The mightiest, mini-est monitor: dB FM8

DanGuitarMan

Inspired
I recently picked up the dB Technologies Flexsys FM8, and I’m a fan.

There are a lot of 8” coax monitors, but not very many of them are powered. I was fortunate enough to do a gig at the Rainbow Room a few months ago, and everyone had their own dB FM8...sounded fantastic! First time I'd ever come across one.

I have a CLR, which I love and tend to compare everything against. In a perfect world, the CLR would be my go-to every gig, but now I tend to use it more for designing sounds and playing larger stages once in a while. I take the train a lot and also walk to my rehearsal space weekly. Portability is really important to me, and I always felt that I had to suffer through sub-par sound to achieve that. Not so much these days.

Pros
Portable - lighter than a QSC K8.2 (22 lbs vs 27 lbs) and almost the same size as an Alto TX8 (11" x 11" x 16”)
Affordable - costs $225 less than the QSC K8.2
Intelligible - the thing sounds consistent sound no matter where you stick your head
Flexible - two monitoring angles, pole mount, and built in DSP for using with vocals, instruments, or playback
Good looking - perfect shape and no ugly wires sticking out of the back

Cons
Can only push moderate volume levels (117db)
Small size makes it sound a wee bit stiff in the low end - everything’s a trade off

Ok, so that’s my rave review and I’m sticking to it :)

Are there any other powered 8” coax monitors floating out there in the ether?

Update:
The FM8 is a bit on the warm side. It's a net positive thing to me, because nothing gets my goat or grinds my gears like hyped treble. Sits very well in a band setting and feels natural.
 
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The only other ones the I know of are QSC and FBT!that have a powered 8" monitor but I have not played through either of them. I have looked at the db FM8 a few times, nice to know that it sounds good!
 
The only other ones the I know of are QSC and FBT!that have a powered 8" monitor but I have not played through either of them. I have looked at the db FM8 a few times, nice to know that it sounds good!

Wow, the FBT Verve 8ma looks really good too!
 
Wow, the FBT Verve 8ma looks really good too!
Scott Peterson used to use one of these and liked it back then.
I tried the Verve 8ma at a store and was surprised how much sound it put out for such a small box.

There are a handful of 8" boxes, but very few that are coax.
Turbosound iQ8 was a surprisingly nice sounding box.
 
I have a pair of FBT Verve 8ma. They are built like a tank, sound great for 8s, tons of volume, and weigh 25lbs. Not sure they make them any longer.

I did just purchase a 12” Xitone powered wedge which I like better; however. Mick may be able to produce an 8” version.
 
I have a pair of FBT Verve 8ma. They are built like a tank, sound great for 8s, tons of volume, and weigh 25lbs. Not sure they make them any longer.

I did just purchase a 12” Xitone powered wedge which I like better; however. Mick may be able to produce an 8” version.

Yeah, I looked around for the verve and they seem to be made of unobtanium at the moment.

I would love to try a xitone out, but it might be redundant considering I already have the CLR.

My game plan has been to have the most portable option, and the best sounding option, with nothing in between. Best of both worlds and I don't have that "what if" feeling if I bought something that was a compromise between the two.
 
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