Monitor stands

[_tom_]

Just took delivery of some Mackie MR5s which sound great (and really exposing the weaknesses in my mixes  :x ) and think I need to get some stands for them. They seem a bit boxy unless my ears are around level with the tweeter, at which point they seem to open up and sound very clear and nice.

Looks like they need to be raised around 6". If possible something with adjustable height would be good. They're going on a desktop, not floor stands. Any suggestions?

I know these are designed for Adam monitors but how about something like this which will point them upwards a bit? There are also the Auralex Mopads which get good reviews but they look a bit narrow?


Also these monitors are great - I'm currently going through all of my old recordings and finding that I need to lowpass a lot of the drum tracks (harsh cymbals) and also reduce the lower mids of everything as they're giving a horrible muddiness to the sound. Only problem is I can really hear artefacts on badly encoded mp3s now :(

[Denim n Leather]

Auralex Mo Pads are great for that application, http://www.auralex.com/sound_isolation_mopad/sound_isolation_mopad.asp

[_tom_]

Cheers Ben. btw do you have any tips for brightening up a dark/dull sounding room if that's at all possible? The room I'm in now seems a lot duller than my previous one which is a bit annoying! At the minute I'm using a corner desk which I guess doesn't help?

After doing more research I dunno if this room is ever going to sound good though - it's almost a cube which people say is a worst-case-scenario thing, and also it's above an archway which echoes if your music is loud enough. Good for a nice natural reverb when playing guitar though :lol:

Here's a pic of the placement - would I benefit from having the desk away from a corner along the longest wall?


(game cases propping up til I get some stands)

[Denim n Leather]

It's funny that your problem is a dull sounding room; most rooms are too bright! I think that what you're hearing, though, is two things:

1. The loudspeakers are not decoupled from your desktop and the vibrations are adding audible distortions to their sound. I had the same problem with my monitors. I didn't use Auralex, but I did put Black Diamond Racing pods under each loudspeaker. (BDR makes great products, but they are hella expensive)

2. You are definitely going to have some issues associated with that bare corner between the loudspeakers. You should get a corner trap in there. Actually, most anything that will break up the sound waves will be a vast improvement -- tapestry, rolled up duvet, shelves with books on 'em, a couple of Auralex panels hot glued to foamcore, etc etc. I have a quarter round piece from Room Tunes in my corner; my setup is almost identical to yours in terms of desktop (corner piece).

Sorry for the cr@ppy webcam pic:

[_tom_]

Thanks for the info, very helpful :) I guess I'll wait for my mopads then and re-assess the situation. I did instantly notice how dull everything sounded in this room - my Laney never seems harsh any more for starters :lol: My old computer speakers needed the bass taking down a lot and treble boosting quite severely.

[Denim n Leather]

Sounds like a small room with a lot of surfaces that are the same size; those are infamous for bass issues. Corner traps will do a lot of good, as well as some broadband diffusion.

[Johnny Mac]

I've got my Adam A7's on the floor with a pair of Samson stands I got from dvd247.com. When they were on the desk the whole thing vibrated and sounded like it was going to fall apart.

[JJretroTONEGOD]

if you create a plank of wood/shelf so that the tweeters are level with your ears, it will improve the sound, drape the plank with a towel, make it deep so it improves the bass response, and get auralex mopads for the speakers to sit on, then adjust the tweeters point at the ears, it should sound amazing, and it wont be too expensive as well!

I dont think with that desk you need speaker stands, hope u find this usefull

[_tom_]

The Auralex MoPads with 8 degree upwards angle seem to be working great! Doesn't sound muddy any more.

[Denim n Leather]

The Auralex MoPads with 8 degree upwards angle seem to be working great! Doesn't sound muddy any more.

Awesome!