New Speakers Advice

[altamira]

are these Vovox cables overkill: https://www.thomann.de/pt/vovox_protect_s200_klixlrm.htm
they are expensive. Otherwise i can just go cordial or sommer and forget about "boutique" stuff.
So for me its the Neumann KH80 (1 pair of monitors 632,00 Euros) + Focusrite Scarlett Solo (99,00 Euros) combo. Anyway i will wait for more comments from all of you (@LTig, @q3cpma, @napilopez, @direstraitsfan98, @sfdoddsy, @Ilkless, and all of those who helped me).

 

[LTig]

Ok thank you. Yes im a bit left with that notion that i might have to add a subwoofer. Wich one? Cordial Cables are good? TRS male to XLR male? like these : https://www.thomann.de/gb/cordial_ccm_5_mp.htm?ref=cg_cg_7_3_n_0

This one is not a balanced cable. Get this or a shorter one (you don't need 5m or 3m for speakers on the desk).

or these Vovox: https://www.thomann.de/gb/vovox_link_protect_s100_trs_trs.htm?ref=cg_cg_4_4_n_0

Very big price diferences

Those are overkill.

 

[LTig]

are these Vovox cables overkill: https://www.thomann.de/pt/vovox_protect_s200_klixlrm.htm
they are expensive. Otherwise i can just go cordial or sommer and forget about "boutique" stuff.

As I just wrote they are overkill. If you had ample budget or a problem with noise induced into the cables those might be worth a try. In your situation the cheapest cables with good connectors you'll find at Thomann or any other serious pro shop are more than sufficient.

So for me its the Neumann KH80 (1 pair of monitors 632,00 Euros) + Focusrite Scarlett Solo (99,00 Euros) combo. Anyway i will wait for more comments from all of you (@LTig, @q3cpma, @napilopez, @direstraitsfan98, @sfdoddsy, @Ilkless, and all of those who helped me).

Sounds like a good plan. Go ahead.

 

[LTig]

Ok. Just for preparing the future. If adding a subwoofer later would i need a better/capable audio interface/DAC than the Focusrite Scarlett solo i intend to aquire?

No. Just a get a sub with built in crossover as @daftcombo had mentioned. One of the cheapest reasonable subs would be the JBL LSR310 S. I haven't heard it though.

 

[musicaddict]

Hello,
I`m new here. Registered to the forums after reading the great reviews by amirm.

There is a lot of talk on active monitors in this thread, having large experience with those i will give my input.

In my opinion the Rockit Classic 5, Rokit Rp5/RP6 G3( the Classic is a remake of the Rp5 G3 ) and the JBL 305p are the best for listening to music in a entry level price. Most monitors are not pleasant for hours of music listening . Those mentioned are more pleasant than the usual monitor. The Rokit is A/B bi amped so it gets very hot but everything is punchy! The hiss is not audible in my experience , you can only hear if you place your ears like 1cm away from the tweeter.

If going to spend more, Dynaudio BM5 MKIII are extremely detailed with fantastic instrument separation, only needs to increase the highs in the speaker filter to make it more pleasant for music listening. Krk VS series, Dynaudio LYD also fine..

There is a Youtube channel called Digital Stereophony with a big amount of active monitor comparisons all against all, the method the guy uses for recording and comparison is very efficient. The monitors really sound like what you hear in the videos even when you listen to it from tiny smartphone speakers(weird but it does), does not sound exactly like the real thing but gets close and the contrast with other monitors helps to identify the main characteristics.

I think Yamahas are one of the most bad sounding , most of its users agree. But they go by the mantra "if you can make a mix sound good on it it will sound good everywhere".

 

[altamira]

Musicaddict thank you for the contribution. I never contempled the Dynaudio active Studio monitors, only the passive. If someone here could also make their contribution with any experience of the Dynaudio BM5 MKIII (and comparing it to Neumann KH80) i could ponder that option. Neumann vs Dynaudio? Now bare in mind im totally new to both studio or Hifi Monitors. Like i said my main concern is the best for the budget to be able to enjoy the following years.

 

[NTomokawa]

Dynaudio BM5 MKIII

Wouldn't those be over your budget?

Also buy the Yamahas already

 

[musicaddict]

Musicaddict thank you for the contribution. I never contempled the Dynaudio active Studio monitors, only the passive. If someone here could also make their contribution with any experience of the Dynaudio BM5 MKIII (and comparing it to Neumann KH80) i could ponder that option. Neumann vs Dynaudio? Now bare in mind im totally new to both studio or Hifi Monitors. Like i said my main concern is the best for the budget to be able to enjoy the following years.

I have no experience with the Neumann but it has the most advanced technology, their 4" woofer goes lower than any other 4" speaker and it does have a room correction system. To check the Dyna sound this video while insufficient and funny shows a lot

I think you need the contrast listening to the speaker, without comparison you get no reference point. In this short video you can see how the Dyna is great, check for example how you can hear the bass the whole time while in the lower priced Rokit you can`t and how there is more detail for all instruments in the Dyna.

 

[altamira]

Wouldn't those be over your budget?

Also buy the Yamahas already

Actually the price diference between the neumann´s and dynaudio is around 38 Euros . Not much. The dynaudio being a tiny bit more expensive.

 

[q3cpma]

So, why would you choose the KH80 without any subwoofer? Do you have the room for said subwoofer? Personally, I wouldn't buy the KH80 for another reason: Neumann's software simply isn't ready. Until a few months, there only was an iOS application and nothing else.

 

[altamira]

So, why would you choose the KH80 without any subwoofer? Do you have the room for said subwoofer? Personally, I wouldn't buy the KH80 for another reason: Neumann's software simply isn't ready. Until a few months, there only was an iOS application and nothing else.

Are you implying that the Neumann KH80 only makes sense with a subwoofer? Sorry dont understand what you mean... "Personally, I wouldn't buy the KH80 for another reason ..."(?) Whats the thing about the software?

 

[daftcombo]

You can use and do the setup of the KH80 without using the software I think.

 

[daftcombo]

The Sound Of The KH 80 DSP
So how do they sound? To sum it up in a word I’d go with impressive. These retail at around $500 each and are absolutely tiny. If you can live without deep bass (and many people can) and you intend to use them in a nearfield application these monitors have all the level and resolution you need. Add a sub and you’ve got some proper monitoring for a project studio.

https://www.pro-tools-expert.com/pr...e-way-we-really-want-to-do-speaker-correction

 

[musicaddict]

This video got very well recorded audio, the comparison is unfair because the old Yamaha NS-10 loved by many producers is the worst sounding speaker ever created. On the other hand the Yamaha shows to be more revealing than the Neumann which is a bit of concern regarding the Neumann to me. In the classical piece you can hear the theater reverbation very clearly, in the Neumann you can`t.

 

[altamira]

@daftcombo, @q3cpma Is that a reason to abandon the idea of the KH 80? I can always add later the JBL or other sub as suggested no... I know i will have to make another investment down the line.
@musicaddict funny i previously had listen to that video/recording. Nice audio.
Now you made me ponder a bit...

 

[Doodski]

This video got very well recorded audio, the comparison is unfair because the old Yamaha NS-10 loved by many producers is the worst sounding speaker ever created. On the other hand the Yamaha shows to be more revealing than the Neumann which is a bit of concern regarding the Neumann to me. In the classical piece you can hear the theater reverbation very clearly, in the Neumann you can`t.

Uggh.. Those NS-10 sound horrible. Everything from the weak bass, exaggerated mids and highs are obnoxious. I sold the NS-10 in the 80's and had the chance to compare them to about 30 speakers in a sound room and they are horrible but some people like them.

 

[daftcombo]

@daftcombo, @q3cpma Is that a reason to abandon the idea of the KH 80? I can always add later the JBL or other sub as suggested no... I know i will have to make another investment down the line.
@musicaddict funny i previously had listen to that video/recording. Nice audio.
Now you made me ponder a bit...

That's why you should go and audition a few of those speakers before ordering anything.
There won't be any consensus.

 

[napilopez]

This video got very well recorded audio, the comparison is unfair because the old Yamaha NS-10 loved by many producers is the worst sounding speaker ever created. On the other hand the Yamaha shows to be more revealing than the Neumann which is a bit of concern regarding the Neumann to me. In the classical piece you can hear the theater reverbation very clearly, in the Neumann you can`t.

Anything regarding how 'revealing' the NS10 are can almost certainly be attributed to frequency response and listening to a recording through a YouTube video.

Edit: don't mean to come off rude, and this video is better done than most. Just that more often than not I've found whether a product sounds more detailed than another can be attributed to frequency response. Here the frequency response of the NS-10:

It's a bright speaker, and bright speakers will always seem more revealing at first glance

 

[q3cpma]

Are you implying that the Neumann KH80 only makes sense with a subwoofer?

For music listening, yes. For mixing and monitoring, you can do a good job and use a headphone or something to check the bass, but for music listening, it's simply too small with a lot of styles; and it's way over your budget.

Give us a real budget so we can help you, because "I'll add a subwoofer later" means it's not the same budget anymore.

 

[LTig]

@daftcombo, @q3cpma Is that a reason to abandon the idea of the KH 80? I can always add later the JBL or other sub as suggested no... I know i will have to make another investment down the line.

IMV the KH80 is one of the best speakers for desktop use (your application if I remember correctly). Sound and Recording compared them against the KH310 and were very impressed - in some respects they preferred the KH80 over the KH310. If you know you will add a sub sometime later then you can also use it for movies and louder music in a not to big room. My colleague uses 5 Genelec 8020a (similar size as KH80) with a sub in his (small) living room.

However if a sub is not an option and you need more bass then you need a speaker with a bigger woofer. The bigger Neumanns and Genelecs are out of your price range though. The JBL 308 would be a cheap solution but may be a problem on the desk due to hiss. But even then you may later want a sub for movies.