Improving home studio sound

It's not

It's a Rockwool product of this type http://www2.rockwool.dk/produkter/terranbatts-erhverv/ - sorry the webpage is in Danish, I was not able to find the product on the US page.

The Rockwool measures 1000x600x100 mm^3 and it is mounted on a wooden frame, which is 7 cm deep, so the depth of each panel is 17 cm. The air behind the insulation helps the sound absorption a lot.

They look a bit saggy, but that is because I did not attach the rockwool directly to the frame. (the interweb instructions said it was not necessary, but I should have done that), so the frame and insulation are held together only by the fabric, and the fabric turned out to be a bit elastic.

I should have some pictures from the build process, but I cannot find them right now.
 
In my experience: To improve patches supposed to be played loud, they'd have to be tweaked loud, preferably in the same environment on the same gear.

What I did to improve my home studio (evergoing project):
acoustic treatment (lots to be said on this - google), good monitors (I sold the KRK Rokits and got some Adams. Not that I felt the KRKs were bad, but for mixing and accuracy - Adams were better). One can only go as far with home studios without drastic building steps, limited space etc. Everything helps of course, but I researched mixing in headphones and found it to be a valuable addition to accurate sound. A good pair of open back headphones + a few plugins (Waves NX and Sonarworks reference), takes the whole room out of the equation and one can mix and play at desired volume any time of day.
 
well i went out and got a pair of beyerdynamics dt 880 pro headphomes and WOW what a difference! much more natural sounding specially when using a distorted tones. i realize ill never be able to reproduce the same sound i get at rehearsal but i do now hear tones that i think ill will be able to tweak, and just jamming at home became way more fun. cant wait to try some higher end monitors
 
The best solution: Get a mixer and Mackie powered speakers for at home. Just get 1 if you can.

It is no different than a real guitar amp and cab. If you don't dial in tones at gig volume, they won't translate from the bedroom to the stage either.

When dialing in tones on studio monitors:
1) Use reference tracks to compare guitar tones. A/B with the tone you know sounds good on your PA.
2) Pan your guitar all the way hard left or right in your studio monitor. It is easier to dial in the sound this way. Centered tones will sound different. When reamping for an album I always have the tone coming out of 1 speaker. To me, it is so much easier.
3) Remember a tone that sounds good in a mix or in with the band will probably sound mediocre on it's own.

I make different patches for use with a real cabs, recording, and studio monitors for jamming. Usually just EQ/Resonance tweaks.
 
Hello. My first post here. Has owned the AX8 since April and has been lurking the forum ever since picking up good and useful things.

I know there are several threads about home monitoring, so I thought I’d add my query here rather than starting yet another one.

I need a good quality solution for home monitoring when creating and tweaking patches, without breaking the bank completely. It should work as a good “reference” and be as neutral as possible and I will fine-tune the patches later at rehearsals and live.

Would it be better to go with an actual powered FRFR speaker in lower price range, or near field monitors of at least “good” quality?

I currently have the chance of getting Alto TS215 new on a demo deal for about 280 USD or a pair of second hand Adam A3X for the same price.

What do you think would make me happier in this case?

I will mainly be making high gain patches in mono. Both options match my needs in terms of specs (I usually always cut my signal at 100 Hz in the cab block anyway), and I tend to lean towards the Adams as I always prefer quality and neutral sound before “boom and impact”. However maybe a FRFR speaker would be a better option and would make the patches better justice as they are intended for live use?
 
I don't think you will ever be happy with a 3" speaker (the Adams). Altos seem to be a quite popular option :)
 
Limebranch said:
Despite the name, Adams A3X actually has a 4.5” woofer. But maybe won’t make much of a difference in this situation?
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I've had a pair of A5X with 5.5“ woofers. I have to admit, their low frequencies were much better than I expected. I was quite happy with A5X's for several years and upgraded to A7X's last year. Needless to say, A7X's have even better low end.

Based on my experience with ADAM AX series, I'd suppose that the lows of A3X's would be (more or less) acceptable. Their frequency response range starts at 60 Hz, it's not that bad at all. Furthermore, I believe that A3X's will perform really great at all the other frequencies except the lows, and as you told, you will cut the lows anyway. I'd definitely recommend to take a look at them. Subsequently, if you'll decide that the low end would definitely benefit of some boost, adding a subwoofer might also be an option.

Eman7422 said:
Need A7x
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Definitely! :)
 
lummox said:
Based on my experience with ADAM AX series, I'd suppose that the lows of A3X's would be (more or less) acceptable. Their frequency response range starts at 60 Hz, it's not that bad at all. Furthermore, I believe that A3X's will perform really great at all the other frequencies except the lows, and as you told, you will cut the lows anyway. I'd definitely recommend to take a look at them. Subsequently, if you'll decide that the low end would definitely benefit of some boost, adding a subwoofer might also be an option.
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Yes, judging from only the specs the frequency range should be enough. Might be worth a try as I can use them as studio monitors for occasional home recordings otherwise. Have also been looking into small Genelecs which I’ve heard should be pretty ”neutral” too ...
 
Smittefar said:
... I am very happy with my Beyer Dynamic DT990 ...
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fractalz said:
... +1 on the DT990 ...
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Eman7422 said:
... Beyerdynamic headphones are great ...
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EricBic said:
well i went out and got a pair of beyerdynamics dt 880 pro headphones and WOW what a difference! much more natural sounding ...
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Around the same time this thread started, I was once again thinking of purchasing some good quality headphones. Based on the recommendations in this thread, I eventually ordered the DT 900 Pro. They came today, and I'm very pleased.

Thanks for pointing me toward these headphones!
 
At home I use the same as live. My Yamaha DBR10 with the volume at “listening to live music” level as opposed to gig level.

I know what my presets need to be from dialing them in at rehearsal at gig level and my presets have mostly the same level on the VU meter.

So when building a new one i set it up as per the guides on setting levels for presets and matching my live level requirements and try it on the DBR10 with the OUT1 or OUT2 level or speaker level lower.l than gig. Even though it’s lower in volume I know if it will be close and the ‘tone’ is mostly there.
 
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