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www.m-audio.com/monitors

INSIDE:Selecting theRight Monitors

MonitorPlacement

Room Acoustics

Testing YourSystem

and more...

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A Guide to

VOLUME 1

StudioMonitors


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www.m-audio.com

8

oduction Staff

ditors-in-ChiefAdam CastilloRichard Ngo-Tran

enior EditorMichael Parker

ditorsVanessa MeringJeffrey Paul Burger

pecial ContributorDavid Miles Huber

Advertising ContactKevin Walt626-633-9050

ProductionSupervisorMike Taylor

IllustrationsJim MacQuarrie

Art DirectorJoshua Merrill

Special thanks to David Miles Huber for his help in preparingthis booklet. His latest music and collaborations can beheard on www.51bpm.com and www.myspace/51bpm.

www.maudio.com/monitors3

A Guide to Studio Monitors

Why would anyone need directions forsetting up reference monitors? Justput them on your desk, and youre done,right? Well, it turns out that referencemonitors are actually one of the mostimportant and influential elements ofyour studio, and can really make orbreak the performance of your wholesetup. Its not that you have to spenda lot of money on themwith a goodknowledge of monitoring fundamentals

and a little bit of experimentation, youcan put together an accurate systemon any budget.

It can be extremely frustrating to

spend hours slaving over the perfectmixonly to find that it sounds horriblein your car, living room or anotherstudio. A good monitoring system canprevent this by helping you to producemixes that are clear, balanced andtranslate well across a broad range ofspeaker systems. This issue of Overdubcovers the most important points youneed to consider when choosing andsetting up monitors for your studio.

This information will assist you inmaking educated buying decisions and,most importantly, help you achieve aprofessional reference standard thatwill further your artistic endeavors.

What Makes a Good Monitoring System?

Whether you are recording, mixing ormastering , your monitors are your primaryand most important point of reference.

Good studio monitors should let you hearexactly whats been recorded. In otherwords, monitors need to demonstratea relatively flat frequency curve, insteadof boosting certain frequencies tomake music sound more pleasing to theear. They should also be rugged enough

to withstand the demands of theproject studioproviding an accurate,uncolored response at a wide range ofvolume levels.

The quality of your speakers, combinedwith various room characteristics, canmake the difference between a good mixand a bad one. Therefore, you shouldconsider the following factors whensetting up studio monitors:

Monitor selection

Monitor placement

Room acoustics

How Do I Select the Right Moni tors?

Choosing the right reference monitorslargely depends on how you plan touse them. Singer/songwriters may be

fine with a compact set of 5 monitors,while urban/hiphop producers willlikely choose a larger monitor plus asubwoofer to achieve greater bassresponse. Most studio owners need astereo configuration, but a surroundsound setup may be necessary if youproduce sound for TV, film or games.

Since the monitoring system playssuch a crucial role in the studio, itsimportant to get highquality monitorsthat fit your needs. It s always better tovisit your local dealer and listen to a fewdifferent models before deciding.


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When testdriving studio monitors,listen to a recording that yourefamiliar with, and ask yourself:

Does the bass sound tight andcontrolled, or uneven and muddy?

Does the stereo field soundsufficiently wide, allowingyou to hear the separationbetween instruments?

Are the highend frequenciessmooth and crisp, or harshand fatiguing?

Do I hear details in the mix thatIve never heard before?

guidl ines for posi tion ing monitors

Align your speakers in an equilateraltriangle from the listening position

When mixing, its important to sit asclosely as possible to the center ofthe sweet spot. Select a comfortableseating position and angle each monitorto accurately face that position. The

toein angle of each speaker shouldbe carefully arranged at an equilateraltriangle to the listener. (Note: Somemultidriver reference monitors, such asthe MAudio EX66, deliver an extrawidedispersion field and might not need tobe toedin.).

Place monitors symmetrically withinthe room

Try to achieve symmetry in the roomwhen setting up monitors. For example,if the left speaker is three feet from theback wall and four feet from the side

wall, place the right speaker the sameway (if possible) in order to give eachspeaker a similar acoustic environment.By centering the listening position alonga wall, your system will maintain betterlowfrequency clarity. In a rectangularroom, the best sound can be obtained byorienting the console and loudspeakersinto the rooms long dimension. Thisgives the lowfrequency waves enoughtime to develop before hitting the rearwall (see figure 1).

Distance from back wall should bedifferent than distance from side wall

Its always better to place the monitora different distance from the back wallthan from the side wall. In other words,if your monitors are two feet from theback wall, make sure theyre not alsotwo feet from the side walls.

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monitors placed symmetrically in roomTo learn more about how to choose the rightmonitor system for your needs, please see AppendixA for information about monitor components andAppendix C to compare the entire range of MAudiomonitors at a glance.

Using a Subwoofer

As a growing number of subwoofers are

used in car stereos, home theaters anddesktop audio systems, its vital thatyou hear the ultralow bass frequenciesn your tracks. Adding a subwoofer toyour system can make a big differencen bass output. By carefully tuning thesub with the stereo mix, the low end isnaturally extended in a way that fillsout the sound, without adding a boomor unnatural low end. When properlyntegrated, a subwoofer can improveyour overall monitoring experience bytranslating the extreme low end of thefrequency spectrum (see Apendix B).

Some subwoofer ssuch as the MAudioStudioph ile BX10sincl ude a footswitch forbypassing sub output. This makes it easy to judgehow the mix will sound on systems with and withouta subwoofer.

Choosing the right studio monitorsis the first step in creating a properlistening environment. The next factor toconsider is proper monitor placement.

Moni tor Placement

The location, location , locationclich doesnt just apply to the realestate market. Its equally (if not more)applicable to the subject of loudspeakersand room acoustics. Strategic monitor

placement is one of the most importantfactors in getting your sound rightandits simpler than you might think. Properplacement means choosing the bestpossible arrangement for your desk,speakers and other studio equipment.

When it comes to monitor placement,youve probably heard a lot of talk aboutthe sweet spot. This refers to sittingin the middle position between the twospeakers, where the stereo image isoptimized. The sweet spot lets you heara true representation of the music soyou can make accurate judgments whilerecording and mixing. When positioningyour monitors, observe the followingguidelines to maximize the sweet spotand enjoy better performance from yourmonitoring setup.

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4www.maudio.com/monitors www.maudio.com/monitors5

Figure 1


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Place monitors vertically

(or rightside up)

Although it may be tempting to placeyour monitors on their sides, this cansignificantly degrade the stereo image.Place the monitors vert ically to getthe best stereo representation (seefigure 2).

Use monitor stands whenever possible

When you place speakers on a mixingconsole or desk, sound waves bounceoff the flat surface before reachingyour earsdegrading the tonal balance,clarity and image localization. Placingmonitors on stands will prevent earlyreflections from interfering with yourmix. (However, if this isnt practical,ts generally acceptable to carefullyposition your speakers on the desk ormixing surface.)

Tweeters should be at ear level

Its important to place the monitorsso the tweeters are at the same heightas your ears (see figure 2).

Avoid placing monitors in cornersThis helps prevent bass buildups

that occur naturally at boundary andcorner locations.

Place monitors at least 812 fromthe wall

This prevents sound waves frombouncing off the wall and reflectingback towards you (see figure 3). Whenusing monitors that contain bass reflexports, make sure there is enough spaceto prevent air flow obstructions.

Using acoustic Space Controls

In an ideal setup, your referencemonitors wou ld be placed well away fromcorners and wall surfaces. Unfortunately,for many small project studios, this isfar easier said than done. If space istight, consider purchasing monitorswith builtin Acoustic Space Controlswitches (such as the MAudio EX66).

These special switches activate EQchanges that compensate for differentmonitor placements.

Fullspace:

away from walls and corners

Halfspace:

up against a wall or placed on amixing console

Quarterspace:

placed in a corner or on shelvesnear a wall

By choosing the correct spacecontrol settings for your environment,you can make up for lessthanidealmonitor placement.

Finetuning Your Speaker Placement

Finding the correct monitor placementrequires time and patience. After settingup your monitors, test your setup bylisten ing to a CD you are familiar with. Trymoving your monitors around until you

find a placement that provides balancedsound and a wide sweet spot.

While sitting in the sweet spot,adjust the speaker volumes equally.

Make sure that if you hear a volumedifference between speakers, there isa corresponding difference in the mainoutput VU or display meters.

You can also balance the volume levels by usinga centrally placed SPL meter (youd be surprisedat how many affordable SPL meters pop up in aneBay search).

Placing foam pads undern eath the speaker swill help prevent resonance vibrations frominterfering with the mix.


Figure 2Figure 3

MAudio EX66 AcousticSpace Control switche s


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Please note that because lowfreq uency signalsradiate omnidirectionally, you may find that thebest location sonically for your subwoofer is quiteinconvienientlike in an area of your studio with a lotof foot traffic. If this is the case, you can simply flipthe Phase switch on your subwoofer and repeat theexercise, hoping for a more convenient outcome.

no equipment

between monitor

and listener

It may seem obvious, but dont putstuff in front of your monitors oncetheyre set up. If there are any computerscreens, equipment racks or other gearbetween you and your monitors, itsgoing to affect the way you hear themusic (see figure 4).

Subwoofer Placement

If you use a subwoofer, its placementcan make a huge difference in bassresponse. You should always place thesubwoofer on the floornever on a tableor speaker stand. One theory suggeststhat the best position for a subwoofern a 2channel system is on the floorhalfway between your left and rightmonitors, with its front facing forwardand pointing in the same direction asthe main monitors. From there, you canadjust the subwoofers position until its most correct.

Another method of sub placementnvolves putting the subwoofer on the

chair in your listening position. With onlythe subwoofer active, play some musicwith substantial bass frequencies (pinknoise works great too). Crawl aroundthe floor of your room and listen for aplace where the sound is fullest butalso tight sounding. Wherever that isbingo!thats where your subwoofer willgo. If you want to be more precise, usean SPL meter instead of your ears and

perform the same exercise. (If you use anSPL meter, make sure you play pink noiseas the test signal and observe where thespectral response is smoothest and hasthe greatest lowfrequency extension.)

Room Acousti cs

Just like light bounces off a mirror,sound waves travel around the roombefore reaching your ears (See figure 5).

Some sound frequencies get re inforced,while others get suppressed, the resultof which causes alteration in thesounds overall character. Any boundarysurface (back wall, side wall, ceiling,etc.) can cause problematic reflections,so you should think about the reflectiveproperties of the room when setting upyour monitors. You can greatly improvethe accuracy of your monitoring systemby neutralizing the strongest reflectionsin a room.

Most people use a spare bedroom orother rectangular space for their projectstudio. Unfortunately, rooms with parallelwalls often give rise to a phenomenonknown as standing waves (also known

as room modes). These occur when soundreflects off of parallel surfaces andtravels back upon its own path, causingphase cancellations that interfere witha rooms amplitude response. Althoughthis type of setup can pose difficulties,it is possible to turn a rectangular roominto an accurate monitoring space. Youcan minimize reflections and improve thelistening experience by analyzing thesonic characteristics of the room andmaking adjustments.


Figure 4

Figure 5

Everything we hear is a combination of directsound and reflected sound. In the studio, soundwave reflections can boost certain frequencieswhile cutting others. By sitting closer to the

speakers, you will hear more of the direct soundand fewer reflections. (Remember to maintain theequilateral triangle arrangement when changingyour listening position.)


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to attach these materials to walls andceilings to tame multiple room reflectionsand/or dampen reflections. Generallyspeaking, two inches of acoustical foamis effective for absorbing frequenciesabove 500Hzwhile fourinch foam willwork all the way down to 250Hz.

First, examine the potential reflectionpoints in your monitoring environment.Are there any nearby surfaces thatcould reflect sound back towards thelistening position? The most troublesomesurfaces are usually the side walls, rearwall and wall behind the speakers (seefigure 6). These areas should be treatedwith absorptive materials.

Using Acoustical Treatment

Every room needs some sort ofacoustical treatment. Sometimes thiscan be accomplished by carefully placingcouches, bookshelves and other items inthe room. In most cases however, it willbe necessary to use sound absorptionand diffusion materials. Appropriateacoustical treatment can reducefrequency reflections and smooth outthe reverberation characteristics of aroompreventing insidious reflectionsfrom reaching the listening position.

Absorption

The primar y goal of absorption is not

to soundproof a room, but to neutralizethe most troublesome reflections. Denseporous materialssuch as heavy cloth,fiberglass and acoustical foamabsorbmid and highfrequency sound. Its easy

You can constr uct por table ab sorption surfaces bymounting acoustical foam onto plywood boards. Thesecan be placed 46 inches from the wallsimprovingyour studio acoustics without permanently alteringthe walls. You can even rearrange the boards to forma temporary isolation booth for recording vocals.

Dealing with Bass Frequencies

Uneven bass response can be a majorproblem for many project studio owners.Bass frequencies tend to build up incorners and boundary points, so thecentral listening position often suffersfrom a lack of bass clarity.

Bass frequencies behave differentlythan mids and highs, so treating theroom for lowend response requiresunique treatment methods. Materials thatabsorb high frequencies often providelittle resistance to the lowfrequencyend of the spectrum (and vice versa). Inorder to properly handle low frequencies,most rooms need to be controlled withbass traps.

Bass traps employ special absorptivematerials that reduce the resonance oflow frequencies. You can absorb a largeportion of undesired bass frequenciesby placing these devices in corners, roomboundaries or freestanding spots.

You can make an inexpen sive, temporar y bass trapby wrapping layers of carpet and/or carpet paddingaround a framework of suitable size, such as abookcase or wooden frame. Mounting the frame onwheels allows easy positioning.

If your monitoring system is boosting or cutting low frequencies, your mixes are going to suffer. You cantest the frequency response of your room by listening to a series of test tones available at www.maudio.com/overdub. Your monitors should play back each test tone at a relatively consistent volume level (within +/5dB). Pay special attention to the frequencies below 200Hz. Use an SPL meter to make sure the volumebetween test tones is consistent. Make adjustments to your speaker placement and room acoustics untilthe frequency response throughout the 20Hz200Hz frequency range is consistent.

Diffusion

If your room is rather small (less than10 x 10), you can achieve good resultsusing a few carefully placed absorptivepanels. For larger rooms however, youmay need sound wave diffusers. Diffusersare acoustical boundaries or panelsthat reflect the sound wave back at

various angles, thereby breaking up thetroublesome standing waves. Diffuserscan be attached to the wall and/orceiling boundarieshelping to redirectreflections away from the centrallistening position. Using diffusion canreduce a condition known as flutter echoand can smooth out the reverberationcharacteristics of a room by buildingfurther and more complex acousticalpathways (See figure 8).

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You can diffuse sound waves by setting up awall of tall bookcases filled with absorbent andirregularly shaped objects (See figure 7).


Figure 6

Figure 7

Figure 8 Diffusion panels reflect sound waves at various

angles, helping to prevent standing waves.


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Testing Your Syst em

After trying these techniques,retest your room by listening to songsyou already know. Consider makinga compilation of short sections ofprofessionally mixed songs that exhibitexemplary production standards.Try tweaking the placement of yourmonitors to find a position thatprovides even response throughout theaudio spectrum. By sitting closer tothe speakers, you will hear more of thedirect sound.

A Note About System Levels

When monitoring at loud levels, our

ears can easily perceive the extreme highand low frequencies in the mix. However,when the mix is played back at lowerevels, our ears are much less sensitiveto these frequencies. As a result, themix sounds different when played loudly.Although it can be tempting to crankyour monitors, always remember thatexposure to high sound pressure levelscan be damaging to your hearing. Try toimit your monitoring output to between7590dB SPL. A good rule of thumb is thatf you have to shout to communicate in aroom, youre monitoring too loudly.

Conclusion

As you can see, there are many factorsnvolved when preparing an environmentfor reference monitoring. The entireprocess can be summarized in the

following steps:Select the reference monitors thatare best for your needs.

Determine the optimal listeningposition in your studio.

Set up your monitor placementaccording to the directionspublished in this guide.

Identify surfaces in the room thatarecausingunwantedrefections.

Treat those areas with acousticalfoam or other absorptive materials.

Use bass traps to tune thelowend response of your room.

Use diffusers to redirectrefectionsawayromthecentrallistening position.

Test your monitoringsystem, making anynecessary adjustments.

Ultimately, your ears are your mostimportant monitoring equipment. Ifyou know your room well (includinglimitations and imperfections), you cancreate mixes that translate well acrossa broad range of systems.

Appendix AMonitor Components

Choosing the right reference monitorscan be difficult, especially with somany choices and models available.Understanding the basic speakercomponents can help you decide whatwill best suit your needs.

Cabinet Enclosure

Cabinet design has a great impacton how sound is transmitted from thedrivers. The cabinet material should beas nonresonant as possible to preventsound coloration. Sturdy mediumdensityfiberboard (MDF) and plywood arematerials that are commonly used in

cabinet construction.Airsuspension enclosureAn airtight system that seals in airfrom the outside environment. Thissystem generally provides strong,tight bass response, which oftenrolls off at the extreme low end.

Bass reflex enclosureA ventedbox design that makesuse of a tuned bass porthole,designed into the front or rear ofthe speaker enclosure. This actsas a tuned resonator, boostingthe extreme lowend output.

Driver

This is the part of the monitor thatactually produces sound waves. Itsimportant to choose monitors thathave welldesigned drivers built fromhighquality materials.

TweeterA tweeter is a driver that produceshigh frequencies. Highqualitytweeters are often constructedfrom substances like silk,titanium, aluminum and beryllium.

WooferA woofer is a driver that produceslow frequencies. Woofers requiremore driver movement andtherefore a higher amount ofpower amplification. Lowfrequencydrivers are typically constructedfrom resilient materials such as

Kevlar, polypropylene or mylar.

Electronics

Power ampA device that converts theincoming linelevel signal intoa highenergy signal. Amplifierswith a higher wattage ratingproduce a higher sound output.

Powered reference monitorshave a power amp sectionbuilt right into the enclosure,while passive monitors need aseparate outboard power amp.

Crossover (also referred to asa Network)Prevents signals outside a certainfrequency range from beingapplied to its assigned driver. Thisoptimizes speaker performance byrouting high and lowfrequency

signals to different drivers,ensuring the drivers are asked todeliver only the frequencies theyare most efficient at reproducing.

BiamplificationThe practice of utilizing twopower amplifiers to drive thewoofer and tweeter separately.

The incoming signal is splitinto two bands by means of acrossover, and each amplifierhandles the frequency range.

Acoustic space controlsAcoustic space controls activate ashelving filter to attenuate certainfrequencies, helping to compensatefor different speaker placementsand room environments.

Studio AccessoriesRecommended Manufacturers

Monitor Stands

Ultimate Supportwww.ultimatesupport.com

Raxxesswww.raxxess.com

Cables

Monsterwww.monstercable.com

Hosawww.hosatech.com

Acoustic Treatment

Auralexwww.auralex.com

Primacousticwww.primacoustic.com

Studio Furniture

Omniraxwww.omnirax.com

Middle Atlantic Productswww.middleatlantic.com

SPL Meters

RadioShackwww.radioshack.com

Want more tips and tricks on

how to optimize your studio? Visit

www.maudio.com/overdub.

Woofer

Tweeter

Cabinet



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