M-Audio BX8a 8-inch BiAmplified Studio Monitor Speakers

by M-Audio

Product Features

• Two-way magnetically shielded studio reference monitors
• 130 Watts of bi-amped power
• 8 Kevlar low-frequency drivers
• 1 natural silk high-frequency drivers
• XLR balanced and 1/4 balanced/unbalanced inputs

Product Details

• Item Weight: 43 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 56.4 pounds
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S. and to APO/FPO addresses. For APO/FPO shipments, please check with the manufacturer regarding warranty and support issues.
• ASIN: B000A68UTW
• Item model number: 9900-40786-00
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #48,929 in Musical Instruments (See Top 100 in Musical Instruments)

Product Description

Over the years, Studiophile reference monitors have earned a great reputation with recording professionals around the world. The BX8a updates our critically acclaimed BX8 near-fields. Topping the improvements list are our 8 curved Kevlar low-frequency drivers--a technology usually reserved for monitors bearing a higher price tag. Of course, they're coupled with our time-proven high-temperature voice coils and damped rubber surrounds for durability and fidelity. Magnetically shielded 1 natural silk domes give the BX8s a high-end that's both clear and easy on the ears. Custom-tuned crossovers distribute 130 Watts of bi-amplified power for optimal frequency handling by each driver. Hear for yourself why Studiophiles have become standard issue reference monitors.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars sounds AMAZING but be careful if you're using them to mix, February 26, 2009

By 

Sean Foulkes (Bozmean, Montana) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: M-Audio BX8a 8-inch BiAmplified Studio Monitor Speakers (Electronics)

Over the years my ears have been getting better and better, moving up speaker by speaker, getting better at recording, and i am finally at the point that i think i have a very good grasp on how to record/mix and how speakers should sound.

That said, I bought these M-Audio 8" near field monitors a few days ago, after tearing my hair out looking for a (mainly) computer listening speaker for my itunes, and secondly to do some casual guitar/voice recording when i was bored or felt like writing a song. I've heard monitors from Mackie, M-Audio, plenty of Genelecs, and heard differences in too many $30,000+ loudspeakers that many people only pretend to.

These 130 watt self-powered monitors are the best sounding speakers under $1500 easy. The stereo imaging when used for nearfield listening is simply incredible, and the sheer audio resolution of these speakers will put a big smile on your face. Most people get lost in finding the speaker that is ultimately "technically" perfect at re-creating a sound wave. These speakers don't necessarily do that but they do sound incredible. Much like Bose's idea about what makes a good speaker. If it sounds good, it's a good speaker.

I'd be careful when using these as actual studio monitors in a critical mixing environment. Mainly because bass is a bit heavy. Don't get me wrong, during playback it will make most songs sound like a million bucks (even some encoded at 128kbps) but take into account that if you mix to make your bass sound even, then your recording will lack bass. Best to listen to other monitors or otherwise get a baseline of how the speakers perform compared to how the flat recording sounds.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great monitor, December 17, 2007

By 

Bob (CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: M-Audio BX8a 8-inch BiAmplified Studio Monitor Speakers (Electronics)

I bought this monitor set to use as a computer stereo system. It replaced a Logitech 5.1 computer speaker system. These speakers sound terrific! The sweet spot is huge and the clarity is amazing. If you now have conventional computer speakers (Logitech, Creative, etc.)and if you have the space, the BX-8a will enhance your music listening experience 100%, guaranteed.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Monitors but Beware of input pops, October 1, 2008

By 

MartyM (St. Louis, MO) - See all my reviews

This review is from: M-Audio BX8a 8-inch BiAmplified Studio Monitor Speakers (Electronics)

I've had these for 2 months now and I like them very much. For the price they can not be beat. The sound is very rich and can be a bit bottom heavy, but I've learned to mix rather effectively. I use Pro Tools LE and an MBox 2. I pulled a professionally mixed track (3 actually) into a new Pro Tools session and used those tracks as a reference to get used to how the monitors will represent the sound. It works well and I got used to mixing my own music rather quickly with them.

Word of warning... one day I was mixing and stopped for a while. I shut down Pro Tools but left the monitors on as I was intending to return to mixing later. Meanwhile, a software update came in and rebooted my PC. Upon restart, when my MBox 2 powered on, a loud pop came out of the monitors and one of them failed. It produces sound for a few seconds after power on, but then fails and stops producing sound at all. It's in route to being repaired by M-Audio. M-Audio Customer service has been very good as far as I've experienced. I'll update if anything changes.

When using these (or any other monitors) its a good idea to power them down when not in use and be sure to power them down BEFORE powering down recording/PC equipment and power them up AFTER powering on recording/PC equipment. I always did power them on after other equipment, but I will no longer leave them on when I'm not actively using them.