The final score is computed using this formula: %Price relative rating x Price % importance + %Flatness relative rating x %Flatness Importance + %Reviews relative rating x %Reviews Importance + %Bass wattage relative rating x %Bass wattage importance + %Lowest bass relative rating x %Lowest bass importance.
However if you put more importance on the accuracy of the monitor and the lowest bass frequency without much importance to the price and other factors:
Price= 5%
Flatness accuracy=45%
Amazon rating=2.5%
Bass amp wattage= 2.5%
Lowest bass frequency= 45%
The following are the recommended nearfield monitors:
1.) Yamaha HS80M
2.) M-audio Bx8a
3.) Alesis M1 Active MkII
Score computation:
The following score computation below takes account accuracy of bass and low frequency response. This is typically important if you are using the nearfield monitors for mixing deep bass which are very common in rock, pop and hip hop music.
Bear in mind that if the nearfield monitors does not have very flat bass frequency response, it won’t be faithful in reproducing bass frequencies. Thus, it can affect low end frequency response manipulation such as EQ adjustments.
One thing worth observing is that accurate monitors that can reproduce bass frequencies very well are often more expensive than the rest of the monitors that are classified in the previous section.
accuracy of bass and low frequency response
Of course, you can do your own computation if you find some other factors more important than the others. For example, if you put a heavy importance on the reviews more than any other factors then the recommended list of reference monitors above will drastically change and it will not be the same as recommended previously.
Summary: Top Performing Nearfield Monitors below $1000 (Considering high accuracy, price and low frequency response performance)
“Yamaha HS80M reference monitor”
“M-audio Bx8a reference monitor”
“Alesis M1 Active MkII reference monitor”
Think beyond nearfield monitors
Selecting a high quality and decent studio monitoring system is not the end of your quest for a perfect home recording studio. You should also pay attention to a lot of factors that can influence the accuracy of your monitoring system. I recommend you read the following tutorials to learn more about these factors:
1.) Tips to Make your Mix Translate Better
2.) Home Studio Recording and Mixing Studio Setup
3.) Testing Room Acoustics and Analysis Tutorial
4.) Absorption vs. Diffusion in Home Studio Acoustic Room Treatment
Content last updated on June 15, 2012