I've got the hr824's. Pricier than the PMC's but I don't find them particularly flattering *once you tune the room*. The low end extension in smaller rooms caused me a problem for some time since I moved from a nice 60'x40' room in Cali (with 35' ceilings to boot) to a smallish studio (finished attic) room in a more northern locale. I still need to do more tuning to the room but the ad-hoc stuff I threw in here for the time being really helped tame these. Too much color otherwise.
In Canada and the USA those lovely amp builders Bryston do the honours, here is the contact and here is their website. If you buy one of their amps your PMCs will sound so much nicer.
<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: Mr Arkadin on 2003-12-15 09:52 ]</font>
Hey mens, i have a matched pair of behringer truth b2031 and it sound very ,very nice and you can hear and mix any kind of music with an enormous accurate.
i have a pair of yamaha ns10m too
I'd suggest KRK V8's which I use, or Mackie HR824's. I've heard my Pulsar gear on both and they are almost similar. The KRK's seemed a bit flatter, though.
I think flattering monitors are kinda dangerous. They sell real well, for sure ...and they sound great, no doubt ...but they're supposed to be 'reference monitors,' and not bitchin hi-fi.
I've known a lot of people to be quite disappointed with their mixes outside of their studios because they bought KRKs and the like.
The point of reference monitors is so that the music sounds great EVERYWHERE and not just in your bedroom/studio. I haven't heard the PMCs, but I know the Mackie's are pretty damn honest. And the sound you get there (depending on the room of course) you'll get almost everywhere else.
Mackies get bashed in the pro audio forums quite a lot. I've got a pair, and although they're not genelecs (the only other higher ranked monitors I had a chance to listen to), they've been a relief after Spirit Absolute Actives for me. Mixes translate quite well, I just had to learn them, like any monitors I guess (I hear ADAMS are so good, you don't need to learn them at all!). The mids on mackies are a bit somewhat squeezed, imo, and you also need to adjust yourself to their highs and extended lows. My mixes tended to sound too bright at first. Still, I believe best thing is to have at least two pairs of different monitors for comparison along the course, as well as some hifi speakers for that purpose.
My 2 cents
I think the Mackie monitors have WAY too much bass...and not very tight. The KRK and the Dynaudio monitors seem to be the general favorites in my circles. The KRK's don't have a real extended top end, but mixes on them translate very well to all other speakers. That's why they're my favorite to mix on. The imiging on Dynaudio is awesome. The midrange is less forward than the KRK. I love the tightness of the ADAM speakers, but something about their voicing dosen't sit well with me. That's why I haven't purchased them....I need to listen more to them.
The bottom line...listen to a LOT of speakers, and take time before you buy!
I'm sure you've plenty of experience with a variety of monitors, but I'd like to add again that due to the extended low end Mackies (and the comparable Genelec models) almost require some room tuning to flatten the low end or they definately do sound a touch 'flabby'. Once a few corner traps and a few room traps are properly placed to kill the first few nodes they tighten up quite a bit. HOWEVER for this reason I typically recommend the 624's over the 824's as I think the extended low end of the 8's places them just at the outside of the 'nearfield' classification. Also note, however, that the passive radiator design is what causes the extended low end and I've found that this makes my Mackies quite a bit less 'peaky' in other bass regions (80-100hz) than your average ported design.
Plus, I benefit from the added low end as I'm writing my music more for the club environment and less for 'every' system, though I do have a few other sets of monitors on hand for a/b'ing.
Oh, and I'd agree completely about the Dynaudios except for price. That is, I would prefer a Dynaudio over my 824's just about any day were it not for the fact that a comparable Dynaudio (the BM15a's) are about 2x-2.5x as expensive here in the US. Mostly I think the Dynaudios are a bit more revealing in the mid range (without being hyped as you say). Also, I find this is also true of the Mackie hr624's as well...
In the long run any decent speaker (Tannoy, Krk, Mackie, etc) will serve you well once you learn how your speakers compare to those of your targeted audience...
On 2003-12-17 11:30, EddieK wrote:
The KRK and the Dynaudio monitors seem to be the general favorites in my circles. The KRK's don't have a real extended top end, but mixes on them translate very well to all other speakers.
I agree. I will admit that I had to learn the KRK's because of their flatness. Took me a number of bad mastering jobs to get it right. Still not at 100%, but much closer.
<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: interloper on 2003-12-17 19:18 ]</font>
I own a pair of Mackie HR824's. I still love them! I dont know why some people bash them. They are great value for the money. Given the choice again, I'd still buy them.
Don't forget some of the greatest albums in the world where mixed on NS10's. The fact is you should listen to your mix on a few systems anyway. If needs be take some mental notes, and then fix the mix so it will sound awesome on any system.
Pay for mastering! That's of course if your music/mix is going anywhere outside your little world .
On 2003-12-19 01:42, WayneSim wrote:
I own a pair of Mackie HR824's. I still love them! I dont know why some people bash them. They are great value for the money.
it seems to be a metter of room acoustic!
a reflecting desktop is the death for this monitors...
they need free space..
(i love them too )
<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: Andre Dupke on 2003-12-19 15:07 ]</font>