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Bye hifi, hello active monitors, but confused....

froggy76, modified 8 Years ago.

Bye hifi, hello active monitors, but confused....

Youngling Posts: 18 Join Date: 9/9/14 Recent Posts
Hi all,

I am very new to the world of genelec and active monitors.
For years, I have been stuck in The hifi world until I recently heard a Genelec in a home environment.
Wow, what was I doing over in hifi world.....? Value for money, hands down to active monitors ( makes me wonder why passive hifi speakers cost so much..., plus the cost of an amp..).
I always thought ken needed to be near field for active monitors, but turns out not.
As such I have sold all my hifi gear, speakers, amps,dacs. I just purchased a benchmark dac2 hgr which I will use as both a dac and pre.
There s no dealers near me, the only one is about 2500km away so it s very hard to audition hence me joining this site and hopefully get some unbiased advise.
G series is obviously the home series and was told it s really good for desktop use due to limited size and wattage/spl.
The 8010, shares the same size, but bigger wattage, from 12w to 25w. So is the 8010 the equivalent to the g2 pr more like the g1.
Secondly, would I be happy to have the 8010 for the deck and kitchen for background music or really need to upgrade to the 8020.
Thirdly, for the family room, I am torn between a pair of 8030 and sub or just keep it simple and get the 8040. The room is 6400mm long by 4750mm wide by 2700mm ceilings.
My only worry about the 8020/8030 is the volume control. How does it affect the use with a traditional preamp? Should it be set to max or min?
Any advice will be greatly appreciated as like I said there s no dealer here nest to me so really hard to audition the whole range.
I hope to hear from you soon with some great advice.
Regards
froggy76, modified 8 Years ago.

Re: Bye hifi, hello active monitors, but confused....

Youngling Posts: 18 Join Date: 9/9/14 Recent Posts
Hello...?
Please need some help before buying..
Regards
1038, modified 8 Years ago.

Re: Bye hifi, hello active monitors, but confused....

Jedi Master Posts: 340 Join Date: 4/6/09 Recent Posts
Hi Froggy,

your room is large so i'd recommend starting with 8040/G4.

To understand the differences between the ranges, 8000 are pro models... XLR inputs, G series Home a combination of RCA & XLR inputs, 4000 series Commercial with pheonix inputs. Basically an 8040/G4/4040 are exactly the same speaker with different connectors, the speakers have the same electro acoustic performance, but their feature set is different.

Coming from the Hi Fi world, i recommend that you forget about the term nearfield, in your room all the speakers will be listened to in the mid or far field.

Depending on budget, the 8240's could be an option, these will integrate into your room much better than the others, but it comes at a cost. They have XLR analog and AES/EBU XLR inputs.

When using a pre amp, simply use the Genelec's with their level controls set to maximum... Same as if you had trim pots on the back of a stereo power amplifier.
ilkka-rissanen, modified 8 Years ago.

Re: Bye hifi, hello active monitors, but confused....

Yoda Posts: 2564 Join Date: 3/23/09 Recent Posts
Basically an 8040/G4/4040 are exactly the same speaker with different connectors, the speakers have the same electro acoustic performance, but their feature set is different.

Hi,

Just a small correction. 4040 is actually quite a bit more different as it has different woofer, different filter responses and more powerful amplifiers. :)
1038, modified 8 Years ago.

Re: Bye hifi, hello active monitors, but confused....

Jedi Master Posts: 340 Join Date: 4/6/09 Recent Posts
That'll teach me......

i hadn't checked the specs of the 4040..... :oops:
froggy76, modified 8 Years ago.

Re: Bye hifi, hello active monitors, but confused....

Youngling Posts: 18 Join Date: 9/9/14 Recent Posts
Hi guys,

Thanks for the advice and info. I will look into the 8240 as advised.
I have compared the specs of the 8010 vs g2 and appear indentical and should on paper outperformed the g1, thus if I get 2 pairs for background music, will they suffice.
Regards
1038, modified 8 Years ago.

Re: Bye hifi, hello active monitors, but confused....

Jedi Master Posts: 340 Join Date: 4/6/09 Recent Posts
8010 and G2 are not identical, biggest difference is 3" LF driver on 8010 and 4" LF driver on G2. However, you are correct, both the 8010 and G2 will outperform the G1.

I own 6020's, which are the older version of the G2's, these are my PC speakers and are used for general background music, i have an open plan house. They do a great job for when i don't want to fire up the 1038's on the main system.

Although i haven't done a comparison, i suspect that the 8010 comes close to the G2, but that 33% bigger LF driver of the G2 is a benefit in a larger space.
froggy76, modified 8 Years ago.

Re: Bye hifi, hello active monitors, but confused....

Youngling Posts: 18 Join Date: 9/9/14 Recent Posts
Hi Steve,

Thanks for your reply and advice once more.
Indeed I am sure that the 8020 would performed the 8010 due to the bigger LF, it almost makes no sense between the g1 and 8010 as though the drivers are not the same, the rated extension is only 2 hz difference. Can one really notice 2 hz difference?
Amazing.
I guess I will get a pair of 8010 for now which if I need more bass I am sure I will find another location, like kitchen or use them as intended on a desktop system and upgrade to the larger ones.
All up, I need 6 speakers and may be 8, all with different requirements don t have much to loose by going the 8010 for now. I guess it s a good intro to genelec.
By the way, what would be a good sub for the 8010 if needs be? The g series look really nice for wife acceptance factor compared to the 7000 series..
ilkka-rissanen, modified 8 Years ago.

Re: Bye hifi, hello active monitors, but confused....

Yoda Posts: 2564 Join Date: 3/23/09 Recent Posts
Hi,

G2's rated -6 dB extension is 59 Hz while 8010's is 67 Hz so there is 8 Hz difference. And that's just the extension, it doesn't tell how much clean SPL you will get at those frequencies. And that's exactly where bigger woofer has its strong point. :)
froggy76, modified 8 Years ago.

Re: Bye hifi, hello active monitors, but confused....

Youngling Posts: 18 Join Date: 9/9/14 Recent Posts
Hi mate,

Thank you for your reply once more.
My apologies for the late come back but I have been on the after hours call out.
I ve decoded to get a pair of 8010 for the deck, under the house and kitchen to use as background music, no loud spl needed, a pair of 8030 and f2 for the living room.
With so many zones, I need a good reliable XLR splitter. Can you recommend one by any chance. One that does not add or subtract anything to the sound without going crazy in terms of price.
I want the ability to play music in all those zones, same source and volume control as the main zone but my problem my dac/pre has only one XLR output.
Any advice will be greatly appreciated.
Regards
1038, modified 8 Years ago.

Re: Bye hifi, hello active monitors, but confused....

Jedi Master Posts: 340 Join Date: 4/6/09 Recent Posts
Hi Froggy,

with the release of the new 8330's, you should seriously consider them.

In regards to a signal splitter i have used Drawmer's DA6, which has 6 stereo pairs of balanced outputs along with individual trims.... http://www.drawmer.com/products/signal-distribution/da6.php
froggy76, modified 8 Years ago.

Re: Bye hifi, hello active monitors, but confused....

Youngling Posts: 18 Join Date: 9/9/14 Recent Posts
Hi mate,

That looks great. Do you know the rrp by any chance.
Another question, is where do you place the volume control on both the genelec and the drawmer. I would probably prefer one without gain control as to simplify the set up.
As for the 8330, I did not even hear about them. Again, what is their rrp? Are they the new version of a 8200 series and if not what differs from them.
Also wondering if I could use the f2 with any of the 8010/20/30 as my wife really does not like the look of the 7009 series subs and having larger speakers than the stated above is not really an option.
Is there such a thing as a studio preamp/dac similar to the ones used in hifi which is as simple to use. Studio gear seems complicated :)

Once again I really appreciate your input.
Regards
1038, modified 8 Years ago.

Re: Bye hifi, hello active monitors, but confused....

Jedi Master Posts: 340 Join Date: 4/6/09 Recent Posts
Hi Froggy,

studio gear is no more complicated.....

The 8300 series was released last Friday, so brand new models.

If you are from Australia, i think we have already spoken on the phone.

I'll send you a PM