A common question about studio monitors is: aren’t they just regular loudspeakers? Well, in some ways they are. They differ from regular home loudspeakers in three ways. The first is that most of the time they are active, not passive. Which is to say that they have amplifiers built in to power the drivers. In the better models, there’s one amplifier per driver, which means that the crossover can also be active, allowing improved control of the crossover topology. The second is that sometimes they have different connections. In addition to the usual RCA line inputs (usual, that is, for active speakers), some have balanced XLRs and some support such professional standards as Dante, which provides distributed digital audio over IP using Ethernet cables. And finally, there’s a different design emphasis: with studio monitors it’s all about accuracy, with relatively little attention paid to styling.
So if accuracy is at the very top of your list of loudspeaker requirements, perhaps you should check out some studio monitors.
While you can technically control your studio monitors through the soundcard on your computer, using a dedicated interface or preamplifier with a volume control and high-quality DAC will yield tangible audible benefits. A separate device with its own volume control, such as the Schiit Audio Jotunheim Balanced Headphone Amplifier also makes for a more accurate and convenient way to control volume when used as a preamplifier, and connected to your studio monitors via XLR connections.
Your studio monitors should be set on other side of your work station so that it forms an equilateral triangle. Allow at least 30cm of space from the rear wall, if possible, and angle the speakers towards your listening position so that the tweeters are pointed at your ears.
A subwoofer is not always essential for use in a nearfield setup. However, depending on what your are mixing or what you are listening to, a subwoofer such as the
If you are listening to or producing music, you’ll need two identical studio monitors to create a proper stereo image. If you’re listening to or mixing multi-channel audio, such as 5.1 home theater, then you will need a separate monitor appropriately positioned to accurately hear each track. A single monitor like the
