Best set up for home mixing?

Hey guys, looking to upgrade to a nice, weighty home system for when I'm just mixing in my spare time.

I'm totally new to all things audio, but I've been looking at a few different options.

A. Get a Studio Monitor pair (KRK or something in that range) and add a subwoofer in
B. PA System, although idk if this would be TOO much volume for me, I live in a small house
C. Home Theatre/HiFi system. Get a few satellite speakers and a sub, get a receiver and run that.

I really want to be able to use my S4 as the soundcard still, looking for the least amount of hassle to get awesome, full sound, although a little bit of legwork isn't really a problem.

So, really, what is everyone else out there using at home? What would you suggest under about 1000 total.
Note that if I do get a PA system it probably won't leave the house, most venues already have systems here and I'm done with house parties for a while.

KRK rp8s, maybe a KRK 10s Sub and you'll be golden.

i agree that a good pair of monitors and sub is a nice choice. To get a 2-channel system to be accurate, low, AND loud is not easy for less than $1000 bucks. I would suggest listening to some active monitors and start with that and if you need more ooomph, get a subwoofer.
If you had more money and you really want a midfield system, you should be looking at something like a pair of NHT classic 4 with a 2 channel amp. Or similar tower speakers like B&W, Monitor Audio, Focal, etc.
I'd definitely steer away from compression driver PA speakers in your home, these can be brutally harsh and fatigue your ears easily, unless again you shell out some serious bucks for an audiophile horn system.

Awesome, I'm definitely thinking the Studio Monitor route is going to be the best without a doubt. Now I have a few more questions about said set up.

Do I have to pair Studio Monitors with a "studio" sub? Could I just purchase an powered sub and run it with them? The KRK sub seems sort of pricey for it's specs although it could be a real banger? I've just noticed that most studio monitoring companies don't make many subwoofers, so I'm guessing that people buy a powered sub elsewhere and run it in tandem?

Also will I need any sort of monitoring controller to run the monitors with a sub. I was browsing around and found this: http://www.uniquesquared.com/jbl-msc...ontroller.html while searching through JBL stuff. It was advertising that it allows you to run your monitors and sub together, although it does have a wealth of other stuff.

TL;DR - Do I need a "studio controller" to run a sub in tandem with the monitors, and can I run any powered sub with said monitors?

Thank you guys for your help!

I have always thought that studio monitors are great... if you are producing. For DJing, I say get a pair of PA's if you have the money. If not, go for a pair of half decent floor standing speakers and an amp. It's gonna sound nicer than any pair of studio monitors, and while it won't push what a PA can, it will blow away the studio monitors.

No, you don't need a "studio" sub, or a controller. Any decent sub will have all the controls you need on it to blend it with your monitors.
I recommend Hsu.

After I bought my S4 n laptop i was pretty much broke lol so i just ran the S4 through my 2ch home theatre system, the sound quality wasnt great, it was loud but lacked bass so i bought a cheap $100 active 10" sub and for a budget home set-up, it was good, hope i helped in some way

Yamaha HS80M.

2 of them have MORE than enough bass for a home mixing setup, won't kill your neighbours, can crank them up real loud and they don't distort AND they sound better than KRKs.

If you are going to get a separate sub, make sure it's a good one. It doesn't necessarily have to be the KRK one, although that would be the best match for KRK monitors. Most of them have built in crossovers so you can just set the cutoff level on the back of the sub and plug the monitors in there as well.

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Originally Posted by biru

Yamaha HS80M.

2 of them have MORE than enough bass for a home mixing setup, won't kill your neighbours, can crank them up real loud and they don't distort AND they sound better than KRKs.

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+1

I sincerely love mine <3

Unless you live in a warehouse, a PA setup would be massive overkill. Check out monitors in person if you can - I prefer the sound of the KRKs to the Yamahas for general listening, but obviously different people have different tastes in sound.

I vote Hi-Fi / home theatre setup.
Its WAY cheaper for decent second hand gear. Got myself a very nice 2.1 setup with mission speakers, mordaunt short sub and rotel amp for around the £250 mark. (the sub was purchased new btw)

The benefit of having a hifi system is a multitude of inputs with a remote control to boot. So when I wanna watch a film instead of jamming, I dont need to piss about with cables behind my setup.

You mention you live in a small house, are these speakers to be used for more than just djing?

KRK's are ok. Good mid bass & they make a great monitor speaker. But they are pants for production and youre paying over the odds for the brand name. The yamaha's that were suggested above blew the krks out of the water, looked better and I think theyre cheaper to boot.

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Originally Posted by Hstanford1

Hey guys, looking to upgrade to a nice, weighty home system for when I'm just mixing in my spare time.

I'm totally new to all things audio, but I've been looking at a few different options.

A. Get a Studio Monitor pair (KRK or something in that range) and add a subwoofer in
B. PA System, although idk if this would be TOO much volume for me, I live in a small house
C. Home Theatre/HiFi system. Get a few satellite speakers and a sub, get a receiver and run that.

I really want to be able to use my S4 as the soundcard still, looking for the least amount of hassle to get awesome, full sound, although a little bit of legwork isn't really a problem.

So, really, what is everyone else out there using at home? What would you suggest under about 1000 total.
Note that if I do get a PA system it probably won't leave the house, most venues already have systems here and I'm done with house parties for a while.

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Home Theatre will NOT work. At least it didn't for me. I think it had something to do with the separate channels for the sub and the remaining 5 speakers. I thought it was because of the surround mode, so I switched it to "multi" which is the setting for my system that utilizes each speaker, and there always seemed to be a delay between what I could hear, and what i thought was beatmatched (and yes, I know VERY well how to beatmatch). I even held one of the right/left channel speakers up to my ear as I did it, and couldn't produce anything more than a massive trainwreck. So when I hooked it back up to a regular two-channel system...No problem.

Never figured out what the cause was, but I know another friend had the same problem.


Can any of the audiophiles on here shed some light on the subject?

Sorry to bump but I've got the monitors in front of me, doing a way better job than my previous set up! One question though, if I were to run RCA to a 1/8" plug (For casual movie watching or music from my computer) what cable would I need to run these to the laptop?

Even if I can only run 1 monitor on the 1/8" It's better than these tinny laptop speakers and I don't like taking up space on my desk with the S4 JUST to watch a movie.

TL;DR Can someone link me or show a picture of an RCA cable that runs from the KRK to a 1/8" jack?

Thanks guys!

[ame="http://www.amazon.co.uk/3-5mm-Jack-Phono-Audio-Cable/dp/B000Q6JQXA"]3.5mm Jack to 2 x RCA Phono Audio Cable Gold 10m Lead: Amazon.co.uk: Electronics@@AMEPARAM@@http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41oXaZpsRVL.@@AMEPARAM@@41oXaZpsRVL[/ame]

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Originally Posted by tokenasianguy

Can any of the audiophiles on here shed some light on the subject?

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Sounds like you were running the sound through a receiver?

If you were, the cause will most likely be the decoding hardware inside the receiver. Depending on how you setup your receiver it'll be expecting audio in one of many formats. Select the wrong format and the audio signal goes the long way round through several different bits of hardware trying to be decoded.

Thats where your latency might come from.

The best setup for home mixing is any setup you actually use on a daily basis.

Practicing listening and building muscle memory is more important that hardware.

So wait, the RCA input into the KRK's is a 3.5mm? Correct? Sorry I bought used from Guitar Center and I have no documentation or cables and the PDF on KRK is vague.

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Originally Posted by Flash101uk

Sounds like you were running the sound through a receiver?

If you were, the cause will most likely be the decoding hardware inside the receiver. Depending on how you setup your receiver it'll be expecting audio in one of many formats. Select the wrong format and the audio signal goes the long way round through several different bits of hardware trying to be decoded.

Thats where your latency might come from.

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Flash is correct. If you want to use your home theater setup you need to select "Direct" mode if you have it, which bypasses any decoding & "Audessey" chips and goes directly to the monitors with no delay.

I've got Krks rokit 8s and some crappy numarks. I use the krks to play out of the room, numarks to kinda monitor but all in all its great set up. I need a krk 10s to complete the system. Its great from a room in the house or a house party. PA is like a giant backyard party, way way overkill imo. Nice to have but overkill.

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Originally Posted by Hstanford1

So wait, the RCA input into the KRK's is a 3.5mm? Correct? Sorry I bought used from Guitar Center and I have no documentation or cables and the PDF on KRK is vague.

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No. The RCA is an RCA, there's only one size. But you can buy a cable that splits a 3.5mm jack into 2x RCA. Read my article on Digital DJ Tips for more info on connections: http://www.digitaldjtips.com/2011/07...tal+DJ+Tips%29