Recording - September 2021 - 71

REVIEW
BY GILES REAVES
utput, known initially for software
offerings, is adding to its growing
hardware line once again. This
time they are teaming up with Barefoot
Sound to create a brand new studio
monitor using a point source design.
O
Point and shoot
Point source (dual concentric, coaxial)
monitors have been around for decades,
with models from Urie and Tannoy used
in studios as early as the 1970s. I've
worked with them on and off my entire recording
life, and I always liked the imaging
these designs offer. I'm always on the
lookout for the latest coaxial implementations,
so of course I was eager to get
my hands on these new speakers from
Output as soon as I heard about them.
First impressions
The Frontier monitors arrived factory
fresh and well protected in excellent,
simple packaging which was easy to
deal with.
Out of the box, Frontier measures 13
x 9 x 7.9 " and weighs 15.6 lbs. They
are made of MDF and finished in gray
68 RECORDING September 2021
1/4
Output: Frontier
Imaging and aesthetics are front and
center in this new coaxial monitor design
with an LED-lit walnut base that isolates
the 6.5 " time-aligned coaxial aluminum
alloy driver. The walnut look and glowing
LED may not be to everyone's visual
taste, but I did not mind it at all.
Around the back are a balanced XLR /
" combo jack, unbalanced 1
/4
" in,
level control (-10 to +2dB) and an ECO
Mode switch. Note there are no EQ or
room correction controls.
A 200-watt combined bi-amplified
architecture provides power.
Setup
I set up and listened to the Frontier
monitors in a few different
locations
/ positions and even shot some test
sweeps to see if anything unexpected
could be revealed (spoiler alert-no).
The Frontier remained fairly consistent
sounding in every position I tried it in.
Although I didn't test them against a
wall, their front port design should allow
that in rooms where it's your only option.
Levels
With the level control set to 0dB, the
Frontier put out less level than my other
monitors (JBL 8 " LSR6328 and LSR6312,
Equator, and NS-10). They have only 2dB
of gain above their 0dB mark, but that still
wasn't quite enough to match the others;
the solution was to turn down the others.
Sound
Do these monitors sound good? My
first impression was that they were boring-sounding,
unflattering, and totally
uninteresting to listen to. Now, I realize
that sounds pretty negative, but it's not-
that's exactly what I look for in a mix
monitor, so we're off to a great start.

Recording - September 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Recording - September 2021

Fade In
2021 Summer NAMM Report
Solid State Logic: UF8 Advanced DAW Controller
The Ascending Spiral: Soundtracks, Sound Design and Saw with Charlie Clouser
KRK Classic 7
Plugin Outlet: Empirical Labs Big FrEQ
Inside the Box with Joe Albano: EQ in the Box
Plugin Outlet: FabFilter Timeless 3
Focal: Alpha 65 Evo
Session Log: The AngelHeaded Hipster, Part 9: Mixing
Austrian Audio: Hi-X65
Plugin Outlet: BABY Audio Smooth Operator
Reviewed and Revisited: Ableton Push 2
Plugin Outlet: Overloud GEM Voice
Inside the Studio with Mark Hornsby: Who Is the Mastering Engineer? A Producer’s Opinion
Reviewed and Revisited: Avid Pro Tools 2021.6
Amphion: BaseTwo25
Plugin Outlet: Massenburg Designworks EQ
Readers’ Tracks
Output: Frontier
Fade Out: The Identification of Spatial Audio
Recording - September 2021 - 1
Recording - September 2021 - 2
Recording - September 2021 - 3
Recording - September 2021 - 4
Recording - September 2021 - 5
Recording - September 2021 - 6
Recording - September 2021 - Fade In
Recording - September 2021 - 8
Recording - September 2021 - 9
Recording - September 2021 - 10
Recording - September 2021 - 2021 Summer NAMM Report
Recording - September 2021 - 12
Recording - September 2021 - 13
Recording - September 2021 - 14
Recording - September 2021 - 15
Recording - September 2021 - 16
Recording - September 2021 - Solid State Logic: UF8 Advanced DAW Controller
Recording - September 2021 - 18
Recording - September 2021 - 19
Recording - September 2021 - 20
Recording - September 2021 - The Ascending Spiral: Soundtracks, Sound Design and Saw with Charlie Clouser
Recording - September 2021 - 22
Recording - September 2021 - 23
Recording - September 2021 - 24
Recording - September 2021 - 25
Recording - September 2021 - 26
Recording - September 2021 - 27
Recording - September 2021 - 28
Recording - September 2021 - 29
Recording - September 2021 - 30
Recording - September 2021 - KRK Classic 7
Recording - September 2021 - 32
Recording - September 2021 - Plugin Outlet: Empirical Labs Big FrEQ
Recording - September 2021 - 34
Recording - September 2021 - Inside the Box with Joe Albano: EQ in the Box
Recording - September 2021 - 36
Recording - September 2021 - 37
Recording - September 2021 - 38
Recording - September 2021 - 39
Recording - September 2021 - 40
Recording - September 2021 - Plugin Outlet: FabFilter Timeless 3
Recording - September 2021 - 42
Recording - September 2021 - Focal: Alpha 65 Evo
Recording - September 2021 - 44
Recording - September 2021 - Session Log: The AngelHeaded Hipster, Part 9: Mixing
Recording - September 2021 - 46
Recording - September 2021 - 47
Recording - September 2021 - 48
Recording - September 2021 - Austrian Audio: Hi-X65
Recording - September 2021 - 50
Recording - September 2021 - Plugin Outlet: BABY Audio Smooth Operator
Recording - September 2021 - 52
Recording - September 2021 - Reviewed and Revisited: Ableton Push 2
Recording - September 2021 - 54
Recording - September 2021 - Plugin Outlet: Overloud GEM Voice
Recording - September 2021 - 56
Recording - September 2021 - Inside the Studio with Mark Hornsby: Who Is the Mastering Engineer? A Producer’s Opinion
Recording - September 2021 - 58
Recording - September 2021 - Reviewed and Revisited: Avid Pro Tools 2021.6
Recording - September 2021 - 60
Recording - September 2021 - Amphion: BaseTwo25
Recording - September 2021 - 62
Recording - September 2021 - Plugin Outlet: Massenburg Designworks EQ
Recording - September 2021 - 64
Recording - September 2021 - Readers’ Tracks
Recording - September 2021 - 66
Recording - September 2021 - 67
Recording - September 2021 - 68
Recording - September 2021 - 69
Recording - September 2021 - 70
Recording - September 2021 - Output: Frontier
Recording - September 2021 - 72
Recording - September 2021 - 73
Recording - September 2021 - 74
Recording - September 2021 - Fade Out: The Identification of Spatial Audio
Recording - September 2021 - 76
Recording - September 2021 - 77
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