Sure…..for nearfield mixing, the little Yamaha NS10 is a great example as are offerings from Genelec, Neuman, etc. There’s an also the single driver mix cubes from Auratone, Avantone, etc. One and Two ways that allow everything to sum with good phase quadrature…..when mukti tracks of the same source are out of phase with eachother, it immediately jumps out so the engineer can re align the phase or re track need be. These don’t need to ‘bloom’ so to speak either so small adjustments to dynamics via compression or limiting are much easier to hear.
The bigger systems you see in photos from famous studios of PMC, ATC, JBL, Genelec, etc….sometimes soffit mounted…..these are mid field systems. Spatial monitoring, dynamics, playback etc. These don’t get used nearly as much as the near field monitors……those are small and typically on the console bridge as above. They get interchanged a lot so portability is important. Compact too as some times engineers like to have two or even three different monitors on the bridge to cross check. My monitor controller can select from up to 5 pairs need be. The larger mid field often need the higher playback level capability so larger woofers or multiples are preferred….it’s nice to know if it’s the mix that sounds over compressed by eliminating the speakers power compression from the equation. These should be able to handle high dynamic range as well.
Mastering is all about the room, the engineer and the outboard gear…..this is most like what we listeners do at home….synergy is important. Anything goes here and an example would be Abby Road….two of their mastering studios use B&W 8 series…..another very successful mastering lab uses Magnepans believe it or not. Some Mastering labs use custom built speakers too. Amphion has found some success here recently as well with their larger MTM over bass module speakers.
Headphones are becoming extremely popular in all phases of the process these days as well….newish AMT tech and DSP making it more reliable and accessible along with most end consumers listening this way these days. Audeze is making huge leaps in this retail space with their cans allowing for critical mix and mastering purposes.
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Depends on who you ask. Personally, I can’t listen to a good pair of analytic mixing monitors for enjoyment…..too much stuff jumps out of the mix and just not fun or engaging. No midbass slam either for rock or classical….the little woofers don’t move enough air.
The Troels system keeps things compact for use on a mixing bridge but in real world use, most engineers in the nearfield would still prefer the smaller 2 way.………the 3 way crossover is going to land right in the pocket of the drums so it’s going to be more difficult to get a snare or toms to ‘sit’ in the mix. Good choice for mid field though and probably home listening to the way he voices his stuff……he’s got his own house curve so to speak. That’s going to be an on axis listen though with the horizontal driver arrangement…….that’s the downfall of that layout unless the goal was to just fill a room with casual playback.
Yes thank you for the thorough answer. I’ve always been mystified by the mixing room and the wizards who work there. After all, most of us just hear the end product and never set foot in a studio. I’ve done a little, just to clean up Grandpa’s noisy 78’s, but nothing like real sound engineering with multiple tracks and phase issues, or surround? Holy cow, that’s too much information!
The Troels ‘monitors’ are intended as background listening as you are doing something else. I think they would be great for many people because that’s how we listen. Most people don’t sit in a special spot with their head in a vise, they move about, read, cook, play games, etc. while Coletrain is tooteling in the background. I have my listening room with a special system in it, these would be for the living room.
Thanks again for the great answers!
The Troels ‘monitors’ are intended as background listening as you are doing something else. I think they would be great for many people because that’s how we listen. Most people don’t sit in a special spot with their head in a vise, they move about, read, cook, play games, etc. while Coletrain is tooteling in the background. I have my listening room with a special system in it, these would be for the living room.
Thanks again for the great answers!
I have a question about the Yamaha JA-0803/0801. How can it be that the voice-coil is 66,6 mm, but the dome itself is 88 mm? Usually these are the same.
Because it is easier to have a dome with a larger diameter than the voice-coil diameter than vice-versa. 😉
Regards
Charles
Regards
Charles
Yeah, maybe. But the only domes I know of, where the voice-coil is smaler than the diameter are the invers Focal domes. The overwhelming majority of domes are diameter=voice-coil.
It can be a misprint (which I don`t think), or Yamah just "made" their dome bigger (they include probably the surround?). Actualy, when you see them, they don`t look like 88 mm. Now I know why.