1. All my monitoring goes through RME8DS with ATTY. It has 3 options for output: -10/+4/Hi Gain Now what I get from these 3 is significantly different, but which one is "right" to use? Obviously the more gain RME pumps out, the more hi-end I can hear.
2. What level should I monitor when mastering? Is it supposed to be within some dB range? Where can I get a device to measure this?
3. Now what level should I monitor with headphones & how do I measure this?
1. You use whatever your inputs are. If you're running to a balanced XLR or TRS connector, use +4. If you're unbalanced 1/4" or RCA, use -10.
2. Around 83-85dBSPL is a relatively "universal good volume" for accuracy and translation. You should most definitely have your monitors calibrated properly to the space against a "home" spot (on whatever your controller is) at a set level (-20dBFS pink noise = 83dBSPL @ "home" setting). Radio Shack has a surprisingly decent & cheap digital SPL meter (C-weighted, slow response by the way).
3. You shouldn't. Headphones are for checking mixes and maybe fixing fades or zeroing in on clicks and pops.
4. Up to you on that one. It's a nice unit. So is the (PreSonus) Central Station (which is packed to the gills with goodies and great metering).
I had a Central Station for some time before I got the Avocet. It's a great unit - Worth twice the price. Good DA, feature-packed, front-panel calibration, "A-or-B-plus-C" switching (allowing the use of a parallel sub or a live-room send), lots more.
The only thing I wish it had would be a rotary switch instead of a potentiometer on the volume control. It didn't like tracking at really low volume (as many pots don't) and it's hard to find a "home" spot" to calibrate to. But I suppose with the price point, I wouldn't expect it anyway.
Their new desktop unit is super cool for me. If I knew it would be at least on the level of my ADI8 DA & headphone amps are good quality I'd get one when it comes out.
Reasonable if I recall. I only use headphones every couple of months or so... I don't remember them being particularly wonderful or particularly noisy...
I found it hard to justify the cost of the Central Station.... until I got one. Now it may just be the longest-lived piece of gear in my studio. I love being able to swap monitors, drop the sub, and change input sources on the fly (and the metering is nice as well). I don't actually use the D/A, but the headphone outs seem good enough for tracking.
Originally posted by RandyLand: I found it hard to justify the cost of the Central Station.... until I got one. Now it may just be the longest-lived piece of gear in my studio. I love being able to swap monitors, drop the sub, and change input sources on the fly (and the metering is nice as well). I don't actually use the D/A, but the headphone outs seem good enough for tracking.
Randyland: How do you "drop the sub" with the CS? The monitor section allows listening to only one set of monitors at a time (which in my view is the greatest shortcoming of the unit and almost prevented me from purchasing it). Therefore the CS cannot be set it up to listen to the mains and a sub together unless they are routed from the same monitor output. So again, the question is how have you set this up to "drop the sub." I'm curious because I'd love to be able to do this! Thanks!
The Central Station is "A-or-B-plus-C" -- You can have the sub in "C" (and thus avoid the built-in crossover if you're running it in parallel).
That way, you can (A) ditch the sub, (B) run the sub with two similar sets of speakers (if you can get away with only one calibration point) and (C) SOLO the sub if necessary.
Originally posted by John Scrip: The Central Station is "A-or-B-plus-C" -- You can have the sub in "C" (and thus avoid the built-in crossover if you're running it in parallel).
That way, you can (A) ditch the sub, (B) run the sub with two similar sets of speakers (if you can get away with only one calibration point) and (C) SOLO the sub if necessary.
Originally posted by nbarts: I don't get it, how are you able to use the sub without frequency crossover? Don't you have too much information built up on those freqs?
Well I think one would need to adjust the sub crossover at the point where the mains roll off? And perhaps tweak the low end adjustments on the main monitors as well. This is strictly a theoretical guess. Hopefully John and/or others who know can clarify.
Oops. I guess I missed the reply on this. Yeah, the C output can be used with A or B, or solo. A would be my main monitors, KRK V88's, B is a pair of Avantone Mixcubes, and C is my Genelec 1094 sub. The KRK's and the Avantones run full range, and the sub is crossed over around 60hz, and sounds phenomenal if I may say so myself.
Radio Shack has a surprisingly decent & cheap digital SPL meter (C-weighted, slow response by the way).
I finally bought one. By the way I put the device right where my ear is pointing at the speaker. Is it the right way to do it?
I did the setup with pink noise at 79db for each speaker (83 for both), which was just a bit louder than where I usually have it. Now when I play a song it peaks at about 95db, rarely it reaches even 100db. Is this normal?
I'm not exactly sure what you're calibration method is, but I wouldn't want to mix around 95dB myself. I suppose the "norm" would be around 82-83 but my preference is more around 77-78.
If you are monitoring as you say from the listening position, that seems pretty loud to me.
So I don't get it. Do I have to set it up 83db for a ready mastered song or for -20rms pink noise?
The point where I was monitoring it all this time measured on a -11RMS mix was about 85db. Measuring with pink noise (like written in John's blog) made me turn the volume up some, which brought the same -11RMS mix to 95db.
The reference is -20dBRMS pink at the "home" spot (Unity, 12 o'clock, whatever it may be). You'd have to turn down around 10dB to be at the same level with a -10dBRMS piece.
