Kali IN-8 vs Kali IN-5 vs Yamaha HS8 vs Fluid FX80

Hey everyone.
I’m attempting to build out a mixing space and these are my options for monitoring. Which would be best suited for a small (almost bedroom-sized) space? Feel free to argue in the responses. I want the best possible sound for mixing both music and for film. I’ve just ordered the ifi Zen Dac as well so whichever of these I get would have a good signal. Thanks

i don’t mix. get that out of the way first. but to help get discussion going, i will throw a couple things out there i have noticed reading on others who do.

people mix with every speaker on the planet. top producers mix with at least 2 sets of speakers. their “reference” set, and a crappy set. most people listen to music/movies on crappy speakers.

Understandable cuz you’d wanna have a wide range of how your audience would eventually hear it. I just wanted a good starting point for a decent/good mixes for the money.

My room is a weird shape but I like the in-8. Would I lose a lot of performance with bigger speakers in a small room at a lower volume? Or at this point is it negligible with good sound dampening

It should be the opposite, you would gain performance.
You can always play low volumes and still have bigger speakers larger FR in use.
Im pretty flat with my FR but in low volumes since all the tuning is done and monitored but i still have bass and beats + subs playing even at night time.
I still hear everything but only low volumes. Adding volume is just more volume no sound coloring etc happens. More volume brings more issues but room EQ + sound dampening always helps.
The brain makes you turn up volume and the room issues are more present.

I know mixing in a constant low volume is best for more dynamic range. I was just hoping that the 8’s of any speaker would be better at a lower volume in a small room rather than a 5 at a loud volume

1 Like

small woofers struggle more as a whole to produce bass at low volumes. larger woofers tend to be better for lower volume listening.

Artist approve mixes by listening to the tracks in the car. Why do i think its a bad idea ?

I mean most people listen to their music in a car so I guess it makes sense :man_shrugging:t5:

Great for those people. Dont that mean it sucks for us ? Guess the fancy monitors is just for ones own enjoyment. But the money maker is listening on crappy computer speakers bought at walmart.

some artists do, and its mostly rappers. the majority do not. but, and i said it before, crappy speakers are what the masses listen on. theres literally a studio monitor company, that sells lots of monitors, that are shit. they are designed to be that way. they are designed to replicate the speakers the masses use. and while not expensive, thay aint cheap either.

1 Like

Dave grohl swears by his car radio to approve foo fighter albums. Im no studio mixer but watch alot of studio mixer youtubes. Im winning because my stuff is mostly crappy $100 speakers. :woozy_face:

1 Like

Sorry mucking up the topic. Interested on the outcome for a 2.2 TV setup want to get my first DAC with XLR outputs. Had my eye on the brands mentioned.

Thing to remember is that the DAC/Preamp should have a volume control (+ remote).
TV optical / toslink = full volume
It helps A LOT adjusting the volume from sitting position, usually there is some distance.
I personally did not find tons and tons of options… XLR + remote in DAC/Preamp →

Curious to hear how this 2.2 project would or will advance.

Smsl got a XLR (DO100) and a TRS (SU-6) what im looking for on prime day. Got good reviews over on ASR and both under $250

1 Like

The DAC/Amp I ended up getting is the ifi Zen Dac V2. It’s supposed to reach next week so I’ll update on what I think about it then. Gonna be listening with a set of SHP9500s and possibly a Sennheiser HD280 Pro