VO-BB - 20 YEARS OLD!

Bish · Posted: Tue Feb 18, 2014 8:43 pm Post subject: New monitors... oh my!

As a few of you know, I've been a very happy user of the M-Audio Bx5a monitors for a while. Well, after one repair (capacitor replacement) some time ago, one of them failed again the other day. Time for a change. I was tempted by both the Presonus Eris E5 and the KRK Rokit 5 G3. As usual, the internets provide no real help as everyone loves and hates everything. There are a lot of good 5" units to choose from around the $150 mark and each have their supporters.

I'm a great supporter of looking at "old models" as most incremental improvements are so minute as to be inconsequential, and mostly a cosmetic or marketing thing. The KRK Rokit 6 G3 units retail at about $200, but I found the 6" G2 models still available at $120 (B&H if anyone is interested). So I saved a pile of cash by getting the G2 units... and they go to 6"... which is one more than 5".

The only downside is that they are a little bigger/heavier overall than a standard 5" unit and I was uncomfortable putting them on my wall mounts. They sit nicely on some desk mounts and sound very nice indeed. Not quite as forced in the middle as the M-Audio, and a smoother bass... probably due to the forward facing port.

Not a great fan of the yellow cones though... but I'm sure I'll get used to them.

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Scolaidhe · Guest

You haven't quite supported the "Oh my" part yet...

Bish · Posted: Tue Feb 18, 2014 9:33 pm Post subject:

Did you know that about four and a half minutes into King Crimson's 21st Century Schizoid Man, you can hear Robert Fripp cough? ... or that on John Cale's version of Heartbreak Hotel, there's an entire Welsh Male Voice Choir buried in the mix?

Well, I do now Smile

Seriously, I'm well impressed with the staging and detail with these units. They're set up as normal close-field monitors (approx 5' equilateral triangle. ear level)... and they seem far less tiring than the Bx5a they replaced. I had seen reports that they seemed a little scooped, but I don't get that impression at all... the bass is smooth and not over-hyped... and the top is not abrasive.

I was prepped to pay $300 for a pair of "mid-priced" 5-inch units, but ended up paying $240 for the 6". I'm happy with the deal and don't think I could have done any better... at this price point of course Smile

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Scolaidhe · Guest

Scolaidhe · Guest

Lee Gordon · Posted: Wed Feb 19, 2014 2:48 am Post subject: Re: New monitors... oh my!

Chuck Davis · Posted: Wed Feb 19, 2014 5:44 am Post subject:

That's an awesome deal Bish. I'm using the same thing here. GC had their own line produced in custom colors…so mine are a gloss grey with grey cones.

Nice sounding. Very accurate and neutral.
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Bish · Posted: Wed Feb 19, 2014 6:21 am Post subject:

The M-Audio failure was a single unit. When I was putting the KRKs in place, I first replaced the bad unit and tested a "mis-matched" system with simple mono voice files. I was never unhappy with the M-Audio monitors and would have stuck with them. I wasn't fixing any problem or righting a deficiency... however, when flipping back and forth between the M-Audio and KRK units, I noticed a very small change in what I heard... the KRK units seemed "easier" and a hair less strident. This is being hyper-critical and may well be the difference between a 5" and a 6" driver (if there is such a quantifiable thing). I expected any monitor in this price range to reproduce my voice with comparable fidelity and detail. I use my studio as my "media center" as well... I watch movies, listen to podcasts, and play music. This is where I've noticed the biggest difference between the monitors.

To my mind, for my straight voice, any monitors have to be "fit-for-purpose", and once you hit a certain price point, most are. It's the other stuff that really tests them out and provides added value.

... and just to get even weirder, if you ever want to test the stereo imagery and attention to detail... White Noise: An Electric Storm (1969)
Explode

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Bish a.k.a. Bish
Smoke me a kipper... I'll be back for breakfast.
I will not feed the trolls... I will not feed the trolls... I will not feed the trolls... I will not feed the trolls.

georgethetech · Posted: Wed Feb 19, 2014 11:33 am Post subject:

I've seen several BX5 variants fail over the years, sometimes the tweeter, sometimes something else... Glad you found something frugally satisfying, I know I like a great deal!
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Pam · Posted: Wed Feb 19, 2014 9:35 pm Post subject:

Scott Pollak · Posted: Thu Feb 20, 2014 5:53 am Post subject:

Bish · Posted: Thu Feb 20, 2014 6:49 am Post subject:

I guess it's all down to psycho-acoustics and how our brain treats the incoming signal. It's well known, and we all accept, that some sounds will trigger certain emotional or physical responses... a simple diminished chord can leave us wanting, or a suspended one create apprehension.

By the same token, we can take the same sound, treat it different ways... and different people will have different physical responses (a well documented method or torture). Personally, I love listening to podcasts... almost entirely spoken word... but I have a threshold of how long I can listen before I am experiencing real discomfort and fatigue due to the heavily compression used by the network I listen to. It's the same with some audiobooks. Some are over compressed (presumably so they are easier to listen to in a car or a noisy environment)... and I have a threshold where I can listen no more because of the swarm of angry bees buzzing in my head!

So... whatever the BX5a did to the sound that gave me a threshold is less apparent in the KRK units. It's only when I had the opportunity to compare that I could make this observation. Maybe it's a tighter compression in the mid-range? Active listening to four hours of music on the M-Audios had a certain fatigue factor... the KRK, noticeably less so.

Maybe it's me... I cannot listen to compressed spoken word audio on headphones or ear-buds for more than an hour or so either. It causes me real discomfort.

Oh... and the 6" being one more than 5" comment was purely intentional. One simply does not let a Spinal Tap opportunity pass one by Smile

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Bish a.k.a. Bish
Smoke me a kipper... I'll be back for breakfast.
I will not feed the trolls... I will not feed the trolls... I will not feed the trolls... I will not feed the trolls.

Scott Pollak · Posted: Thu Feb 20, 2014 12:31 pm Post subject:

Interesting. I have the BX5s also and am not aware of anything like what you described, but as you said, it's all highly subjective. I'm quite happy with mine.

And, like Pam, I picked up pretty quickly on the Tap reference. Great minds stink alike.
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Jason Huggins · Posted: Thu Feb 20, 2014 12:48 pm Post subject:

I'm right there with ya on the compressed audio, Bish. For me it is more in monitors. Makes me feel like I need to keep equalizing the pressure in my ears.

I have VXT4s and they've been great. Haven't tried the Rockits though. I'm a fan of the yellow.

Gregory Best · Posted: Mon Mar 03, 2014 12:52 pm Post subject:

I have KRK Rokit 8's and love them.
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