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Beginning of a new era : Klein & Hummel O300 + Benchmark DAC-1
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Alex Roudos
IsraTrance Junior Member
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Posted : Nov 16, 2007 00:08
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Being in a quest for the ultimate sound quality that i could afford and that would be suitable for my new studio room's size(around 25m2), i pulled the trigger in the most expensive purchase i've ever made(until the next one of course 
Last week i received my brand new Klein+Hummel O300s and the Benchmark DAC-1, and i'd like to share my first impressions.
Unfortunately, i didn't have time to do any mixes on them yet but i have been listening to cds and high quality mp3s from my hard disk, using this time as a "training" period.
After listening to a lot of tracks for the last days it was the absolute jaw dropping experience, every single day.
Considering their size(a little bigger than my previous Mackie HR624s) these speakers have really HUGE sound. Not overhyped at any frequency, just HUGE. The bass response and presence is simply unbelievable, the highs very crisp and detailed but the biggest difference was made by the 2" mid woofer. Vocals, percussion and everything else that's on mid range was so clearly defined having its own and true position in the sound stage.
The stereo image and depth is something that can't be described with words(as well as the above but i had to write something anyway). Hearing is the only way.
But the sound i was getting it wasn't only because the O300s are so good. And here's where the DAC-1 comes into the game. After deciding to spend such an amount of money for the O300s, it would be ridiculous to me to rely to my Saffire's PRO 10 DA converter chip.
The result is that the DAC-1 preserved the signal quality from the digital to analog domain revealing all the clarity, stereo image, depth and airness each production/song had or not.
Actually this combination (O300s+DAC-1) is so good that it turns out to be bad(or at least very annoying). Just a 10% of the songs i listened to were sounding good. The rest were sounding from bad to awful. I guess that anything that was not correctly done during the production of the songs it was just popping up immediately during playback on this system. And it was so unpleasant that i just couldn't listen to them anymore. But i'm 100% sure that if my mixes sound good on these then they will translate wonderfully everywhere. I'll come back for that once i make the first mixdowns on my new babies.
Concluding i'd like to say that if you ever go for high end nearfield studio monitors(above 2500 euros) save or spend the extra and get 3-way monitors and a separate high quality DA converter. The overall price will be nothing compared to the sonic advantages and the results you'll get.
At least this is exactly how i feel and haven't regret it a bit.
Sorry for the long and kinda "show-off" post but i was so pleasantly surprised and just wanted to share it with all of you.
Alex.
  A friend told me once that the biggest mistake we make is that we believe we live, when in reality we are sleeping in the waiting room of life. |
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Trip-
IsraTrance Team
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Posted : Nov 16, 2007 00:11
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Lucky you 
indeed K+H had some good responses...
Did you get the USB benchmark ?
I was just looking into Lavry and Lucid, maybe aqvox too. Should've lose that console preamp. If I am able to hear them all, they would all probably sound more or less the same Crackling universes dive into their own neverending crackle...
AgalactiA |
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Alex Roudos
IsraTrance Junior Member
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Posted : Nov 16, 2007 00:19
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No, i got the normal silver version.
I suppose it would be ok for someone without any digital out in his audio interface.
Btw, if you run a search in the gearslutz forum for the converters you mentioned(DAC-1 included) you'll find a lot of info and reviews that will help you decide a lot easier.
I based my decision solely to what i've read there and in some other forums. It would be totally impossible for me to test them all side by side in my studio, where i know my sound and can tell any differences.
So i took the risk but i didn't lose
A friend told me once that the biggest mistake we make is that we believe we live, when in reality we are sleeping in the waiting room of life. |
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Get-a-fix
Getafix
Started Topics :
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1441
Posted : Nov 16, 2007 00:33
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Alex Roudos
IsraTrance Junior Member
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Posted : Nov 16, 2007 00:39
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I was expecting this question
The price was 4.178 euros(3.200 for the O300s - 978 for the DAC-1)
But it didn't set me back really. I feel more that it set me at least 2 times forward.
I just feel somehow a lot more powerful and self confident.
A friend told me once that the biggest mistake we make is that we believe we live, when in reality we are sleeping in the waiting room of life. |
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Get-a-fix
Getafix
Started Topics :
147
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Posted : Nov 16, 2007 00:45
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Nice one, i'm sure its worth every penny. Hope you've got good acoustic treatment in your studio to match this gear.
How much has your monitoring improved with the DAC-1 & K&H?
Would it be a worthy upgrade from my current monitoring setup Fireface 400 + Dynaudio BM6A?
P.S. Checking out your myspace, nice tunes.
http://www.soundcloud.com/getafixmusic |
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Kaz
IsraTrance Full Member
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Posted : Nov 16, 2007 00:55
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Quote:
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On 2007-11-16 00:45, Get-a-fix wrote:
Would it be a worthy upgrade from my current monitoring setup Fireface 400 + Dynaudio BM6A?
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the Benchmark DA is way better than any RME product, and the K+H monitors are much more complete sound-wise. If you want to make full-on, your combination is basically the standard, so I guess it would be easiest to learn how to make more of the same (production-wise) from them.
I felt the same sort of astonishment when I moved to my Adam S2As and Apogee Mini-DAC combination, enjoy bragging all you want - that setup does kick ass. Don't go cheap on the wiring though - shame to have such a beautiful setup get ruined by that. |
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Alex Roudos
IsraTrance Junior Member
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411
Posted : Nov 16, 2007 01:30
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I totally agree with Kaz. And yes it's worth every penny and more.
I believe that the DAC-1 & K+H would be a worthy upgrade for everyone that could really afford it and know exactly why spending so much.
As Kaz said the DAC-1 is better than the RME and there's no comparison between the O300s and the BM6As. From what i've also read the O300s outperform the BM15As. Only the fact that the O300s are 3-way automatically places them ahead of anything that's 2-way even if they are close to the same price.
If you get the results you want with your current setup, i don't think it's necessary to upgrade. But if you produce other(and maybe more complicated) styles too or if you record vocals and live instruments then you should upgrade.
A friend told me once that the biggest mistake we make is that we believe we live, when in reality we are sleeping in the waiting room of life. |
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danger
IsraTrance Junior Member
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Posted : Nov 16, 2007 11:47
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Excellent choice Alex Both stuff is top notch! this will be good for two decades
What's your digital interface in the computer?
getafix: ff400+bm6as are very nice combo, you don't need better just if you can easily afford that investment. otherwise you can make good production with them for sure
Procyon Records
frenzyinducing psychedelic electronica
Beyond - http://www.myspace.com/beyondelectronica |
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Get-a-fix
Getafix
Started Topics :
147
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1441
Posted : Nov 16, 2007 11:55
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PoM
IsraTrance Full Member
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162
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8087
Posted : Nov 16, 2007 15:03
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nice purchase Alex ,i heard many times these monitors were great for electronic music and i m sure for every style too
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diskOtek
Entek
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70
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953
Posted : Nov 16, 2007 16:27
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happy for you alex!
hope u get some great productions out of your new(i know u got some more ) babies!
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Colin OOOD
Moderator
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Posted : Nov 16, 2007 20:30
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orange
Fat Data
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Posted : Nov 16, 2007 22:38
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Alex Roudos
IsraTrance Junior Member
Started Topics :
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Posted : Nov 16, 2007 23:15
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Thank you all guys for your nice and funny comments It's always nice to see people being enthusiastic with other people's choices. Thanx again, much appreciated.
@orange : man that's hilarious, thanx. If u or anyone else from here ever visit Amsterdam let me know and i'll give you a personal presentation of the system and not only that
@danger : my interface is the Saffire Pro 10. Very good, very stable drivers and very very good quality of sound overall. But can't be compared with the DAC-1 on the DA stage and now my next purchase after christmas will be the API A2D. Anyone here recording vocals and instruments should definitely check it out.
And an update on the speakers. Tonight i had a recording session with the two hip hop artists that i'm currently producing their album.
We just previewed our last session just for them(and me) to take a taste of the new speakers. They were amazed by the clarity and the bass-kick sounds, but i was amazed about something else. Their recorded vocals after just adjusting only the levels, they were already sitting at around 70% in the mix without any processing at all. This 2" mid woofer on O300s is exactly what i was missing all this time. No more guessing and trying infinite plugs-tricks to make the vocals or anything else on the mid range to fit and glue to the mix.
If the mic is good and the speakers are good(3-wayyyyyyy) it's already more than half way there. Btw, my mic is the M-Audio Sputnik and i record through the Saffire(very good quality pres).
But, i have to admit that i can't wait for my first recording sessions with my upcoming baby the API A2D.
Cheers.....
A friend told me once that the biggest mistake we make is that we believe we live, when in reality we are sleeping in the waiting room of life. |
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