ProAudio Review. Sustainable Monitoring. more reviews BEST SHOW. INSIDE: BEST OF SHOW AWARDS: InfoComm 2013 STUDIO LIVE BROADCAST CONTRACTING POST

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1 New Products, P. 10, 38 STUDIO LIVE BROADCAST CONTRACTING POST ProAudio Review JULY 2013 VOLUME 19 ISSUE 7 1 Color - 0 Cyan / 100 Magenta / 99 Yellow / 4 Black INSIDE: BEST OF SHOW AWARDS: InfoComm 2013 BEST SHOW of The Review Resource for Sound Professionals Sustainable Monitoring GENELEC S MUSIC CREATION SERIES more reviews Emotiva Pro Stealth 8 ios Portable Synthesis Products JDK Audio V10, V12 & V14 Millennia HV-37 Rascal Audio Two-V RØDE ixy Shure KSM9HS

2 studio review by Strother Bullins Genelec M Series M030 Bi-amplified Active Monitors Strother Bullins is the Editor of Pro Audio Review. 14 ProAudioReview July

3 If you re a musician which is the customer Genelec envisions for its new Music Creation series the M030 is built more like your engineer s speakers than your current monitors. To my eyes, Genelecs seem to be used by more professional studios and engineers than any other recognizable studio monitor. That means something to me, especially in an industry where they re not the top seller. Fellow musicians will empathize here, as I haven t owned the brand of most of my favorite engineers or studios before, either, though I can consider it now. Genelec has approached its new M Series in an admirably attractive way for artist-level end users. Features Starting with unique aesthetics and physicality, the M030 and bigger sibling M040 features cabinetry that is not only green but also saves in manufacturing over the long term, based upon Genelec s manufacturing details for the M Series, which is a benefit ultimately passed onto both the customer and our Earth s ecological future. Their trademarked Natural Composite Enclosure (NCE) material is made of wood fiber and recyclable material, which Genelec reports is 50 percent wood fiber, 50 percent polymer/recycled materials, and also doesn t require a lot of handling during manufacturing, which is done in Finland. Genelec provides additional value in the M Series, like efficient, cooler running ( 90 percent more efficient ) Class D amps, paired with a core set of response shaping controls (sans the expansive and expensive DSP of the 8200 line). The aluminum housing of a flagship Genelec line imaginably more durable for a studio-hopping pro and offering a certain aesthetic isn t something a M Series customer will pay for. Now, they don t have to with the styling of the M Series molded enclosures. Here are Genelec s own provided specs: The M030 bi-amplified active monitor utilizes a five-inch woofer and 0.75-inch metal dome tweeter, powered by 50 W and 30 W amplifiers respectively. The free-field frequency response is 58 Hz to 21 khz (+/-3 db), while peak SPL is 103 db at one meter. The M030 measures 10 3/4 inches H x 7 1/2 inches W x 7 1/2 inches D and weighs 8.8 lbs. The M040 bi-amplified active monitor employs a 6.5-inch woofer with a one-inch metal dome tweeter, powered by 80 W and 50 W amplifiers, respectively. The free-field frequency response is 48 Hz to 21 khz (+/-3 db), while peak SPL is 107 db at one meter. The M040 measures 13 1/4 inches H x 9 1/4 inches W x 9 inches D and weighs 15.4 lbs. In Use I used the M030s for hours most days for two months, sitting both on my studio desk, and in a variety of different locations, applying the corner and desktop EQ settings when appropriate, with no sub. I ve given them a full range of input, too, from ipod and MacBook headphone outs to high-quality balanced analog summing of tracks I ve recorded and am intimately familiar with. I felt very comfortable with these monitors all along, growing more fond of them all the time. Whether recording and mixing, or editing, composing and writing, these small boxes offer all the creative appeal needed for music creation. I listened to them for enjoyment, with a range of carefully produced material, too from early Beatles to Yeezus. I started with common rock references, first believing with AC/DC s Shoot To Thrill at 90 db; the bottom end is controlled, tight, powerful and real. From there up, it s what I recall hearing in Genelec nearfields (they definitely resemble their 8000 kin): in general, detail in reverb tails and the snare drum buzz that I almost forgot was there. Basically, whatever is in the mix, I felt I was hearing more than usual using the M030s. Genelec s new bass port design the trademarked Laminar July 2013 ProAudioReview 15

4 Integrated Port (LIP, actually integrated into the cabinet mold and utilizing its legs and the gap between them) works well; I was surprised that I didn t long for a subwoofer using a speaker this size. M Series design is neat-looking, too: efficient and beautifully modern European to its core. In our musician = IKEA world, this appealing design goes a long way. I ve never used DSP monitors beyond the audition and review period. Primarily as a self-recording musician, I never felt compelled to spring for the feature, though I would always try to spend a bit extra on getting sufficient response tailoring and a more powerful and hopefully better overall monitor for the money. With the M030, Genelec includes a substantial 80 W of Class D amplification a more powerful Genelec than I could have afforded before. In that way, this particular Genelec completely fits my bill, as I get the attributes I can most appreciate and more comfortably afford. These M030 monitors look good and feel substantial with notably tight cabinets and the switches feel high quality and sure. They seem to be quite scratchresistant, too: a pleasant benefit of new cabinetry material. And the material allows the M030 to be a Genelec with its trademark neutral character. I expect the cabinet material alone will be a topic discussed in some circles, as these speakers burgeon in the marketplace. Summary If these monitors set new trends, and I expect they will, this Music Creation Series mentality will influence more use of eco-friendly composite materials, if not even the development of similarly designed, and similar-looking, cabinetry in our industry. I think that s a good thing. Further, I appreciate the effort of Genelec to provide, for lack of a better phrase, a stripped down Gennie Series for the guys in the band that do know what the good monitors sound like. Price: $640 each, street Contact: Genelec genelec.com 16 ProAudioReview July 2013

5 PAR Editorial Director Frank Wells discussed the M Series design core of embedded sustainability with Genelec s Will Eggleston: Will: Ilpo Martikainen, as one of the founders of the company, has a very strong opinion about embedded sustainability. The company, and all the people that work there and even here [at Genelec USA], and in China, are very respectful of the values that the company s had over the years, especially as it relates to energy conservation, pollution and where are we going on this big planet? How are we going to be able to help in some way. If your goal is to not use a whole lot of energy making and shipping a product, then your design criteria is going to change. The M Series design approach came from the direction of reliability and sustainability. We re using a unique natural fiber composite bio-recycled material. It s about halfwood pulp with additional polymerbased material and other recycled materials. We are trademarking it as the Natural Composite Enclosure. In terms of what it takes to actually manufacture this product, it s very much hands-off because it s pressure injected. The amount of hand finishing that occurs with this product is significantly lower than what we would have with the other enclosures that we make. This enclosure material is lighter. The material is self-painted. It s going to use less energy to ship it. It s going to take less energy to manufacture it. The packing material is totally made from recycled material. On Class D Amps Will continues: The class D amplification used in the M Series is something new for us as well. We ve been working on this amplifier design in-house as a research project for quite a few years now and we feel very comfortable about its performance and certainly the efficiency attributes that class D amplifiers bring to the project. The M Series also uses intelligent signal sensing power management. For example, it goes into a standby mode after one half hour of not sensing any signal input or use. In standby, it will draw less than 1/2 of one watt out of a wall. The clever part is that once it senses signal input, it immediately comes out of the standby mode. Every one of our products is being [manufactured] with this Intelligent Signal Sensing circuit. That s part of the philosophy that has perpetuated over the last several years. Genelec s environmental consciousness is, I think, unique within the loudspeaker industry. On Component Quality: Will offers insight on Genelec s continued focus on component quality: The transducers won t be any different than what you have in any typical Genelec product. We won t go to a different part supplier because it s going to save a tenth of a Euro; it s just not going to make a whole lot of sense for us to do that, especially if there is a potential impact on reliability. We haven t given anything up in terms of sound character. Indeed an M Series monitor will sound like a Genelec. Did the design team tweak the waveguide knowing that the rooms might be a little bit more reflective? Only a bit. I think that if you had a look at the directivity indexes, they would be only modestly different with a goal of understanding where the products would be headed, or where they would be placed. On The Laminar Integrated Port: Will explains the design: The M Series legs actually integrate into the port. We call it LIP for Laminar Integrated Port, where the port is actually part of the mold. On the M Series, the port is part of the front half of the enclosure. The fact that it s part of what the product supports itself with is even cooler; we had to go back to the design phase a couple of times to make sure that the port flow was as smooth as possible. That s one of the benefits of injection molding you can go back and change specific things. It s worked out very well. On lack of DSP features: That s another example of where we ve been able to save time and energy making the product, offers Will. While we weren t overtly trying to make something less expensive, we knew we could have something that would be competitively a bit less money with the same size drivers and a product that could be a benefit to the target market. courtesy of Pro Sound News