I’m mixing the internal sound system on my Kawai NV10S with external Yamaha HS7s and a HS8s sub. I’ve noticed that the notes in the first two octaves over middle C are very pronounced, overly percussive and unmusical through the HS7s (not so through the NV10s speakers, but the overall sound is boxy, hence my use of the external monitors). I’ve tried tweaking settings (velocity curve, hammer hardness, resonance) on the various VSTs I’m using I use, but can’t seem to get a sound I like (as compared to headphones and even what I get through smaller Presonus monitors + internal sound on my Yamaha P515). I’ve also tried using dynamic EQ plugins in my Cantabile song mappings to cut down the range of notes, but I’m still unhappy with the result. I also have the tweeter cutoff switch on the HS7s set at -2db though I’m thinking that the problem frequencies are actually rendered by the upper range of the woofer. I have the volume and cutoff on the HS8s sub both set fairly low. It’s really just to provide some extra low end.
Bases on some reports I’ve read about midrange problems with the HS7, I’ve come to the conclusion that it may be time to consider trying another set of monitors and I’ve narrowed it down to the Adam A8H or the Genelec 8050B. I’m leaning towards the Adams because
- They’re 3 way, with a dedicated mid-range speaker
- They’re front ported (my monitors are against the wall and I can’t change this
- I like the more conventional appearance
- I’d also like to use these speakers with my stereo to supplement my PSB tower speakers, which are on the other side of the room, and the A8H are billed as a ‘near-field/mid-field’ monitor (not sure if this is marketing or they do actually have a wider dispersion)
A lot of people swear by the 8050B and they’ve been around for a while, whereas the A8H is fairly new. I’ve heard some complaints about the brightness of the ribbon tweeter and also about reliability in the Adams speaker line. My speakers are on stands behind my piano, about 3 feet from where I’m sitting, and wondering if that’s too close for these speakers.
Is anyone currently using the A8H with a digital piano/midi controller and have comments? Also, can you comment on the ‘room sound’ further away?