[Salvatore Restivo]

What does the term monitor mean to you, in the audio/video space? What makes a speaker a monitor? At first I thought a monitor was just a small speaker, but then I saw the B&W N801s labeled studio monitors. Those things are huge. So maybe it's not size. Alon has a monitor line that includes the Exotica, Tuscany, Capri, Petite, and Rascal. It places other models, like the Phalanx, Circe, and Centris in other non-monitor categories. How is the distinction made?


On the video side, my impression is that a monitor is a display device without any sort of tuner built-in. But then I've seen the term applied to some televisions, as well. So I'm confused there, too.


Thoughts?

 

[schick]

Quote:

On the video side, my impression is that a monitor is a display device without any sort of tuner built-in. But then I've seen the term applied to some televisions, as well.

If you use the television without using the tuner (say as just the display device of a HT system, not using speakers or on-board tuner) then you are utilizing it as a monitor.

 

[where1]

IMHO a monitor is used for keeping track of something. A TV station might have a TV with an antenna just to monitor it's OTA signal, along with CRTs that may monitor different cameras, VCR's or whatever piece of equipment they want to keep an eye on. I use a nine inch TV as a monitor that my receivers menu comes up on. I can be watching a DVD or whatever, and set the parameters on the receiver without it appearing on the main TV. An audio mixing board will have a monitor out section (not to be confused with the stage monitors) that can go to the studio monitors or headphones. You can then solo a single channel, or a submix without having an effect on the final mix. You can also monitor the final mix, before or after the recording. The stage monitors or headphones in a studio would be a separate mix or mixes that the musicians hear. You may have several, so each musician can hear just what they want.

A monitor is not so much a piece of equipment, but more the application a piece of equipment is used for. Of course there is equipment designed specifically for monitoring applications, and named so, but you can use them in a more general application. (The TV behind my bar is a Commodore 1702 computer monitor).

 

[Figgie]

Where1 hit it on the nose. "Monitors" are used for keeping track of audio mixing or for keeping track of editing and color corrections in post production. An application and not an equipment. Basically they are used almost as "quality assurance" to make sure that they didn't over do the mixing or washed out to many color while doing color corrections.