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Studio Monitors - better known simply as speakers - are the link to your ears from your recording desk.

Every pair of studio monitors sounds different, so your choice of model is a very personal decision.

But your [tag]studio monitors[/tag] need to serve a purpose, which will vary somewhat depending on what you are recording and why.

As always, there are a few really key things to consider before you decide which audio monitors to buy…if you want to avoid ending up with studio monitors from hell…

• What will you be recording? - Voice-overs? Instrumentalists? Vocalists? Bands?
• What’s the musical style?
• How big is your recording environment?

As a recording engineer, you have 2 major challenges for your recording studio monitors:

• hearing an accurate reproduction of what you have recorded
• • for this you need reference monitors
• producing a product which provides a great listening experience for your audience
• • for this you’ll need to use small speaker monitoring

Since most of your audience probably won’t listen using the same speakers you have in the studio, how can you check if you are delivering a great listening experience, if you don’t have speakers like theirs?

Remember everything we hear is subjective to whoever is listening, and where they are.

But before we go on to selecting speakers - audio studio monitors - let’s recap on some principles…

Your ears are the final element in the acoustic system you are setting up - made up of:

1. audio monitor speakers - the sound source
2. the room - the sound transmission media
3. your ears- the sound receiver

For most people, there’s not much we can do about their ears - except protect them! However you can choose where the best listening position is in the recording studio.

But…

• the design, construction and placement of the studio monitor speakers, and
• the size, materials, furnishings, and position within the room

…make a huge difference to what you hear.

Monitor Speaker Design

As we know, the design of the speaker affects the sound. There are two major enclosure types to consider when deciding on your design preference:

• Air Suspension:
  This design uses an air-tight enclosure ie it prevents the air from outside connecting with the air inside.
• • The main characteristic of this design is it provides a gradual bass response.
• Bass Reflex:
  Also called the Vented Box , this design with a tuned bass hole allowing the air inside and outside to mix.
• • The main characteristic of this design is that it reinforces sound output at lower bass levels .

What you choose depends on what you need them for and how they sound to you.

Regardless of your choice, the input will always sound different from each individual speaker so using them in combination, better known as ‘creating a Crossover Network’ is important. You need to look and listen to which speakers compliment each other.

Dave’s Tip: When mixing between two speakers always ensure the volume level is consistent.

What about different types of monitor?

There are four main ways to effectively control monitoring in your music recording studio.

When monitoring is not done properly the results can be disastrous. You need to keep in mind that your speakers are the critical link to your ears, so you need to take steps to ensure what you are hearing in the mix is as realistic as possible.

1. Far and Near? - Far Field Monitoring

Far Field Monitoring is mostly seen in a ‘Main Studio’, meaning a room that is optimized for those particular monitors. Generally, in this situation you would have a pair of monitors mounted on the wall (although they can be free standing but will not change location).

The advantages of this setup are:

• they are optimized (matched) for the room so you don’t have to worry about interference from the room acoustics
• they are durable and can handle moderate to high volumes

This is probably the most accurate monitoring system.

2. Far and Near? - Near Field Monitoring

Near Field Monitoring refers to the placement of two smaller speakers in close proximity to your listening position. You would use this setup if you did not have an optimized room - to minimize the interference to what you hear from your room’s acoustic environment.

Near field studio monitors provide a lower cost solution but is probably the most accurate option in an ever-changing studio environment.

Dave’s Tip: Each speaker must be equal distance from you; any difference will affect the accuracy of your resulting mix.

3. Monitoring with Small Speakers

The purpose of Small Speaker Monitoring is to mimic how most of your listeners will hear your music in real life. Listening to the mix through inexpensive, small speakers will give you an idea of what your audience will experience; this can lead you to make significant changes to your final mix.

If you haven’t already, as soon as you can afford it, aim to add a pair of small speakers to your set up, in addition to your reference monitors.

4. What about Headphones?

Never underestimate the value of a good set of headphones. This eliminates all acoustical interference from your studio and allows you to hear only what you have recorded.

Using a combination of a few environments is an in depth way of examining your mix. As well listening to the mix at different volumes will also give you the opportunity to hear different perspectives because your ears hear different things depending on the volume level.

Monitor Position Matters

You have just purchased your monitors, and now it’s time to position them in an environment where they will give you the best sound.

Most rooms are rectangular, so do your best to set up your mixing environment on the shortest side of a room. For example, if your room is 10×8, the ideal location would be in the center of the 8’ wall space.

Plan A: Provided you have enough space in your studio, it is best to place your monitors in a position that avoids identical distances from surrounding surfaces.

For example if you have…

• 4.5’ from the back wall,
• 3.5’ from the side wall,
• 4’ from the floor and
• 3’ from the ceiling

…you should avoid a placement within 3’ feet of the back wall to help with unpredictable low frequency responses.

This is sometimes referred to as the “danger zone” because it can lead to the inconsistent bass sounds from different parts of the room.

Plan B: If you don’t have the 3’ feet available, place the monitors flush against the back wall - to create what is called a drawback. This will lift the bass response, so you’ll probably need to fine tune the bass output of the monitors. (You’ll need to refer to the manufacturer’s guidelines on how to do this.)

Dave’s Tip: Monitors should be positioned at ear level and aimed inward towards you.

Room Matters

Any studio monitor speaker will sound different depending on the room… but that’s coming in Part 2…