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Hi All,

I've been using a Denon HiFi receiver and a pair of Mission MX1 bookshelf speakers with my Korg D1.

When I use the Beyerdynamic DT 990 headphones to listen when I play, the sound is not just a bit better, but incomparable.

So, as much as I really don't want to spend more money, I need to...

Room is medium size, 2.5m x 4.5m, but with full of furniture, bed, chest of drawers, etc.

Any recommended Studio monitors to have decent sound quality and range?

I pretty much exclusively play (planning to play really as I just started) classical music.

Looking at Yamaha HS5 or HS7, I think the HS8 is too big for the room.

Clearly a very heavy marketing behind those models, pretty much every website is recommending them. I am very open to suggestions rather than buying something that just well advertised.

Thanks

Regards

B

I have a pair of 7" monitors in a room similarly furnished, but a bit larger (13 x 7 feet).
I hesitate to mention the make and model because I don't think it matters.
They sound good to me, but that's no indication of how you might feel.

Also, when you ask about "range" ... do you mean frequency range or physical/spatial range?

Just be aware .... Headphones generally give you the best sound you are going to get.

Nothing you purchase will reach that level of clarity unless you are willing to spend thousands of dollars.

Even that is no guarantee of sucess.

AND .... the first ones you get will certainly "fail" because you have nothing to compare them to .... other than the headphones ... so you are likely to be disappointed and try for "better" .... with another purchase.

This can continue as you search for the holy grail.

If you have no particular need for external speakers you may wish to just use headphones for a bit and save your money.

Good Luck

A lot of people seem to like the JBL 305 series.

I used a pair of Yamaha HS8 in my studio for mixing and liked them well but didn't like them with my piano; they sounded sterile to me. The JBL are not as good for mixing but sound less sterile with the piano. I have tried both the 6" and the 8" JBL.

Like DMD said, a good pair of headphones will typically sound better than most speakers. Make sure whatever you buy is easily returnable and try different monitors until you find the ones that meet your expectations. As with your HiFi speakers, studio monitors need the same break-in time to sound their best. I usually leave music or test tones playing while I'm at work and at low volume at night for a week or two.

Some people love studio monitors with their digital pianos and some don't so don't be surprised if all the experiments lead you back to where you are now

Audio is a funny thing. What exactly is sterile sound? Is it possible to describe that in words, or must it be heard to be recognized?

I was looking on buying monitors in around the same price range as yours. I was considering the Yamahas you mentioned as well.

At the end, I was between buying the Mackie MR624 or the Adam T7v. I went with the Adam T7V.

A big number of speakers in that price range have a hissing sound, including the Adams and the Yamahas. JBLs 306p are even worse.
I dont really mind, cause they are not very close, but I think if you are really close to them when playing piano, it will bother you.
Mackie MR624 dont suffer from this, so I would consider them if I was you. Also Mackie sound really good even at low volumes, which is another bonus for playing piano.

Also, the Yamahas might be good for piano, but might not be as good for playing music, because they are too good at highlighting flaws in the production. (they highlight frequencies where flaws usually are). So if you are planning to use them for other things apart from playing piano, you should consider this. They are good for audio engineering though.

Also check Zs reviews on youtube
And also check on youtube "Digital Stereophony" for comparison between speakers

Yeah, I was thinking about frequently.

It will be interesting to hear how the Mackie speakers sound. I've indeed read a lot of good things about them!
I'm doing fine with my KRK Rokit5 G4's. Yes, there is hiss, but I set the input sensitivity to -4, which I found means that I can't hear the hiss too much. The bass is quite punchy, and I think the over all sound is pleasing for both big symphonic orchestras and pianos.

"Sterile" may be a synonym for "cold". In which case its antonym is "warm".

We know how to make sound "warm":

. . . Add some second-harmonic distortion from a vacuum tube.

An interesting experiment would be to take a setup which was described as "sterile" by its owner, and make two changes:


a) _slightly_ de-tune his DP, and

b) run the DP output through a tube-based "warmth-increaser" (easy to find those, in hardware or software emulations).

If he says:

. . . "Ah -- that's just right -- completely natural!"

you'll have your answer. At least for _that_ listener.

Hi All,

Thanks for all your contribution, I am getting a fairly clear picture now, also realising that I really don't need monitors, I need some decent speaker (keyboard amp?).
I'm not producing, editing or sampling. I started to play nursery rhymes and one day will be playing Mozart, Liszt and Beethoven lol
Having a piano sound that is rich and sounds realistic is the key, rather than laboratory clean. If it makes sense.

This is a "religious argument", between those who believe:

. . . The piano was sampled by high-grade equipment, in a controlled environment,
. . . . and the sample is stored and re-played when you strike a key.

. . . The job of the amp and speakers is to reproduce that sample as accurately as possible.

. . . Deviations from complete accuracy should be controlled by the listener, not by
. . . the playback equipment.

And those who believe:

. . . The job of the amp and speakers is to reproduce that sample as _pleasingly_ as possible.

Most (all?) "keyboard amps" will "color" the sound. I'd suggest that you try one (maybe by renting?) before you commit to it.

If you're on a tight budget, Monoprice has some very nice powered monitors for very reasonable prices. I bought a pair of their 8" powered monitors to use in one of my rooms (paid under $200) and have no complaints. If your budget allows, I will suggest Yamaha HS5 Powered Studio Monitor reviewed by Musirank.

I have tried 5" monitors, of consumer grade quality (Samson Media One M50). They left me wanting. They could not approximate the lower end of an acoustic piano. And, the mid range to upper end was just not clear enough to emulate an acoustic piano.

I tried a Pioneer surround sound hifi amplifier, with some good quality 5" and 6" speakers. Both sounded satisfactory above the bottom two octaves of the piano, but were lacking below that. I added a 10" subwoofer, which helped below about 100hz. But, neither the 5" nor 6" speakers could adequately cover the range down to the subwoofer.

I went back to powered studio monitors. Due to budgetary constraints, I ended up with an Alesis M1 Active 620 (6.25" woofer) and a Fostex PM-1 MKII (also 6.25" woofer). This Alesis made a gorgeous sound, many times the sound quality of the 5" monitors. Best of all, it faithfully reproduced the bass sounds all the way down to somewhere in the 50-60 hz range. This was the first speaker through which I could actually hear each distinct vibration of the bass strings, instead of the generalized low 'boom' sound the other options had produced.

The Fostex, though of similar size and power as the Alesis, suffered the same muddy, unclear generalized mushy sound that the smaller 5" monitors produced. I had a spare 6.25 woofer from the dead mate of my Alesis, so, I replaced the Fostex woofer with the Alesis woofer. At the same time, I put fiberglass sound deadener inside the Fostex cabinet to match the amounts standard iinside the Alesis cabinet. I did not swap out the Fostex tweeter. These changes made a noticeable improvement to the Fostex, though, not up to the quality of my good Alesis.

Since the Alesis was so good at recreating the bass, I connected it to the left output from my dac/preamp so it would handle more of the bass notes. It was physically stationed to the left of my piano. The Fostex, being less clear in the bass, was assigned to the right outpput, and placed to the right of piano. This arrangement, despite the weakness of the Fostex, produced some really nice sound. And, this was without a subwoofer.

My dissatisfaction with the Fostex eventually led me to search for better monitor. I fixed on the idea of getting an 8" monitor to take the place of the Alesis on the left (bass side), and moving the Alesis to the right (treble side), eliminating the Fostex in the process. I bought a Mackie MR8 MK2 (8" monitor), put it on the left, and moved the Alesis to the right. Again, no subwoofer used. This is the best sound I have yet to achieve.

The Mackie provides clear bass (like the Alesis, you can hear the string vibrate), and, that bass is coming from left side of the piano, just like an acoustic. The Alesis provides a beautiful tone throughout the entire piano range, save for the very bottom octave, and its tone comes from the right side of the piano, much like an acoustic.

I like this arrangement very much. I've ignored some occasionally heard advice about not mixing speakers/monitors, but, have benefited by ignoring it and putting together a tailored sound, with each part of the system doing what it does best. Mixing the 8" and 6.25" monitors was a good move for me.

I think my Mackie is a grade lower than their "professional grade" studio monitor. I think the same is true of the Alesis, as well. At used prices, I have found this nice stuff to be comfortably affordable. And, I have lovely sound that, I think, would easily satisfy your "Having a piano sound that is rich and sounds realistic is the key..." specification.

One last point is that the DAC is very important to my system. My computer is an end-of-lease business computer, with a very mediocre at best, on board DAC. I have used a DaytonAudio DAC 01 ($35) and a Topping D50s ($250) in place of the computer's onboard DAC. Both improved the sound. The DaytonAudio DAC made a very satisfying improvement, and, had I purchased it early enough to get to know it, I might not have purchased the Topping. But, I wrongfully assumed the DaytonAudion DAC would not be a satisfactory, long term solution due to its low price, and purchased the Topping very shortly after. I bought the Topping before recognizing how good the DaytonAudio dac was.

I obtained all of my equipment used, except for the DAC. I either try the items out in person, or, purchase from retailers who have 30 day satisfaction guarantees and free returns on their used offerings. I could not do this if I had to purchase everything new. All told, my post computer set up consists of Topping DAC ($250), the Mackie 8" monitor ($90), and the Alesis 6.25" monitor (free, b/c its mate was dead), for a total of $340. I am currently not experiencing any desire for better sound equipment.

I hope something in this helps you. Good luck in your search.