Synth through studio monitors

[tremolo3]

Anyone doing this?

I have an old but mint pair of Yorkville YSM1 and a shitty Hafler power amp that I use for everything but actual mixing and I was wondering how "safe" would it be to run a synth through these speakers. Woofer is 6.5 and tweeter is 1", rate for these is 70w. Amp is OK, not the best I've had but it's all I have right now and I'm not buying something else just for this.

I'm just worried for blowing the woofer since I don't know how much they can handle lows (TWSS). Freq response is 40-20,000 but we all know that's pure BS.

Thank you.

[crochambeau]

The only thing I'd be worried about is super low frequencies, if you can high pass them at somewhere in the 20-30 or even 40 range you won't really feel a loss. I bought some inline passive high pass filters from parts express for ~ $20 some odd for a pair for PA duty.

That said, I run my own studio monitors without, but I go easy on them - granted, they are bigger (12" woofer), so engaging the room with a wall of lows isn't pushing it too far.

[rfurtkamp]

What sort of volumes are we talking? Practice, dicking around, trying to use them for shows?

[tremolo3]

What sort of volumes are we talking? Practice, dicking around, trying to use them for shows?

Dicking around of course!

crochambeau, that sounds good! I'm wondering if having an EQ cutting frequencies below 40 will do the job too... I always run my synth through a Zoom MS70 and I could have an EQ at the end of every preset hmmm

Thanks!

[01010111]

I'd plug them into a mixer or something first. You can use the mixer as a kind of limiter and you'd have an EQ too if you wanted to roll of the low end a bit. I feel like you're more likely to start clipping the mixer than your speakers that way.

[Disarm D'arcy]

I have active studio monitors that have handled my synth usage well for the past 6-7 years

[rfurtkamp]

Yea, dicking around, don't worry about it.

if the monitors can't handle it, there's something seriously broken with them.

[spacelordmother]

I have active studio monitors that have handled my synth usage well for the past 6-7 years

Yup, same.

[popvulture]

Thirded.

[tremolo3]

Kay kay. That mixer thing sounds good too.

BTW, what monitors and synths are you guys using?

My Alpha Juno can put out some weird low chest shakes through my Sony V6s (not the ones you feel standing in front of a full stack tho), that's why I was worried in the first place.

[Disarm D'arcy]

Moog Little Phatty and Microkorg through M-Audio BX5a monitors.

[crochambeau]

My primary studio monitoring is:

Yamaha NS-1000M being driven by a Heil Sound 400 with an Autogram AC-8 doing mixing duties (I mention the mixer because it's transformer coupled on in and out and is incapable of passing DC).

Synths and synth like devices that are employed range from big tubed test & medical oscillators to 1980s analog polysynths (Kawai SX 280, Akai VX 90, Roland MKS 50) to 90s digital (EMU Morpheus), plus whatever fucked up signal path stuff I find compelling. I refuse to run the monitors in earplug territory and they stay happy.

For PA duty I've lost NUMEROUS 15 inch drivers due to loud experimental stuff - hence my earlier high pass recommendation - and I tend to protect the higher range drivers through tri-amping with tubes on top (to self limit). That stuff goes well into earplug territory though.

[rfurtkamp]

Yea, for PA-level volume, sure, but that's why I asked right off the intended volume use.

Home/dicking around levels that aren't even halfstack, anything that fails isn't much of a studio monitor!