Studio Monitors - What they do, and why you need themStudio monitors are just high quality speakers, only designed for recording studio use. The main difference between a monitor and another speaker for home use is the attention paid to precision. When you listen to a mix, you need to know exactly what is there, or the mix will not work well. A bad mix might play nice on one system, but on the next, it might sound horrible. It is absolutely critical that you hear it correctly while you are mixing! Studio monitors are available in many sizes, shapes, colors, and of course, price points. For most people doing home recording, you won't need the most expensive monitors. But in order to hear anything, you really do need something better than your computer speakers! Headphones are an excellent way to monitor the mix, and they are a great way to start out a studio. In fact, that's how I started. But I couldn't believe the difference it made when I got a set of studio monitors - I could actually hear it! Headphones will give you a closer perspective on things, and you can learn with them, but I think monitors are essential for producing quality recordings. A studio monitor is built from the ground up for accuracy. It won't give you a nice and pretty sounding mix; it will give you the dirt that is actually there. Of course, the more you pay, the more accurate they will be. If you want pretty music, get some home theater speakers. If you want to learn to record, get some studio monitors. A nearfield monitor is a studio monitor designed to be placed within a few feet of you, the listener. This does several things - first and foremost, it eliminates most of the reflections from walls in the room. You need to hear what is going on, not with the addition of the room reverb. (Headphones are the best isolation in this respect.) Then, it gets you close to the sound, not far away. Nearfield studio monitorsNearfield monitors are by far the most popular and smart choice for a small studio, not to mention economical. The other option is to get some big speakers, and mount them in a wall in a big room.The main drawback to smaller studio monitors is the limited bass response provided by the smaller speakers. The simple way around this is to get a set with a subwoofer. The sub takes care of low frequency sound, and the monitors get the rest. You don't need a sub, as in absolute necessity. I use a set of 6.5" monitors now, without a sub. But I can see drawbacks, and have a CD out that I'm kind of embarrassed by, because it has too much bass in it. What happens when your system is low on the bass? Will your mixes be low on bass too? Actually, no. Because your system is low on bass response, you will tend to overcompensate, to make it sound good on your system, but it then actually has too much - it doesn't translate well to other systems. Most bedroom and home studios won't need to even think of a bigger system than some nearfield monitors can provide. (Just look at the prices: anywhere up to thousands!) Active vs. PassiveThere are two types of nearfield monitors when it comes to amplification: active and passive. An active monitor has the amplifier built in to its system. A passive monitor has no amplifier - you need to give it the amplified signal already. It's really simple to tell the two apart. Active->amplifier, and passive does nothing.What does this mean to you? If you use passive monitors, you must have a separate speaker amplifier. For me, it's not worth the extra bother of having yet another piece of gear around in my studio, so I use active monitors. They may cost a little bit more up front, but you really don't need the quality of passive monitors unless you are working in a pro-level studio. Monitor HookupsYou will want some sort of balanced cable, such as a TRS or XLR (microphone) cable to hook these critters up. My current set of monitors, the Event TR6s (sorry, they've been discontinued), accept an XLR cable. So I got a patch cord with a XLR on the one end, and a TRS on the other, to go from my MOTU 828 to the monitor.My monitors use a standard computer power cord, so if something happens, I can quickly swap it out with another one. So which monitors?That is the question of the hour. It depends a lot on what your budget is. The golden rule of studio equipment is, you get what you pay for. Get as much as you can afford, because monitor sound is something that will directly influence your mixes.I use a pair of Event TR6 active monitors, and really like them. However, they have been discontinued. Bummer. I recommend you look over at zZounds' monitor section. They have many different kinds available. I'll quickly highlight a few models that I think are noteworthy.
You can buy this model in several configurations. First, just a single speaker. Most people would buy two, for a stereo setup, but it is flexible to go surround too. Second, you can get it in a stereo kit WITH a subwoofer. That's the one I'm looking at. :) Lastly, zZounds offers it with a free monitor stand. You might want to check that one out. From what people are saying, it is a very, very good quality studio monitor, especially for its price point. Don't ignore that.
The HS50M runs cheaper in price - you can get a pair for about the same price as a single one of the HS80M. It won't sound quite as good or balanced either; that's just the trade-off in price and quality. So, studio monitors are essential in the recording process. Use them well, and don't skimp on quality. Go ahead, make me jealous! Buy a set of the HS80Ms, and tell me how they work! Return from Studio Monitors to Recording Equipment. Return from Studio Monitors to Home.
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