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I've been on the lookout for some monitors for my dp. I want a full range sound, so am thinking of a monitor and matching sub. I'm considering anything from $200-600ish. I'm in no rush, but it is something I want to keep an eye out for any deals.

Guitar Center told me not to consider anything smaller than an 8" driver. But if I'm going to get a sub, do I really need that large of a monitor?

Strange too, I did a search for speakers and monitors and only came up with one short thread. I would've thought this topic would come up more often given the number of dp players here.

Chris

Something was wrong with your search. Try searching for KRK or Rokit -- that should get yyou into some threads.

I agree with the GC people -- for good piano bass, you'll need an 8" driver. That can be on the subwoofer, or in the individual monitors.

I have an ElectroVoice ZXA1, and like it. It's not designed as a studio monitor, but it does the job nicely. 8" woofer, horn-loaded tweeter, lots of power, very clean sound.

. Charles

A pair of Yamaha HS7, studio monitors. But these are more for mixing/ experimenting on, to give a good reference for arranging sounds, and as to what your stuff will sound like on other systems. They sound great. They complement the internal dp speakers very nicely, though of course they do not give a complete picture - you'd need a sub for that, or at least speakers with bigger main drivers (these are about 7 inches).

Even though I was highly skeptical about the concept of 'running in' new speakers (or what ever you call it) they really do sound as if the range has improved since I first got them working. They sounded slightly 'boxy' when I first listened to them - now they don't. They were certainly inferior to my headphones - but now they seem to give a wider, smoother range of frequencies than the phones (Sennheiser HD215).

I'm using a pair of Yamaha MSP3s I bought many years ago rated at 20w each. The LF driver in these units is only 4" but they deliver rather more bass than the spinet AP here (which like all spinets is light on bass). I'm not particularly keen on overly heavy bass but of course it's a matter of personal taste. I think what I'm hearing at the low end is on a par with a decent mid-sized grand.

Charles, that's a very similar design to what I was looking at, the 6 and 8" versions of Presonus: http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/SceptreS8/ (this one is huge though) But these are on the higher end of my budget.

toddy, I already listened to the Yamaha HS7 and HS8 and they didn't do much for me. Same with JBL and Tannoy. And I really didn't like KRK.

I hope to be able to comment soon with results. I put the cart before the horse and bought monitors first. I'm ordering a Kawai MP6 today, and hope to have it within a week.

I got phenomenal deals on a pair of KRK VXT-6 speakers (got the pair for $450 off Craigslist), and a KRK 10S subwoofer off of eBay for $199 + shipping.

The VXT's are a notch above the Rokit series and sound quite good hooked up to my computer. Can't wait to have the MP6 to hook them up to.

Jim

I love these http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/ErisE5/
Latley , I find myself using them often and almost always with Pianoteq. I never really believed in speaker break-in, but I swear these sound noticeably better in overall tone, detail and depth than when I started using them.

No you do not. The larger drivers are better at the low end stuff (the bottom couple of octaves of the piano or so) but when you hook up a subwoofer, all those notes are played there. A high-pass filter is applied and the monitors will only get mid range and highs.

If you intend to use a sub with it, a 6 inch driver is more than enough. I used to own the KRK RP8's and the accompanying sub and I always felt dumb for getting the 8 inchers instead of the 6's, which are cheaper and at least some people say are better also. The extended low end of the 8's did me no good.

Adam A5X. Love them. Not convinced I need a sub yet, but I think it is in my future.

I listen to the Adam Ax5 at GC. Very nice indeed. The Adam sub looks interesting too

http://www.adam-audio.com/en/pro-audio/products/sub7/description

2726, sounds like you will have nice setup!

Marko, glad to hear from a happy customer of presonus. Something to consider. With yours and dbbarron's positive exp. for the A5X.

gvfarns, that's what I was thinking. With a subs low pass, why the need for 8" monitors. Thanks for confirming my thought.

dbbarron, They didn't have the Adam A5X wired up so I couldn't listen to them. The ribbon tweeter does look as interesting as a horn. I'll need to go back and try again. That sub7 does look interesting!

Thanks guys for sharing!
Chris

Anyone try these? http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/LSR305/
Supposedly have a wider sweet spot.

scorpio, I listened to those at GC. I personally found them a bit bright.

I my be getting these, someone locally has them for sale on craigslist:

http://www.amazon.com/Behringer-MS1...5&sr=8-1&keywords=behringer+ms16

From the reviews, I may need to add a subwoofer for piano use, but other than that it seems like they should be decent for the price.

My 'studio' is in the corner of a much larger open space so Adam support recommended the sub8.

The detail out of the tweeter is fantastic - great imaging too for stereo listening.

I did like to sound of the Presonus and Yamaha monitors also. Much less expensive than the Adams.

I have a pair of Rokit 8s and I would not get anything smaller. I don't have the sub-woofer and I do think that would be a nice addition.

Headphones are superior in my view.

I have the Behringer MS40's, and they didn't do the job for me.

The MS16's have 8-watt (each) amps, and 4" speakers. They won't deliver "live piano" volume, and the bass will be lacking. [They're about the same size and power as the factory speakers/amps in my PX-350, probably in better cabinets).

They might be OK with a subwoofer, if you can get them close to your ears. As you say, they're probably "decent for the price" -- that's how I felt about the MS40's.

The MS40's make really nice TV loudspeakers! Just about the time I had them cranked up nicely, my wife started complaining
. . . "They're too loud!"

. Charles

Those Presonus speakers (coaxial tweeter, DSP chip) are considerably more sophisticated (and expensive) than the EV ZXA1. They would _certainly_ do the job nicely.<g>

. . . But a pair would cost twice as much as your P105!

I'm sure this has crossed your mind.<G>

. Charles

PS -- I only have _one_ loudspeaker, and I bought it "used".

FWIW, I was at my nearest Guitar Center today and was told just the opposite. The salesgirl told me that 5-inch was plenty for my situation (a 9'x13' room). I ended up buying a pair of M-Audio BX5's. (They were on sale for $140 each). I have no plans for a sub.

Not ever having studio monitors before, I have nothing to compare them against. I've used them only for about an hour or two so far, but I like 'em.

Charles, yes I know. But I'm also an audiophile and really love great sound. So me and nice speakers go together like peanut butter and jelly The dp was a gift which was cool so I can spend to get something above entry level. After looking at AP for awhile now, I'll never be able to afford a nice baby grand. So for now and the immed. future, I'll be playing DPs with VST.

Bert, that maybe true for that small room. My DP is in a 20x30' room, adjacent to a 20x30 room connected to another lg. room. I have a lot of space to fill.