KRK RP-8 or Genelec 8020A - please help me choose

[stallos]

Hey

I'm looking for some new monitors and have narrowed my search to these 2 models. These would be for a small home studio and I would probably look to mount them on wall brackets/stands

I have heard lots of great things about KRK RP-8s on this forum and I am also able to get these significantly cheaper (about £90)

The Genelec 8020as are obviously much smaller but they are Genelec

on paper the rokits seem to a bit lower at 45HZ compared to the 66Hz of the Genelecs


So taking all this into account, what should I go for ? Is it worth paying the extra £90 and getting the Genelecs or should I wait until I can afford 8030as and get the RP-8s in the meantime.

I have been reading posts all morning on this topic, just looking for some honest opinions before biting the bullet

thanks in advance for any replies

cheers

[Poster]

go to a store,
take with you a CD you're familiar with,
and A<>B them..

you can read all you want,
and thats fine for specs and all,
but in the end your ears are going to decide..

[sweetjesus]

Hey

I'm looking for some new monitors and have narrowed my search to these 2 models. These would be for a small home studio and I would probably look to mount them on wall brackets/stands

I have heard lots of great things about KRK RP-8s on this forum and I am also able to get these significantly cheaper (about £90)

The Genelec 8020as are obviously much smaller but they are Genelec

on paper the rokits seem to a bit lower at 45HZ compared to the 66Hz of the Genelecs


So taking all this into account, what should I go for ? Is it worth paying the extra £90 and getting the Genelecs or should I wait until I can afford 8030as and get the RP-8s in the meantime.

I have been reading posts all morning on this topic, just looking for some honest opinions before biting the bullet

thanks in advance for any replies

cheers

i say 8030a and rp8 in the meantime!

[punkdISCO]

Going to a store is for sure a good idea. Unfortunately most (all?) stores are not going to have idea listening conditions. Some people manage to blag monitors for a loan period – this is probably the only real way to make a decision but if you are anything like me, you would never be able to blag it 

Btw, if you do demo in a store be very careful not to choose the speakers that sound the loudest or most hyped. This is not to say that this pair should be avoided but rather, just try an be objective as you can – hyped might impress your mates but might not be what you want for extended periods.

Anyway, here is a SoS review for the 8020s

This is close to home for me as I FINALLY upgraded my Alesis M1s. After a ton of research I got down to the Genelec 8040As and the Adam P11As. At Sounds Expo last week Genelec had a treated room with 8020/8030/8040/8050. I spent about 15 minutes in this room switching around. I also got to listen to the P11As but in less idea circumstances. Anyway, I went for the P11As and if I am honest it was because the 8040s are just so damn ugly! The look like the cost £50 from PC World, not nearly 1k. Obviously if I was not so superficial I could ignore this but unfortunately my studio has to look hot to keep me hot.. I think I was fortunate as I liked the Adams and Genelec sound as much as each other, the only way I could decide was to ditch the ugly ones.

Good luck and let us know what you decide.

[stallos]

thanks for the replies fellas, I appreciate it. Cheers for the links too punkdISCO, its always nice to hear others experiences.

Poster, I have listened to both speakers but not in an A->B situation. Individually both sounded great but listening conditions were not exactly perfect and not really comparable.

I have a small window for getting my discount on KRKs and am leaning towards them at the moment and wont be able to perform an A->B test. I havent read much negative feedback on the Rokits so they seem to me to be a sensible choice until I can afford the larger 8030 Genelecs.

Would anyone sway me in the other direction ?

thanks again

[Poster]

Would anyone sway me in the other direction ?

thanks again

I think the krk's would maybe be the best choice for now..
because, depending on what kind of music you're doing,
the 8020 isn't really a bass lover..

or; save up a bit more and have a look at krk's V series..
pricewise you'll end up somewhere between the krk RP's and the genelecs..

if you're going to spend some,
do it once and be totally satisfied,
rather than buying something you're going to replace anyway..
if you can afford the patience ofcourse..

[SubQ]

I've heard a lot the Krks 8 at the studio.

but i'm going for the genelecs 8020, for its reviews, mobility and less ear fatigue due to the new design, which minimizes sonic issues in non treated environments - my home studio is small with no treatment.

I believe I'll have this monitors forever, maybe buy 3 more in a few years for having one of the world's best surround systems.

If I miss the lows, i'd buy a krk sub later.


cheers and good luck

[nonnus]

tip: never base a buying decision on reviews...

the 8020 are a good option, expecially regarding portability
you´ll probably never going to let them go away
you will also probably get bigger speakers anytime soon...
(expecially if you music is bass heavy)

also keep in mind genelec speakers have always been known as ear fatiguing, a bit less in their 8000 monitors but still considered too much by many people

maybe i´m biased but i couldn´t trust a 4" speakers as my only monitoring option unless i was producing expecifically for small speaker systems...

[pixelmechanic]

Hey Stallos

If you go with the Genelecs you might want to budget for the 7050 sub to fill out the freq range for full on accurate monitoring...

We use them at Edinburgh Uni music dept. quite a bit, and you really notice when the sub isn't there.

The genelecs do make for nifty stage monitors though and stereo imaging is bang on the money...

[rikhyray]

I luckily could compare all those in nearly ideal conditions. KRK are good for the money. But my fav were Genelecs and Adams. Would never call one better then the other. I bought Genelecs for 3 reasons,
1) flexibility/portability- I take them with me for tours, to use my time off in productive manner and also to clients, while at home I use them with subwoofer
2) Most of studios where I work, anywhere in the world, have Genelecs so better to be used to them ( OK those build into the walls monsters are very different animals but still..)
3) Exactly opposite to punkD, I like Scandinavian designes, and bought white ones ( have white dominated studio since I use LED lighting for changing the moods)
There are 2 ends where I would always advise people to stretch and spend more, microphones and monitors, If these 2 are not the best you can afford ( and a bit above) all what happens between 2 ends is affected and sort of waste.

[zsazsa]

I guess it also depends on the size of your room.
A friend of mine has the RP8´s in a room of about 14 square meters and they give too much bass.
So unless you have a living room sized studio i´d go for the genelec´s.
I am very happy with my KRK V4´s but i only have a very small room and
live in an appartment so can´t handle too much bass.

[punkdISCO]

3) Exactly opposite to punkD, I like Scandinavian designes, and bought white ones ( have white dominated studio since I use LED lighting for changing the moods)

Hehe – I actually REALLY liked the idea of getting white 8040s. My ‘B’ monitors (Avantone MixCubes, mentioned above) are white so I thought it would look wicked having some white primaries and, white secondary monitors.. Unfortunately I still did not like the overall design so went for the Adams.

I still think the white/white combo would have looked ace. When was the last time you saw a studio with all monitoring (2 sets) in white?!!!

[stallos]

thanks for all the input chaps

nice to hear from you pixelmechanic, I recall a while back seeing a picture of a an Edinburgh Uni professor standing in front of some tasty looking Genelecs. could have been you ? nice to hear they have good gear in there, what kind of antics do you get up in there?

I'm making mainly dance tech house/prog music but have been getting more ambient stuff lately.

I have got an extra day for the discount but tomorrow I have to order to cash in. I thought I was sold but now I'm not convinced. I like the size of the KRKs (hmmm maybe because I myself am small?) Mind you at 15KG these suckers are going to need some strong brackets

Those Genelcs are temping and the portability aspect is a plus.
I agree Rikhygray monitors are definitely a key part of any setup and I have been making do with shit for too long.

hmm this is a tough one....
i almost have to put the 8030s on my credit card so I'm not sweating this decision any more

its funny I sit at work lusting after new gear all day long but when it comes to buying it I'm a dithering idiot!

will sleep on it


"get on with it you plonker" i hear you cry!

[nonnus]

3) Exactly opposite to punkD, I like Scandinavian designes, and bought white ones ( have white dominated studio since I use LED lighting for changing the moods)

Hehe – I actually REALLY liked the idea of getting white 8040s. My ‘B’ monitors (Avantone MixCubes, mentioned above) are white so I thought it would look wicked having some white primaries and, white secondary monitors.. Unfortunately I still did not like the overall design so went for the Adams.

I still think the white/white combo would have looked ace. When was the last time you saw a studio with all monitoring (2 sets) in white?!!!

doesn´t that colour your sound ?

[rikhyray]

3) Exactly opposite to punkD, I like Scandinavian designes, and bought white ones ( have white dominated studio since I use LED lighting for changing the moods)

Hehe – I actually REALLY liked the idea of getting white 8040s. My ‘B’ monitors (Avantone MixCubes, mentioned above) are white so I thought it would look wicked having some white primaries and, white secondary monitors.. Unfortunately I still did not like the overall design so went for the Adams.

I still think the white/white combo would have looked ace. When was the last time you saw a studio with all monitoring (2 sets) in white?!!!

Frankly it was important for me to have the flexible, portable option, by the sound 1 on 1, and to use without sub I would have taken Adams, there is nothing to match it in this range. I am used to Genelecs because of other studios but that new Adam had something special.
Oh, I just saw that you do dance stallos, then the option with expanding with sub when you have more cash will be good. If you set them right with a sub it will help you a lot to get the lower range right. sub for me is like maginfying glass for the low bass