakers there and avoid the fee. I kept mine so it wasn’t an issue. Nothing beats listening in the intended environment.

 

[Reed]

Update. Finally moved my room around a bit and did the Dirac measurements. Just like every time I’ve used full range Dirac, the initial reaction is less than great. Listen for a while and then turn Dirac off and the bass sounds tubby and the image is somewhat disorganized. Dirac is a big improvement in my small room. I’ve attached a room measurement but the curve isn’t what I’m using now. And there’s a sub not shown in the graph or in the photo. I’m in a 70” equilateral triangle. Can report zero hiss. Love these Genelecs.

 

[MaxRockbin]

Update. Finally moved my room around a bit and did the Dirac measurements. Just like every time I’ve used full range Dirac, the initial reaction is less than great. Listen for a while and then turn Dirac off and the bass sounds tubby and the image is somewhat disorganized. Dirac is a big improvement in my small room. I’ve attached a room measurement but the curve isn’t what I’m using now. And there’s a sub not shown in the graph or in the photo. I’m in a 70” equilateral triangle. Can report zero hiss. Love these Genelecs.
View attachment 173957
View attachment 173956

Interesting that you decided not to put them really close to the wall - as Genelec recommends to reduce boundary interference. I did the same thing. I ended up with mine just a little farther from the wall than yours (and in a little bit smaller equilateral triangle). They just sound better that way to me. I think the increase in direct sound vs reflections you get by bringing them closer to your listening position outweighs the benefit of the reduced bass interference. Especially if you're using Dirac (I am too).

 

[Reed]

Interesting that you decided not to put them really close to the wall - as Genelec recommends to reduce boundary interference. I did the same thing. I ended up with mine just a little farther from the wall than yours (and in a little bit smaller equilateral triangle). They just sound better that way to me. I think the increase in direct sound vs reflections you get by bringing them closer to your listening position outweighs the benefit of the reduced bass interference. Especially if you're using Dirac (I am too).

I’ve lived with them a while and to me, there‘s a deeper soundstage if I pull them out from the front wall a bit. I had to flip my layout to have the speakers point away from the master bedroom so I can listen late at night. That put the left speaker next to a door but I can still get in and out. I had Magnepan MMGs in this room prior to the Genelecs and I had pre-purchase concerns about whether they would sound small in comparison. Happy to say they don’t. They play much bigger than I expected.

 

[Glen20]

My friend got the 8030c and said he could hear hiss from the speakers from 70 inches away.

In my setup it depends on the source.
Dead silent
Rega apollo cd> optical>smsl su-9n dac>genelec 8030c

Mild,moderate,monstrous hiss depends on gain on mixer. Number of turntables on.
2turntables>mixer>ParksPuffin>Smsl su9n dac>8030c

 

[sounds_et_al]

After reading this review, I decided to buy a pair as my first monitors for my home studio. Needless to say I am not disappointed! Highly considering adding the 7050C subwoofer to this setup.

 

[YSC]

After reading this review, I decided to buy a pair as my first monitors for my home studio. Needless to say I am not disappointed! Highly considering adding the 7050C subwoofer to this setup.

just go ahead and enjoy!

 

[Pearljam5000]

After reading this review, I decided to buy a pair as my first monitors for my home studio. Needless to say I am not disappointed! Highly considering adding the 7050C subwoofer to this setup.

Is there enough bass without a sub?

 

[Trell]

Is there enough bass without a sub?

I've the 8330 on my desktop sitting less than 1m away, and I find them too bass shy for my use without the 7360A subwoofer. The 8030C would most likely be the same for me.

My wife have another 8330 pair on her desktop in the same small home office and she is happy with them as they are.

 

[Pearljam5000]

I've the 8330 on my desktop sitting less than 1m away, and I find them too bass shy for my use without the 7360A subwoofer. The 8030C would most likely be the same for me.

My wife have another 8330 pair on her desktop in the same small home office and she is happy with them as they are.

Thanks
Seems like the minimum without a sub is the 8040

 

[Trell]

Thanks
Seems like the minimum without a sub is the 8040

I considered the 8340 but they would be too large for my desktop and I would sit closer or at the limit of the Genelec recommended minimum distance for them.

 

[sounds_et_al]

Is there enough bass without a sub?

I guess my general answer is no. I find them a little light in the bass and wanting more.

Now the question becomes 7050C or (2) 7040As as someone recommended in this thread...

 

[YSC]

Is there enough bass without a sub?

for my personal use experience being very close to my seat with close wall loading (which I used the dip switches to counter the boundary gain), before adding sub music is great as is, as I mostly listen to pop in Tidal which don't have a lot of deep bass below 50hz anyway, then I added a single 7040A under my desk (don't ask why I don't get 2, or get a 7050 or something, that's the only thing I can put below my desk and not taking all spaces and it in room goes flat to around 25hz with wall loading) the differences are very noticeable and it feels like "the final bits are complete" kind, but not really the stand alone 8030C isn't good enough

 

[OldUI11]

for my personal use experience being very close to my seat with close wall loading (which I used the dip switches to counter the boundary gain), before adding sub music is great as is, as I mostly listen to pop in Tidal which don't have a lot of deep bass below 50hz anyway, then I added a single 7040A under my desk (don't ask why I don't get 2, or get a 7050 or something, that's the only thing I can put below my desk and not taking all spaces and it in room goes flat to around 25hz with wall loading) the differences are very noticeable and it feels like "the final bits are complete" kind, but not really the stand alone 8030C isn't good enough

I recently acquited a set of 8030c speakers and have had a similar experience in a similar set-up. I use an SVS Micro 3000 sub, however. I need to do some more experimenting, but in the current set up it sounds pretty satisfying even without engaging the sub.

 

[voodooless]

While browsing for drivers found this one:

The fact that it has Genelec written on it peaked my interest. I think it’s likely the replacement woofer for the 8030c (and probably 8430). It’s staggering what kind of performance is unlocked from such a cheap driver. Frequency response is impeccable. Note that Genelec will pay way less than the retail price shown here even.

Should you feel cheated now? Probably not! This is still a high quality driver with excellent performance. The money driving component of a Genelec speaker is the aluminum enclosure and for good reason. It’s paramount to the excellent performance of the speaker.

 

[Tangband]

No, the bass unit in Genelec 8030c looks like this pictures, from the teardown of one 8030c . The video can be seen on page 52 In this thread. The bass-units name is P831763 .

Genelec 8030C Studio Monitor Review

Unfortunately Thomann.de won't ship Genelec products to the USA. I must have recalled wrongly then as I believed not shipping Genelec products to USA was for monitors only.

www.audiosciencereview.com