Hi,

I am planning on getting the M-Audio 2496 sound card. I have a question about near-field monitors - I'm considering the Tannoy Reveals (passive). I have no experience in audio, and I need to ask --> How would I connect this to my computer for audio monitoring?

Also, how is this recognised by Windows XP etc.?

Are there any other recommended stereo monitors which are cheaper than the Tannoy Reveals?

Dennis

I use the Yorkville YSM1i. For the money they're pretty accurate and uncoloured. I actually tried them up against the Tannoy Reveals and you're paying for the Tannoy name.

Yorkville mfr site (http://www.yorkville.com/products.asp?type=71&cat=35&id=26)

Cheap like borcht (http://www.musiciansbuy.com/YORKVILLE_YSM1i_MON_EACH.html)

Review (http://www.yorkville.com/default.asp?p1=3&p2=0&p_id=47&id=9)

The m-Audio 2494 works great with Win XP pro. I downloaded the latest driver.

They do have a powered pair as well.

They're made in Canada Eh!

Look closely at the M-Audio LX4 speaker system. Very inexpensive. Very sweet for the cost. Made (I'm told via rumor) at the same factory as the Tannoys.

Hi,

Thanks for the info. Right now in NZ, the Tannoy Reveals are a little bit cheaper than the M-Audios and the Yorkvilles. Where can I find more comparisons/reviews of these three products?

Dennis

The same way I did, run a search on Google. Often the manufacturers sites will offer links to favourable reviews.

Nothing wrong with the Tannoys. Where I am, the YorkVilles were half the price of the Tannoys.

Hi,

Just another question, I have no experience in audio - What other gear, e.g. cables, do I need to connect up studio monitors to my soundcard?

Is there basic information around where I can know which cables to buy and how to connect, etc.?

Thank you,
Dennis

From the sound card to the preamp or integrated speaker system just use a decent quality male RCA to male RCA. The sound card, the amplifier or integrated speaker system will all have diagrams. Basically just follow the colour coding.

You don't need monster cable, blessed by the Pope, pure silver, directional and oxygen free crapola. Not the cheapo dime store variety but something in between. The same type of cable you'd use on a decent stereo.

A lot of suppliers make up their own using quality connectors.

B&H seem to have the two extremes and nothing in the middle.

Ok, thanks. So say if I get two passive monitors, all I need now are two RCA male to male connectors? I mean, they don't need a preamp right?

Dennis

If you have PASSIVE monitors, that means they don't have amplifiers in them. Where is your power to the speakers coming from? They'll need to be amplified.
Most monitors today are active, and that's a great benefit to the users.
You don't need a preamp, your sound card will act as a preamp. A mixer is essentially a multi-input preamp.

Um... well suppose I get the Tannoy Reveal passives, do I just plug them into my sound card? Or would that just not work?

Dennis

Hi,

I've just found the M-Audio BX5 powered studio monitors for about the same price as the Tannoy Reveals. Are they better for what I'm doing? Since they are powered, I won't have to worry about amplification...

One other thing: I am getting the Audiophile 2496 - it only has one left and right RCA inputs - how do I connect this with the M-Audio BX5 which uses XLR, 1/4 inch inputs?

Dennis

Edit
I had assumed that the amp was in one speaker enclosure. Reading the manual (yes there is an online manual) it shows a separate amp in each enclosure.

So, according to the manual you need one Male RCA to 1/4 male TS phono jack (unbalanced) as indicated in page 7 of the manual.

The M-Audio BX-5 manual (http://www.m-audio.com/images/en/manuals/BX5_Manual.pdf)

Hi Bryan,

Thanks for that information, but what I don't understand is that the sound card has one-red female plug and one-white female plug - but if I use the Y cable to split both speakers, doesn't that mean I have to connect 2 white + 2 red RCAs into the sound card? How does this work?

Dennis

I just read the online manual, please disregard my previous suggestion and read my edited comments. Also be sure to read the manual.

Manual PDF (http://www.m-audio.com/images/en/manuals/BX5_Manual.pdf)

Now you're getting into some MUCH better gear.
The BX will accept just about anything you want to throw into it, we tour the VASST training with it's little brother.
At any cable store, you'll find Male RCA to Male 1/4 inch. You can also find MALE RCA to Male XLR, but they are more rare, and you'll get zero additional quality of sound for the XLR...
These cables should be reasonably cheap, around 20.00 for the pair.
When you first powerup the BX, be sure volume is all the way down on the back of it. Then adjust from there.
Leave the Acoustic Space set to default, and then after you've had a few days to adjust to the monitors themselves, plan on adjusting that.

for that much isnt it better to get the Behringer Truth's? They're both $299. I've heard great things about the truths, plus they have a (8.75 in.) woofer. bigger than the BX5's 5 1/4"

Hi,

Are you talking about the B2030A? I've found it in NZ for cheaper than BOTH the Tannoy Reveals AND the M-Audio BX5's... for some reason I can't find Yorkvilles here, so looks like I'm gonna dismiss it.

So which one is it going to be? Behringer Truths (active) or M-Audios? I think I'm definitely going to go with active ones, saves me a lot of trouble...

Thanks for the information about the manual Bryan, it's cleared a few things up for me.

Dennis

For me, I'd get the M-Audio. I'm not a fan of much Behringer does, but their speaks may be bigger, but bigger doesn't add anything to a small room overall. In fact, bigger can be sloppier in many cases.
I freely admit I'm an M-Audio fan, their stuff holds up well, sounds great. People around the world have heard my SPB5's, the forerunners to the BX5's, since we tour with them regularly.
To get much better than these, you have to take a significant jump, IMO.
No, they surely aren't the Hothouse speaks, and they're not even the Mackie 628 either. But they are a great monitor, with a very punchy and sweet amplifier, they don't fatigue the ear like Yamaha's or Genelec's will, they are solid, heavy, and compact.
Put them on a pair of Auralex MoPads, you'll be very pleasantly surprised.
Add the sub for even more fun, but be cautious, because subs can create more trouble if you don't set them up correctly.

Size isn't everything ;-). I'd stay with the M-Audio or Tannoy.

Dennis, have you thought about ordering from overseas? That way you could probably get a better monitor for the same price.

Aaron

Yeah I have, but no matter how I see it, I just seem to think that local-support/backing/security is important for these large purchases. I've just found a good deal on the BX5 - about 80% of the original price. Thanks everyone for the advice.

Dennis

There is much to be said for that warm fuzzy feeling you get when you can put a face on a supplier. I've often paid extra to buy locally and usually feel good about it

Agreed Dennis and Bryan, but when paying twice as much with some gear you tend to second guess whether that face is important ;)

Aaron

I've never had to pay twice and i wouldn't. I agree and if you recall I'm willing to help find you some deals.

This is probably moot issue by now...

I would definitely go with the M-Audio powered speakers. In truth, the Tannoys probably sound more flat and boring (which is what you want), but they are passive. This means that you will have to buy a power amp like the popular ones from Hafler and Alesis. They run about $200 new for the amps. So add $200 onto the price of the speakers. This is a more flexible setup, but if price is the issue, I would go with those M-Audios. I would NOT buy the Behringers! Most of Behringers stuff is sub-par, though they do make a few pieces of really nice stuff for cheap. For example, the Behringer mixers are horrible. Really bad pre-amps. Good enough for mixing narration, but not when you r are going for tone like a vocalist, guitarist, drummer, etc. Their patch panels are really nice. Their ECM-3000 small diphragm condensor is like $35 and a really great deal for the price. It works nicely as a basic room/ambiance mic when on a budget. However, speakers, mixers from Behringer I would try to stay away from.

Other monitor brands that are nice for budget prices

Tannoy
KRK
Triple-P
Event (though I don't know if they have any budget ones).

If you can find a pair of Yamaha NS-10s for under $400, run - don't walk, to get those! NS-10s are basically a studio standard. However because they haven't made them for a long time and the demand is higher than every with people running project studios, their price has gone up. It is hard to find a pair of NS-10s for less than $500. Triple-P Pyramid speakers are about as close to NS-10s as you are going to get. They are really cheap and nice (and look cool), but again these are ALL *UNPOWERED* passive speakers, so add $200 to the price.

BTW, a friend here just bought an Alesis 150 watt power amp for his Event speakers on eBay for $120 and it is in perfect condition, so there ARE deals to be had.

Alex F

how about the m-audio dx4? those sound any good?

Hi, sorry guys for not replying sooner. Anyway, I've decided to get the M-Audios, they should arrive tomorrow. I'll definitely post up to tell everyone how it all goes (including setting up the computer, sound card, etc.). This is really my first experience dealing with this kind of gear, so it's all pretty exciting...

Dennis

Hey Dennis, congratulations. Hope all goes well and I look forward to hearing an update.

Aaron