Product Review – BlueSky EXO
Posted by Reid Greven on June 18, 2008
Josh asks (after seeing a picture of my desk):
“What kind of monitors do you have on your desk? I have been looking for something small like that, and affordable, but at the same time, not just the local blue light special. There are a few other people in my office building, and my office isn’t exactly soundproof. The iMac speakers aren’t good to mix on, but the Genelec monsters would be too much. The size you have look like they would be a good balance. Any thoughts?”
I actually researched and found these speakers as a result of that same exact problem!
It’s the EXO system by BlueSky.
Retail Price: $349.99 (www.musiciansfriend.com)
I give these a 4 out of 5.
They’re great sounding, especially thanks to the subwoofer. The highs are crisp and the lows are rich, even at low volumes, without sounding artificial.
I’m a big fan of BlueSky products, and these live up to the company’s reputation. These are very good sounding speakers – provided you use them as they were intended: Near field/desktop monitoring.
BUT… The coolest thing about this system is the built-in mixer box thingy that sits on your desk. The main little control box simultaneously receives:
2 – 1/4″ inputs (R/L stereo) (I use these for my Pro Tools Mbox)
2 – RCA inputs (R/L stereo)
Stereo 1/8″ jack
The unit has separate volume and subwoofer controls, as well as a headphone jack, that, when inserted, overrides the speakers. Cool for offices…
The only reason this system gets 4 out of 5 is because the system buzzes when I’m using the 1/8″ jack hooked up to my laptop’s headphone output, and if I have a Firewire hard drive connected.
Fortunately that’s a rare combination. Maybe it’s some sort of grounding issue or something. Weird.
BOTOM LINE:
I wouldn’t trust a final mix on them, since the bass can be so easily compromised due to the size of your room and where you manually choose to set the subwoofer level.
They are, however, a great option for high quality listening in small desk areas or for casual listening in a small room.
I like ‘em!
…
Josh Fowler said
Thanks! I’ll give them a shot. Just beginning to delve into the world of protools. Garageband had done a lot of what I needed, but as I do more backing tracks, it’s good to have something a little better to work with.
Chris said
unplug your power supply from your mac book and your buzz will go away. common issue in the unbalanced audio world.
Chris said
Oh and I love all of the Blue Sky stuff too. We have about 6 pair of them at the BBCC!