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PreSonus R80

Active Monitor from PreSonus belonging to the R series

1 review
Public price: $599 incl. VAT
8/10
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review reactions True Blue

  • 8 replies
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Topic True Blue
True Blue
PreSonus recently added to its growing line of studio monitors with its new R-Series, active near-field monitors that feature AMT tweeters, and come in two sizes, the R80 (8” woofer) and the R65 (6.5” woofer). We got our hands on a pair of R80s for this review.

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2
First off, thank you for taking the time to review these speakers. I have been on the verge of upgrading my studio monitors, and was just about to grab some Presonus Sceptre series when I saw these new R-series. I'm still very much on the fence between the two, and there is nowhere less than 100 miles away to hear them in person. I'm hoping more reviews and opinions will start popping up, but in the meantime could you compare the two? Thanks!
3
Hey Michael--I haven't had any hands-on experience with the Sceptres, but will reach out to my PreSonus contact to get some more info on the differences between the two product lines.
4
Ok great, I look forward to it! Thank you!
5
OK, I heard back from Steve Oppenheimer from PreSonus. Here's what he said:
Quote:
The key thing here is that the speakers use entirely different technologies. We now have four lines, each with a different technology.

The Sceptres are coaxial, codesigned with Fulcrum Acoustic coaxial guru Dave Gunness. Coaxial designs offer the advantages of a single point source for a consistent acoustic center and a symmetrical dispersion pattern but until time-based DSP became affordable, designing coaxial systems without a variety of acoustic anomalies has been extremely expensive. Gunness does some very specialized DSP (Temporal Equalization, or TQ, technology) to overcome the usual problems with coaxials, and the results are pretty spectacular. The crossover point is inaudible, and the biggest thing to me is that the imaging is incredible. It takes serious DSP to do this stuff, and PreSonus has managed to make it affordable. This is the same technology (in fact, the same coaxial drivers) found in StudioLive AI-series PA speakers. You can throw a lot of power at these speakers, and they do not break up, they just stop getting louder when at maximum level.

I also have been very impressed with the Sceptre’s low-end reproduction. It’s very accurate, and you get much more low end than you might expect from a 6.5-inch woofer (the S6) — and the 8-inch woofer (S8) has huge bass but tight and clear, not muddy.

The R series you’ve heard, of course. There, the strength is the super-sensitive AMT tweeter, which acts like a ribbon and gives you that very airy, super accurate high end. The other big thing is the wide sweet spot. For more info, I suggest you read Mike Levine’s review in Audiofanzine. Oh wait a minute…. <grin>

If I were doing a lot of work with acoustic instruments and vocals, I’d consider the R series because of that AMT sensitivity. If I were mixing rock, pop, and the like, I probably would go for Sceptres. But you can do fine with either speaker for acoustic or electric music. I would not say one is better than the other so much as that they have different strengths.

The Sceptres are physically larger and heavier, if that makes a difference.
6
I have the R65 for a couple of days now. They are stunning! However, there's a minor thing tha bugs me. When turned them on there's a small but audible hiss/hum. I've tried to get the gain knob all down or completely unplug the audio cable but nothing changed. I even tried to use another power socket. I do wonder if that's the case with the R80s as well.
7
Quote:
I do wonder if that's the case with the R80s as well.

I never noticed such an issue with the R80s. Possibly it's a defect in the pair you have?
8
Thanks for the quick reply

Im reading on various sources that some hiss is normal in most active monitors, but i guess is shouldnt be audible.
Sorry for repeating myself, but do your R80 are completely dead silent when they are turned on, without any music playing?
Im guessing that the R80 have even a stronger amp, which, in theory, might had a greater hiss

im not sure if i need to get myself used to it, and just turn them off when im not listening,
or there's something wrong with them:(

P.S sorry im not sure if hiss or hum is the right word to describe it. eitherway, is just a soft white noise, nothing buzzy or qurky

9
If I put my ear right up to the woofer on the R80s, I do hear kind of a lower-midrange rumbly sound, but it's very quiet.