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Using large studio monitors as a primary listening system

weasels

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My son is in college and has his first apartment. He listens mostly to hip hop & prog/math rock. How would a pair of JBL 308p monitors or something similar do as a simple music listening solution? I'd get him a Topping DAC or something similar as a source.

Is there a downside to using large monitors like this outside of a nearfield situation?
 
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In my experience the farther away you get from horns/waveguides, the better they sound.
They would be great for a simple system.
 

stevenswall

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The 308 is bass light for its size in my opinion, but at that price point besides building a pair of HiVi 3.1 DIY speakers there's not too much else I can think of to recommend unless you can get a good, used pair of Mackie HR624 or 824 monitors that can dig a bit deeper and hiss less.

I currently use large studio monitors in a living room setup. No disadvantage as far as I can see. If it's for a TV or people moving around the Kali IN8 will have better vertical dispersion for people at different heights, but it costs more and if hiss is an issue, the JBL hisses less. (I've personally listened to the 308p, IN8, and Mackie HR824 in my home. The last one wins on bass, the first on cost, and the IN-8 for excellent dispersion. Might be a tossup with the smaller HR624 though.)
 

LearningToSmile

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The 308 is bass light for its size in my opinion, but at that price point besides building a pair of HiVi 3.1 DIY speakers there's not too much else I can think of to recommend unless you can get a good, used pair of Mackie HR624 or 824 monitors that can dig a bit deeper and hiss less.
Maybe I'm looking at the wrong graphs for the Mackie HR624 but it looks like it gets nowhere near as low as the 308 does in my experience. 824 seems more on par.
 

BDWoody

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My son is in college and has his first apartment. He listens mostly to hip hop & prog/math rock. How would a pair of JBL 308p monitors or something similar do as a simple music listening solution? I'd get him a Topping DAC or something similar as a source.

Is there a downside to using large monitors like this outside of a nearfield situation?

No real downside.
If you're feeling generous, the 705p's would make a pretty nice desktop system.
 

LTig

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My son is in college and has his first apartment. He listens mostly to hip hop & prog/math rock. How would a pair of JBL 308p monitors or something similar do as a simple music listening solution? I'd get him a Topping DAC or something similar as a source.

Is there a downside to using large monitors like this outside of a nearfield situation?
The 308 is not a large studio monitor. This one is.:cool:
 

BDWoody

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They say you can't put a price tag on happiness, but I can put a price tag on my son's musical happiness and it caps at $500 a pair :)

That should buy him something nice.

Another suggestion would be the Audioengine 5+.
Really like mine... Not as much as the 705's, but these are very decent.
1019201631_HDR.jpg
 
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weasels

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That should buy him something nice.

Another suggestion would be the Audioengine 5+.
Really like mine... Not as much as the 705's, but these are very decent.

That's an interesting idea - would remove the need to get a DAC. Sound-wise how do they compare to the 305p or 306p? I imagine they will be much lighter in bass vs. the 308p.
 

nugget

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I really like the smaller AudioEngine A2+, they punch way above their weight. I was less impressed with the A5+. They're solid speakers, but not "great" once you account for the price and size of them. I've got both and I use the A2+ on my main desk setup and the A5+ are on my Windows box that I hardly ever use.

I've never heard the 305p or 306p so I can't directly compare.
 

stevenswall

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Maybe I'm looking at the wrong graphs for the Mackie HR624 but it looks like it gets nowhere near as low as the 308 does in my experience. 824 seems more on par.

624 is –3 dB @ 45 Hz
824 is –3 dB @ 35 Hz
308 is -10dB @ 37 Hz

Kali IN-8 is:
-10 dB @ 37 Hz
-3 dB @ 45 Hz

From that I'd say the 824 stomps it as JBL has to pick the bottom of the barrel -10dB spec to even get close to the 824, but the 624 competes with the IN-8 which uses an 8" driver and has a similar -10dB point to the 308.

Not sure if the expense is worth it though since I think the 624 is twice as much or more new, and I got a pair of 824 monitors used for $700.
 

ferrellms

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Maybe I'm looking at the wrong graphs for the Mackie HR624 but it looks like it gets nowhere near as low as the 308 does in my experience. 824 seems more on par.
Both Mackies are killer in the bass department. But, the 824 will go deeper and louder. Very deep and very loud.
 

tomtoo

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You do your son something good with this decision. At least he get not used to realy strange FR.
 

Bugal1998

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They say you can't put a price tag on happiness, but I can put a price tag on my son's musical happiness and it caps at $500 a pair :)

That's plenty generous. I would have no acoustic concerns with the 8s except for space in an apartment. They're pretty big.

305p with an Lsr310s sub would be my ideal budget system. In fact that's what I use in my own studio (could have bought the 308p and still chose the 305s).

Find a deal and you'll be pretty close to your $500 budget.

Edit: I'm assuming budget is the first priority, and listening enjoyment is a close second. He can add a basic EQ (mini dsp or similar) and not have to worry about sub integration.

For critical work, some of the other recommendations here may be better.
 
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LDKTA

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Stick with the 308Ps. Bass light? Definitely not. They should play even lower with room gain.
 
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weasels

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624 is –3 dB @ 45 Hz
824 is –3 dB @ 35 Hz
308 is -10dB @ 37 Hz

Kali IN-8 is:
-10 dB @ 37 Hz
-3 dB @ 45 Hz

From that I'd say the 824 stomps it as JBL has to pick the bottom of the barrel -10dB spec to even get close to the 824, but the 624 competes with the IN-8 which uses an 8" driver and has a similar -10dB point to the 308.

Not sure if the expense is worth it though since I think the 624 is twice as much or more new, and I got a pair of 824 monitors used for $700.

Crutchfield has the Mackies on sale and it's less than an hour's drive for me to return them if they don't work out so I'm going to spring for the 824s and see.
 

stevenswall

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Crutchfield has the Mackies on sale and it's less than an hour's drive for me to return them if they don't work out so I'm going to spring for the 824s and see.

Must be gone now! Can't find the HR824 on their site. Are you talking about the MR? Haven't heard that one, but the HR has a passive radiator behind the amp, the XR has a port, and I think the MR does too.
 
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