Anyone have experience with Edirol MA-10 monitors?

[smutek]

Does anyone have any experience or advice with these? I know they are low end but I want to get some monitors and wont really have the cash to drop for a good set till later in the year. Would there be any advantage to using these over normal stereo speakers? Currently I monitor through a huge ass JBL eon 15 monitor. It's really for djing and obviously isn't stereo because it is only one speaker. I usually monitor through headphones for mixing and panning, but I grow weary of this as I get deeper into this music thing. I have a set of regular stereo speakers that I will probably hook up this week end, but these edirols, for $150.00, caught my eye. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

"Edirol MA-10D Black 2.0 Speakers

Digital powered speakers - high quality sound in a black wooden cabinet

Listen to any source-analog or digital through these compact powered audio monitors. Connect digital sources such as computers, MP3 players, MiniDiscs, DAT machines, CD players and cassette decks. High resolution 24-bit/96 kHz D/A converters provide great detail and impressive dynamics. Impressive performance from a very small package."

http://www.edirol.com/products/info/ma10d.html

[Guest]

I have the blue version and am happy with them. The bass is a little fuzzy at high volumes but fine otherwise. I like them for the digital inputs. Not many monitors in that range have them. I recently plugged in the SPDIF from my FW410 and it sounds even better. If you`re strapped for cash they`re not a bad choice and you might even decide to not upgrade for a while longer.

[al3x]

I have MA-10As and I love them. They're compact, they sound great even to my picky ear, and they have a nice selection of inputs. Highly recommended.

[radder]

subject says it all... www.zzounds.com seems to be out of them for now but they go for $129 for the black and $139 for the blue.

I too am looking for hella-cheap monitors but I'm holding out until I can afford something a little larger and with more wattage.I see no music-related profits coming my way in the near future, so does that sound silly? Am I wasting money if I do that?

[smutek]

I don't think so dude. I am a complete hobbyist when it comes to music. Don't get me wrong, I am very passionate about it, it's just that I am not very good at it, atleast not yet. I also have absolutely no professional aspirations at all when it comes to my music/noise yet I have thousands of dolars invested in it. I sometimes feel sily when I realize I am putting more energy into my music then I am into my field of study (graphic design) - but the thing is that I really enjoy it and am pretty passionate about it.

My friend had been making tunes for a long time and he suggested that I not bother with those speakers and that I would be better off using stereo speakers till I can afford something better. He suggested I save my money and get Mackie HR824's. I did a google for them, they are like 629.00 for one! Holy christ! Maybe I will get them later in the year, who knows.

Don't feel silly, if you are really feeling it then go for it.

[Guest]

smutek is right--as with all music hardware, you get what you pay for. If you're trying to mix and possibly master your own music, you really need monitors, and the best ones you can possibly afford--even if it means waiting, saving, credit card....there are lots of cheap monitors out there, but there is a difference in sound quality and eveness of frequencies. If your monitors are "lying" to you, its really hard to make a mix that will sound good on lots of systems. I am glad I got my Mackie HR 824's, they were hella expensive, but worth it. I think the bass frequencies are the most important, and its hard to get a good grasp on the bass response from smaller speakers. You might make a mix that sound great on them, then put in on the home stereo with 12"s and have way to much or not enough bass, especailly under 100 hz where a lot of cheap and smaller monitors cop out early. Look at the specs in terms of frequency response, and as always with any monitors, make a mix and check it in the car, on a boom box, from a room or two away, on as many systems as are readily available to start to get an idea of how it sounds in different places.

Ryan

[Mbazzy]

Mind a lot has also to do with how good you know your monitors ... people can make also crappy mix' on 1000$ box' ...

Personnally Í only have 10 yr old Creative Labs CS100 desktop monitors and my Kenwood stereosystem for reference .... nevertheless I don't feel the need [ though I do feel the lust aka GAS ] for more expensive ones ... and some people on real reference monitors have said the mixing quality of my stuff is <gloat> really quite good ... And I'm really not such a wizard ....

It's the same adagio as always : if someone makes crappy music [not implying anything] 1000$ monitors won't make it sound better.

Bottomline : if the ma10d are step up for you from your current setup and fit your budget , go for it .... even here you will already need time to adjust your mixing .

However if you have the money and the need[ eg. your recordlabel complains about the prepress demo, you're doing your own releases, you do commercial work,... ] go the expensive way and choose wisely ...

[smutek]

Bottomline : if the ma10d are step up for you from your current setup and fit your budget , go for it .... even here you will already need time to adjust your mixing .

However if you have the money and the need[ eg. your recordlabel complains about the prepress demo, you're doing your own releases, you do commercial work,... ] go the expensive way and choose wisely ...

Good point Mbazzy. Although I seriously doubt I will get those Mackies anytime soon, if ever, I think I am going to pass on the Edirols as well. I'd like to shoot for something mid range I think and will use what I have till then.

[skiptracer]

i have a pair of MA-20's and I would not recommend using these or the MA-10's for your only monitoring source. Make sure you get some good headphones too. I say this mainly because even my headphones have a better bottom end than these things and they also add a lot of coloration in the upper ranges that's a bit decieving. My headphones and my monitors both claim to have flat frequency response and they both have drastically different sounds, however I'm able to get a really good sound mixing with both and a pair of crappy computer speakers too.