The best power amp for NS10M's, revisited
JT
happens when you have to hold down a freaking job), and it turns out
my powered Mackie monitors sound FANTASTIC...but only in the studio.
Take the mix from control room to bedroom and it's a raging Suck Fest
- overdriven bass, muffled high-end response, the whole nine yards.
So we decided that Old Skool is best and got some NS10M's for the mix.
Now the question is...what power amp should we get for it? When I
looked for some opinions at this Group, I noticed that the last time
this subject was brought up was 1999.
Now, with all due respect to the extraordinary talents who grace this
Group, I'm not looking for an argument about the quality or validity
of NS10M's. I'm sold on them and I'm sticking to them. I need advice
on a good amp to power them - We're looking for something clean and
transparent that won't cost an arm and a leg.
Any suggestions?
Thanks!
Rick Ruskin
wrote:
If you think that the NS10M's are accurate, guess again. You will
have to learn how to 2nd guess them just like almost every other
near-field system. Power amp wise - an appropriate powered ADCOM unit
should work fine without breaking the bank but that's one of many
possibilities.
Rick Ruskin
Lion Dog Music - Seattle WA
http://liondogmusic.com
Roy W. Rising
No power amp made can help the sound of NS10Ms, so it really doesn't
matter. They make good door stops, that's about it.
--
~ Roy
"If you notice the sound, it's wrong!"
dnafe
"JT" <jo...@taylorpereaurealty.com> wrote in message
news:1171760931....@m58g2000cwm.googlegroups.com...
I know this isn't an answer to your question but I'd suggest treating the
acoustics of your mixing room first...you'd be amazed what $500 in treatment
can do to a room.
Ray Thomas
unbreakable
"JT" <jo...@taylorpereaurealty.com> wrote in message
news:1171760931....@m58g2000cwm.googlegroups.com...
Ian Bell
> So it's time to mix the album after a year of tracking (which is what
> happens when you have to hold down a freaking job), and it turns out
> my powered Mackie monitors sound FANTASTIC...but only in the studio.
> Take the mix from control room to bedroom and it's a raging Suck Fest
> - overdriven bass, muffled high-end response, the whole nine yards.
>
Maybe you should look at the studio's acoustics first.
Ian
ke...@kevindoylemusic.com
>
> No power amp made can help the sound of NS10Ms, so it really doesn't
> matter. They make good door stops, that's about it.
>
> --
> ~ Roy
> "If you notice the sound, it's wrong!"
Interesting Roy; more hit records have been mixed on Ns 10's than any
other monitor.
Bob Clearmontain, Chris Lord ALGE, .........
Not to brag But I have won 13 awards ann nominations fro Canada's best
engineer and everything
mixed was on Yamaha's.
I guess it is a matter of personal choice.
kevin
audioae...@gmail.com
>
> Not to brag But I have won 13 awards ann nominations fro Canada's best
> engineer and everything
> mixed was on Yamaha's.
> I guess it is a matter of personal choice.
> kevin
maybe you would have_won_the award and not just a nomination
if you had used something other than Yamaha's
then of course, awards are well woth the adulation of the musically
gifted.
(do you auto tune too)
Ty Ford
(in article <1171799822.0...@l53g2000cwa.googlegroups.com>):
>
>>
>> No power amp made can help the sound of NS10Ms, so it really doesn't
>> matter. They make good door stops, that's about it.
>>
>> --
>>> Roy
>> "If you notice the sound, it's wrong!"
>
> Interesting Roy; more hit records have been mixed on Ns 10's than any
> other monitor.
> Bob Clearmontain, Chris Lord ALGE, .........
> Not to brag But I have won 13 awards ann nominations fro Canada's best
> engineer and everything
> mixed was on Yamaha's.
> I guess it is a matter of personal choice.
> kevin
Yes you would be exceptional. NS-10s are used frequently as secondary
monitors, but seldom as primary monitors.
Regards,
Ty Ford
--Audio Equipment Reviews Audio Production Services
Acting and Voiceover Demos http://www.tyford.com
Guitar player?:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4RZJ9MptZmU
Laurence Payne
>Interesting Roy; more hit records have been mixed on Ns 10's than any
>other monitor.
>Bob Clearmontain, Chris Lord ALGE, .........
>Not to brag But I have won 13 awards ann nominations fro Canada's best
>engineer and everything
>mixed was on Yamaha's.
>I guess it is a matter of personal choice.
You're not suggesting they were mixed using NS10s as the MAIN
monitors? I expect they were mixed on Auratones as well. It would
be foolish to choose them as your only monitors too.
Scott Dorsey
>Now, with all due respect to the extraordinary talents who grace this
>Group, I'm not looking for an argument about the quality or validity
>of NS10M's. I'm sold on them and I'm sticking to them. I need advice
>on a good amp to power them - We're looking for something clean and
>transparent that won't cost an arm and a leg.
Do you really want something clean and transparent? I know plenty of
folks who like the Crown D-60 and D-75 on the NS-10s, because the mushy
top end on the Crown helps tame the NS-10 top end. I also know plenty
of folks who are big fans of the Yamaha power amps with the NS-10s, and
say they don't sound right with anything else.
Since the reason you use the NS-10s is uniformity and interchangeability,
not good sound quality, it's more important to use the amps that everyone
else is using than the amps that sound best. I suspect that means the
Yamahas.
--scott
--
"C'est un Nagra. C'est suisse, et tres, tres precis."
kellykevm
anything about orgasmic playbacks that wow the clientele. So, as to
the original question... I've always felt that the old DH500 or P500
Haflers matched well with the Yammies - even the DH200's. The newer
Hafler's never sounded as good to me. Crown DC300's or Microtechs can
light them up nicely. Lot o' watts seems to help them, however, you'll
blow more drivers that way. Not so much when listening, but rather
when the bass player unplugs from the DI before you've got the fader
down -. but then you deserve it, if you were using them to monitor a
bass overdub. Fusing them is the studio owner's answer, not the
listener's.
I can't resist. I still trust the crossover area of the NS10M
(originals preferred over "studio") They are obviously edgy bright and
have no low octave, but the transition between drivers makes it easy
to apply midrange EQ. If the kick and bass figure speaks on the NS10's
and does not blow you away on speakers with more low frequency
extension, you're probably in a good place. Using them alone without a
full range monitor to check against is only for the foolhardy or
clairvoyant.
Kevin
kellykevm
anything about orgasmic playbacks that wow the clientele. So, as to
the original question... I've always felt that the old DH500 or P500
Haflers matched well with the Yammies - even the DH200's. The newer
Hafler's never sounded as good to me. Crown DC300's or Microtechs can
light them up nicely. Lot o' watts seems to help them, however, you'll
blow more drivers that way. Not so much when listening, but rather
when the bass player unplugs from the DI before you've got the fader
down -. but then you deserve it, if you were using them to monitor a
bass overdub. Fusing them is the studio owner's answer, not the
listener's.
I can't resist. I still trust the crossover area of the NS10M
(originals preferred over "studio") They are obviously edgy bright and
have no low octave, but the transition between drivers makes it easy
to apply midrange EQ. If the kick and bass figure speaks on the NS10's
and does not blow you away on speakers with more low frequency
extension, you're probably in a good place. Using them alone without a
full range monitor to check against is only for the foolhardy or
clairvoyant.
Kevin
Roy W. Rising
[SOUNDS LIKE BRAGGING TO ME! Do you use the same fingers to mix as to
type?]
"more hit records have been mixed on Ns 10's than any other monitor."
ROTFLMAO! Imagine Capitol Records using NS10Ms on a Sinatra session! Bwah
Ha Ha Ha!
Geoff
Maybe you could habe won another 30 or so otherwise,
geoff
0jun...@bellsouth.net
On 2007-02-18 er9pri$2b3$1...@panix2.panix.com said:
>The newer Hafler's never sounded as good to me. Crown DC300's or
>Microtechs can light them up nicely. Lot o' watts seems to help
>them, however, you'll blow more drivers that way. Not so much when
>listening, but rather when the bass player unplugs from the DI
>before you've got the fader down -. but then you deserve it, if you
>were using them to monitor a bass overdub. Fusing them is the
>studio owner's answer, not the listener's.
as the muso is done <g>.
>I can't resist. I still trust the crossover area of the NS10M
>(originals preferred over "studio") They are obviously edgy bright
>and have no low octave, but the transition between drivers makes it
>easy to apply midrange EQ. If the kick and bass figure speaks on
>the NS10's and does not blow you away on speakers with more low
>frequency extension, you're probably in a good place. Using them
>alone without a full range monitor to check against is only for the
>foolhardy or clairvoyant.
I find this to be true as well. I used to take my mixes to
a friend's studio to listen occasionally when in process to
tell me where I was at since I had no other monitors for a
good long while.
AT the last there in NEW ORleans I'd go downstairs, plug in
the big sr speakers and the bigger amp and give a listen
there. I could trust them with my room I found, because I
knew how they behaved and was lighting them up with enough
power.
Richard webb,
Electric Spider Productions
Replace anything before the @ symbol with elspider for real
email address.
Amazing how much tape is on a 10" reel when it's not.
david correia
Rick Ruskin <lio...@isomedia.com> wrote:
Rick is quite right. You'll still have to get used to them. I hated them
at first but had to have them in my place. Now I wouldn't work without
them.
David Correia
www.Celebrationsound.com
david correia
God, what a stupid reply. It's crap like this that keeps pros outta here.
Maybe next you can tell Manny Ramirez how to hit.
David Correia
www.Celebrationsound.com
david correia
Laurence Payne <lpayne1NOSPAM@dslDOTpipexDOTcom> wrote:
NS10's *replaced* Auratones on console bridges. And yes, they were
*mixed* on them. For hours and hours and hours.
I'm sure the mixes were checked on the big mains to check the bottom if
the control room had a clue.
David Correia
www.Celebrationsound.com
david correia
"kellykevm" <profk...@yahoo.com> wrote:
> The original poster said the NS10M's are useful to him. He didn't say
> anything about orgasmic playbacks that wow the clientele. So, as to
> the original question... I've always felt that the old DH500 or P500
> Haflers matched well with the Yammies - even the DH200's. The newer
> Hafler's never sounded as good to me. Crown DC300's or Microtechs can
> light them up nicely. Lot o' watts seems to help them, however, you'll
> blow more drivers that way. Not so much when listening, but rather
> when the bass player unplugs from the DI before you've got the fader
> down -. but then you deserve it, if you were using them to monitor a
> bass overdub. Fusing them is the studio owner's answer, not the
> listener's.
>
> I can't resist. I still trust the crossover area of the NS10M
> (originals preferred over "studio") They are obviously edgy bright and
> have no low octave, but the transition between drivers makes it easy
> to apply midrange EQ. If the kick and bass figure speaks on the NS10's
> and does not blow you away on speakers with more low frequency
> extension, you're probably in a good place. Using them alone without a
> full range monitor to check against is only for the foolhardy or
> clairvoyant.
>
> Kevin
Kevin, I replaced a Crown Microtech 1000 that was powering ns10's with a
4b, and the ns10's lost a lot of their previous nastiness, made them
very easy to spend long hours with. With the Microtechs I'd found them
hard to take for long periods.
The Microtech has lived as the headphone amp since. The suggestion came
from another engineer, and I'm glad I tried it.
I have a pair of the orig ns10's at home in my office. I switched to the
studio version at work waybackwhen. Am curious about your crossover
comment. Have you spent much time with the studio version?
I had a really famous engineer in here recently, and his fave was the
studio version with the orig tweeters. And yes, covered with a tissue.
David Correia
www.Celebrationsound.com
Roy W. Rising
> In article <20070218134038.984$B...@newsreader.com>,
> Roy W. Rising <rwri...@dslextreme.com> wrote:
>
> > ke...@kevindoylemusic.com wrote:
> > >
> > > Interesting Roy; more hit records have been mixed on Ns 10's than any
> > > other monitor.
> > >
> > > best engineer and everything mixed was on Yamaha's. I guess it is a
> > > matter of personal choice. kevin
> >
> > [SOUNDS LIKE BRAGGING TO ME! Do you use the same fingers to mix as to
> > type?]
> >
> > "more hit records have been mixed on Ns 10's than any other monitor."
> >
> > ROTFLMAO! Imagine Capitol Records using NS10Ms on a Sinatra session!
> > Bwah Ha Ha Ha!
> >
>
> God, what a stupid reply. It's crap like this that keeps pros outta here.
>
> Maybe next you can tell Manny Ramirez how to hit.
>
> David Correia
> www.Celebrationsound.com
Well, David, if you can explain what was "stupid" about my statements,
maybe I'll accept your characterization as "crap". And don't call me
"God".
Richard Crowley
> Roy W. Rising wrote:
>> "more hit records have been mixed on Ns 10's than any other monitor."
>>
>> ROTFLMAO! Imagine Capitol Records using NS10Ms on a Sinatra session!
>> Bwah
>> Ha Ha Ha!
> God, what a stupid reply. It's crap like this that keeps pros outta here.
> Maybe next you can tell Manny Ramirez how to hit.
If you don't know who Roy Rising is, you need to get out more.
Roy W. Rising
Thank you, Richard! I'm just trying to be helpful here.
david correia
Imo "stupid" is pissing - "Bwah Ha Ha Ha!" & "ROTFLMAO!" come to mind -
on a tool that has worked trememdously well for lotsa folks. Me
included. And for 2 decades now and counting.
The fact that you obviously dislike them and see fit to loudly &
publicly crap on them says to me: a) the people that use them are
dumbfucks, or b) that you are much smarter than the dolts like me who
love them.
David Correia
www.Celebrationsound.com
david correia
"Richard Crowley" <rcro...@xp7rt.net> wrote:
One of the surprising things about getting old is that you begin to like
staying in more and more. At least that is what's happening to me.
David Correia
www.Celebrationsound.com