Yamaha MSP7 STUDIO Active Studio Monitor (Single)
Yamaha's "STUDIO" series monitors have been designed with serious monitoring in mind. Emphasis is on reference-quality reproduction precision that lets you hear sonic details, rather than flattering sound.
They carry on in the tradition of the venerable NS10M STUDIO monitor speaker, which was the definitive near-field speaker monitor in an overwhelming majority of professional studios throughout the world for many years from the 80s onward. But technology has evolved dramatically right throughout the audio chain, and speakers must follow suit.
The top-of-the-line MSP7 STUDIO Powered Monitor Speaker is capable of delivering consistent quality and performance that you can rely on in modern production environments that handle any combination of digital and analog sources as well as stereo and surround formats.
POWERED FOR UNCOMPROMISED QUALITY
The trend towards choosing powered speakers for production monitoring is based on some very sound logic. By integrating and matching the power amplifiers and speakers, the relationship between them can be kept under perfect control for superior performance in the widest possible range of systems.
Naturally the power amplifiers themselves are of the finest quality and, unlike component power amplifiers that must be designed for acceptable matching with the widest possible range of speakers, are designed and manufactured specifically to drive the system's woofer and tweeter in their specific enclosure.
No matter where the MSP7 STUDIO monitors are used, and with what sources or other audio gear, you know that you're always receiving the benefits of a perfectly matched power amplifier and speaker system. You'll hear the difference. You'll also benefit from the convenience of not having to deal with external amplifiers and cabling.
ADVANCED BI-AMP DESIGN
There are a number of advantages to multi-amp speaker setups, but the added cost and extra equipment required can make them impractical in many situations. With the MSP7 STUDIO everything you need is built-in – all you have to do is supply the line-level input.
The 6.5 inch cone woofer is driven by an 80-watt power amplifier, while the 1 inch dome tweeter has its own 50-watt power amplifier. In the MSP7 STUDIO this particular power and driver combination results in the perfect balance between the low-mid and high frequency ranges. The frequency ranges are divided via a carefully designed electronic crossover before the power amplifier inputs, featuring steep 30-dB/octave roll-off curves in both the low- and high-pass filters.
The steep roll-off minimizes inter-modulation between the frequency bands at the crossover point, achieving significantly smoother, cleaner crossover performance in the critical midrange. And the fact that the crossover is a linelevel electronic design completely eliminates the loss, distortion, and sometimes severe inter-modulation that are almost unavoidable in conventional passive crossover networks driven by a single power amplifier.
DETAILS THAT DEFINE SUPERIOR PERFORMANCE
The MSP7 STUDIO woofer and tweeter units feature some important design innovations that contribute directly to improved sound quality. The 6.5 inch woofer, for example, features a specially treated polypropylene cone with lowdamping rubber surrounds for exceptionally smooth response. Low-reflection highrigidity die-cast magnesium baskets both maximize mechanical precision while minimizing unwanted coloration of the speaker's output.
The 1 inch tweeters feature titanium domes that offer the perfect combination of light weight and rigidity for precise reproduction right up to 40 kHz. The tweeters have a powerful magnetic circuit that results in extremely fast response for crisp, natural transients, and are integrated with a waveguide that achieves uniform high frequency dispersion of 120 degrees. But precision manufacturing makes a huge contribution to performance as well as basic materials and design.
The slightest eccentricity in the alignment of the tweeter domes and waveguides, for example, can seriously affect performance. So can the alignment of the coils and magnetic circuits. These are details that require a considerable investment of energy and resources to do properly, and they are exactly the details that make the MSP7 STUDIO the superior studio monitor that it is.
ONE-PIECE MOLDED ENCLOSURE WITH ROUNDED BAFFLE
Wood can be good, but synthetic materials have advanced to the point where they offer some overwhelming advantages. In addition to the fact that enclosures materials can be created with ideal density and resonance characteristics, they can be molded to almost any shape with precise tolerances.
Where wood cabinets have glued joints that interrupt the continuity of the enclosure, the thickwalled MSP7 STUDIO cabinet is molded in one piece, resulting in smooth acoustic transfer throughout the entire enclosure for superior reproduction precision. One-piece molding also makes it possible to produce the large-radius rounded baffle corners that help to maintain a natural wavefront and minimize diffraction for a smoother, more uniform polar response, as shown in the accompanying plots. Internal tweeter mounting also boosts high-frequency performance by eliminating spurious resonance from the tweeter frame.
APPLICATIONS: STEREO SETTING
For both stereo and surround mixing your position in relation to the main front speakers – the "sweet spot" as it's often called – should be one apex of an equilateral triangle. In other words your distance from either speaker should be the same as the distance between the two speakers. The speakers should also be "toed in" to the corresponding 60° angle so that the drivers are aimed directly at the listening position. The height of the speakers should be such that the tweeters are roughly aligned with your ears (this is because high frequencies are the most directional).
ADDING A SUBWOOFER
Even if you don't plan to set up a surround system, adding a subwoofer can be a real advantage for stereo mixing. If you can't hear the extreme low end there's not much you can do to make it sound great. The extended bass response provided by a good subwoofer can indeed help you to improve the overall quality of your mixes.
The location of your subwoofer is not as critical as the main speakers, because frequencies below around 200 Hz – the region your subwoofer will be working in – aren't directional. To say it another way, the ear can't locate the source of such low frequencies, so in theory the subwoofer can be placed anywhere in the room. In reality it's a good idea to place the subwoofer on the floor somewhere between the main front speakers at the same distance from the listening position as the main speakers, but it doesn't have to be dead center.
SURROUND SET UP
According to the ITU (International Telecommunications Union) specifications for 5.1 surround setup, the main front speakers are positioned in the 60° equilateral triangle relationship to the listening position described earlier, and the rear speakers should be located at the same distance from the listening position, but at an angle of between 100° and 120°, as shown in the diagram above.
The center speaker should be placed precisely midway between the main front speakers, at the same distance from the listening position as the other speakers (which means that ideally it will be a bit behind the main left and right speakers).
Specifications:
GENERAL
Type Biamp 2-way Powered Speaker Crossover Frequency 2.5 kHz LF: 30dB/oct, HF: 30dB/oct Overall Frequency Response 45 Hz - 40 kHz (-10 dB) Maximum Output Level 106 dB, 1 m on Axis Dimensions (W x H x D) 218 x 330 x 235 mm Weight 12.2 kg Magnetic Shielding Yes SPEAKER SECTION
Components LF 6.5" cone HF 1.0" Titanium dome Enclosure Type Bass-Reflex Material Polypropylene AMPLIFIER SECTION
Output Power LF 80 W THD = 0.05 %, RL = 4 O HF 50 W THD = 0.05 %, RL = 6 O S/N, IHF-A filter > 99 dB, LEVEL = Max Input Sensitivity XLR-3-31 +4 dBu, LEVEL = Center -6 dBu, LEVEL = Max Input Connectors, Impedance XLR-3-31 (balanced), 10 kO Controls LEVEL control 31 Positions Detent type VR(Min = -8 Attenuation), LOW CUT switch FLAT/80 Hz (12 dB/oct)/100 Hz (12 dB/oct), HIGH TRIM +1.5/0/-1.5 dB at 15 kHz, LOW TRIM +1.5/0/-1.5/-3 dB at 45 Hz, POWER SWITCH on/off Indicators LED Green: Power On Red: Clipping Power Consumption 100 W
