However, if you decide to use far-field monitors, then you should place them anywhere from 5-6 feet from your listening position. Armed with a decent pair of studio monitors, the next stage is to set them up to deliver the best possible performance in your studio space. If you set the volume control of both monitors to the same position you may hear a difference in volume of around 0.5dB to 1dB resulting in an inaccurate stereo image. The option to use the VGA should be your last option since this normally gives off a low-quality analog signal. There are three primary types of input and output connections for studio speakers: Different studio monitor manufacturers use different input and output sockets, so be sure to check. ... (your desktop) before they reach your ears. Repeat the process with other songs and audio tracks. Often beginners look to upgrade their speakers, before they try to improve the set up or positioning! And when you don’t get any solution to these technical dilemmas you become frustrated.eval(ez_write_tag([[580,400],'recordingbase_com-medrectangle-3','ezslot_7',195,'0','0'])); I also faced the same dilemma when I was setting up my first home studio, but I got rid of that, finding the solution from authentic sources like suggestions from established recordists and authentic books on recording setup. Here are a few things to consider before you begin the studio speaker setup process! We recommend you to start off with these options set to their neutral position, so that you can get used to your studio monitors and/or your room. Ideally, your listening position and two monitors form an equilateral triangle. As we said earlier, having your monitors against a wall can create unwanted bass response. If you have multiple displays, you can change how they're arranged. Up next… 3. Far-field monitors are different. The intensity of sound is unaffected by the distance. Instead, repeat the process for 3-4 days. I quickly grew a community of over 120,000 producers, artists, and audio professionals, a group of people whose passions aligned with mine. This is the key to success. In either case, a separate subwoofer has to be added to the set up to take care of extreme low-end content. You’ve probably se… Picture courtesy of Genelec. The cost of tweaking your room for better sound quality depends on your needs. According to their specs each one has a 1/4inch input and a XLR input on the back. The placement of your monitors in your home studio can make all the difference. I will describe all of the above points in this article but 1st you should gain some knowledge of the room set up for your home studio. Now that you have your studio monitors and mix position set in place, it is time to look at how you can acoustically treat the room around you to make sure that your new setup works optimally. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Set up your desk so that your speakers are away from walls and corners. It’s no myth that proper set up and positioning of studio monitor speakers are essential when it comes to producing great sounding mixes. Now switch on the system – Computer, Audio Interface, and Monitor pair while the volume key turned down to zero. Last Updated on August 26, 2020 by Gautam Roy. Monitor speakers work best when set up in an equilateral triangle from the listener, with the two monitors and the listener each taking one corner. Now once again turn all the volume knobs down (Audio interface and studio monitor volume knobs). Near-field monitors have small woofers with a wide dome which produce high-intensity sound when kept within 2-3 feet from your ears. Understanding how to set your monitors up to optimize your sound is a wonderful skill to hone, as it can make or break a home studio like nothing else. For example, if your right speaker is 4’ from the right wall, you want to make sure that the left speaker is 4’ from the left wall. CR-X Monitors are now available! Loudspeakers can project a tons of sonic pressure – this can be good or bad, depending on the way you use them. By dead, we mean a room that is free from mid and high-frequency reflections. Placement. 1st of all you should check out the input and output which you have been provided on your studio monitor. The studio monitor should be set up in an equilateral triangle, which is a triangle where all sides are equal in length. Many people misunderstand the term sound treatment as soundproofing but sound treatment is not about packing your room to stop the sound go out of that. This is helpful if you want your displays to match how they're set up in your home or office. With that said, there are genres of music that will require certain monitor specs. My sound card has inputs for 3 3.5mm. Unfortunately, an improper setup can create hurdles with even the best studio monitors. We never recommend getting monitors with woofers that are less than 5” as they won’t be able to produce enough of a bass response to give you a good mix. I was not an exception. When you're happy with the layout, select Apply. On the other hand, if you are using passive studio monitors, you need to connect the master with the slave. If you want to know more about this topic then must checkout my ultimate guide to acoustic treatment. Place your phone in the position that your head would be while mixing, and adjust the level of the monitor until it reads 85 dB on your SPL meter. Headphones, speakers or monitors Quick Links – A Guide To The Best Studio Headphones – The Best Monitors For Home Recording Audio Cables and Stands We will look briefly at each item in turn and carefully explain in plain english exactly what it is, how it works, how to choose the best equipment for you, how to set it up and troubleshoot any problems. How to Set Up and Place Studio Monitors. The Complete Guide To Setting Up Your Studio Monitors. Stop turning the knob when you see the SPL meter level exactly 82dB. If you have an existing studio, you probably realize that how to set up studio monitors for better output? Also, don’t let your tweeters sit in the vertical center of the room, even if it means you have to orient your tweeters slightly off axis with your ears. Then, plug the cable from the second monitor into the free port on your computer. You want your studio monitors to sit at least 47 inches above the floor. If you increase the distance gradually, after a certain distance, you can notice a sudden drop in the intensity of sound. Remember, a properly optimized recording room will increase the quality of sound. Center the left and right sides of the system setup an equal distance from the left and right walls. Note: Before every session, always listen to the same audio tracks for quick “Ear-alignment”. Remember, the goal of placing your monitors correctly is creating a natural balance of sounds that is uncolored by the acoustics of a room. 2. If you must tilt your speakers toward your listening position, you need to make sure that they aren’t tilted any greater than 15-degrees on the vertical axis. Doing so will reduce reflection buildup of peak frequencies. Studio monitors like the Yamaha HS-8 monitors in the picture above are perfect for producing a neutral sound so that you can hear your mix in the most honest way possible. Even if you have any query you can comment below, I would be very grateful to solve your queries. This will help you ensure that any reflections you get from your room will be balanced at the sweet spot. Even though a lot of home studios are set up in very tight spaces today, the room you intend on using should measure at least 15×10 –inches for the large in order to get the best results. It is highly recommended that you should try using the DVI first before experimenting with the VGA. But the alignment of studio monitors must satisfy the above images. Let’s get started, shall we? SPL or Sound Pressure Level of a studio speaker depends on the wattage of the amp and the size of the woofer. Well, assuming you have a good-sized and sound-treated room for your studio, we are going to set up studio monitors in your studio. Don’t place ’em too close to the wall! How to set up Studio Monitors At Producer Alternatives, we adhere to strict standards of editorial integrity to help you make decisions with confidence. You can use costly materials or go with budget soundproofing materials. Simply cover up those 4 spots with acoustic panels, and you’re all set. But don’t compare them with PA speakers. Now turn the volume knob of your audio interface so you could listen to the pink noise generated by the system. They have big size monitor, with high wattage. Starting a recording studio is really tough. He loves music, writing and travelling. The placement of your monitor speaker makes a big difference in the sound you get. Here is the list of required room size according to the size and wattage of studio monitors.Woofer SizeWattageRoom Size3″ to 3.5″15W to 30W9’X7′5″ to 6.5″30W to 60W13’X10′8″ to 10″60W to 100W15’X10′Above 10″ and Subwoofers100W and AboveLarger then 15’X10′. Start a pre-recorded audio project or song and slowly turn the volume up on your audio mixer as well as your monitor pairs. The best way to minimize this frequency buildup overall is by adding bass traps behind each monitor. The primary difference between these two types of monitors is the rate at which the sound decays before it reaches the listening position. Set Up Your Studio Monitors The Right Way. Begin with your subwoofer and main monitors turned off. You can either place these on your desktop or monitor stands. Far-field monitors are different in that they are much larger and come with higher wattages. Monitors should always be directed to the ear direction and not towards the wall behind you. So, I have a “Pink Noise” method which I will describe below in this article. But I want to let you in on a little secret… You only need 8 pieces of equipment to set up a home recording studio that can produce radio-worthy tracks. For far-field monitors, I would like to suggest you use monitor stands as they are usually used for reference monitors. So, If you have a near-field monitor you can place them on your recording table as well as you can use monitor stands but keep them within the hearing range. Now that you have taken your monitors away from the walls, you need to check your surroundings to make sure that room boundaries don’t affect your sound on any side. Here is the exact method of setting up studio monitors. Adjust them according to your needs: set the output of your sound card at max and slowly raise the volume of the speaker until you reach the loudness you need for mixing. Even though home studio setups are in small rooms these days, we don’t recommend going any smaller than 15’x10’. Best Audio Recording Gear, Musical Instruments, & Home Studio Guides. Select the “Set Default” button to ensure that your monitor speakers are your personal computer’s default speakers. Your email address will not be published. From wherever you are sitting in your mix position, these are the places that you would be able to see the reflection of your monitors. Get The Best Quality Sound Out Of Your Equipment And Studio With This Producer Guide To Studio Sounds. Even if you can’t afford to buy top-notch bass traps, any kind of absorption will do the job. Most engineers agree that using your monitors to create an equilateral triangle is the best way to form a compromise between a studio monitor setup that is too wide and one that is too narrow. After 3-4 days your ears probably calibrated with the monitors and you are now ready to mix your projects. So I’m here to share my experiences with you which I think can help you a lot. This can lead to loose screws rattling or other less-obvious noises that can muddy up your mix. Though today we can set up a home studio in a very small space, for better results, you should have at least 15’X10′ large room. When it comes to ITU Standard Monitor Heights, any monitors that are not tilted down should be anywhere from 47-55 inches off the floor. Again, it’s important to remember that low frequencies are not directional, so placing the subwoofer beside you will not be an issue. Generally, unity gain is marked as “0” or “U” on the audio devices. So, you have got your new studio monitors and now your ready to get them set up to produce the best sound possible. That would reduce problems caused by the bass null at the center of your room, rear wall comb filtering and front wall speaker boundary interference. As a rule of thumb, you want to try to place your studio monitors symmetrically, equidistant from each wall on the left and right side. The motive behind this website is to provide the pre-purchase guide for studio monitors. With 4dB extra headroom, you can mix your projects far better than ago. This is the property of near-field monitors. This could result in a mix that sounds off-center and imbalanced when you hear it in other systems, such as headphones. And that “ ideal position ” can be summed up with 2 simple rules: 1. This is why you need to adhere to the strict guidelines of setting up your studio monitors. Calibrating studio monitors as per your control room space is a tuff job for newbie recordists. Keep in mind that the genre of your chosen audio tracks must match the genre which you are going to mix. Your recording studio should have two spaces: a mixing area with a desk and a recording area. Height and tilt when positioning studio monitor speakers Your studio reference monitors should be at least 47 inches (120 cm) off the floor. Equip your mixing area with a desk that can hold your computer and your mixing equipment. The initial reflection points are as follows: The best way to find the initial reflection points in your room is to think of your walls and ceiling as reflective surfaces. Eli Krantzberg in Tips and Tricks. To get rid of these initial reflection spots, we recommend adding panels at each one. ⚠️ NOTE: if you are in a smaller room, diffusers might not be as effective as there might not be enough distance between you and the panels. I know you are wondered about how to perfectly align your monitors like the images above. We'll show you how to set up your CR-X monitors and where to place them to get the best listening experience. Unlike consumer hi-fi speakers, which often color the sound to make for a more pleasant listening experience, Studio Monitors typically offer a FLAT frequency response, which ensures that your mix will sound great on virtually any system. Doing this inevitably requires the application of a bit of science and some trial and error, but it’s one of the most important aspects of tuning your setup to get the absolute best listening experience. I know guys waking up in the morning is too tuff for us. Now that you connected the studio monitors to your PC, you should be able to run a little quick test to ensure that everything is successfully connected. there are 3 main types of input and output sockets. I know many of you don’t have a reach to those authentic sources who will guide you to set up your home studio like a pro. Other monitors feature built-in corrective EQ that compensates for the room. See the image below for better understanding. Where it is a fact that in most of the home studios the mixing process is acquired through the open back headphones. Place the stage monitors in the ideal location for each performer. Add Some Bass Traps Behind Your Monitors The first thing you should do is make sure that you understand the inputs and outputs on your studio monitors. You just might have been mixing in a skewed environment for far too long! Share this article with your recordist friends on social media as it would help them too. 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