Hey all,

I bought a pair of Fostex 6301s after hearing they're a great 'grotbox' and, after only a couple of short tests I guess I am finding they 'holding a magnifying glass up to my mid-range' but I'm also hearing more presence and hi than anything else…

They have a painfully pokey 5-7k. I actually have to have them quite a bit quieter than my full-range monitors (I've got Genelec 8040s) in order to use them without braining my poor lugs.

They're also pretty distorted (there's no such thing a sine tone on these) and the stereo image seems extremely exaggerated. I actually thought one side was somehow inverted at first.

It might just be a case of getting used to them but I'm just here to ask… is this normal or have I bought a ruined pair?

Thanks!

never used them, but if you bought something described as a "grot box", you should not be 'worried' if they sound grotty.

Such things are used for 'checking' your mix. Maybe yours are 'broken', but maybe like you said, you are just paying too much attention to them because they are new.

I have a pair of Auratones - often called "Horrortones" for that similar kind of sound. They are very useful for checking certain things. But once I have checked, I go back to my real monitors. On average, I have them "on" for a grand total of about 2 minutes per hour of mixing.

Nothing "grotty" about those if they're in good shape. They have no low end to speak of -- how could they -- but they've got good fullrange drivers and decent amps.

They play loud because they're super-efficient, and they're super-efficient because they don't have crossovers. If they're breaking up, there's something wrong. Hard to say what.

And if the stereo image seems "extremely exaggerated," you might be running them out of phase.

Thanks for the note, guys.

Any comment on the peak at 6/7k?

Ah yeah, this is what I meant by "inverted" but when I check in mono it seems like they're fine.

Only other thing I can add is that if they're the original 6301's (no letter on the end), they're around 30 years old. No telling what could have happened to them in that amount of time.

yup it's the old'uns. maybe i should get them repaired?

I realize I am too late posting this, but maybe someone else will have the same issue with these monitors some time in the future ...

I bought two used pairs of Fostex 6301B on auction platforms within the last two years and both were very distorted in the low end, just like the OP describes. They were both "made in Japan", so probably around 20 years old. When I was testing the first pair I was absolutely sure they were broken and sent them back. But when the second pair had the same issue, I wasn't entirely sure anymore. But then I tested them against a pair at a friend's place and his speakers were clean in the low end. So I sent the second pair back to the seller too.

To make a long story short: I believe that the old Fostex 6301 are pretty prone to having their speakers blown, which results in low frequency distortion. Maybe it's a kind of damage that comes with age or maybe the previous owners just cranked them up too loud.

Here I go reviving this old thread again

I have a single one at home that exhibits distortion and very little low end. However I know these from my studio days, and recently bought a pair for my work venue. They are great, playing (as has been mentioned above) loud and clean if they're in good shape. And they go down to at least 100Hz

The reason I'm here is to ask if anyone's found replacement drivers other than the $50 ones at Full Compass? I love FC, but I paid less than that for my little 6301B.

Cheers

I've had the older 6301's for years and they make a good single mono monitor ref.
With the buzzing and rasping people are talking about, this can be down to the edge of the paper cone coming away fro the orange suspension ring due to age degradation of the glue.
I had this issue with one of mine.
A simple inspection and cleaning to get rid of debris, then a small amount of PVA to rebond and the issue was resolved immediately.

I think that may have been the problem. Got rid of them a year ago but thanks anyway!

I put one of these in a 6301B I got cheap off ebay without a driver in it.
https://www.parts-express.com/visato...8-ohm--292-596
It actually sounds better than the original, but that may not be what you
want. At least it won't cost you much to try it.

Excellent - thanks! I'll give that a shot. I know what the original sounds like but don't need it for reference or anything. It serves as more of a 'need something to plug into' monitor for testing or playing.

THANK YOU! - Just did this with my fave Fostex 6301B; worked great. I've had these for 30 years, always kept volume knobs at 7 or below; very useful near field monitors for checking mixes for 'car sound'. Just recently heard low end distortion on one speaker- followed the description above - Got PVA glue on Amazon, pulled off front grill, laid speaker on back, applied small amount of glue where paper cone meets ring as described, used Q-Tip and moist finger to clear off excess and smooth glue. Let dry for 3-4 hours (to make sure set). Played music material was familiar with, panned side to side - glued speaker sounds fine. Saved $60 not needing to buy new speaker. Btw, to replace speaker pair with current model is $250-300; I paid $90 for the pair when I got them . . ! ! ! ! Thanks to all on this site for great support.

I bought the aforementioned replacement speaker, but tried your fix first. In case anyone goes on a crazy search for PVA glue like I did, Elmer's Glue has PVA I needed wood glue for another project so I went with Gorilla. Anywho, this little guy is back to life. Works great as a talkback speaker too, btw. Thanks

what do you guys think of these drivers? unfortunatly I can't see them personaly before a buy







also is 6301B3E a newer model of the older ones?

I have a pair of Yamaha hs8 and I've been thinking of getting a extra pair of smaller speakers. They would be usually be placed in the living room to improve TV sound quality and listen to music via Bluetooth. It could be a way to check my mixes as well though! I've been thinking about these Fostex 6301. Are the still worth it in 2022? I could look for a pair of used ones, but at the price of ~300 EUR a pair I think one could be getting a decent soundbar or cheap studio speakers...? Why do you think?

for listening these need a subwoofer. and the higher you cross the better, since distorsion in the bass is limiting their usable loudness

Uhm ok thanks, so I guess this means they are not worth it, given the price tag

I would only recommend you go the Fostex route if you'll use them for other tasks. But besides lacking bass response, you'll have to manually power them on and off, have no remote volume control, run through one or more adapters, have no onboard way to receive Bluetooth, they're large compared to a sound bar, and likely consume more power too. I'd find a sound bar with optical input (to bypass the TV's DAC) instead.

Which one of these two would you go for? 6301NE or 6301NX? The first one has electronically balanced input, the second one has transformer balanced input.

An electronically balanced input uses electronic components, such as op-amps, to create a balanced signal. In this type of input, the positive and negative signals are created by an active circuit that cancels out any noise or interference that may be present in the signal.

On the other hand, a transformer balanced input uses a transformer to balance the signal. The transformer is designed to isolate the input from the output and prevent any noise or interference from entering the circuit. The transformer also balances the signal by using two windings that are wound in opposite directions.

The advantage of electronically balanced inputs is that they are typically less expensive and more compact than transformer balanced inputs. They also do not require any maintenance or adjustments. However, transformer balanced inputs provide superior noise rejection and can handle high levels of input without distortion. They also provide isolation between the input and output, which can be important in certain applications.

Ultimately, the choice between electronically balanced and transformer balanced inputs will depend on the specific needs of the application and the available budget.

Well the reason I asked is because I could not find their prices. I wanted to see how much more expensive the transformer balanced one is. Maybe I didn't look hard enough? But thank you for your explanation for those who don't know the difference and may be interested to know.

If you are having a problem with RF interference, go for the transformer
balanced one. If not save a few bucks and go electronically balanced.

Would that be the only advantage of the transformer balanced model over the electrically balanced one?

There might be a sound difference as well, depending on which transformer is used, and the power/level/impedance matching between devices. There are good clean transformers from Jensen, Lundahl, etc
which will not thicken the sound if implemented well.

I have a pair of 6301b for about 10 years (bought them brand new) and all that I can say is you can hear (and feel) sine basses on them indeed. No low end distorsion except when crancked up to limit and listening to solo bass track.

They are not 'enjoyable' set of speakers but I found them very useful. Sometimes I just get carried away and stay on them without a purpose... And then suddenly when I switch to mains there are already dozens of phase issues, frequencies and harmonics problems solved I just couldn't solve that easily on mains. Really fast little drivers with no crossover....

Hey I had a 6301b for quite a while and just not have seemed to have developed a slight speaker con separation from the metal frame ring. A few of you have mentioned using a pva glue. (elmer's) just wondering if a ca glue would also work or if there a reason why one would be a better overall solution
Thanks

I have replaced the original driver on my 6301B (4 ohm) with Visatone https://loudspeakerdatabase.com/VISATON/FR10-4 - a more balanced sound (no high shelf boost as with the original driver), though a narrow peak at 8 kHz. Can recommend the replacement.