Alesis M1 Active Monitors?

[Tom Berry]

I am looking for an inexpensive pair of powered monitors. What do you guys think of the Alesis'?

Thanks

Tom Berry

[James Greenlee]

Unlike any other piece of gear you own or will purchase, your monitors are the ONLY piece of gear that you actually hear. Everything you do will be influenced by what you hear from your monitors. Everything. So it makes alot of sense to not skimp in this area.

To answer your question. I have not used the actives but have used and still own a pair of the M1 passive monitors. I find that they are okay but unreliable to mix on. The biggest problem was in the bass. Listening to CD playback on these monitors some CD's sounded HUGE while others sounded small. As a result things I mixed had weird and out-of-balance bass. At least initially.

Awhile back I went shopping for new monitors and my local dealer suggested that I try out the Behringer Truths. Although they sounded pretty good and more than made up for the deficiencies in my M1's They were too susceptible to RF interference. (I'm an unlucky soul that lives about a mile from a 100,000 watt radio tower.) At $400 for the pair they're a good value. Behringer gear has some political, sociological and technical questions though. Those need to be dealt with on your own.

I ended up with the Mackie HR 824's. You can get them in the $1200 range for a pair. In my opinion they sound every bit as good if not better than the Genelec 1031's. They go super-low and have great imaging.

Monitors are kind of a balance. You have to find what works for you at a price you can afford. The ideal thing might be to wait until you can actually afford what you want. Just like I said at the beginning of all this, The monitors are the only piece of gear that you actually HEAR.

Good luck,

James