Tannoy Reveal 501A Studio Monitor 

Comments about Tannoy Reveal 501A Studio Monitor:

The Yamaha NS50M had a more neutral overall mid-range, but did not have the same overall high frequency resolution as the Tannoy's. The Yamaha had good mid-bass, but not-so-great LF extension. The Mackie's bang in the bass region, but this results in over-emphasis in lower mid range and almost a chuffiness to male vocals. If I had a free field monitor application, I'd probably choose the Mackie's.

The Tannoy's have more of an audiophile sound, and are ruthless in the upper mid detail area. To me, they are the more musical speakers in my application that I have tried.
These monitors have most of the features that you will need - gain, HF trim, etc. I wish they had greater sound shaping to compensate for where the monitors will be located. I have a small nook where these are located and would have appreciated perhaps a LF or MF conture swithc. The Yamaha NS-50's have greater flexibility in this area.
Build - Excellent build quality. I took home these Tannoy's, Mackie MR5's, Yanmaha NS50M's. They were all good quality builds (no loose screws, ragged wrap seams, driver surround wrinkles or blems, etc.) but the Tannoy's looked and felt like more time was spent on the cabinet. More than just a box.

Sound - These things sound remarkable for the money, in my application. I have been in audio since I was in elementary school, taking apart my then 8-track Emerson to adjust the azimuth before I even knew what it was! I have been on listening panels for voicing of speakers that were at one time number three rated by Stereophile. Sonds like I'm bragging, but I'm really just trying to get reader a notion that I know a think or two about speakers.

What the Tannoy's do right - They have greater spatial characteristics than either the Mackie or the Yamaha. For me, in my application, the front-firing port made a big difference in the sound when compared to other mini-monitors I brought home in this price range. High frequency extension is better than either Yamaha or Mackie, and the 'attack' is very good. When a stick hits the cymbal, there is not a delay or softening...it sounds right. Even though they may not have as much rated power as some others in the range, power is only one spec related to volume level. They play plenty loud. They look smashing next to my iMac. The silver woof, silver accents, and rounded cabinet edges look awesome. The rounded cabinet edges, and slight rear offset of tweet serve real purpose beyond just looks for time alignment and diffraction/reflection reduction.

What they could do better at - I could see where after longer periods of time, particularly at higher volumes, these speakers may be fatiguing. There is slight emphasis on the upper mids, that was more noticeble initially, and improved with break-in. I have the HF trim switch at -1.5.
For the money, these things would be hard to beat. Hard to believe you can get this kinda sound for this kinda price. I listened to JBL, Yamaha, Mackie, KRK, M-Audio, and the Tannoy's.

Comments about Tannoy Reveal 501A Studio Monitor:

I use these for my "home studio." I wanted some good playback speakers and something decent to mix on - on the rare occations I record people at home. Right away I listened to these speakers and was very unimpressed with them. So, I left loud music blasting on them for a day or so while I was gone from my house. There was a dramatic improvement in overall tonality of the speaker as well as more low end response. You must break these in! After that, I started listening to my favorite music on them through my 003 rack. I was actually impressed with them. They sound very crisp and clear and they let you hear way farther into the mix than I though I would be able to. They extend down to about 50Hz (but they have a dip around 70-100Hz that show up in mixes). I was able to mix pretty well on them, but they don't really have solid enough low end to get a good kick and bass sound. It could be my room as well, so keep that in mind when reading this. I had to be careful to learn how they sounded before I could get solid low end in a mix. I went back and forth between headphones, some 2.1 computer speakers, and my home theater system a lot because I know what those sound like. After learning how they sound, it's easier to mix on them. They tend to be a little bit harsh to my ears; fatiguing after listening for extended periods of time. However, the mids on these speakers are really incredible for how cheap they are. I'll deal with a little harshness to get the clarity in the mids and highs. Rokit 5's have an obvious midrange dip that drives me crazy (previous version of them). I honestly like these better than Rokit 5's. I mixed a huge 50+ track production partially on these speakers because I mixed some at home. At work I have some Mack HR8s...I have to admit that compared to the Mackie's, the 501a's don't sound that good. You can mix on the HR8's and have a pretty good sounding mix anywhere indicating they are accurate. The 501a's are a little harsh and aren't tight enough on the low end, so the tendency is to end up with a too punchy, dull mix on these. Now, if you learn how they sound, you can actually get good results. You may want to use a PAZ analyzer along with these to see your mix. I recommend these speakers for: a home studio, a second pair of speakers in addition to some nicer studio monitors, or for someone that is starting out and needs some cheapo speakers that will outperform other speakers in the price range. For the price, I think these are great. Detailed and revealing as they say.
No special features.
Solid construction, run day after day with no problem.
Great speaker for this price range.

Comments about Tannoy Reveal 501A Studio Monitor:

Don't get me wrong I do love these monitors, a close friend in pro audio suggested them, after using them for about 6 months casually in my studio I started to realize a few things. One of the selling points on these are the applications for small studios. Since they are designed for "Small" spaces I thought they would be perfect! The sweet spot for the mids and bass even after changing the Hf trim is about 5 feet (since the bass ports are on the front). beware of placement or your mixes will not be acurate. If you have the room these speakers kick and sparkle like none other in the price range. I just wanted to share the inaccuracy of front portin

Comments about Tannoy Reveal 501A Studio Monitor:

I?m running the Tannoys through an E-MU audio interface at my house and this review is my initial feedback after listening to them for about a week. I use a couple of Mackie 8" monitors all the time that cost $650 each. The Tannoys have more natural midbass response as well as clearer cleaner mids. The Tannoys have a paper woofer and soft dome tweeter ? which I think holds the difference. The Mackies have a poly woofer and a titanium dome tweeter. I also use the JBL LSR system with the 12" subwoofer which is a $2,500 system. I use those at work, too. Everyone agrees that they sound disappointing except that they get loud. The Tannoy reveals sound similar to the 4? KRK?s, but I think the Tannoys have cleaner and deeper low end response with the slightly larger woofer. If you mix bass heavy music with significant content below 50Hz, you may want to look into a sub. If you need a budget set of monitors that will compete; at least consider these. These things are actually quality!