Make / Model: PMC LB1
Year: 2003?
Purchased: 2016
I used these as my main mastering monitors at OVOLR! Labs.
These are my favorite monitors ever.
Why?
A few reasons….
1. Analytical. While they are not the prettiest sounding speakers, they show you what the audio is doing, in a way I have never experienced with any other speaker. They don’t colour the sound in a way that hides issues in a recording. It’s basically what you hear, is what is there.
2. Response. There is very little coloration from the speakers themselves, either in masking dynamics or adding their own bits to the sound. They sound very transparent. And right down to the very low bass notes.
3. Low volume. And they do all this at ANY volume. They do not go as loud as my old Nautilus 802s, but I believe they show me more, at lower volumes. They seem accurate at all but the lowest of volumes, so working on them in an engineering capacity, is very easy, without having to crank them up for accuracy.
4. Forgiving of room. They are tremendously forgiving of placement. They sound pretty damn good wherever you put them.
Some drawbacks
1. They are not beautiful sounding. If your looking for an audiophile speaker, these may not be pretty enough in the sound, compared to say, a B&W speaker.
2. Not hyped. In line with the point above, they aren’t going to blow your mind with detail. It’s there, it’s just not made to jump out at you.
3. If the recording sounds like crap, these will show you that, with little beautification. Almost like a straight wire from the music to your head. So with the above caveats, they may not be an amazing listening experience.
For audiophile stuff, these may be boring. For engineering, they are fucking amazing speakers. Amazing. Worth every penny and then some.