VO-BB - 20 YEARS OLD!

Rob Ellis · M&M Joined: 01 Aug 2006 Posts: 2385 Location: Detroit

hey vo-bbers,

Probably the area I'm least knowledgeable about is studio monitors.

Help me pick a new pair. My current monitors, Wharfdale Diamond Pro 8.2s, I bought 7 years ago without doing any research, are not bad(they're active reference monitors) but I'm beginning to sense that they may be too bass heavy to accurately hear what my clients are hearing.

If you have any recommendations I appreciate it. Here is a pic of my listening area

markt · Been Here Awhile Joined: 14 Aug 2009 Posts: 217

Rob,

Here's my post a while back with the same question. There's a lot of good stuff here. Good luck!
http://www.vo-bb.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=14004
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"Dammit Jim, I'm a voice actor, not an audio engineer!"
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Rob Ellis · M&M Joined: 01 Aug 2006 Posts: 2385 Location: Detroit

thanks Markt. I should've done an archive search to start. I think I'm getting fat and lazy in my advancing years. cool

heyguido · Posted: Mon Aug 12, 2013 7:26 pm Post subject:

The Wharfedales have not been particularly known for being bass heavy.... Rather a slight midrange kick, and a little muddy on the low end when overworked. But pretty dependable and true for the money.

Have you always felt they were bass heavy? Or have you only noticed it since you moved?

If the latter, consider replacing the books with more effective isolation foam.... And perhaps some bass traps for the corners.

If you just have to spend some money.... I like my Harmans, and I've always been fond of the Tannoys.
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Don Brookshire
"Wait.... They wanna PAY me for this?"

Rob Ellis · M&M Joined: 01 Aug 2006 Posts: 2385 Location: Detroit

yeah, I guess the question is should I have the Bass Cut switch engaged, or just leave them flat, as I have been.

They only sound boomy at times (in flat mode) when I EQ my audio, which I just recently started doing, after getting some technical help in how to do so.

When I don't do any processing, the boominess is not a problem.

When I play the processed audio with the Bass Cut on, it doesn't sound boomy. Dunno, maybe I should just quit futzing with it and send my auditions out with no processing. At the same time, I getting more and more clients who need some basic EQing and processing on my end because they're working on a shoestring like the rest of us.

Here's an audio sample of . unprocessed vs. processed:

click here Rolls Eyes

ricevoice · Posted: Mon Aug 12, 2013 8:09 pm Post subject:

No idea about those particular monitors, but having them a) in a corner, and 2) so close to the wall, will make any monitor sound more boomy/bassy.
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heyguido · Posted: Mon Aug 12, 2013 8:23 pm Post subject:

heyguido · Posted: Mon Aug 12, 2013 8:25 pm Post subject:

And Chris +1.
_________________
Don Brookshire
"Wait.... They wanna PAY me for this?"

Ed Fisher · Posted: Mon Aug 12, 2013 10:45 pm Post subject:

Here's another +1 for Chris as he is absolutely right.

The placement of speakers. How far they are from the wall. How near the corner. Whether they are sitting flat on a desk or on risers away from it. Everything affects the sound they create.

But, tell us about your "baffles" or "sound absorber wall decorations." Are those "do it yourself" versions? As I look at YOUR corner over to the right of the 37 inch screen I looking at it on....is my own corner. Almost identical. EXCEPT mine is still bare...

I was going to go the lazy route and simply go for a half-dozen moving blankets.

But, this has me thinking that your way might be a better one.

Scott Pollak · Posted: Tue Aug 13, 2013 5:06 am Post subject:

The thread that Markt linked you to is a great one that will likely get you confused with at least half a dozen good choices.

However, I think I got the ultimate confirmation of how 'real' my BX5s are the other day when I was in my studio editing audio and my son came up and gently knocked on the door. I told him he could come right in whenever he heard me just editing. He said "I can never tell when you're recording live or just editing".

That would seem to tell me I'm getting pretty darned lifelike reproduction out of those BX5s.
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Scott R. Pollak
Clients include Pandora, NPR Atlanta, Wells Fargo, Cisco, Humana, Publix, UPS, AT&T, HP, Xerox and more.

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Rob Ellis · M&M Joined: 01 Aug 2006 Posts: 2385 Location: Detroit

okay thanks everybody. And thanks Guido, for talking me out of my tree.

Sometimes I get zeroed in on the minutiae to the point of forgetting that there even is a forest to begin with, IYKWIM

But like I said, I know little to nothing about monitors and in some circles
the Wharfdales aren't highly regarded. But if they're really not that bad
then I can't really see much reason to run out and replace them.

markt · Been Here Awhile Joined: 14 Aug 2009 Posts: 217

That's great testimony from your son, Scott! And Rob, you can always find a killer deal on the BX5's on eBay or any one of the gear-houses. I've got the BX5-D2's and still love 'em. Mine are fairly close to the wall as well, and I remedied the excess bass by carving some acoustic foam "plugs" for the holes in the back. Works really well.

Mark
_________________
"Dammit Jim, I'm a voice actor, not an audio engineer!"
Leonard McCoy

Rob Ellis · M&M Joined: 01 Aug 2006 Posts: 2385 Location: Detroit

Rob Ellis · M&M Joined: 01 Aug 2006 Posts: 2385 Location: Detroit

Philip Banks · Posted: Tue Aug 13, 2013 8:54 am Post subject:

I have a pair of Alesis 520 M1Acitve monitors and they work just fine.