Best monitors under $300

thatguy · Post by **thatguy** » Wed Mar 05, 2008 2:41 am

I need some active monitors and am looking for peoples opinions on what are the best for under $300 (or however many Euros that equals, what is it, about 37 US dollars to 1 Euro these days), good bass response is essential.

leedsquietman · Post by **leedsquietman** » Wed Mar 05, 2008 2:49 am

Push it up to 350-400 Dollars and you have choices like

1) M-Audio BX5a
2) KRK 5's
3) Samson Rubicons
4) Alesis MkII

You might be able to get a deal on these at 300 dollars a pair, if you shop around but if not, spending the extra 50-100 dollars is well worth it. Beyond this 2nd hand stuff on ebay is the only stuff you might find that sounds OK for that money.

for a little more (450-500) Event ALP5's are nice or KRK 6s or M-Audio BX8as.

Tone Deft · Post by **Tone Deft** » Wed Mar 05, 2008 3:09 am

look for something used but not burned out.

cmreal04 · Post by **cmreal04** » Wed Mar 05, 2008 3:26 am

Krk rp5's serve their purpose just fine for me, although the mackie mr5's are causing quite the buzz right now. People are saying they blow the rp5's away at the pricepiont. If you have a chance/option you should try to audition a pair.

CM

morerecords · Post by **morerecords** » Wed Mar 05, 2008 4:05 am

I highly recommend BLue sky EXO 2.1 monitors, I use them over my mackie's many times

jah4life · Post by **jah4life** » Wed Mar 05, 2008 5:48 am

tascam vlx5's. look over at gearslutz.com and you'll see a lot of positive feedback on these things. i own a pair and i love em for just about everything.

but they don't bump like if there was a sub woofer, which is better anyway imho.(ever mix something with a subwoofer and then find in the car or on a boombox that it really doesn't have the feel that it did with that sub?) these are more flat response, not pumped up on the low end, much better for getting a really accurate idea of the overall sound and balance of the mix. basically if you get a good bass sound on these things, it will probably sound good on any system.
plus if i want another take i switch on my cheap old yamaha multimedia speakers with a sub.

Machinesworking · Post by **Machinesworking** » Wed Mar 05, 2008 6:03 am

The Rubicon 5" model. Tighter bass than the 6" version and cheaper. They sound really good for the price range. I tend to mix too much high and low in my mixes, and the Rubicons exaggerate that a bit, which in my case is good. Liked them better than the KRK or the 848 etc.

creature · Post by **creature** » Wed Mar 05, 2008 9:27 am

I have been looking at monitors recently, ad after lots of research I'm feeling the Rubicons are the best fit for me

Stev

xrayfish · Post by **xrayfish** » Wed Mar 05, 2008 10:29 am

jah4life wrote:tascam vlx5's. look over at gearslutz.com and you'll see a lot of positive feedback on these things. i own a pair and i love em for just about everything.

but they don't bump like if there was a sub woofer, which is better anyway imho.(ever mix something with a subwoofer and then find in the car or on a boombox that it really doesn't have the feel that it did with that sub?) these are more flat response, not pumped up on the low end, much better for getting a really accurate idea of the overall sound and balance of the mix. basically if you get a good bass sound on these things, it will probably sound good on any system.
plus if i want another take i switch on my cheap old yamaha multimedia speakers with a sub.

+1

These are now discontinued but replaced by a new model VLA5 which looks essentially the same, but with a sub option to add on if you want it. Not seen any reviews of it yet but I love the VLX5s (a pair just went on Ebay for 85 quid)

dru · Post by **dru** » Wed Mar 05, 2008 11:24 am

+1 for Rubicon's. I have a pair and they're great.

olafmol · Post by **olafmol** » Wed Mar 05, 2008 11:34 am

morerecords wrote:I highly recommend BLue sky EXO 2.1 monitors, I use them over my mackie's many times

i hear only praise for the EXO 2.1 monitors

leedsquietman · Post by **leedsquietman** » Wed Mar 05, 2008 12:30 pm

they are retailing at over 400 in most parts of Canada though.

The poster was Canadian and was requesting 300 dollar monitors.

However, certainly, they are worth considering if he can go the extra mile - the simple truth is there ain't too much good stuff at 300 dollars but the 375-550 dollar range is kicking with several great choices.

Listen to them all. I've heard Rubicons, BX5as, Alesis MkIIs, Event ALP5 (which I think are awesome but they are a 450 dollar monitor), KRK5 and 6. It's all a a personal taste thing, I personally preferred the Event ALP5, then the KRK6 and M-Audio BX5a but there was very little in it. The Rubicons were good but did seem to hype the 3-10kHz range a bit, I preferred the flatter response of the Event, M-Audio 5s and 8s and KRK 6.

I personally prefer not to use a sub when monitoring for the main mix and mastering, as overhyping the bass in the 100-200 Hz range can produce mixes that sound thinner when played back on most consumer electronics or radio. It sounds kick ass at the time with that pumping woofer but most engineers are of the opinion that you should not use subs for most mixing/mastering work except to just run a quick check on it to see how the subs will affect it (especially for audio for DVD as home surround theaters usually have subs turned on)

I check through my home theater with the sub on just to make sure that works OK. If your music is going to be played in clubs, their equipment usually hypes the 150-200 Hz range significantly anyway, so you can cause overloads if you're not careful = boom go the speakers and everyone's belly has been stimulated to puke point

. Unless of course, you prepare a seperate CLUB MIX to take that into account for club DJs etc.