New near-field speaker setup for a home office? Pictures!

[edahl]

Here's the results of my first attempt as using ARC3...

Green lines are measured response. You can see there is a big difference between left and right in the 50-300Hz region. The reason is that my left speaker sits about 50mm in front of a wall and my right speaker sits infront of a deep bay window (~1m deep or more like 50cm if I have my wooden blinds closed). This is far from ideal! However, at the moment, i'm not in a position to rebuild my office (essentially rotating everything by 90 degrees) to get better speaker placement. So it's a compromise I have to make.

The orange lines are the predicted (not measured!) response after ARC3 has applied the EQ it's calculated. You can see that these lines are much closer to the target response (flat white line).

View attachment 122988

If you can get anything close to that, that looks very impressive!

 

[Berwhale]

If you can get anything close to that, that looks very impressive!

It sounded terrible!

However, ARC3 is a VST plug-in which would usually be used from within a Digital Audio Workstation (DAW). To get ARC3 applied systemwide on Windows, I had to setup a VST host (Cantabile) and a virtual mixer (Voicemeeter Banana). I've never done this before, so it was a bit of a steep learning curve. I'm not sure I had it all working correctly when I took the measurements.

I also had issues setting the level correctly on my UMIK-1 USB measurement mic. It wasn't obvious how to do this in ARC3 as the instructions provided are for an XLR mic connected to USB interface with a mic gain control.

Lastly, I EQ'd to a flat response, I'll definately need to boost the bass a bit when I do this again.

 

[Vict0r]

It sounded terrible!

However, ARC3 is a VST plug-in which would usually be used from within a Digital Audio Workstation (DAW). To get ARC3 applied systemwide on Windows, I had to setup a VST host (Cantabile) and a virtual mixer (Voicemeeter Banana). I've never done this before, so it was a bit of a steep learning curve. I'm not sure I had it all working correctly when I took the measurements.

I also had issues setting the level correctly on my UMIK-1 USB measurement mic. It wasn't obvious how to do this in ARC3 as the instructions provided are for an XLR mic connected to USB interface with a mic gain control.

Lastly, I EQ'd to a flat response, I'll definately need to boost the bass a bit when I do this again.

How did you get the Umik1 to be recognized in Arc3?

 

[Berwhale]

Scroll to the right on the Microphone Selection screen, select Generic Measurement Mic and upload your calibration file...

 

[Vict0r]

Scroll to the right on the Microphone Selection screen, select Generic Measurement Mic and upload your calibration file... View attachment 123130

Hahaha well, yes. I got that far. I just can't select it as an input device in the next step, even after installing Asio4all drivers

 

[Berwhale]

Hahaha well, yes. I got that far. I just can't select it as an input device in the next step, even after installing Asio4all drivers

Sorry! I have the UMIK-1 plumbed in with Voicemeeter Banana...

UMIK-1 is connected to Hardware Input 1 in Voicemeeter...

 

[thewas]

It sounded terrible!

Doesnt surprise me, your before measurements look quite wrong to me having approximately 20dB more bass than treble (no room would do such a heavy tilt to relatively neutral loudspeakers), if I were you I would try to do first some REW measurements.

 

[Berwhale]

Doesnt surprise me, your before measurements look quite wrong to me having approximately 20dB more bass than treble (no room would do such a heavy tilt to relatively neutral loudspeakers), if I were you I would try to do first some REW measurements.

Indeed! This morning, I found that the right channel on my DAC is broken...

Topping D50s Fault - Right Channel Broken Above 6Khz | Audio Science Review (ASR) Forum

 

[Acerun]

I found this image, which is very enlightening. It's so hard to find size comparisons of monitors! The Genelecs are currently at the top of my list. Still have to get an idea of the size of the Eve SC203.

View attachment 116316

190 x 116 I believe

 

[Milan237]

View attachment 120130

Well, I received the iLoud MTM's today! They're bigger than I thought. I can live with the size, though. I'm going with this thread's advice about not putting the computer on my desk,but more to the side of the room, with longer cables connecting the peripherals.

About the iLouds; I hooked them up to my Topping e30 with a pair of ProCab RCA to XLR cables I ordered and it works! The only noise I got was through the USB of the Topping e30. I can hear "digital chirping and crinkling". As soon as I unplug the USB cable from the Topping, the noise disappears. I hooked up the e30 through an optical connection to my motherboard instead, and lo and behold, the noise is gone.

So, I'm sticking to an optical connection for now. I have the gain wheel all the way down to -12db (why do they advise setting it at max? I hear too much hiss at maximum gain), SENS (sensitivity) at 4db, LF cutoff at 50hz and the rest at FLAT. I ran the onboard calibration using the supplied microphone and the end result is pretty darn great! Imaging especially is so much better than I was used to on my previous setup. You really feel the singer standing right in front of you. Excellent depth, layering and whatever other esoteric descriptors you could apply to a decent pair of monitor speakers that give you proper insight into a recording.

Can't wait to put them on some suitable stands to get the tweeters at ear level. The desktop stands that I was using for my Q Acoustics 3010's were too high, even at their lowest setting. If anyone knows some good desktop stands for these, I'm all ears!

I see you took your PC off the table after all)))

 

[Vict0r]

I see you took your PC off the table after all)))

Yes! I actually made a little side table! Cut a piece of wood to size and drilled some legs into it. Looks rather spiffy, if I may say so! Still no stands for my MTM's, though. I just can't find any short microphone desktop stands that look right to me. The search continues!

 

[Milan237]

Yes! I actually made a little side table! Cut a piece of wood to size and drilled some legs into it. Looks rather spiffy, if I may say so! Still no stands for my MTM's, though. I just can't find any short microphone desktop stands that look right to me. The search continues!

View attachment 132883

View attachment 132884

I think you will find the coasters you need, there is a lot of variety.
I want to note that you have a very original headphone stand!

 

[Vict0r]

I bumped into a picture of some gorgeous, hand-made desktop stands for monitor speakers, where one of the two has a little cabinet built in for an audio interface. Too bad the person that makes these only sells on Etsy and builds these based on measurements and the type of materials you provide. I'm thinking of finding someone local that can craft me something similar. These would look amazing on my desk, I think!

 

[zheka]

Have you considered using a desk shelf to elevate your MTMs and monitor? That's what I am doing.

 

[Vict0r]

Have you considered using a desk shelf to elevate your MTMs and monitor? That's what I am doing.

I looked for one briefly, but the ones that had enough width (120cm+ because the monitor is pretty wide, and there needs to be enough space on the desk shelf to accomodate the MTM's) weren't very attractive. I figured I could have one made that looked right in my setup, but then I bumped into the stands I posted above which looked very elegant to me. It's not just about the ears. The eyes need satisfaction too.

I found this one, but it's only 105cm and costs almost as much as having custom stands made. Also, I have no idea if the oak finish on this shelf would match the oak of my desk.

 

[engineer]

Hi guys, I'm tired of trying out studio monitors and I decided to go into the best of my budget (+/- 500€/piece). The use is the same as for the founder of this thread - near-field speakers for desktop PC.

My tips:
Genelec 8020DPM
Genelec 8030C
Neumann KH80
Neumann KH120H

Which model would you recommend to me with the following requirements?
1. location by the wall (approx. 15 cm),
2. minimum hiss,
3. clear and wide sound,
4. DSP - for the best possible sound correction of the room.

Note: Is it necessary to have an expensive DAC or it will also suit my Audinst HUD MX-2 when buying speakers in this price range?

Thank you very much.

 

[LTig]

Hi guys, I'm tired of trying out studio monitors and I decided to go into the best of my budget (+/- 500€/piece). The use is the same as for the founder of this thread - near-field speakers for desktop PC.

My tips:
Genelec 8020DPM
Genelec 8030C
Neumann KH80
Neumann KH120H

Which model would you recommend to me with the following requirements?
1. location by the wall (approx. 15 cm),
2. minimum hiss,
3. clear and wide sound,
4. DSP - for the best possible sound correction of the room.

Note: Is it necessary to have an expensive DAC or it will also suit my Audinst HUD MX-2 when buying speakers in this price range?

Thank you very much.

AFAIK the KH80 is the only one which fulfills all 4 requirement.

 

[rcstevensonaz]

Hi guys, I'm tired of trying out studio monitors and I decided to go into the best of my budget (+/- 500€/piece). The use is the same as for the founder of this thread - near-field speakers for desktop PC.

My tips:
Genelec 8020DPM
Genelec 8030C
Neumann KH80
Neumann KH120H

Which model would you recommend to me with the following requirements?
1. location by the wall (approx. 15 cm),
2. minimum hiss,
3. clear and wide sound,
4. DSP - for the best possible sound correction of the room.

Note: Is it necessary to have an expensive DAC or it will also suit my Audinst HUD MX-2 when buying speakers in this price range?

Thank you very much.

Does the DSP have to be built into the speaker? Or could you use an external DSP (which I personally prefer since I can upgrade my DSP as technology changes without have to replace the speakers themselves). Examples for external DSP include MiniDSP, audio processing on Raspberry Pi, RME ADI 2 devices, NAD integrated amps, or anything running Dirac Live or other processing software.

If you can use external DSP, then I would put in a strong vote for the front-ported Neumann KH120A plus the corresponding L65 stands. No hiss on my system at all; and very happy with the sound quality and imaging in the 0.8m to 1.5m range that I sit from the speakers. I prefer the added base that the KH120 brings over the KH80; and the L65 stands not only bring the tweeter to ear level, but the style of the platform base opens up useful real estate space on my desk below the speakers.

Never tried the Genelec, so I can't offer a comparison to those; but they will also be excellent for desktop near-field distance... Genelec and Newmann are the perennial winners for active desktop near-field speakers.

 

[engineer]

@rcstevensonaz I have already ordered a MiniDSP, so I will be ready to operationally adjust the EQ, but I like the integrated DSP because it was set by the manufacturer himself (often well tuned).

 

[txbdan]

@rcstevensonaz I have already ordered a MiniDSP, so I will be ready to operationally adjust the EQ, but I like the integrated DSP because it was set by the manufacturer himself (often well tuned).

Well how well a speaker is tuned, DSP or not, comes out in the measurements. Just because it has DSP doesn't mean its better. Passive xover Genelec 8030Cs measure pretty damn well.