20 Best Studio Monitors For Home Recording (Feb 2023 Update)

Sound: I finally upgraded from the rigged up home stereo, and headphones. That Bass is so clean. It doesn't rattle my windows, or walls, or anything for that matter. The sound stays inside the speakers. That's always been one of my biggest problems with Bass. It travels and vibrates everything, kind of annoying and distracting when your hear stuff rattling WITH your music. This is my first pair of studio monitors. Not speakers but monitors. Improvise and make due with what you have until you're able to upgrade right? I've had some gnarly sound systems, but never any actual studio monitors until I got these. Honestly they're perfect. They are the perfect monitors for the home studio. Features: I love the digital eq parameter on the back of each monitor. It allows ultimate flexibility for dialing in the sound exactly how you want it. The general aesthetic of it is pretty dope too. They also have an app for iphone/android so its literally made for anyone who's anyone. I love that universal compatibility. It simplifies a lot. Ease of Use: It was pretty self explanatory. For being my first set of monitor speakers all I did was unbox them, hook them up to my interface, cranked them on, dialed in the sound. Boom done! It doesn't get any easier. Quality: You can tell they took their time engineering these speakers. They're very well crafted. I see me using these for several years before I even think about getting another pair. It's got an 8 inch speaker, and a little 1 inch tweeter. Don't let that fool you. These speakers were much bigger than I expected. All the sound stays inside the speaker. It makes a huge difference when it comes to canceling out all the excess noise& vibrations. Windows, stuff on shelves, doors, etc. Very well crafted. Value: The price is fair. In my honest opinion. I wouldn't say they're overpriced, and they're definitely not cheap. Thanks to zounds, guys/girls like me can get their hands on some amazing equipment. The Wow Factor: I didn't NEED the speakers, but I was getting tired of just my headphones. Sometimes I can spend all day in my studio, especially when im off work. Or half a day at the least. After a while those headphones start to hurt and become uncomfortable on the tops of my ears. I generally just wanted to upgrade my studio.Of course I love the general aesthetic of the speakers too. They seriously look bad a$$ just sitting there on my desk with all of my gear. It looks very nice. Gives me more of that "studio feel" and it feels good. It's nice to finally have the option of headphones or speakers. And not just speakers, but speakers that were specifically made for this kind of stuff. Overall: These speakers are the SH!T!!!! They sound so good and they're much bigger than I expected. Clean bass. Literally nothing vibrates or rattles. All that Bass and sound stays inside the speakers. Did I mention that they sound amazing? Shipping was extremely fast. I had them 1 day after ordering. Super happy with these krk8s. I got 1 step down from the krk 10-3. I just need to get my hands on the sub now. This is the prefect size for a home studio. The eq on the back of each monitor is an awesome addition as well, so you can dial in that sound just right. Krk did amazing with these. I can see why they're universally loved. There's nothing to dislike about them. 10/10 perfect studio monitors. You won't be disappointed. As always zZounds rocks, and makes my life so much easier. Aside from local music shops, zZounds is the only place I order from. They've been nothing but good to me. Thank you zZounds for helping me bring me dreams to life!!!!J.

I spent a lot of time to read and watch reviews on these monitors before deciding to purchase them from Andertons who offered them in the best price around for an overseas customer. They were replacing a pair of Yamaha HS80m (yes, this is not a typo!) Due to moving to a smaller place, I needed to downsize and replace my big monitors with something much more compact that would still produce decent quality sound. The plan is to pair them with a small sub (Eris sub8). What can I say about these small beauties! No hiss at all, except you stick your ear to the twitters, something that HS80M is not famous for. Sound wise, I put them next to the Yamahas and was alternating between the 2 pairs. Yamahas had of course more low end and depth due to the larger woofer, but I could now hear an annoying boost in middle / middle high bands that made them sound a bit plasticky compared to the RP5 G4's. The G4's on the other hand, sounded more natural/neutral, less-fatiguing for longer sessions and very nice for regular listening apart from mixing work. What I hear is in line with the results of the Audio Science Review tests. Their looks are great, now upgraded with KRK grills, and their construction looks very strong and long-lasting (time will show of course). Super happy with my purchase, Yamahas are already gone and I am waiting for my sub8 to complete my new dream studio 🙂Reviewed by Andertons Music Co.

Forget everything you know about the KRK Rockits. The G3's are critically panned and most pro audio customers worth their salt have steered CLEAR of the KRK and the Rockits because of admittedly how awful the Gen 3's were. KRK has fixed everything that was wrong with the G3's. No more flabby overwhelming bass. No more "clamped" sound. Headroom is stellar even from the 5's, and the 7's and 8's are great steps up. Larger front porting is necessary, and the app integration that allows you to set up your monitors for your room is a game changer. I would have never previously recommended anyone buy the G3's over even Yamaha monitors, and especially not over the Adam Audio T5V's or the LP6 Kali's. These monitors show just how much KRK wants to bring a better product to market and how much they listened to feedback. I highly recommend the Gen 4's. Steer clear of the Gen 3's, no matter how deep of a sale they end up on. The Gen 4's are an entry level monitor that punches well above their weight, and you can feel great about picking up a pair to use for years to come.Donny Two Thumbs

Great build, absolutely no lack of power and detail for days! I thought long and hard before buying these. I have poured over review after review on the HS lineup and they seem to have a reputation for an overly bright high end and slightly underpowered but tight low. I can honestly say, I have none of those criticisms. The highs are very detailed but not overly bright the mids are open accurate and fast and the lows are very punchy, dynamic and tightly controlled all the way down to 40Hz and below. Even with my less than optimal setup (about a foot away from the back wall), The HS8's present a fantastic soundstage and are resolving detail that I have never heard in my music before. From sub bass right through to the top end of my mixes, I'm hearing things in my mixes that I never knew were even there before! I'm so glad I went for the HS8's rather than a smaller model as these things present bass with a weight and authority that is truly satisfying, plus there really is no need for a sub!William M.

Great build, absolutely no lack of power and detail for days! I thought long and hard before buying these. I have poured over review after review on the HS lineup and they seem to have a reputation for an overly bright high end and slightly underpowered but tight low. I can honestly say, I have none of those criticisms. The highs are very detailed but not overly bright the mids are open accurate and fast and the lows are very punchy, dynamic and tightly controlled all the way down to 40Hz and below. Even with my less than optimal setup (about a foot away from the back wall), The HS8's present a fantastic soundstage and are resolving detail that I have never heard in my music before. From sub bass right through to the top end of my mixes, I'm hearing things in my mixes that I never knew were even there before! I'm so glad I went for the HS8's rather than a smaller model as these things present bass with a weight and authority that is truly satisfying, plus there really is no need for a sub!William M.

I have the T7V monitors also from Adam Audio. I was supremely satisfied with them. I didn't know what I was missing! With the addition of this sub, the entire should profile is more rich, balanced, and tighter. The sub can be disabled with a foot switch which is so useful for testing mixes and also gives you a sense of just how much difference this sub makes. I would suggest you go through the manual and the online videos of sub setup; especially level adjustment and placement and phase as it makes a big difference. Highly highly recommended.Rhys

Overall: I am in the middle of returning my third pair of T7V's today. I bought a pair of HS8's to replace them, and I wish that is what I would have done in the first place. I wanted to believe in these monitors so bad, especially because the great reviews and the Adam Audio reputation. These monitors would not stop making busted noises, almost as if the circuitry was bad or the speakers themselves were blown out. I don't think Adam has this product line worked out. I'm still in awe about how people are even saying anything good about these. Like I said, this is my third return on these monitors! For this third time, I bought a brand new interface (Scarlett 6i6), sprung out for some ridiculously priced cables (like $50/piece). This third pair sounded the worst! I checked voltage to make sure I wasn't getting any power draw from my wall sockets. I checked the DB settings in the back (all set to 0db). I referenced tracks from iTunes from Top 40- Led Zeppelin. I plugged in to a balanced source as well. These monitors did not want to work, guys, and I desperately wanted them to work hence why I spend like an extra $400 to make sure my imagination wasn't running wild. These monitors are certified trash. I'd love to see a working pair out their in the wild because I just don't believe it after this many times. I was expecting the best of the best, and this was the exact opposite of that. All pairs I received lacked any kind of low end or power at all. I would have to turn my output up on my interface at least half way or more to get any kind of volume… The HS8's I'm listening to right now as I type this are turned less than a quarter on my interface and I can hear all the frequency ranges clearly, and if I turn them up any higher I get a thick low end. I'm completely blown away on how bad the T7V's sounded. I hope you guys find this helpful. I tried very hard to get these monitors to work, but you can't fix something that literally comes busted right out of the box. I did all the troubleshooting steps Adam Audio suggested, and then some, in effort to isolate the issue. My solution that finally worked for me was going with the Yamaha HS8's. Problem instantly solved, and now I can move on with my business and stop feeling like a crazy person trying to get these busted things to work. Not going to lie, when I'm ready to upgrade again, to something in $1400+ range of monitors I'll be looking at other options first, and if I ever circle back up on Adam Audio I will not be giving them as many chances like I did this time. (Adam Audio was good about reaching back to me about trying to fix the issue, but my time and emotions are already spent. After 3 pairs I'm done.)Dan

Purchased these for my studio as main monitors. They make a big deal about their tweeter; but my real problem is with general low power. They have a power knob on the back with a "0 dB" setting about 2/3 up. At that setting they were distinctly a weak, downgrade from my decades old monitors (unpowered, 150 watt amp). Turning them up all the way, they are passable, but generally seem thin and limited to close monitoring use – just weak and unimpressive. I was hoping for fuller, more substantial output, with a noticeable sound improvement, which I have not noticed. Musicians Friend advertises a 150 watt low frequency amp, Adam lists it as 70 watt, which helps explain my disappoint with the results. False advertising ? I suppose the fact that Adam makes much more expensive models should have warned me this would be a compromised product. They talk about "precision" at this price range – perhaps so, but I need more power. I feel I am stuck with these. I expected too much. Wish I did not buy them.Davey

Sound: I finally upgraded from the rigged up home stereo, and headphones. That Bass is so clean. It doesn't rattle my windows, or walls, or anything for that matter. The sound stays inside the speakers. That's always been one of my biggest problems with Bass. It travels and vibrates everything, kind of annoying and distracting when your hear stuff rattling WITH your music. This is my first pair of studio monitors. Not speakers but monitors. Improvise and make due with what you have until you're able to upgrade right? I've had some gnarly sound systems, but never any actual studio monitors until I got these. Honestly they're perfect. They are the perfect monitors for the home studio. Features: I love the digital eq parameter on the back of each monitor. It allows ultimate flexibility for dialing in the sound exactly how you want it. The general aesthetic of it is pretty dope too. They also have an app for iphone/android so its literally made for anyone who's anyone. I love that universal compatibility. It simplifies a lot. Ease of Use: It was pretty self explanatory. For being my first set of monitor speakers all I did was unbox them, hook them up to my interface, cranked them on, dialed in the sound. Boom done! It doesn't get any easier. Quality: You can tell they took their time engineering these speakers. They're very well crafted. I see me using these for several years before I even think about getting another pair. It's got an 8 inch speaker, and a little 1 inch tweeter. Don't let that fool you. These speakers were much bigger than I expected. All the sound stays inside the speaker. It makes a huge difference when it comes to canceling out all the excess noise& vibrations. Windows, stuff on shelves, doors, etc. Very well crafted. Value: The price is fair. In my honest opinion. I wouldn't say they're overpriced, and they're definitely not cheap. Thanks to zounds, guys/girls like me can get their hands on some amazing equipment. The Wow Factor: I didn't NEED the speakers, but I was getting tired of just my headphones. Sometimes I can spend all day in my studio, especially when im off work. Or half a day at the least. After a while those headphones start to hurt and become uncomfortable on the tops of my ears. I generally just wanted to upgrade my studio.Of course I love the general aesthetic of the speakers too. They seriously look bad a$$ just sitting there on my desk with all of my gear. It looks very nice. Gives me more of that "studio feel" and it feels good. It's nice to finally have the option of headphones or speakers. And not just speakers, but speakers that were specifically made for this kind of stuff. Overall: These speakers are the SH!T!!!! They sound so good and they're much bigger than I expected. Clean bass. Literally nothing vibrates or rattles. All that Bass and sound stays inside the speakers. Did I mention that they sound amazing? Shipping was extremely fast. I had them 1 day after ordering. Super happy with these krk8s. I got 1 step down from the krk 10-3. I just need to get my hands on the sub now. This is the prefect size for a home studio. The eq on the back of each monitor is an awesome addition as well, so you can dial in that sound just right. Krk did amazing with these. I can see why they're universally loved. There's nothing to dislike about them. 10/10 perfect studio monitors. You won't be disappointed. As always zZounds rocks, and makes my life so much easier. Aside from local music shops, zZounds is the only place I order from. They've been nothing but good to me. Thank you zZounds for helping me bring me dreams to life!!!!J.

I spent a lot of time to read and watch reviews on these monitors before deciding to purchase them from Andertons who offered them in the best price around for an overseas customer. They were replacing a pair of Yamaha HS80m (yes, this is not a typo!) Due to moving to a smaller place, I needed to downsize and replace my big monitors with something much more compact that would still produce decent quality sound. The plan is to pair them with a small sub (Eris sub8). What can I say about these small beauties! No hiss at all, except you stick your ear to the twitters, something that HS80M is not famous for. Sound wise, I put them next to the Yamahas and was alternating between the 2 pairs. Yamahas had of course more low end and depth due to the larger woofer, but I could now hear an annoying boost in middle / middle high bands that made them sound a bit plasticky compared to the RP5 G4's. The G4's on the other hand, sounded more natural/neutral, less-fatiguing for longer sessions and very nice for regular listening apart from mixing work. What I hear is in line with the results of the Audio Science Review tests. Their looks are great, now upgraded with KRK grills, and their construction looks very strong and long-lasting (time will show of course). Super happy with my purchase, Yamahas are already gone and I am waiting for my sub8 to complete my new dream studio 🙂Reviewed by Andertons Music Co.

Forget everything you know about the KRK Rockits. The G3's are critically panned and most pro audio customers worth their salt have steered CLEAR of the KRK and the Rockits because of admittedly how awful the Gen 3's were. KRK has fixed everything that was wrong with the G3's. No more flabby overwhelming bass. No more "clamped" sound. Headroom is stellar even from the 5's, and the 7's and 8's are great steps up. Larger front porting is necessary, and the app integration that allows you to set up your monitors for your room is a game changer. I would have never previously recommended anyone buy the G3's over even Yamaha monitors, and especially not over the Adam Audio T5V's or the LP6 Kali's. These monitors show just how much KRK wants to bring a better product to market and how much they listened to feedback. I highly recommend the Gen 4's. Steer clear of the Gen 3's, no matter how deep of a sale they end up on. The Gen 4's are an entry level monitor that punches well above their weight, and you can feel great about picking up a pair to use for years to come.Donny Two Thumbs

Overall: I have used these with and without a subwoofer, and in both cases, they performed flawlessly. One thing to remember is how to set them up. If using these without a subwoofer, you might be inclined to run them in the "flat" setting on the back, but be careful. These speakers can blow if you run too much Bass frequencies through them. I also have the Eris 5s and I love them, but these are a bit louder and they have more low end than the E5s. They also have better dispersion of the high end. I definitely recommend these monitors for a small space and if you get a subwoofer, the Sub8 by Presonus is a great fit.David

I now have purchased 3 pairs of these for radio programmers' offices. They wanted a good-enough reference monitor for audio editing at their desks without having to get a full studio monitor setup. I recommend running these through an external sound card, whether in the PC case or as a USB audio interface. I have them paired with the Focusrite 2i2. Low/high adjustments work well, and the ability to take either a balanced or RCA line unbalance input is nice. These also come with everything needed in the box to connect directly to your computer's on-board sound. You're not going to get the bass response you would out of a larger driver, but for the size and price, these are great.Brad

I was looking for some monitor speakers to use with a Tascam Portastudio and these fit the bill perfectly. They are very reasonably priced and have a compact footprint. There are a number of ways to connect the speakers to equipment and they come supplied with a selection of connecting leads. It's convenient that the on/off switch, volume control, headphone socket and aux in are located on the front of the main unit. I am happy with the sound. Maybe they are a little "trebly" as some other reviews suggest but in fairness I have only been recording classical guitar and there are bass and treble controls on the rear to adjust the sound. My only criticism is that the volume control has just a tiny dot (like braille) to indicate it's position. It's virtually invisible, so it you cannot see at a glance how the volume is set.Derek McG

Overall: Absolutely love these monitors. Ive been a KRK customer for a decade. Back in 2011 I bought my first pair of monitors, the KRK Rokit 8 G2's and I still have them and they still work PERFECTLY. Several months ago I purchased the KRK 12s subwoofer and was blown away by that product too. Im saying all that to say that I really enjoy KRK products because of their proven reliability and quality. Which is why when I noticed that KRK came out with these new monitors I knew I wanted them. Ive been wanting to downsize my set up anyway, the 8's are quite large. Not only are they big and heavy, they're also too powerful. Too much wattage pointed right at my face so I decided to retire them to my living room as home theater speakers and get these Classic 7's for my studio and I LOVE them! Just the right amount of power and the right size. I also love the new look, which is very similar to the Rokit Gen 2 and 3, which I think is a great looking design. After these babies up I could tell they were much clearer and crisper sounding than my old Rokit 8's. Love the high and low frequency controls on the back, super useful. One thing to note: KRK decided to put a new feature on these Classic series monitors, they will turn off after 30 minutes of no activity or low activity. If you're listening or mixing at a low volume for 30 minutes they will still turn off. Theres a very simple solution to this: turn down the volume on the back of the monitors like A LOT so that you can have the master volume on your interface turned up a little high. As long the master volume on the interface is at least at -50db (according to KRK) the monitors will never turn off by themselves. Me personally, I have the volume knobs on the back of my monitors set only a couple clicks just above completely off so that I can have the master volume on my interface at -45db and it be very quiet, ensuring that even at super low listening levels the monitors won't power off. The monitors react to the signal they're getting from the interface so setting the volume control on the monitors themselves has no affect. So to sum it all up. I love these monitors, I love KRK, and I love zZounds. I make ALL of my moderate to big purchases here because of the awesome financing options. One weird thing I want to point out but isn't a big deal is that both of the monitors came on different days, which was a little disappointing because I had one monitor set up in my studio and I had to wait till the next day to get the 2nd one. Thought my pair of KRK's would have arrived at the same time. Again not a huge deal, just a little odd.Joey

– First of all, Thanks AMS for the Customer service/support, I Recommend ordering from AMS; Fast shipping, my pair came by FedEx, zero damage to the boxes. I'm using mine with Anthem Statement D1 Preamp, in a 6.1 gaming/music setup. The IN-8 v2's are Front left/right. These are super clear, I'm not an expert describing sound, but they are nice and I hear more (details) from the music. I have only had them a little while though. I wonder how much they will change over time. I hope this helps.KG

AMS shipped promptly and well packaged. Excellent monitor, sounds great and a lot bigger than I thought. Probably too big for my home studio but I’m happy with it. Great detailed mids, great low end.Vince

First and foremost, the price cannot be beat! I opted for this bundle over the 306P bundle for more headroom in sound. Second, despite the crazy winter freeze we had, my order arrived at a decent time frame in CA.Now on to the items.THE SPEAKERS: 5 Stars. Very robust and well built. I might've bought more that what I needed (maybe I should've gone with the 306P bundle). But nonetheless these speakers are well built, has some decent weight to it, and the option of either a 1/4" or XLR input is a plus. Volume adjust knob is your basic 0-10 scale. I have these set to 6 with my DDJ-SX3 main volume and EQs at 12 o'clock…it is plenty loud at that level. You will need plenty of room if you are planning on using these as "book case" speakers.THE STANDS: 4 Stars. I think the platforms are a bit small for the speakers imo, but they still hold and support the speakers just fine. Although a bit teeter-tottery, they work well (they are sitting on carpet). Centering the speaker on it allows for a decent stand. The base weight will do well for speakers of this size and smaller. Adjustments are easy. Having a safety pin is a plus as well. However, be careful that you do not over tighten the knobs, or you can potentially strip the threads.THE MOPADS: 3 Stars. I am using them now. But honestly, I do not think they do too much at the volume I have them at. I can see them working better if the volumes are higher. But for now it is a meh for the pads for me. So i am satisfied with them. What they do add, is a larger platform for the speakers to sit on.THE TRS CABLES: 5 Stars. What DJ will not appreciate an extra pair of audio cables? These cables come in handy for when I actually need to use the 308Ps as monitors once I start gigging again. My DDJ-SX3 has dedicated outs for monitors and these TRS cables are an appreciated addition.A great bundle at a great price! Pick it up when they are in stock. They sell out fast so do not ponder on whether you should get them or not. GET THEM!!!Batangeno

I have had a recording studio for many years. I had Tannoy 6D speakers and Yamaha NS10s On my bridge. With age I have sold most of the analog audio gear. My Tannoys finally died after 15 years of good use. I bought these because the rest of my house has JBL speakers. These are good speakers. Not as much bass as I would have liked. I interfaced a graphic equalizer and used the Tannoy Sub and it is very good now. Now I am using the JBL 308P speakers on each side of my LG 55 OLED monitor in my MacPro. DaVinci Resolve 17 Studio. The speakers are well-defined but, not as good as the Tannoy reference monitors. For the price, a steal. PS: I am not being paid by the JBL company for this review.hartkopproductions

Well, I give them 5 stars because they sound like that; best sound in their category and several ones above. And no, there is no background hiss or anything, they are extremely quiet and silences are dark black. I am actually re-listening lots of music to learn a lot about what I couldn't discern before. Apart from the joy of discovering details and instruments unheard previously, some recordings will not be faring well, their mistakes and limitations are now evident, now that the masking is gone. And it is surprising how well they sound despite my small room. Therefore most everything is superb, except for a little, very minor detail… The other day I was on a session with a trumpeter, with whom we make some music together. Since my part was playing a recorded track as musical base (and his, was jamming on top), then – while I was busy equalizing the base live real-time -, suddenly on a particularly crowded Mid freqs. section of the track, a strange noise came out unexpectedly. I do know the track quite well, so I looked for resonances around, and there closely on the speakers themselves it was a middle freq. coveted rattling. I understand it is resonates by so precise specific frequencies and harmonic content (that have to be played) at a very high volume that it even couldn't be replicated with just a frequency sweep. I found it because that is the unusual type of middle freq. content and variation I like to play with, which is very rare in common musical genres. So after reading on reviews at the net, there is a good chance that the new shinny black plastic cover needs some silicone/material for padding. Since it remains an elusive event I will wait for some on line solutions/disassembling instructions before DIYing myself. ///No, I won't be returning my JBL LSR 305P MKII monitors, not for a minute, less for a day or more!Nspace

I was really surprised when I heard the Mackie CR3-XBT. I felt like the singer is singing just right in front of me. The acoustic guitar picking is like live. It was so amazing. The inspiration was awakened and at that moment I wanted to record my own song but it was already late evening. I just could’nt believe that the small studio speaker will make a huge sound just enough in the room for any multimedia editing and music production. It’s unbelievable, aside from the fact that it is affordable. As a newbie in Music production I know I will sound as pro with mackie cr3 xbt. Thanks for this opportunity to be able to start my dream home studio.Florante D.F.

I was just trying to replace an aging (and failing) set of BOSE Bookshelf powered speakers and I came across these… what could it hurt to try them because I could just return them. Surprise, surprise – I love these little guys. I put them on an Aux Mix out of my studio board and I can get work done without firing up the big speaker systems in the studio. I wouldn't assume I'd use them for critical mixing but for ease of use and overall sound – love them.Nightcrier

I bought these for my computer and home studio. I read several reviews good and bad. well I have nothing bad to say about these speakers. good highs lows and midsWilliam

Good sounding compact studio monitors. If you manage to get hold a working pair then they are quite good. There are better sounding speakers out there but these are not terrible. I always use an EQ instead of sending a flat signal so there are always some enhancements. There are significant design issues. Zener Diodes on the PCB burn out due to immense heat generated. They are easily replaceable but would you really want to? Additionally, the rear switch for deciding which speaker is Left/Right is cheap and can become faulty. This will affect the output sound. Again, not a difficult fix for the competent electronics hobbyist. I am not sure but I think the newer X series have those two issues resolved which makes them a better purchase than the old CR4 version. That said, a second hand pair of CR4 that have been properly repaired should last a long time with zero faults, which makes them worth every penny (at used price)g_thirteen

I purchased these as computer speakers for my desk at work, back in January of 2016. I work in an office, where I can't get too loud, so it's not like I was working them hard. I even turned them off every night when leaving the office, so they had a really soft life. At low volumes, I found that they performed very well at providing great sound up close, while still being effectively inaudible to my coworkers. So for my needs, they worked perfect. Then, one day back in June, I noticed that the left hand speaker had no sound. I checked wiring, everything was hooked up, I swapped the R and L RCA inputs at the back of the speaker and the problem stayed with the speaker, so the cable was fine. Then I touched the speaker position selection switch on the back of the RH speaker and suddenly the sound came back. It was clear the selector switch had gone bad. With time, I found that the LH speaker would fall out more and more frequently. wiggling the switch, I could usually get it to come back for a while, but eventually that stopped working too. I was able to flip the switch, so that the channels were reversed and got them to work again for yet a little while longer, but now after 4 more months of trying to finesse it, it's next to impossible to get it playing both channels at the same time. The speakers only carry a 1 year warranty, so I wasn't getting any help from the manufacturer. I was hoping that the switch might be serviceable, but after taking the cover off the back of speaker to look, I found that they glue over all of the components on the board, to ensure that you can't fix anything on these speakers. So instead of being able to continue enjoying the speakers, I'm going to give someone, other than Mackie, my money to replace them. There really is no reason these speakers should have started braking down so quickly.Tom

I am simply trying to record guitar riffs through my scarlet solo. I owned these for 2 weeks. These monitors also had to replace my everyday computer speakers. These Mackie monitors were absolute garbage! Sounded like manure. Also had a constant hissing noise. I called Mackie 3 times and left 3 messages for technical support. they never got back to me. I could twist a cable in the back, and it was obviously a bad cable that came with the product. but even had I bought a new cable, they still sound horrible. Adjusted all my sound settings and equalizers, it could not handle any kind of music. DO NOT BUY THESE!!Mark

Pros: Compact, low noise with a flat response Cons: Amplifier type chosen means the rear metal gets very hot. I would have designed it with a finned heatsinkDirk

I must say, from experiencing theem firsthand in my home studio, these little guys are just siply AMAZING!! – Whether you're the professional musician seriously persuing music as a full-time career, a hobbyist learning and enjoying the craft, or even for the casual audiophile who demands a high-fi listening environment (ie: video gaming or a home theater setup) – I HIGHLY RECOMMEND THESE M-AUDIOS! – for the price value and its features, that certainly competes with its higher-end cousins. While lacking those extra features I mentioned (lacking the sound gain structure knobs)…Oh, I forgot, lacking a heat sink of some sort cuz' these bad boys can get rather HOT after long use, all the other awesome features make up for that. Plus the blue "power light" is also pleasing to the eye, matches my "blue" studio design and gear. These M-Audio studio monitors are especially made for the serious working musician who requires exceptional sound monitoring in close quarters. They provide almost about everything for making the environment for creating that perfect "mix". Cons: incredibly sturdy and well-crafted design. The tech guys at M-Audio have truly made a product that rivals even the more pricey monitors of its type (near-field), Complete with 5" kevlar-made woofers, a material that is only available on higher end models, you can tell just by the look and the weight of these speakers (they do weigh a bit) that they are built to last! – Incredible power behind these bad boys! – they look small, but don't let the looks deveive you, as they say…they do pack quite a sonic punch!! AND THEY GET LOUD!!! With dedicated power amps for both woofeand tweeters, (70 watts each monitor) equals 140 watts of total (RMS) power! – While certainly there is plenty of power to spare, being meant for close range monitoring you don't want to mix at those ear-piercing levels, but even at normal listening levels you can hear that they provide a clear and strong sound that is consistent and balanced. – AMAZING BASS: with the new updated design, these monitors have SUCH A SMOOTH AND POWERFUL BASS RESPONSE! My gosh, they reproduce lows like i've never heard from such a small set of speakers. With tuned rear-firing ports, all you hear is: Clean, free of distortion and floor-vibrating bass! – cranked up not even all the way, provides bass YOU CAN ACTUALLY FEEL! – I literally had things vibrating in the studio and outside the studio, almost like if there was a subwoofer built-in. I've read reviews saying they're lacking bass…I've tested these guys via sub bass tests and it passed all of them with flying colors. from my personal experience, THEY HAVE THE LOWS! – Accuracy: With the curved edges and new waveguides, provides an exceptionally accurate stereo imaging of the sound you hear, the way music is meant to be heard. Providing crisp trebles and the already mentioned powerful lows, every little nuance of the music is reproduced evenly and accurately throughout the whole sonic spectrum, especially when having them near-field and in the "sweet spot". The center sounds like if there was a virtual "third" speaker in center, panned sounds sound exactly like they are panned "left or right", all balanced and even. Im pleasantly pleased with them in this department. Cons: the only con I would say is the lack of gain structure controls for treble and bass compensation depending on the room's sound design. (there's only a volume) but that's okay. What can I say here? Super quality, these monitors look and feel (and even weigh) like they're designed to last. Great durability and clear accurate sonic imaging for speakers of these kind. YOU WON'T BE DISAPPOINTED!! For the price, these speakers provide a great value for the studio musician. They include top-end quality features that would only be seen in more pricer monitors, plus their compact design assures that almost any kind of placement will guarantee great sound wherever you put them, whether close for mixing, or further away for general listening purposes. (In addition, I got these monitors at a very discounted sale price which occurs from time to time, especially around the holidays, so you are getting high-quality speakers at pretty affordable prices, not that bad at all!)Yannaki Arrizza

For an entry level set of monitors these are great. Plenty of bass with the frequency response down to 52Hz. I was slightly dubious about buying a set of monitors at this price but I needn't have worried…They are perfectly good enough for mixing. I've done a couple of mixes that I've had referenced buy other ppl and have had good feedback so I know these monitors are accurate. For the price, these monitors are top draw.Reviewed by Andertons Music Co.

Sale price for these speakers was a bargain. First I plug them into a 3 stage noise reducing power conditioner from Panamax. I cannot here any hiss or noise from the speakers from my listening position 8 feet away. They are driven by a Pre/DAC by emotiva. Mostly CD's. Bright and forward at first so I engaged the -2db High Frequency switch in the back. Reduced most of the Zing but still producing clear highs and ambient midrange. Give them 2 weeks playing time for break-in. Let them warm up 15-20 minutes before you start any serious listening. Sounds are clear, warm and pleasant on most of my Jazz CD's. Poorly recorded CD's sound poor. These are my observations from MY ears. You will have to determine how they sound through your own ears. My 4 star rating derived from my listening only. Some will find them enjoyable, some will not. This is my second pair of M-Audio powered speakers. The M3-8's I own sound very much the same as the BX-8 Graphite. I prefer the M3-8's overall for improved midrange and warmth. Both are not super articulate in the Bass but non the less provide a pleasant experience. I cannot recommend these for mixing as they were not purchased for pro recording. Good home listening speaker for me.Kloid

I'm delighted with these monitors/speakers. They arrived rapidly and very well packed. A selection of cables were supplied but only one cable at 5m long although this wasn't a problem I soon bought more cables through eBay; my Tascam pocket studio is stereo so needs the correct cables. I could play just one speaker with the cable supplied. With the Tascam now fully connected which was easy the stereo sound is brilliant compared to previous speakers I've used. I've no problems at all in fully recommending these monitor/speakers; they are exceptional.cowo_5010

Can't fault the quality for the money. Using them as desk speakers rather than creative monitors. One small annoyance is that when an aux is plugged in, even with no input, RCA input is ignored. Annoying if you want multiple inputs left in all the time.Alex C.

Great sound! Great product! Wish there was a Bluetooth feature, so I could also play casual music from my phone- beyond my studio equipment. But that would probably raise the price $100. Nonetheless, loving them so far. Very balanced and clear sound. Love the logo that lights up. Its a simple feature. Im glad when a product doesnt shove their name in your face, it makes it fitting for any aesthetic.helloblakealan

I’m using a pair of these as keyboard monitors for a Stage 3 to supplement a pair of AKG reference headphones Amazed at the bass clarity and excellent stereo imaging. They came with consecutive serial numbers which was very reassuring. Because of my setup I had to buy some 1m stands to get the tweeters at ear height and then the detail is excellent. Compared to the dearer version they don’t have mounting points or phase reverse but I can live without those. I tried both inputs, 6.3mm jack and balanced XLR, probably my imagination but the XLR seemed brighter, but only very marginally, and probably just my imagination. The manual recommends turning them off at the mains even if you have them switched off on the monitor, as they supposedly still draw a little bit of power even when off. The Yamaha logo illuminates when they are on so it’s easy to remember. If I could change anything I would have the bass port out frontJohn R.

Los compré en sonicolor con envío gratis y me llegaron en 1 día, suenan estupendamente y los graves son más que aceptables. Muy buena elección para quien no tenga un gran presupuesto pero quiera la mejor calidadjesus

I deliberated a long time before buying these, but I'm pleased with the choice, quality and price. I looked at more expensive options but personally couldn't justify the price in my early journey into music production/playing/recording. I also looked at cheaper options to "tide me over" but didn't want to go to small on the woofers where I then might feel I needed a sub. Although a bit bigger than I can really accommodate, these strike a great balance for a small home studio if wanting to avoid a sub and wanting front-ported speakers to reduce issues of going close to the rear wall.. Good range, though the AMT tweeters are "all there" and at times I feel they need to be "tamed". There is a HF attenuation and I'm still working out what works best for me. The standby function is useful, though I am looking to get a monitor controller for volume and mute adjustment. I am tempted to swap to the black face-plates that are included, or even to custom spray the blue ones for unique styling.timg6871

So I was pretty excited to get these in. I trust Presonus as a brand (and I still do), but am a little let down by these. The GOOD: They sounded great. Clear sound from them, good stereo field and were pretty light considering the size. The BAD/WERID: The left monitor kept having issues where it sounded like a radio was playing through it. I could hear lots of static and as I was bouncing out a mix, I watched and listened as I saw the limiter's read out of the audio/compression taking place, a whistling sound was coming through the speaker. As the dB went higher, the pitch went up, and as the dB went lower the pitch went down. Did that through the whole mixdown. I run clean power, power conditioners and keep everything on the same circuit. I have never had issues like that in the past. Clearly I got a bad monitor and I don't think this represents the quality control as a whole from this product range, as the right speaker didn't have this issue. I just can't juggle issues like this as I need these to work properly for work. I have returned my product and the customer service at AMS as been solid. Presonus is also an extraordinary brand making lots of great stuff, so I don't mean for this to put them down. As far as I'm concerned they're killing it. I just worry easily and need something I know will work period without issues like this. Def give this product a shot and know AMS has your back if anything goes wrong.Eric j

Great studio monitors, extra clean monitor with no audible noise when the monitor is turned on. The accuracy of these studio monitors is amazing to say the least!!!Beasleybutt

My original intention was to purchase a mid-range monitor pair of speakers for PC/Mac/Laptop work in recording MIDI/Guitar/Bass etc… This little pair do deliver a punch and for those string players out there you will need to understand that feedback will be an issue(particularly acoustic amplified instruments). There are some distortion issues as you may have read in previous reviews, however, given the price range and the solid construction this is a very good choice for those musicians on a budget that need solid sounds. In terms of MIDI/Soft Synth recording through any DAW they work great. The issue is when you are working with Microphones and string instruments, for that you will need a pre-amp such as the Line 6 Pod as direct recording and monitoring through these may cause feedback and distortion. Overall, this pair do provide well rounded sound when working through a PC studio environment. For those who rather purchase this as an alternative to your normal cheap PC speakers you will be in for a treat.pmjm81

All these negative reviews I wanted to comment on; I have bought 2 pairs of these thru MF with no problems except the bass boost being too heavy! I am curious since I have had these a couple years now with NO problems!! Have these other users have considered editing the EQ settings in the programs they are running through??? Such as EQ settings in media player or the like? I have to comment on this because other "EDITS" have NOT been mentioned in any complaints! Besides that they inexpensive what do you want for this price POINT, like the complaints mentioned. REALLY GUYS ! Either you are NOT as experienced as you say OR Don't know how to edit your own programming because this would clear up many of the problems in here as far as I am concerned! Tweak these optional settings before giving a negative review cause who knows what your EQ's are set AT !Mastermcz77

I was really surprised when I heard the Mackie CR3-XBT. I felt like the singer is singing just right in front of me. The acoustic guitar picking is like live. It was so amazing. The inspiration was awakened and at that moment I wanted to record my own song but it was already late evening. I just could’nt believe that the small studio speaker will make a huge sound just enough in the room for any multimedia editing and music production. It’s unbelievable, aside from the fact that it is affordable. As a newbie in Music production I know I will sound as pro with mackie cr3 xbt. Thanks for this opportunity to be able to start my dream home studio.Florante D.F.

I was just trying to replace an aging (and failing) set of BOSE Bookshelf powered speakers and I came across these… what could it hurt to try them because I could just return them. Surprise, surprise – I love these little guys. I put them on an Aux Mix out of my studio board and I can get work done without firing up the big speaker systems in the studio. I wouldn't assume I'd use them for critical mixing but for ease of use and overall sound – love them.Nightcrier

I bought these for my computer and home studio. I read several reviews good and bad. well I have nothing bad to say about these speakers. good highs lows and midsWilliam