Is the whole idea of reference monitors that they are supposed to let
you know what you'll sound like on the broadest range of speakers,
since they've supposedly got a good unadulterated sound? I ask b/c
I've heard people say that reference monitors make your music sound
bad... but I like the way mine make music sound. Just curious.

wrote in message
oups.com...
Is the whole idea of reference monitors that they are supposed to let
you know what you'll sound like on the broadest range of speakers,
since they've supposedly got a good unadulterated sound? I ask b/c
I've heard people say that reference monitors make your music sound
bad... but I like the way mine make music sound. Just curious.

The whole idea behind accurate monitoring is to have a neutral point of
origin. If you mix on speakers which put out very little bass, for example,
you will put in more bass to compensate for that during mixing. When you
listen to your mix on a speakers with a lot of bass, the difference will me
enormous. This applies to all frequencies obviously. If your monitors are
fairly flat and accurate, the differences from system to system are
minimized. With a good mix you get the anticipated amount of colouration
from the speakers you expect as opposed to the formerly described scenario.
Hope this helps.

wrote:
Is the whole idea of reference monitors that they are supposed to let
you know what you'll sound like on the broadest range of speakers,
since they've supposedly got a good unadulterated sound?

I really like how David Moulton describes the ideal goals of a studio
monitor: He says something to the effect that "a good monitor lets you
see into the Past, and see into the Future."

What he means by "seeing into the Past" is that a studio monitor needs
to be a microscope that lets you closely examine what you already
recorded, to make sure there aren't any errors or aberrations in the
performance or in the recording. It has to be an impartial analytical
tool that alerts you to everything, both good & bad, that's been (or is
going to be) recorded (Obviously this quality can also be an asset to
the Ghost of Christmas Present; if you can identify problems & correct
them during soundcheck before anything gets printed, looking into the
Past then becomes that much more enjoyable!)

And by "looking into the Future" Dave means your monitor has to be a
predictive tool, one that will let you know reliably what your material
will sound like when someone else hears it on their speakers, be they
studio monitors, home inwalls, car stereos, boom-boxes, Bose Wave
radios, iPods, whatever. If your monitors can't give you some idea of
what the listening experience will be like for others, they're value is
limited.

Note that not all good studio monitors excel at both Past & Present;
and the corollary to that is that a monitor does not need to excel at
both to be useful. But those are the essential goals..

That's what I suspected. I appreciate the information, thanks.

Wow, the philosophical approach. I like that, too. I think I had
always thought about the future aspect but not considered that I need
them to catch flaws that a colored system might mask.

Exactly....this is kind of a two way street. If you mix down on "good"
sounding speakers with big phat round bass, it will sound like there is too
much bass so you'll pull some some bass out of the mix and probably boost
the highs. Then when you play it back through a boombox or the lil 3"
speakers in your car, you'll wonder why there is even less bass than usual.
Vice versa for if you are mixing on little speakers, you'll raise the bass
to compensate...go play it back in your friend's 78" Coupe DeVille hooptie
ride with switches and alpine stereo system and you'll have to buy him a new
set of subs.

The idea behind reference monitors is that they don't color the sound at
all, so all the levels should be proper and balanced, nice and boring-like.
So if it sounds like crap when you play it back on a certain system, you can
raise your fists in protest and confidently shout "BLAME THE SYSTEM
MAAAN!!!"

Now, there are some exceptions. If you are mixing down a hip-hop album that
is going to be pressed in vinyl for predominate use by DJ's in clubs, then
you might as well mix it down through a PA system, similar to the ones used
in clubs.....doing this, your mix will sound perfect on a certain
system.....but don't expect it to bump on your little boombox.

Many producers such as the Dust Brothers will do mix downs, partially or in
whole, using a regular old generic car stereo system....they reason since
most people will be listening to their album in regular old cars, they might
as well mix it accordingly.

So the moral of the story for succesful audio mixing is also that of
succesful bartending...."mix accordingly!"

--

Jonny Durango

"Patrick was a saint. I ain't."

http://www.jdurango.com



wrote in message
oups.com...
Is the whole idea of reference monitors that they are supposed to let
you know what you'll sound like on the broadest range of speakers,
since they've supposedly got a good unadulterated sound? I ask b/c
I've heard people say that reference monitors make your music sound
bad... but I like the way mine make music sound. Just curious.

Cool. Good reply.