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Speakers for A Video Editor Finishing Web Videos
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OK. Because of your environment, you want to use “near-field” monitoring. Near-field simply means you want the monitors close to you to avoid involving room acoustics as much as possible.
Placement is very important. The two monitors should be set up in an equilateral triangle with the position of your head. So maybe a meter or maybe a little more. You can be a little farther away from each monitor than the monitors are from each other but not much.
You also need the monitors at the same height as your ears and angled in slightly so that they point at your ears. That usually means you need to get something to put the monitors on to raise them to the proper height.
You need a clear shot from the monitors to your ears. The monitors can’t be behind the computer monitor. And hanging them on a wall or working with them with you faced into a corner will change their response. It’s best to have them free standing so they don’t interact with nearby surfaces.
I haven’t had a lot of time to listen to a lot of inexpensive monitors, but the Event 20/20 series seem to do well. https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/186039-REG/Event_P8N_20_20bas_Monitor.html/BI/8631/KBID/9745
These little Fostex don’t have much in the way of power or full fidelity, but they may help you as you try to dumb down your audio for your intended playback systems.
https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/669392-REG/Fostex_6301BE_6301B_10W_4_Powered.html/BI/8631/KBID/9745Maybe take a few CDs you know VERY well and head out to a local store. Listen to the CDs and find a system that reproduces the sound that makes sense to your ears.
Regards,
Ty Ford
Cow Audio Forum LeaderWant better production audio?: Ty Ford’s Audio Bootcamp Field Guide
Ty Ford Blog: Ty Ford’s Blog -
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I’m biased because I actually use Genelec 8020’s – I got a deal from HHB a couple of years ago which saved me £100 off list (check out their web site from time to time).
I do think you need to have speakers that let you hear everything that’s there because if there is a lot of, for example, LF noise/rumble on your recordings you need to know about it in order to deal with it otherwise you’ll get odd distortions and not know why.
But I also have a pair of Behringer MS16 powered speakers and some cheapies that I got from Maplin, and I use those for judging what it’ll sound like in the “real world”.
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Thanks, Andrew. I’d love to know what you use for a DAC. One of my friends who is in audio post suggested the M-Audio Fast Track USB Audio interface to go along with the Genelec speakers.
Film Editor, London UK
http://www.scottclementseditor.com -
Andrew,
Yes, I agree completely about using monitors to hear things that may cause problems. You also need monitors to tell you what the actual playback problems will do.
Unfortunately, I can’t find 8020 for the price Scott wants to pay. I’d have offered that my Event Opals were just the ticket, but the money’s not there. Still, even with them (or my legacy JBL L100) you need to use test mixes to understand how much of your mix won’t make it through lap top or cell phone speakers. (and what to o about it)
Regards,
Ty Ford
Cow Audio Forum LeaderWant better production audio?: Ty Ford’s Audio Bootcamp Field Guide
Ty Ford Blog: Ty Ford’s Blog -
I once had to edit a piece on a laptop, on location, for a corporate show. It featured a music clip that had been supplied to me. It sounded great on the laptop, but when we played it back on the ginormous speakers, it was horrible. And there was nothing I could do about it.
But I did learn to look at the waveforms of supplied music clips after that. This one was almost a solid black line – totally compressed and limited rather than having a nice range of peaks and valleys.
And – it sounded just fine on the laptop!
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yup!
Want better production audio?: Ty Ford’s Audio Bootcamp Field Guide
Ty Ford Blog: Ty Ford’s Blog -
Yup, you need to check your mix in what \are likely to be the final product playback conditions. While it’s true that starting with good quality will play out, to some extent, in the end, I find this is mostly true in the original tracks. Crappy mic technique is forever; there is not such thing as “fix it in the mix”, really (all fabulous remastering tech included, there is a limit). Solid, reliable habit, but has a limited effect upon the end listener’s experience.
It might be apocryphal, but it’s an instructive anecdote anyway… Supposedly, back in the early seventies when studio lock-outs lasting several weeks was normal by big dolllar acts, among them was Stevie Wonder. He and his crew would, supposedly, check studio mixes by taking cassette dubs out to their respective cars in the lot and listen. Majority vote of good sound in those cars determined the final mix.
Also, those awful Auratones were in pro studios for a _long_ time for good reason.
— TRG7, San Francisco
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