TEST: Mackie MR8

 It's the time of near-field monitors!

I'd go so far as to say that you can now get the famous A-wireless device, which almost two decades ago had a massive wall surround, a weight of close to 100 kg and a unit price in the five-digit euro range (mind you, everything PRO box!) attention, can only be seen in a few high-end studios and then only if they can assert themselves due to being part of a music production complex or a corresponding record company.

In the rudimentary rental studio, however, this category of plus/plus monitoring has almost become extinct in terms of its economic viability due to the increasing number of “low-budget” or downright inflationary “no-budget” productions.

But what if you want to do the final mix via a near-field monitor, but the realistic assessment, especially in the bass range, degenerates into a sound-technique game due to the lack of powerful membrane strokes from the home 4-inch workstation PC game monitoring below 150 Hertz and you don't want to use a subwoofer that sometimes sounds undifferentiated?

For this target group, there is a product group that ranges between the “big pants” solution mentioned above and the classic near-field range.

Said monitors are almost always active, have a power range of 100 - 150 watts and, thanks to a sophisticated bass reflex solution and a woofer that is between 8 and 10 inches, can also move enough air in the bass range to generate a qualitatively balanced mix.

The Mackie MR8 monitors I was testing belong to this product group.


Construction:

The individual MR8 box weighs 12.5 kg and measures 276 mm x 408 mm x 346 mm (W x H x D), which suggests a corresponding performance quota for visual reasons alone.

The box has a voluminous bass reflex channel on the back of the housing, which needs to be taken into account when placing the box. In particular, a close-up positioning against a wall or, worse still, in a corner of the room would inevitably lead to a booming frequency or at least generate an unbalanced bass response.

Technically, the system is active two-way, divided into an 8 inch bass speaker with 100 watts of power and a 1 inch dome tweeter with 50 watts of power, both designed for 4 ohms with a maximum SPL of 116 db per pair of speakers.

Due to the active two-way solution, the sound and performance losses, for example due to cables or other passive components, are reduced to a minimum.


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The housing of the MR8 is made of MDF and is painted matt black. A little caution is advised here, as the surface, which is really elegant to look at, reacts very sensitively to scratches or abrasions.

In addition to a cold appliance plug and a slow-blow microfuse, the system's on/off switch is also located on the back. As with the MR8's little sister, the MR5, I would prefer the power switch on the front of the housing so that I can deactivate the product by hand without major contortions and not just use a power strip for this.

Three different standards are available to the MR8 for feeding the signal. In addition to the professional, balanced inputs with XLR female and 6.25 mm jack (TRS), the system also has an unbalanced RCA (RCA) input.

This is very helpful if you are only able to connect the MR8 directly to a standard sound card, which usually only has a signal routing with RCA plugs.

The housing is magnetically shielded and therefore allows it to be used close to a PC screen or TV. The device is also equipped with overheating protection and switches off the power amplifier if the room temperature is too high.

The MR8 was developed in the USA and the product is manufactured in China.


In the settings section you can use two filters to influence the high and low frequency range and configure the final volume. The high frequency filter allows an increase/decrease of +/- 2 db at 5 KHz, the bass range can be increased by 2 db or even 4 db at 100 Hz. This means you can adapt the basic sound of the monitoring to your personal taste, or generally give the mix a higher-pitched or bass-heavy tendency.



Next to the filter settings there is a tiny knurled screw with which the power output of the power amplifier can be configured, either with a Phillips screwdriver or, with a little fiddling, by hand.

The only guide for this work is a slight lock at 12 o'clock; everything else has to be adjusted by ear or, if accessed from the rear, by eye.

In order to set a pair of speakers to exactly the same power output, a classic potentiometer knob would have been better due to its increased readability.


Practice:

When you press the power switch, a small blue LED on the front of the housing lights up and indicates the operating status. The MR8 has no noise of its own, such as background noise or even mains hum, and even with the volume control turned all the way up, the box remains absolutely silent in terms of any background noise.

First of all, let's switch the tone control to neutral playback, i.e. no increases or decreases through the mini switches on the back.

The first sounds that can be heard from the MR8 are characterized by a very neutral reproduction. In fact, we are not dealing with an over-presence of certain frequencies in the sound spectrum; at first glance, the entire reproduction range appears to be very balanced.

Due to our non-linear hearing spectrum with the strong mid-range overemphasis, this area is of course always the crux of the matter by which monitoring must be measured. In addition, this is where the user's personal taste comes into play and can only be evaluated with a high degree of subjectivity.

In my opinion, the MR8 holds its own very well here. Normally, products of a similar design have some problems in the overtone range, especially because of the dome tweeter, but with the MR8 this is more limited than I would have expected.

The Mackie monitors also completed the infamous test with a heavily distorted guitar, which is known for its harsh reproduction in the high-mid range, with an unusually good performance.

Enough of the tester's comments, let's get to the strengths of the speakers. As expected, the MR8 shines with its construction in the treble and bass ranges. The highs are depicted in great detail and manage the balancing act between too “silky” whitewashing and too harsh a resolution.

The bass reproduction of the design is particularly pleasing. I was expecting the classic “inflated” version with its low-frequency over-presence and the resulting sponginess that I know from similar bass reflex designs. Instead, the MR8 shines with a pleasantly tight and extremely faithful reproduction, especially in the double-digit Hertz range.


Conclusion:

Be careful, I didn't expect that! It is actually very rare to find a design that can be said to have features from the next and the next higher price range.

Like any good listening, the Mackie MR8 of course has its own sound, which first needs to be explored and internalized. But if you have done this with some of his reference productions, you will actually find an outstanding monitor in the MR8, which can do more tonally than its price suggests.

A real recommendation!

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Additional Informations:


The history of nearfield monitors is intertwined with the broader history of studio monitors and the evolution of audio technology.

## Early Beginnings

The journey of studio monitors began in the 1920s and 1930s¹. During this period, studio monitors were used primarily to check for noise interference and obvious technical problems rather than for making artistic evaluations of the performance and recording¹. The loudspeaker, which forms the basis of modern studio monitors, was first described by Werner Siemens in the 1870s². Sir Oliver Lodge patented the moving coil loudspeaker in 1898, but it was Rice and Kellogg who developed the first practical design in the early 1920s².

## The Advent of Nearfield Monitors

The concept of nearfield monitors emerged as a solution to the challenges of audio reproduction in studio environments. An unqualified reference to a monitor often refers to a near-field (compact or close-field) design¹. This is a speaker small enough to sit on a stand or desk in proximity to the listener, so that most of the sound that the listener hears is coming directly from the speaker, rather than reflecting off walls and ceilings (and thus picking up coloration and reverberation from the room)¹.

## The Altec Lansing Duplex

The first speaker to be widely adopted for critical monitoring purposes by the nascent recording studio industry was the Altec Lansing Duplex, particularly the 604 model². This Duplex driver was pervasive throughout the studios of the time and the driver itself was in continuous production from 1943 to 1998²!

## The Impact of Technology

The development of nearfield monitors has been significantly influenced by advancements in technology. The invention of the transistor in the 1950s, for example, led to the creation of smaller, more efficient amplifiers. This, in turn, allowed for the development of smaller, more portable studio monitors.

## The Yamaha NS-10

One of the most iconic nearfield monitors is the Yamaha NS-10. Introduced in 1978, the NS-10 started life as a domestic hi-fi speaker, but it was quickly adopted by the recording industry. Its popularity was due to its ability to reveal flaws in recordings, making it an invaluable tool for quality control.

## The Role of Nearfield Monitors Today

In today's digital age, nearfield monitors have become an essential tool in audio production. They are used in a variety of settings, from professional recording studios to home studios, and are valued for their ability to provide accurate sound reproduction at close listening distances.

## The Future of Nearfield Monitors

As technology continues to evolve, so too will nearfield monitors. Future developments may include advances in driver materials and designs, improved amplifier technologies, and the integration of digital signal processing (DSP) to further enhance sound quality.

In conclusion, the history of nearfield monitors is a testament to the ongoing quest for perfect sound reproduction. From the early days of the Altec Lansing Duplex to the modern nearfield monitors of today, this journey has been marked by continuous innovation and improvement. As we look to the future, it is clear that nearfield monitors will continue to play a crucial role in the world of audio production.

## Modern Nearfield Monitors

Today, near-field monitors allow the broadest range of sound frequencies to be played back to the user/sound engineer at a fairly low volume and at a close proximity while maintaining all the sound detail to be preserved and edited³. With more people than ever producing music from home (or away from purpose designed acoustic spaces), demand for high quality nearfield monitors has never been greater⁴.

In conclusion, the evolution of nearfield monitors has been a journey of technological innovation and adaptation to the changing needs of audio production. From their early beginnings to their modern incarnations, nearfield monitors have played a crucial role in shaping the sound of music and audio productions around the world.