I need monitors that won't lie to me

Right now I'm in one of those places... I feel that I can't do work seriously without a pair of monitors. I'm not prone to listening on multiple systems (I usually try to listen on 2 or 3 pairs of headphones, a cheap speaker and a decent stereo, but that's it), and the cans I'm using sound really nice but they simply are not monitors. I have not used them before and I have turned out what feel to me to be some pretty good mixes, but I know it will assist me in the future to get used to them if I want to go anywhere with sound engineering.
 
I'm on the tightest budget you can imagine. What is the cheapest pair that can be had that still sounds decent? I'm pretty amateur, so I really just need something that will function and last me a couple of years.

What is the cheapest pair that can be had that still sounds decent?
 
You will, in most cases, get what you pay for.  Buy "cheap" speakers and you won't get much.
 

The cheapest for full range monitoring - Yamaha msp 7s, but they are $700-800 a pair.  the msp 5s are good, but you'll need something else to check the bottom ( the 5's get used as near range in big studios) and they are significantly cheaper.
 
Below that, things get ... dicey.  But most of the cheaper ones will work - you just have to listen on other systems once you know their faults.  If you get the Yama 5s at least you know you are good
 
@, except for the bass.

Yea, those got a good review in SOS and in talk elsewhere.  As Jim sez, you get what you pay for.  There are good lower-cost monitors, but there are compromises.
 
A sad fact is you have to spend close to $1000 to get full-rangish (8 inch) monitors that are close to true.  Monitors (the last transducer) are a lot like microphones (the first transducer) in that you have to spend good money to get above average sound across the sonic spectrum.   It doesn't mean you can't get good sound on a '57 and a home stereo, it is just not as easy or universal w/ a nice mic drawer and high end monitors.
 
I would check w/ SOS reviews about monitors in your price range and then ask here (and elsewhere) if anyone uses them specifically and what they think of them.
 
@ 

batsbrew
without a corrected room, anything you buy in ANY price range is subject to lying.

I was just going to say the same thing.

Quick question from a neophyte...
 
Given the freq range of monitors, their responsiveness and how awesome they generally seem (kinda assuming this is why they're good in the first place?)... do people also use them for home theatre setups? Sure they're expensive, but if you can afford it aren't they better?

You need to look at ARC 2.

M-Audio BX8 - I managed to get a pair and am very impressed.

I just have a pair of LSR 305s (not doing 5.1 yet), and the only trouble I get into is that they tend to have way more bass than you hear on a tablet listening to a clip that way, so the final test is always... "does it sound good on crappy equipment?".

adams f5 are decent price with a great sound

No matter what monitors you end up purchasing, you will have to learn them in the context of your space.  One thing you can do is bring reference material to your retailer and listen to different ones.  The ones that sound closest to what you think the reference material should sound like are probably going to be a good choice.

You should read the first chapter of Marc Mozart's Your Mix Sucks. I'm posting this here, because it sent me on a mission to find an old, 1980's boom box. There's a few things to seriously consider when working with monitors, some ideas I agree with, while others, I don't.
 
1) Use as full-range a set of monitors as you can when critically listening. However, when making mixing decisions, especially around spacing, panning, levels, etc. use a cheap-o boom box at a very low volume. Get your mix sounding great there, first. Then bring up the mix on your high-end monitors.
 
2) Be sure you have a GOOD sub, if you need one. Those cheap, bundled subs you get with a sound-bar are not ideal, and I strongly encourage not using them. X-over the sub with your monitors as best you can. You should not be able to localize the sub.
 
3) Listen, listen, listen to pro mixes you like on your speakers that you use in your room, and at the level you intend to mix at, not the loud levels you want to dissect. Even if you are in your room listening, don't think you have to sit in one position. Walk around. Stand up behind your chair, on the floor, etc. Do other things than just listen. Let your sub-conscious mind listen. Eventually, it will become second nature to know what sounds good and what doesn't.
 
4) I do recommend testing your mixes on many systems, but not mixing on many systems. Get it right on a couple of of sets of speakers, not 10. But get it right on what you have. If it's not right, try different listening levels, or even better,
 
5) Pay a mixing engineer to sit in with you on a session and make some recommendations on your mix. He/she might be able to immediately offer some advice that will help you tons...no, I mean TONS!!
 
6) I use a set of 1st-Gen Mackie HR824's, a set I won at a Mackie d8b seminar, over a decade ago. I use them for nearly everything except integrity checks. I don't know if I would have bought them, if I were shopping, but they sound pretty good for their size (not totally flat, btw, as the pedigree states). I also do some listening on a set of Polk Audio SRS-SDA 2.3TL speakers powered by a Pass-X350. With that said, I just purchased an old 1980's Realistic boom box, which I am excited (for the first time ever) to listen to that piece of ______. But I know it will help my mixes!
 
Best of luck!
 
Footnote: Many would argue that the Yamaha NS-10 speakers (with tissue over the tweeters) were the original "truth" monitors. OMG, they sound terrible. Needless to say, I have a set of the NS-10 Studios. Even those sound pretty horrid. So, the best monitors may not tell the truth. Some crappy ones will be more honest, perhaps.

And do not forget, you do not have to buy new.
 
Craigslist is just one of many possible sources. Check the list for your price range.

IMHO all monitors lie to you, even the best ones you can get. It's not necessarily the monitor that's going to make the sound, it's more what you're using for a reference. When I was doing live sound, I always had a copy of Skyscraper by David Lee Roth in the CD player. If I could get a PA sounding good playing that CD, I knew I would be able to get a great mix from the band. I called it David Lee Reference (Richard Kitchen). The same works for studio monitors, as long as you don't have garbage, if you have a reference, you can make a mix sound good. Yeah, the reference is going to sound different on different speakers but if you can get your mix sounding as good as your reference point, it's going to translate.
Relative to HS8s, Rokit 5s sound muddy, but if you listen to a reference track on either speaker, you can get an idea of what your mix is going to sound like. Regardless of what you use in the studio, it's not likely that anyone will be using the same speakers to listen to your music.
I guess the answer is, get the speaker that lets you hear the most detail and that allows you to hear the most variations from your reference. Only your ear is going to tell you what you really need.
Yeah, it's a crappy answer, sorry.
 

bluzdog
All great info here. I will echo that ARC 2 will compliment your room situation regardless of what level of treatment you can afford. The VLM box will compliment your headphone situation immensely for a small price.
 
Rocky

Correction: VRM Box. And yes they are great for when you have to work with headphones, or just checking how your mix translates to a variety of speaker and room types.