I decided to do an Alesis Micron review because I recently had a client who brought one of these units in for a few sessions. Usually these analog synth modelers are not my cup of tea but I have to say I really loved working with this particular synth. I had worked with the Alesis Ion a few times and I guess this is considered its little brother. From what I saw first hand though and from what some of my colleagues who are a bit more versed in the virtual analog synthesizer world have told me, this thing is second to none.

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Alesis MICRON Analog Modeling Synthesizer

The first thing I noticed was how it has very small footprint which makes it extremely convenient to use in a studio setting and probably would be outstanding for live use. If you are a gigging musician the Alesis Micron would really be an incredible fit. Its light weight, easy to travel with and has a great analog synth sound.

Now since I am basically a recording guy lets talk about the recording aspect of things. These days many people get their synth sounds inside the computer. Programs like Reason are awesome and can really do almost anything. What I really liked about the Alesis Micron though was the fact that it was really quick and easy to get some killer sounds. Whenever I end up loading up Reason the artist and I usually start wasting a few hours fooling around with the endless settings and options. The Alesis Micron took a little bit of learning to understand just how to work the programming end of it but once I started to get the hang of it I really realized how powerful it could be. The built in presets were nice but the unit is extremely programmable and the sounds and drums you can create are just beautiful. Ive used a plenty of digital synths in my day and I have used a lot of digital synth’s that model analog synths. The difference here though is that the Micron really had that “analog” sound. For its size it really blows you away with how great it sounds. I doubt you could find anything in its price range that would even come close to sounding this good.

In a nutshell if you are a recording musician or a live musician looking for an affordable virtual analog synthesizer then the Alesis Micron is a great choice. If you are the type that looks to noodle around in programs like Reason for hours on end you might not find a need for it but I highly recommend it.

Discounted Alesis MICRON Analog Modeling Synthesizer

I decided to do a Yamaha HS80M review because to be completely honest I love these studio monitors. Ive spent about 3 years with my pair at this point and I couldn’t be happier. Let me give you a little back story on my studio monitor situation.

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Yamaha HS80M Studio Reference Monitor

For years and years I have been trying out all different types of monitors. I had a few pairs of Genelec’s, some Mackie’s an old pair of Yamaha NS10′s and even a pair called Truth Audio from a high end no name company that went under after hurricane Katrina destroyed their factory. My point of going into all of this is because I was just never completely happy with any of them. I never felt settled in my monitor choice. Many of my colleagues would always recommend I buy more and more expensive models after i’d tell them I wasn’t fully happy with my last pair. What I found was more expensive didn’t really get the job done any better… Well at least not for me.

Yamaha HS80M – Where Have You Been My Whole Life

I usually shy away from monitors in this price range due to bad experiences in the past. I decided to give the Yamaha’s a shot because I had heard that a few rock and hip hop albums that I loved sonically had been mixed on them. I also love the look of the white cone, I think its got a cool, classic vibe. My favorite thing about my old NS10′s was the look of them. (For those who don’t know Yamaha NS10′s were the most used studio monitors in the world through the 70′s, 80′s and 90′s. Yamaha is marketing the HS80M’s as an updated NS10).

When I fired them up the first thing I noticed was the deep bass you could get from them without even needing a sub. Im not a huge fan of mixing with a sub and with these things ive never had a need for one. They have a rich smooth sound that I hadn’t found in other monitors. Most people love to talk about how “accurate” monitors are. I won’t make any claims to how mathematically accurate the HS80M’s are, you can go check the specs for that, all I know is that they RELATE. Thats always been the key for me. These monitors RELATE IN THE REAL WORLD! What a crazy thought.

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After about 10 hours of getting used to their sound I found that my mixes were just sounding great on everything. Anybody doing audio production knows the feeling of having a killer mix pumping in the studio until you bring it out to the car and the whole thing just falls apart. I had never and still have never used a pair of monitors that relate as well as the HS80M’s. They also have a switch in the back where you can boost or cut either the highs, lows or mids. I always leave these switches alone, but if your room has some acoustic problems these can help compensate.

In a nutshell I can only give high marks for the Yamaha HS80M’s. If you are in the market for a cool looking monitor, that gives you great real world sounding mixes and deep bass then these are an incredible buy. Not to mention the price is basically a steal. You really can’t go wrong.

Discounted Yamaha HS80M Studio Reference Monitor