The Best Studio Monitores

8/10/2019 The Best Studio Monitores

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So what are the best monitors in the world today? MTF recording expertHuw Price has the answers, no matter what your budget.

Studio Monitors

ince we first hit the shelves over a decade ago we have reviewed a

decent number of studio monitors – some relatively poor, others

life-changingly good. And while many are sadly no longer in

production, the best tend to stick around, so we thought it was time

for a round-up of our favourites.

We’re concentrating on nearfields and have divided our choices into five price

bands. Everybody has to work to a budget, so we’ll examine what you can expect

to get for your money – and what you can’t. We’ll also be sharing some tips to help

you make the best of what you have and providing some technical information

about drive units, enclosure design and room correction.

When we consider other

items of audio recording

hardware such as mics and

preamps, we often make

subjective decisions to

achieve specific goals. So we

may prefer a valve mic for a

vocalist – not because it’s

accurate, but because the

HF roll-off and fat midrange flatters a particular voice.

But choosing a set of speakers should not be based on subjectivity. If you want

speakers that make everything sound ‘good’ just visit your local hi-fi emporium.

Good monitors must be able to tell us what is actually going on during sessions

because we base critical decisions on what we hear. Monitors that roll off below

60Hz may disguise issues with low-frequency garbage that can eat up a lot ofyour track’s energy. Similarly, if speakers are voiced brightly, we may not realise

that our mix is lacking in high frequencies so it sounds dull when played on other

systems. Creating tracks that ‘translate’ well onto other systems is the

fundamental challenge, so we need monitors that inform rather than entertain. It’s

tough, but choosing monitors is one of the most crucial decisions you will make.

If you want speakersthat makeeverything sound ‘good’ visit yourlocal hi-fi emporium

Studio monitorsFeatureMTF

FOCUS Mastering 2014 | 79


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MTFFeature Studio monitors

W e start, of course, at the budget end ofthe scale. It’s cheaper than ever to set up

a studio as so much of the grunt work

can now be done inside a computer. In

theory, then, this should leave cash for those

still-important bits of choice hardware, like monitors.

So as a magazine, we always suggest that you throw

as much money as you can afford at monitors – the

most important link in your production chain.

However, we also understand budgets are tight these

days, so if you find yourself lacking in funds or in

need of a second set of cheaper monitors, don’t

worry: there is

plenty of choice at

the lower end of

the market.

In this price

bracket it’s

inevitable that

compromises will

need to be made,

however, so potential purchasers will need to

prioritise. For instance, if you need the speakers only

for recording and you tend to mix in a commercial

studio, you might decide that you’re prepared to

trade accuracy for volume and lots of bass – qualities

that may vibe-up musicians and help them to

perform at their best.

You may also need a dose of power if yourworkspace has been acoustically treated with

absorbers. The treatment soaks up acoustic energy,

so you may be obliged to push your speakers harder

to achieve decent volume. Inefficient drivers and

insufficient amplification will make it more likely

you’ll push your monitors into distortion. This is

equally bad for your tweeters and your hearing, plus

it will alter your perception of HF content.

For accuracy you might be better advised to go

for smaller speaker enclosures with higher-quality

components. Size and power won’t be of such

concern in smaller rooms, but the

compromises may be less volume and

bass – then again, how much do you really

need? If your budget is tight, consider

buying a pair of high-quality monitors

now, with a view to augmenting your

system with a subwoofer later.

You might decide that you’reprepared totrade accuracy forvolume and lots of bass

MTF Technology Enclosure types

Most of the monitors featured in this round-up – those up to the

£1,200 bracket – have reflex-ported enclosures with a hole (or holes)

located on the front or rear of the cabinet. This hole (or holes) allows

the air inside the cabinet to move more freely so that the drivers

don’t have to work against such high internal air pressure. The port

can be ‘tuned’ to boost the lower frequencies, which introduces

unevenness into the frequency response. It’s also very common to

hear wind turbulence at the opening of the port (often referred to as

‘chuffing’) at particular frequencies and expensive ported monitors

are not always immune.Infinite-baffle enclosures are completely sealed, so there are no

vents or ports. The bass extension of this cabinet-

type of speaker is closely related to cabinet size.

Larger cabinets are required to achieve a flat

frequency response down to 40Hz or so, and the

sheer size may be impractical in project studios.

Full-frequency infinite-baffle designs are mostly

found in the upper price range and many engineers

regard phase performance as superior. Interestingly,

the iconic but tiny Yamaha NS10 was an infinite-

baffle design, which is probably whey they were

always criticised for lack of bass.

Transmission-line cabinets contain a long

tapering ‘tube’ with an abundance of internalabsorption material that enables relatively small

cabinets to achieve excellent bass response in

comparison to equivalently sized ported and

infinite-baffle enclosures.

Transmission-line designs

can be more expensive to

make and much depends on the

length of the transmission line

and the effectiveness of internal

absorption, but the results can be

amazing. PMC is probably the most

famous transmission-line monitor

manufacturer and its products are

found in mastering rooms as well asrecording studios.

ESI AKTIV 05 Price £218/pairContact Time+Space 01837 55200ESI claims to be the firstmanufacturer to offerKevlar-coned drivers in thisprice range. There’s noequalisation adjustmentand control is limited to asingle volume pot. An XLR/TRS audio input socket isprovided with powerswitching on the rearpanel. 60 watts of onboardamplification is split evenlybetween the drivers.Web www.esi-pro.com

Illustration ofa typicaltransmission-lineenclosure design.


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MTF Buyer’s Guide 6 of the budget best

M-AUDIO BX8 D2 Price £249/pairContact M-Audio 01923 204010These sport an 8-inch curved Kevlar woofer and a

1-inch silk-dome tweeter, plus specially tunedLinkwitz-Riley crossovers distributing 130 watts. Therear-ported cabinet has a natural frequency of 30Hzand rounded edges to reduce diffraction. Audio ins aremade via XLR or jack.

The BX8 sounds big and generates righteousvolume. HFs are bright and transparent, butthunderous bass steals the show. With no LFadjustment you’ll have to adjust your ears before mixtransferability is guaranteed. There is some lack ofmidrange clarity and depth, so room ambience andreverb may be hard to detect or even inaudible, but wereally enjoy the larger-than-life vibe.Web www.maudio.co.uk

ADAM F5 Price £349/pair Contact Adam 020 7737 3777The F5 is the entry-level model in the affordable F Series.The ported enclosure is 290 x 185 x 230mm and contains a5-inch carbon/paper woofer and Adam’s signature ART(folded ribbon) tweeter. Inputs include XLR/TRS/RCA andthe F5 features auto-standby mode. EQ adjustmentcomprises +6dB adjustment at 5kHz and 300Hz plus a80Hz filtering for subwoofer use.

The F5s live up to expectations, with clarity, crispimaging and impressive bass extension. They have a

forward midrange so leaner mids may require anadjustment period before you can judge levels withprecision. We also noticed that very low-frequency dubbybass lines tended to drag a little, but given its price pointthe F5 is a remarkable and accomplished monitor.Web www.adam-audio.com

BEHRINGER B2030A TRUTH Price £246/pairContact Behringer+49 215 492 064 1667The Behringer Truth has twin amps (75W and35W) feeding a 6.75-inch polypropylenewoofer and a domed 3/4-inch ferrofluid-cooled tweeter, active crossovers and alow-vibration MDF cabinet. Measuring 214 x317 x 211mm and weighing in at 10kg apiece,these are solidly constructed and havebalanced XLR/TSR ins, level control, treble/bass adjustment and room correction forlowering bass range.

They are sensitive to positioning, butonce set up come over as forthright,energetic, flexible and non-fatiguing. With an

airiness reminiscent of more expensivemonitors we feel that Behringer has quitepossibly pulled off a minor miracle.Web www.behringer.com

FLUID AUDIO F5 Price £199/pairContact Hand in Hand01752 696633

The F5 has 70W of Class A/B bi-amp power. It has a5-inch woofer with a composite paper cone and thetweeter is a 1-inch treated silk dome with an integratedwaveguide. The magnetically shielded enclosurefeatures a front port slot located beneath the wooferand the front-mounted volume fader is a first for us.

The onboard power is impressive for the cabinetsize, so there’s no shortage of volume. In fact wethought they sounded better when they were pushedharder. With a very decent sound quality for the price,we’d feel very confident mixing through the F5s.Web http://www.fluidaudio.net

PRODIPE PRO 8 V2 Price £349/pair Contact Music Track 01767 313447An 8-inch ‘glass aramid’ woofer is paired with a 1-inch silk-dome tweeter driven by 140 wattsof power. Balanced inputs are XLR/TRS and although there’s no bass equalisation, treble canbe set to -2dB and +1dB and the volume control provides -30dB to +6dB of adjustment.

Yielding a big sound with plenty of power, there’s no shortage of bass but there’s no senseof hype. Prodipe takes the bottom end to the limits of the cabinet/driver – but no further. Thisleaves room for the midrange to breathe, with natural-sounding vocals and realistic guitars.The treble is also unhyped and non-fatiguing and the Pro8s seem to enjoy being pushed hard,

filling out nicely without losing cohesiveness. Decent all-rounders that deliver a hint of thehigh end at a bargain price.Web www.ipemusic.com


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MTFFeature Studio Monitors

MTF Buyer’s Guide 6 of the best midrange

EVE AUDIO SC205 Price £699/pair Contact Nova Distribution020 3589 2530

Two-way with a 5-inch SilverCone woofer and an AMTribbon tweeter. The woofer has a honeycomb structureand glass fibre coating for stiffness. Analogue inputsfeed Burr-Brown converters, allowing the signals to beprocessed digitally before reaching the PWM-classdigital amplifiers. A multi-function front knob adjustsvolume, activates standby and accesses filter settings.

The SC205s have nicely controlled and clear bassand a remarkably open and deep soundstage. Withnatural acoustic recordings you get a real sense of therecording space. There’s no hype in the low mids/upperbass and it’s very even down to 50Hz. Low-endperformance is impressive, while left/right imaging iscrisp and fine details are conveyed with ease.Web www.eve-audio.com

ADAM A7X Price £750Contact Adam 020 7737 3777The A7Xs supersede the much loved A7range, adding new technology that allowsthe tweeter to produce sound as far as50kHz. A 7 inch mid woofer andfront-firing ports handle a deep and solidbottom end, and each driver has its ownamplifier. The tweeter is driven by a 50watt A/B amp and the woofer by a 100watt PWM amp. The front panel containsa power switch and volume control, andthese speakers produce a clear, powerfulsound that will help you accurately mixand master your tracks.Web www.adam-audio.com

FOCAL CMS-40 Price £564/pair Contact SCV London 020 8418 0778Recommended for post-production and homestudio use as well as full-size pro studios, two 25WClass-A/B amplifiers power a 10cm Polyglass conewoofer and an inverted dome tweeter. Thereinforced cabinet has the level control and powerswitch on the front. LF and HF shelving switchesapply +2dB correction from 450Hz and 4.5kHz.Rubber ‘feet’ and table stand minimise vibration.

These look small but sound huge. We detected asmall amount or port turbulence, but we’ve heardfar worse. Imaging is outstanding, bass lines aredeep but tight, and transient response is lightning-

fast. Without being bright, hyped or forceful, thedegree of detail and clarity is simply amazing.Web www.focalprofessional.com

FOSTEX PM 8.4.1 Price £499/pairContact SCV London 020 8418 1470Three-way monitors are uncommon in this price bracket.Papered Kevlar woofer (8-inch) and midrange (4-inch) sitwith a 3/4-inch soft-dome tweeter. The speaker enclosureis divided for the bass and mid drivers. Measuring 270 x432 x 290mm and weighing 13.6kg you’ll need space andsturdy stands.

Producing a loud, room-filling sound with wellproportioned bass they are also clear and transparent. Thetreble can be strident and there was a little port chuffing.Web www.fostex.com

DYNAUDIO BM5A MKII Price £782/pair Contact HHB 020 8962 5000A rear-ported enclosure contains a 7-inch woofer, wire-protected 26mm soft-dometweeter and 90W of amplification. There are boost/cut switches for HF and LF and anattenuation switch for the low-mids. The HP filter with Flat/60Hz/80Hz settings allowsthe BM5As to be matched with a subwoofer and the input level can be set to +4/0/-10dB.

With the frequency switches set flat the BM5A produces a huge, room-filling sound

with deep bass that retains its rhythmic drive, punch and harmonic content. Stereoimaging is way above average and the soundstage is very deep. Essentially neutral incharacter, the comprehensive equalisation allows them to be used in rooms with orwithout acoustic treatment.Web www.dynaudio.com


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T he £400–£800 range is where feature listsstart to grow and sound quality starts to

ramp up. It’s also at this point that

everything else seems to get a bit bigger, too.

Most monitor manufacturers provide a range of

products but it is most obviously at this price point

where there will be some correlation between price

and cabinet size, power, driver dimensions or maybe

even a combination of all

three. In a range of

similarly spec’ed

monitors you’ll

typically get bigger

woofers and larger

cabinets for your

hard-earned cash.

These features

may not

necessarily be as desirable as they

initially might sound. For instance, if you

work in a very limited space, it may be

harder to place larger cabinets in the

ideal listening position.

Also, larger enclosures will usually

mean more bass, but at the cheaper end

of the market ‘more’ doesn’t always

mean ‘better’. If the bass response is

hyped too much, you’ll probably find it

harder to figure out what’s going on in the low end ofyour mixes – especially if your workroom isn’t fitted

out with acoustic treatment.

Rather than looking for monitors that are bigger,

bassier and louder, consider other features in this

price range. For instance, you will often find quite

sophisticated equalisation adjustment that will help

integrate your new monitors into your workspace. You

may also find front-mounted power/standby switches

and volume controls. Also, investigate high-pass

filters, which will make it much easier to augment

your left/right satellites with a subwoofer if and

when funds allow.

Many monitors in this price range offer

professional sound quality and work superbly in

smaller control rooms. Indeed, we think you won’t be

disappointed with any of the six we’ve listed. But if

you have more money, turn the page…

Many monitors in this pricerange offer professional sound

qualityand work superbly insmaller rooms

MTF Pro Technique Positioning monitors

If you don’t set up your

monitors properly you will

never get the best out of

them. Most manuals contain a

rudimentary setup guide but

the issues are worth addressing

again here.

Firstly, we’ll assume that your

room already has some basic

acoustic treatment – even if it’s justsome foam panels, a rug on the floor

and maybe some diffusors (check pages

66–71 if not). If your room has issues such

as reflective surfaces, standing waves and

flutter echoes you cannot hope to cure your

problems by buying a more expensive set of

monitors. You’ll simply be wasting your money.

For a conventional stereo monitoring setup, both

speakers must be positioned at exactly the same

height with the tweeters firing towards your ears when

you are in your usual working position. Studio monitors are

often placed sideways to align the tweeters with your ears.

However, most monitors are designed to work upright and generally

sound better that way because there’s less interference from soundwaves reflecting off the surface of the mixing desk or workstation.

If you put speakers against a wall – or, even worse, in corners –

the bass end will rise dramatically. Active monitors are sometimes

equipped with compensation controls if space restrictions force you

to compromise on speaker placement, but you’d be advised to avoid

the issue when determining your studio layout, locating things such

that you avoid problematic placement.

Your working position should be exactly in the centre of the

speakers and you will need to listen carefully to determine the

correct amount of toe-in. If you don’t get this bit right, your monitors

won’t be imaging properly.

Conventionally, the lead vocal will sit squarely in the centre of

the mix – ditto the kick and snare. Turn each speaker towards the

centre by a couple of centimetres until the audio image becomessolid and clearly located in the centre of the mix. You’re aiming to

combine solid centre images with the widest possible stereo

spread. If you go too far and the stereo seems too narrow, it means

there’s too much toe-in.

EVENT 20/20BAS Price £758/pair Contact Hand in Hand 01752696633Quoted power figuresinclude 80-wattslong-term power,120-watts burst power and250-watts peak power intothe woofer. Rear controlsset gain (+12dB), HF shelfand LF shelf (both +3dB).

You can really crank the20/20s without losing

clarity, low-end composureor your sanity. They areupfront but non-aggressive, have characterwithout colouration andleft/right imaging is verysharp. You’ll hear plenty ofdetail, with room ambienceand reverb tails clearlyaudible, but the 20/20doesn’t have an especiallydeep soundstage. Sothey’re less involving withacoustic music, but excelwith electronica and rock.Web www.event1.com

Avoid positioning yourmonitors too wide. Ideally,the arrangement of you andyour monitors should forman equilateral triangle.



W hen you’re investigating speakers in the£800–£1,000 price range there should be

no necessity to compromise on sound

quality or power. By and large, the

enclosures will still be front- or rear-ported, although

other options may now be available to you.

Also at this level, the law of diminishing returns

applies. By this we mean that when you upgrade

from hi-fi or computer speakers to your first set of

active monitors you’ll find that it is a massive step

and you can easily

appreciate what

the extra money

spent has meant to

your production

process. But

moving from a

£600 set of

monitors to a

£1,000 set of monitors is unlikely to be a life-

changing or dramatic experience – ie, the

improvement-to-investment ratio deteriorates.

The criteria professionals use to select and assess

studio monitors are generally quite different from

those of semi-pros and hobbyists. You need to be able

to hear everything clearly if you are to work

efficiently and be confident that your mix decisions

will be correct.

Individual tastes vary just as much as roomacoustics so the ideal set of monitors will satisfy

both. Most distributors should allow you to audition

speakers in this price range. But when you do, don’t

just listen to your favourite CDs because poorly

produced tracks will often sound worse on accurate

monitors and you will already have an idea of what

to expect. Instead, if you can, do some recording/

mixing work and check the results you get on a

variety of systems.

Finally, at this price point you tend to

start getting very accurate monitors. Don’t

be surprised if these become tiring during

long mix sessions.

Mix for accuracy on more expensive

sets and switch to a set of cheaper

monitors for a more pleasurable

experience and comparison (not to

mention a rest).

MTF Technology Isolation

It’s important to isolate your monitors as much as possible. Avoid

putting speakers directly on surfaces such as wooden shelves, work

desks or hollow boxes because these will resonate and alter the

sound you’re hearing. An otherwise tight and well-controlled bass

response may become boomy and flabby.

Hi-fi freaks often pay more for speaker stands than the speakers

themselves. Fortunately, cheaper and more practical speaker

stands are available for studio use. Studiospares’ own-brand stand

is sturdily made with a weighty triangular base, a height-adjustable

shaft and detachable carpet spikes. You can also get shorterspeaker stands such as the K&M 26790 for shelf and desktop use.

Isolating the speaker from any resonant surface

can further tighten up bass response and you can

reduce vibration transfer by minimising the area of

physical contact between the speaker cabinet and

the surface it’s resting on. Speaker spikes are ideal,

especially on the bottom of speaker stands if there’s

carpet involved.

Alternatively, acoustic foam can be placed

between the cabinet and the mounting surface.

Auralex offers some very cost-effective solutions.

More sophisticated products augment the foam

with added mass from heavy metal plates and

dense rubber, and the Silentpeaks SPK Isolator and

Primacoustic RX9 are worth a look.

We currently favour the IsoAcoustics ISO-

L8R155 adjustable speaker mounts. As well as

providing isolation it can raise monitors by either

7.5cm or 20cm to align the

tweeters with your ears or tilt

back or forward for use on a

meter bridge or desktop.

If you have a pair of

particularly large and heavy

speakers, placing them on

concrete blocks is a cheap and

cheerful solution that’s surprisingly

effective. Just pay a visit to your localbuilder’s merchant.

FOCAL CMS-50 Price £892/pair Contact SCV London 020 8418 0778This monitor is theaward-winning middle-sizemodel of the CMS range.You get a 5-inch woofer,beefy 80W/50Wamplification and a rearpower switch with astandby switch on thefront. EQ controls include aswitchable high-pass filter(45, 60 and 90Hz) for

subwoofer use and a 160Hzdesktop notch filter(-2/-4/-6dB).

They have a slightlyopen and transparentcharacter. Bass is deepand the extra range seemsto decongest the midrange.The metal covers are greatfor mobile engineers butfollow Focal’s advice andremove them for optimalsound quality.Web www.focalprofessional.com

84 | Mastering 2014 FOCUS

MTF Feature Studio monitors

You need to be able to hear

everything clearly if you aretowork efficiently

An acousticdecouplingdevice can helpeliminatevibration if youneed to standyour monitorson a desktop.



MTF Buyer’s Guide 6 of the best mid-to-high end

SONODYNE SM 200AK Price Around £800/pairContact Synthax Audio 01727 829750

The flared, rear-ported enclosure is made from 15mmMDF with a rigid aluminum front baffle for the 8-inchKevlar woofer and 1-inch metal-dome tweeter. Thefront panel is angled for driver time alignment. Thefront baffle has curved edges and an integralwaveguide for the treble frequencies. Power is rated at150W for the woofer and 100W for the tweeter. Four EQDIP switches are provided at 70Hz, 100Hz and 4kHz.

The power and loudness will vibe-up any room andthe energetic low end gets right inside your chest. Thetreble is wide-open and clear, with plenty of air and,although the soundstage could be deeper, they’re wellsuited to aggressive rock and electronica.Web www.sonodyne.com

ACOUSTIC ENERGY AE22 ACTIVE Price £880/pair Contact 01285 654432Looking like it’s designed to sit sideways on a stand ormeter bridge, the tweeter is at 45 degrees to thewoofer so you can stand them upright, too. Controlsinclude Sensitivity (Flat/+3dB) and three-way switchesfor H, M and LF adjustment. The latter is unusual asyou can roll off 3dB at 70Hz or add 3dB at 40Hz.

Once they start pumping air, you can really feel thethump of the bass and the kick drums. They don’t gosuper-low, but the bottom end is solid and controlled.

Attenuating the midrange dramatically opens up thesound, with the AE22s excelling for vocals. Recordingsthat tend to sound harsh or sibilant are easy on theear. The treble is smooth and refined but this maygloss over rough edges and users should be aware.Web www.acoustic-energy.co.uk

EVE AUDIO SC207 Price £960/pair Contact Nova Dist 020 3589 2530These are from the same 2-way driver series as theSC205 but the woofer is 7-inch rather than 5-inch. Therear-ported bass enclosure has been made larger, andextension reaches down to 44Hz. Nonetheless, theSC207s fit comfortably onto a meter bridge or into aproject studio and EVE’s ingenious and simple-to-usefront-mounted multi-function controller handlesvolume, treble, bass and mids.

The SC207 handles bass frequencies superbly,providing rhythmic drive without boominess. Upperfrequencies are airy yet not excessively bright. Imaging iscrisp with deep and natural room ambience. The

‘desktop’ midrange cut is superb and the SC207sintegrated into our monitoring system seamlessly.Web www.eve-audio.com

GENELEC 8030 Price £858/pairContact Source Distribution020 8962 5080Genelec has a real sci-fi look going on with itsminimum diffraction die-cast aluminium casings and‘Directivity Control Waveguide’. The 8030A featurestwo 40W amplifiers powering a 5-inch bass/midrange

driver and a 3/4-inch metal-dome tweeter. A range ofDIP switches fine-tune the treble and bass settingsand a volume control is located on the front.

We found best results were achieved whenlistening dead-centre, with the monitors toed-in topoint directly at you. Openness is captivating, with abig, broad soundstage, a slightly upfront presentationand unusually precise stereo imaging. The 58Hzlow-end limit may not be enough for music with heavybass content, but the 8030As should prove just theticket in smaller studios.Web www.genelec.com

YAMAHA MSP7 Price £838/pair Contact Yamaha 01908 366700Designed by the ‘father of the NS-10’ Mr Nakamura, the MSP7 features a resin-moldedbass-reflex enclosure with radiused corners and waveguide. A 6.5-inch woofer combineswith a 1-inch dome tweeter to be driven by 80W and 50W amps. In addition to high and lowtrim and low-cut switching the speaker has preset 30dB/octave low- and high-pass filters.

HFs are refined, even a touch soft, but the treble is ‘realistic’ rather than over-hyped.With acoustic material they create an impressively deep sound stage with a sense of air

and instrument separation in the mix. Electronic bass lines track accurately with plenty offast rhythmic detail. A full and forward midrange is the only shared feature with the NS-10.Web www.yamaha-music.co.uk

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EVE SC305 Price £1,536/pairContact Nova Distribution020 3589 2530Three PWM 50W amplifiers drive two 5-inch woofersoperating on different frequency bands (50Hz–350Hzand 350Hz–3kHz) and an AMT RS3 tweeter that’scentral for 5.1 compatibility as well as stereo. DIPswitches ‘fix’ the volume and filter settings. Burr-Brown A/D converters and high-resolution DSPelectronics control frequency response parameters.

We were struck by the even depth and solidity ofthe bass. Left/right stereo imaging is very crisp andthere’s plenty of air in the front/back image. With anear-friendly, effortless quality that opens up your mix,

the size of their sound belies the size of the cabinet.Web www.eve-audio.com

QUESTED S6R Price £1,270/pairContact Sonic8 08701 657 456There’s a Morel tweeter and 5-inch Ciare woofer,with 65W and 45W for bass and treble. Input levelscan be attenuated and frequency adjustmentallows +/-2dB at 10kHz and -2/-4dB at 42Hz.

Detail resolution is phenomenal. The S6Rs don’tconvey a mix so much as dissect it. Acuteawareness of acoustic ambience lends suchhyper-realism it’s almost unnerving. Technicaldetails are laid bare and you don’t even have tostruggle to hear them. Left/right imaging israzor-sharp and front/back imaging depth isuncommonly good. The S6Rs almost ‘vanish’,opening a window into the music.Web wwww.quested.com

THE ROCK MKIIPrice £1,899/pairContact Unity Audio 01440 785843

Measuring 325 x 220 x 290mm and weighing in at11.2kg, The Rock were Unity Audio’s debutmonitors when they were released back in late2011. But what monitors they still are! Their realstrength is timing, being extremely fast-sounding speakers that allow rhythms to flowwith a grace unheard of in other setups. This ishelped by the sealed construction, which keepsthe bottom end tight and super-clean. Themonitors also reveal exceptional dynamics,trip-hammer speed and precision. They aredefinitely, as Unity Audio claims, exceptionallyaccurate – if your mix isn’t happening, they willlet you know. In terms of honesty, then, these areamong the best monitors you can buy.Web www.unityaudio.co.uk

MACKIE HR824 MK2 Price £1,020/pairContact Mackie 01268 571212A studio staple since the 90s, Mackie’s MKII version has an aluminum baffle and a 6-inchpassive radiator for bass extension (35Hz). Drivers include an 8.75-inch woofer and a1-inch tweeter powered by 150W and 100W amps. Bass roll-off can be set at 37Hz, 47Hzand 80Hz with +2dB HF adjustment.

Some report improvements on the originals but similarities are more apparent thandifferences. They require air space around them for the radiator, so might not be ideal forsmall rooms. Big-sounding, powerful and vibey monitors with good transferability – onceyou get to know them.Web www.mackie.com

MTF Buyer’s Guide 5 of the best high end

86 | Mastering 2014 FOCUS




A nd so we hit fantasy land with monitorsthat will set you back £2,000 or more. Again,

it’s the law of diminishing returns in this

territory. You can spend more than £5,000

on a set of monitors but they might offer only a tiny

percentage increase in quality (both in terms of

sound and build). To many engineers, however, that

extra percentage is crucial to their work,

so this is a surprisingly thriving

part of the market.

It goes back to what we said at the start of

this feature. Many people are spending less on

hardware instruments and effects –

unsurprisingly, given the fact that there are so

many good and relatively cheap plug-ins nowavailable – so have more budget for the

super-important components of the studio. And

monitors are important... But whether you

want to spend £1,000s on them is a purely

personal decision. If you think not then feast

your eyes on these anyway.

You’ll be tempted… MTF

88 | M i 2014


MTF Buyer’s Guide 4 of the best ever

EVENT OPAL

Price £2,360/pair Contact HHB 020 8962 5000The aluminium chassis has two front ports running along the curved edges– a design called variable impedance porting that eliminates chuffing whileextending bass to 35Hz. The woofer cone excursion is 36mm and a secondarycoil is wired in parallel/out-of-phase to enhance force and response speed.The ULD1 beryllium copper tweeter and waveguide were designed as a unitand the waveguide can be rotated for sideways use.

With two onboard amps rated at 387W and 112W, comprehensive EQcontrols work with a Space control that adjusts for speaker placement. Badmixes will be ruthlessly exposed because the Opals are brutally honest.Every frequency seems to occupy its own space in a faultless frequencybalance, yet it all sounds joined-up. The effortless bass is deep andextremely well controlled, while imaging is as crisp as we’ve everexperienced. We can’t fault them.Web www.event1.com

BAREFOOT MICRO MAIN 35 Price £4,935/pair Contact KMR Audio 020 8445 2446Four drive units share 350W and two side-mounted7-inch aluminium cone subwoofers fire in oppositedirections to minimise resonance. The mid/bass driverhas a 5-inch cone and the 1-inch tweeter is of thesoft-dome variety. EQ adjustment is minimal, but a SubLevel control allows some bass adjustment. TheStandard switch recesses mids, brightens treble andprovides steeper bass roll-off.

Immediate impressions include loudness, intensity,neutrality and ultra-solid bass. The term ‘revealing’hardly does them justice. Deficiencies and imbalancesin mixes become glaringly obvious, allowing you to workquickly without struggling to hear details.

Web www.barefootsound.com

THE BOULDER Price £5,160/pairContact Unity Audio 01440 785843At 549 x 256 x 368 (HWD) and weighing 23kg, these arebig monitors. There are two 180mm Elac woofers withan extremely tight and clean bass that extends down to39Hz. Mid and high frequencies are handled by aninteresting dual-coaxial ribbon design.

The Boulders sound like no other boxed speaker

we’ve heard – more like electrostatic panel speakersrenowned in hi-fi circles for purity and accuracy. There’sno boom or bass overhang, no midrange glare and nofizzy treble, just natural and faithful reproduction. Theyproduce astonishingly accurate audio and once you getused to them they will make you a better engineer.Web www.unityaudio.co.uk

FOCAL SM9 Price £4,290/pairContact SCV London 020 8418 0778Two monitor systems in asingle enclosure. One sidehas a 6.5-inch bass/midrange driver and a1-inch tweeter. The otherhas an 8-inch bass wooferwith an 11-inch passiveradiator. You can switchbetween 2-way and 4-waysystems. There’s extensivefrequency adjustment andan EQ bypass switch.Weighing in at no less than35kg each they measure320 x 490 x 390mm.

These are superbnearfield monitors butwithout the usual missingfrequencies. While LFs arenon-directional, hearingultra LFs at ear level ratherthan feeling them in yourchest takes getting used to.Imaging is surgical, and

transparency world-class.Web www.focalprofessional.com

The Best Studio Monitores

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