Monitors for tiny home studio

[LocalTrack19]

Okay I know there is plenty of threads already about monitors, but the key challenge I am facing is that my home studio is tiny. And I mean REALLY tiny: it is 2m by 2.5m, under a pitched roof (going up from 1.40m to 3.5m).
Placing my monitors against the wall is the only option, and I understood that rear-ported monitors are not a good idea. I do my recording over my Beyerdynamic D770 250 ohm headphones which are great. However, I would also like to have monitors for reference, as my mixes severely suffer from the “It falls apart in the car” issue.
I am a hobbyist, not looking to make a living out of
my music, but I want to be able to create something decent that my wife and kids won’t dismiss as complete and utter garbage .
What monitors do you recommend? Price range up to approx 300,- (like I said: it’s just a hobby).
Thanks for the advice!

[thecontrolcentre]

https://www.gak.co.uk/en/genelec-8010-s ... ngle/92884

[excuse me please]

Hi, for the record you should also have the crappiest speakers. My inbuilt laptop speaker is a good reference for the kick coming through and balance (highs should not be too loud). Also have a mono radio speaker. If you listen to reference tracks, listen to them with a blender, mixer or blower on and then compare to your mixes. Great for 1k and up. The more references, the better the over all perspective IMO. I made this a routine. While mixing in the bathroom

[fwsuperhero]

I have got small space like yours. I did not manage to solve room acoustic yet but i switched from bigger speakers to iloud micro (i believe there is 2nd edition right now) and i am happy so far tbh.
https://www.amazon.com/IK-Multimedia-Mo ... 0590&psc=1

[crystalmsc]

Check out the IK iLoud Micro https://www.ikmultimedia.com/products/iloudmm I'm using the original iLoud as an additional monitor and it's great.

[andymcbain]

In a small, almost square room you’re going to struggle to get accurate low end - so I personally wouldn’t bother with larger monitors as they will likely just exacerbate any room issues.

I haven’t heard the DT770 but those might be your best bet for judging the lows, alongside suitable reference tracks.

My personal, unconventional choice would be something like a used set of Yamaha MSP5 - front ported, fairly light on bass and very revealing (though some people find the bright sound a bit hard work)

Something more conventional would be the iLouds , which get a lot of love!

[jp008]

Find a cheap pair of small desktop speakers that sound good to your ear, then learn them by comparing mixes on other speakers outside of your room or other external speaker sources.

[LocalTrack19]

Wow so many replies in such a short time, thanks KVR-ers. Will definitely check your suggestions, obviously the iLouds have a warm recommendation here. How about the Presonus Erises or the Fluid Audio F5s? Are they any good for my tiny bit beloved home studio?

[Passing Bye]

IKM iLoud Micro's

Also, for the price, Edifier R1280T's are really decent.

Fluid Audio F5's are great, but not that tinny as iLoud's and there's not so much bass on them either (which could be better thing in your situation), other than that, they are really honest, detailed, balanced, have nice image depth and separation, they would work in small untreated spaces quite well, you would definitely feel more engaged working on iLoud's (more bass and in your face sound) and they will take much less space, on other hand F5's are one of the most honest mixing speakers in that price range, true gem, maybe they could be good companion to your headphones, you would use cans for critical low end and F5's for the rest, that could really work.

One of the artist's I work with have similar situation as you, flat in the attic with sloped walls, room is tiny and quirky, we are going to hit the stores so he can listen to iLouds and Fluid Audio FX50's, that's around your budget, feel like iLoud's are ultimate solution for tiny places to do some music making, because they are really engaging, other than that Fluid Audio FX50's are better mixing monitor IMO, maybe not that engaging, but tastes differ, go hear them for yourself and you will know for sure.

Sorry for another edit, I couldn't find them anywhere and got recommendation from some colleagues, Tannoy Gold, in your case 5 version, check them out if your local store have them in stock.

[GaryG]

This could be a useful article, they certainly like the iLouds too.

https://www.musicradar.com/news/best-bu ... o-monitors

[fese]

Wow so many replies in such a short time, thanks KVR-ers. Will definitely check your suggestions, obviously the iLouds have a warm recommendation here. How about the Presonus Erises or the Fluid Audio F5s? Are they any good for my tiny bit beloved home studio?

,I think that you’ll be fine with any of those or similar monitor speakers from that price range. They probably all have their strength and weaknesses, but the differences won’t be as big as e.g. compared to speakers three times as expensive, they’ll all be pretty much usable in your environment. In the end it is mostly a matter of getting to know them.

And as other said, the biggest problem will most likely be the room anyway, even if you bought fantastically linear speaker that cost 1000 each, the room and the positioning can introduce massive bumps or drops in the frequency spectrum (like, 10db or more...).
So I’d decide for a pair from any of the well known companies that fits your price range and the size requirements and just go for it.

It is just possible that you’d be better off in the end using your DT770 and maybe some headphone correction software like TB Morphit and BlueCat’s ReHead for “monitor simulation” (or similar software form other vendors). Unless of course you don’t like to keep the cans on for a longer time...

[LocalTrack19]

IKM iLoud Micro's

Also, for the price, Edifier R1280T's are really decent.

Fluid Audio F5's are great, but not that tinny as iLoud's and there's not so much bass on them either (which could be better thing in your situation), other than that, they are really honest, detailed, balanced, have nice image depth and separation, they would work in small untreated spaces quite well, you would definitely feel more engaged working on iLoud's (more bass and in your face sound) and they will take much less space, on other hand F5's are one of the most honest mixing speakers in that price range, true gem, maybe they could be good companion to your headphones, you would use cans for critical low end and F5's for the rest, that could really work.

One of the artist's I work with have similar situation as you, flat in the attic with sloped walls, room is tiny and quirky, we are going to hit the stores so he can listen to iLouds and Fluid Audio FX50's, that's around your budget, feel like iLoud's are ultimate solution for tiny places to do some music making, because they are really engaging, other than that Fluid Audio FX50's are better mixing monitor IMO, maybe not that engaging, but tastes differ, go hear them for yourself and you will know for sure.

Sorry for another edit, I couldn't find them anywhere and got recommendation from some colleagues, Tannoy Gold, in your case 5 version, check them out if your local store have them in stock.

Thanks for the extensive reply, much appreciated! The point is I am primarily looking for monitors to be (I read this all the time ) brutally honest, or at least as brutally honest as possible for my budget. My D770 cans are engaging enough, when I record and mix my music on it and listen to it it makes me feel like the next William Orbit, Brian Eno, Dr Dre or Butch Vig (or name any super producer), however if I then play it in the car or on my laptop speakers it sounds like shite. I am reading Mike Senior’s book about mixing and want to learn how to do it, but applying the lessons learned with D770 cans only has not improved my mixes yet. I do not make any EDM or bass-heavy stuff, it’s merely rock and 80’s pop (guilty pleasure). And my monitor does not need to sound pleasant, I would be happy if I can get a mix on it that survives the big “car audio test”.

[LocalTrack19]

IKM iLoud Micro's

Also, for the price, Edifier R1280T's are really decent.

Fluid Audio F5's are great, but not that tinny as iLoud's and there's not so much bass on them either (which could be better thing in your situation), other than that, they are really honest, detailed, balanced, have nice image depth and separation, they would work in small untreated spaces quite well, you would definitely feel more engaged working on iLoud's (more bass and in your face sound) and they will take much less space, on other hand F5's are one of the most honest mixing speakers in that price range, true gem, maybe they could be good companion to your headphones, you would use cans for critical low end and F5's for the rest, that could really work.

One of the artist's I work with have similar situation as you, flat in the attic with sloped walls, room is tiny and quirky, we are going to hit the stores so he can listen to iLouds and Fluid Audio FX50's, that's around your budget, feel like iLoud's are ultimate solution for tiny places to do some music making, because they are really engaging, other than that Fluid Audio FX50's are better mixing monitor IMO, maybe not that engaging, but tastes differ, go hear them for yourself and you will know for sure.

Sorry for another edit, I couldn't find them anywhere and got recommendation from some colleagues, Tannoy Gold, in your case 5 version, check them out if your local store have them in stock.

Thanks for the extensive reply, much appreciated! The point is I am primarily looking for monitors to be (I read this all the time ) brutally honest, or at least as brutally honest as possible for my budget. My D770 cans are engaging enough, when I record and mix my music on it and listen to it it makes me feel like the next William Orbit, Brian Eno, Dr Dre or Butch Vig (or name any super producer), however if I then play it in the car or on my laptop speakers it sounds like shite. I am reading Mike Senior’s book about mixing and want to learn how to do it, but applying the lessons learned with D770 cans only has not improved my mixes yet. I do not make any EDM or bass-heavy stuff, it’s merely rock and 80’s pop (guilty pleasure). And my monitor does not need to sound pleasant, I would be happy if I can get a mix on it that survives the big “car audio test”.
I do have space to put some 5” monitors in, larger would be overkill I suppose.

[Passing Bye]

Thanks for the extensive reply, much appreciated! The point is I am primarily looking for monitors to be (I read this all the time ) brutally honest, or at least as brutally honest as possible for my budget. My D770 cans are engaging enough, when I record and mix my music on it and listen to it it makes me feel like the next William Orbit, Brian Eno, Dr Dre or Butch Vig (or name any super producer), however if I then play it in the car or on my laptop speakers it sounds like shite. I am reading Mike Senior’s book about mixing and want to learn how to do it, but applying the lessons learned with D770 cans only has not improved my mixes yet. I do not make any EDM or bass-heavy stuff, it’s merely rock and 80’s pop (guilty pleasure). And my monitor does not need to sound pleasant, I would be happy if I can get a mix on it that survives the big “car audio test”.
I do have space to put some 5” monitors in, larger would be overkill I suppose.

I would recommend something totally different than, but it's little out of your budget (and you would need an amp, because they are passive, but nothing crazy pricey, some second hand 50 bucks vintage Yamaha AX-500 and similar would be enough), pair of Auratone's 5C's (original re-issued ones, not Avantone one's) would help you immensely with your mixes translation, better than anything else for that money.
https://www.thomann.de/intl/auratone_5c ... lassic.htm

[voidhead23]

I went a different route and just gave up on monitors entirely a couple years ago. If i ever move into a bigger apartment or get an actual little studio space somewhere, my first purchase would be some Genelecs (probably the 8020D's if it's a decent space, 8010A's if it's super small but decent sounding). The room, the space you're in, and how close they are to the wall just created too many variables for me to cope with and my mixes were turning out terribly.

Instead, i got a pair of Beyerdynamic DT880 Pro's (i think they sound great, not super expensive but fine), and run it through the Goodhertz CanOpener and Soundworks Reference 4 plugins on my master. I get better results than i ever did trying to make monitors work in whatever crappy living situation i was in. I uploaded my first few demos using this chain here on KVR specifically to get gear nerds to tear my mixes apart and got pretty positive feedback.

To just listen to music and putting songs in a sequence to test out track order i use some $100 Bose speakers. They're dark but fine for that.