Speakers for non-profit audio school
bobsandifer
Posts: 6
Good day,
Me and my wife operate a non-profit audio school for underprivileged kids. There is no charge for the kids to attend so our budget is almost nonexistent. We need to replace a set of speakers in our mastering room and the kids all voted that they would like stereo speakers this time around. We already use some Polk products so this was a good choice for us.
What would be a good set for our needs in the -1k range? I realize this is not much to work with but as I stated earlier our budget is pretty tight. Scratches, dings and other oddities are fine as it gives the kids another project to work on.
I look forward to any replies.
Me and my wife operate a non-profit audio school for underprivileged kids. There is no charge for the kids to attend so our budget is almost nonexistent. We need to replace a set of speakers in our mastering room and the kids all voted that they would like stereo speakers this time around. We already use some Polk products so this was a good choice for us.
What would be a good set for our needs in the -1k range? I realize this is not much to work with but as I stated earlier our budget is pretty tight. Scratches, dings and other oddities are fine as it gives the kids another project to work on.
I look forward to any replies.
Bob Sandifer - http://bobsandifer.com
Proud co-host of The PitchORditch Show
http://pitchORditchlive.com - Providing funding for the First Offender Program
Proud co-host of The PitchORditch Show
http://pitchORditchlive.com - Providing funding for the First Offender Program
Comments
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You could look for a pair of old Polk Monitor 7s on Craigslist or Ebay. Those tend to go for around $100 a pair and can outperform most new speakers in the $1K range even if not updated. The kids could learn a thing or two about how speakers work by modifying or updating them.
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bobsandifer wrote: »Good day,
Me and my wife operate a non-profit audio school for underprivileged kids. There is no charge for the kids to attend so our budget is almost nonexistent. We need to replace a set of speakers in our mastering room and the kids all voted that they would like stereo speakers this time around. We already use some Polk products so this was a good choice for us.
What would be a good set for our needs in the -1k range? I realize this is not much to work with but as I stated earlier our budget is pretty tight. Scratches, dings and other oddities are fine as it gives the kids another project to work on.
I look forward to any replies.
First off, welcome to club Polk! This is a very rad thing that you do, thank you for putting time and love into these kids!
I really like Polk speakers, but for mastering I would probably lean towards studio monitors as you want as flat a response as possible so you will have the best idea how the music sounds without any emphasis on a particular frequency range or tonal quality, but you probably already know that sorry!
I really like the older Polk RT25is for near field: they are pretty neutral but still fun. You would need a sub with them, and I would get something sealed not from Polk, but would still put you well under budget.
Also, the L200s were the most neutral of the newer polks that I have heard. I know those are out of your budget, but the new R200s should have a similar sound, so those might also for the bill. Good luck!
Living Room 2.2: Usher BE-718 "tiny dancers"; Dual DIY Dayton audio RSS210HF-4 Subs with Dayton SPA-250 amps; Arcam SA30; Musical Fidelity A308; Sony UBP-x1000es
Game Room 5.1.4: Denon AVR-X4200w; Sony UBP-x700; Definitive Technology Power Monitor 900 mains, CLR-3000 center, StudioMonitor 350 surrounds, ProMonitor 800 atmos x4; Sub - Monoprice Monolith 15in THX Ultra
Bedroom 2.1 Harmon Kardon HK3490; Bluesounds Node N130; Polk RT25i; ACI Titan Subwoofer -
I really like Polk speakers, but for mastering I would probably lean towards studio monitors as you want as flat a response as possible so you will have the best idea how the music sounds without any emphasis on a particular frequency range or tonal quality, but you probably already know that sorry!
Also, the L200s were the most neutral of the newer polks that I have heard. I know those are out of your budget, but the new R200s should have a similar sound, so those might also for the bill. Good luck!
Rooftop. Thank you for the reply. I understand the requirements of the monitors but again this was a vote from the kids. We already have some studio monitors but they would like some home speakers to use as a reference. We use B&W 800's in my facility so they kinda want the same "feeling" bobsandifer.com is my site. We suffered a recent theft so our home reference speakers at the school were re-homed against our will. We are not sure if they are happy where they are now but we hope for the best
Bob Sandifer - http://bobsandifer.com
Proud co-host of The PitchORditch Show
http://pitchORditchlive.com - Providing funding for the First Offender Program -
I guess I should point out I am a professional mix and mastering engineer of 40 years. bobsandifer.com . The kids voted for a set of home tower speakers for the room. We already have some small near field monitors that have been moved into the room. They would just like another real world reference. I use Bowers and Wilkins speakers at my facility (they look nice) so I realize there are some less expensive speakers that would work for the kids just fine.Bob Sandifer - http://bobsandifer.com
Proud co-host of The PitchORditch Show
http://pitchORditchlive.com - Providing funding for the First Offender Program -
You could look for a pair of old Polk Monitor 7s on Craigslist or Ebay. Those tend to go for around $100 a pair and can outperform most new speakers in the $1K range even if not updated. The kids could learn a thing or two about how speakers work by modifying or updating them.
Thank you for the advice Emlyn. I will take a look.Bob Sandifer - http://bobsandifer.com
Proud co-host of The PitchORditch Show
http://pitchORditchlive.com - Providing funding for the First Offender Program -
bobsandifer wrote: »I guess I should point out I am a professional mix and mastering engineer of 40 years. bobsandifer.com . The kids voted for a set of home tower speakers for the room. We already have some small near field monitors that have been moved into the room. They would just like another real world reference. I use Bowers and Wilkins speakers at my facility (they look nice) so I realize there are some less expensive speakers that would work for the kids just fine.
Hey bob, got it! Well $1000 is tight for new, but the s60s are really nice speakers, and you might be able to get some LSiM705s for around a grand. Both would be a fun reference for the kids.
But man, if you could stretch it $500 or work something out with @steveinaz , this is the deal of the century! https://forum.polkaudio.com/discussion/193879/for-sale-psb-imagine-t2-towers-shipped-free#latestLiving Room 2.2: Usher BE-718 "tiny dancers"; Dual DIY Dayton audio RSS210HF-4 Subs with Dayton SPA-250 amps; Arcam SA30; Musical Fidelity A308; Sony UBP-x1000es
Game Room 5.1.4: Denon AVR-X4200w; Sony UBP-x700; Definitive Technology Power Monitor 900 mains, CLR-3000 center, StudioMonitor 350 surrounds, ProMonitor 800 atmos x4; Sub - Monoprice Monolith 15in THX Ultra
Bedroom 2.1 Harmon Kardon HK3490; Bluesounds Node N130; Polk RT25i; ACI Titan Subwoofer -
But man, if you could stretch it $500 or work something out with @steveinaz , this is the deal of the century! https://forum.polkaudio.com/discussion/193879/for-sale-psb-imagine-t2-towers-shipped-free#latest
WOW. What a great deal. I guess I can start making calls to see if I can get our patrons to dig deeper..LOL
Thank you for the heads up.
Bob Sandifer - http://bobsandifer.com
Proud co-host of The PitchORditch Show
http://pitchORditchlive.com - Providing funding for the First Offender Program -
I suppose we are still looking. Gotta stay below the budget unless me and the wife cover the extra. However. I have seen some amazing deals on some used towers and have had the opportunity to speak with a couple of mastering engineers that own some of the higher end ones. It’s seems no one has been disappointed. The search continues.Bob Sandifer - http://bobsandifer.com
Proud co-host of The PitchORditch Show
http://pitchORditchlive.com - Providing funding for the First Offender Program -
Check out:
htd.com
Their level 2 & level 3 fall within your budget. They are well reviewed.
Also your local ebay & craigslist are great options."2 Channel & 11.2 HT "Two Channel:Magnepan LRSSchiit Audio Freya S - SS preConsonance Ref 50 - Tube preParasound HALO A21+ 2 channel ampBluesound NODE 2i streameriFi NEO iDSD DAC Oppo BDP-93KEF KC62 sub Home Theater:Full blown 11.2 set up.
