What are the best Lower-Midrange Desktop Studio Monitors?

[Dabrenn]

Hey guys, since it Is Christmas time I'm in the market for some Desktop Studio Monitors since I desperately need a pair for a multitude of reasons including not only mixing and producing, but probably more pressingly for DJ'ing when I head off to college.

My absolute max price would be around $300, I'm looking more so for around $200. I want the absolute best "bang-for-buck" since I am relatively broke and also really really cheap and I want to keep them for a long time.

So what do you guys like and what would you recommend? Thank you so much!

[Thyrai]

I have KRK Rokits, and I absolutely love them. You can get them anywhere from ~$150 each (for the 5s) up to ~$250 each (for the 8s). My best advice would be to go to the store and see if you can test a bunch of monitors side by side.

I hear good things about Yamaha HS-50s, so check those out as well! Just keep in mind that they have rear-facing ports.

[itroitnyah]

You can buy a really nice expensive set other monitors for up to half their original price at http://app.audiogon.com/. I know I may sound like I'm advertising it and all, but I'm not.

AudiogoN is an auction site where audiophiles go and sell their used equipment. Anything rated 9/10+ has no imperfections and is in almost the exact same condition as out-of-the-box new. I haven't bought anything from there yet, but I plan to once I get a job.

And before you ask whether you can trust AudiogoN or not, I'm pretty good friends with a local audiophile where I live, and he was the one who recommended the site to me when I asked him for help selecting studio monitors.

Also, just miscellaneous information, but check the tweeter type. Aluminum tweeters give more harsh sound, silk tweeters are more soft and forgiving. So if you want raw horsepower from your speakers, go with aluminum, but if you're going to be going for long periods of listening non-stop, silk would be the best option to go, as it'll be easier on your ears. Just a tip that the guy with over $10,000 worth of audio equipment and years of audio experience told told me.

[Indigo Spectrum]

I've checked around, and it looks like Equator D5s would be the best monitors at your price point (they're $300 a pair). I have them myself and I'm really enjoying them, they sound really nice and accurate. I can't really say anything for other monitors, I've heard high praise for the Yamaha HS-50s, but as for the Rokits, I've heard they have a boost in the bass, which could lead to inaccurate judging of your low end. Personally, I would recommend the Equator D5s, but don't take my word for it, ask around and search on other forums too!

[Dabrenn]

Looked up all those speakers. Leaning towards the Yamaha HS50's partially because of the Price point; $100 less than the Rockits and some others.

Thank everyone though, you guys are always so helpful :D

[Icky]

I HS50s are great if you're into jazz, orchestral, rock, but they lack some serious lows so I wouldn't recommend them for hiphop or EDM. the KRK RP5s have a little more low end. In the end though it's also just personal preference, if possible listen to them at a musicstore before making a decision.

[Dabrenn]

I realized what I thought was a pair of HS-50's was actually a single Monitor (I feel a little dumb now eh?)

I've pretty much realized I'm going to have to go for $300's for the pair unforunately. The only $200 pair I could find was an M-Audio pair and I've had bad experiences with them in the past.

Its pretty much between Rokit 5's
Equator D5's
and Behringer B1030A's.

[the4thImpulse]

Its pretty much between Rokit 5's
Equator D5's
and Behringer B1030A's.

I had Rokit 5's, they were one of the worst purchases I have made for the same reasons you can find all over the internet, they are not studio monitors. I urge you to take take them off your list and save up a little more for at least the HS50's. Seriously, its worth it to go without monitors for six months to save and get better ones.

[Dabrenn]

I had Rokit 5's, they were one of the worst purchases I have made

I see. I was wary about purchasing those because of their popularity and supposed Bass Boost. But could you expand on this a little? Two people in this thread have already said that they aren't bad, and they also get a ton of glowing reviews compared to the occasional bad one.

save up a little more for at least the HS50's. Seriously, its worth it to go without monitors for six months to save and get better ones.

its not necessarily that I can't afford $400 monitors right now, its that, with everything else that is on my list of "things I need/want to buy," $400 is just a little bit too much for a pair a speakers; more than I want to spend. So I can't afford them in context, but I literally can afford them, if that makes any sense.

If you really think that I'm wasting my money unless I spend $400+, then I guess I may have to because I do NOT want to purchase anything I will regret. Are those other two on the list also not purchasing?

[randomblockfilms]

The only $200 pair I could find was an M-Audio pair and I've had bad experiences with them in the past.

I was going to recommend the M-Audio pair i have cause I got them for like $200 bucks. but it doesn't look like they gonna work out for you. lol. If you don't mind me asking what exactly are those bad experiences in the past? because i have a pair and i hope they arn't gonna blow up on me. eheheehe

[the4thImpulse]

I had Rokit 5's, they were one of the worst purchases I have made

I see. I was wary about purchasing those because of their popularity and supposed Bass Boost. But could you expand on this a little? Two people in this thread have already said that they aren't bad, and they also get a ton of glowing reviews compared to the occasional bad one.

For studio production they don't have a clean accurate sound that translates to other speakers well. Their mid and high end detail was lacking, they didn't show me where I could do better in my mix. They sounded good, but not the good I would want for studio monitors. For home DJ monitors they are great; they can be quite loud and they have a full sound (no overly exaggerated or lacking frequencies like you find in computer speakers).

If you really think that I'm wasting my money unless I spend $400+, then I guess I may have to because I do NOT want to purchase anything I will regret. Are those other two on the list also not purchasing?

Its not that you will regret the purchase, going from no monitors to any monitors will be a huge difference and you will love it! But monitors are not something you want to be upgrading every year, you want to have one set that will last a long time so you are intimately familiar with their sound. I upgraded from the KRKs after ~8 months and have been using my current ones every since (getting close to two years now). I don't know much about about the other two but I have listened to the HS50's and can say they are worth getting over the KRKs any day.

[Dabrenn]

I see, that makes sense. What are your opinion on m audio monitors? I see some used ones for half price and they are tempting

[Dabrenn]

Just purchased a pair of behringer b1030As because best buy mismarked two for $200 rather than one for $200. May not keep them but I seem to have struck gold... Maybe

[the4thImpulse]

Just purchased a pair of behringer b1030As because best buy mismarked two for $200 rather than one for $200. May not keep them but I seem to have struck gold... Maybe

Well you will never find a deal much better than that so I'd say keep them and then maybe a year down the road if you have a bigger budget consider upgrading. They don't sound to bad from the reviews I'm reading either!