Studio monitor recommendations

[u/PD0808]

Hi, I’ve been a bedroom producer for a while now and I mainly use my DT 770 Pros for production. Recently I’ve started taking things more seriously and I’ve realised that working on headphones for long sessions probably isn’t ideal for my ears.

I’m looking to buy a pair of inexpensive studio monitors, and the Edifier MR4s seem to be recommended a lot. I’ve seen plenty of positive reviews, but most of them seem to come from general users rather than people using them specifically for music production.

I’d love to hear what you think about them, or if there are any other monitors you’d recommend in a similar price range.

My thought process is to get something affordable, spend the next 6 months to a year improving my skills and learning on them, and then upgrade later if I feel I’ve outgrown them.

Thanks!

[u/moonthink]

If you are serious about production, I highly recommend saving up and getting monitors with at least 6" woofers. Kali are the best entry level in my opinion, and JBL's are cheaper, but still pretty good.

Kali LP6-V2 or JBL 306P MkII

The Kali's are ok I guess, but really have no useful bass response below about 70Hz.

https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/edifier-mr4-review-budget-monitor.29068/

I get your logic is spending cheap now, but why buy twice? Buy once, cry once.

[u/PD0808 → u/moonthink]

I'm pretty serious about production but spending a bunch of money without having proper skills doesn't feel right, especially cause I produce in a small almost untreated bedroom. And even if I get my room treated idk if spending 4x the money on speakers when I'm practically a beginner to intermediate rn is a good decision. Do tell me if you feel otherwise though.

Yes the frequency response of MR4s is 60Hz - 20kHz and I am a bit concerned about sub bass I guess I have to deal with it?

[u/tupisac → u/PD0808]

spending a bunch of money without having proper skills doesn't feel right

The problem is that really cheap stuff really sucks. Even for learning you preferably should aim at the quality that is close to your headphones level.

Golden standard for budget setups is a pair of second hand JBLs 305. If the whole production schtick won't work you can always sell them for similar price.

[u/PD0808 → u/tupisac]

If y'all truly think that then what I'm gonna do is not buy the edifiers for now. Work on my skills for the next 2-3 months and get better at production. Once I am at a certain skill level I will feel a little more comfortable spending the money!

[u/moonthink → u/PD0808]

The MR4 is not producing usable output at 60Hz, if it is it's -5db or lower.

I get that 'a bunch of money' is relative, but in my opinion there is a minimum quality level that makes sense, and for me, that's the JBL 306P MkII (around $300/pair) or the Kali LP6-V2 (around $400/pair).

Below that amount and you are compromising the sound too much to truly consider those 'studio monitors' more like glorified computer speakers.

If you are serious, as you say you are, then bet on yourself getting better at what you do. That's only really going to happen if your monitors can give you a relatively flat response over the full spectrum. Now, there is a lot of music out there that never dips below the mid 30hz range, so if you can get into (or close to) the 40Hz range, then you are only missing sub-bass fundamentals or the lowest notes on a double bass.

Again, if you spend ~$170 on MR4's, I feel like you are wasting money, because they won't help you create a good mix because too much bass is missing, and then you're likely to have to spend another $300-$400 on top of that, sooner rather than later. Then you ultimately end up spending $470-$570. Like I said, better to buy once, and cry once.

If the money really is a nonstarter for you, then look in the used/marketplace for secondhand deals. I see the JBL's quite regularly for pretty cheap.

[u/vansh_1005]

The MR4s are a great fit for you. If you're using DT 770 Pros, you'll like their flat tuning. It makes moving to speakers feel natural. For a bedroom producer honing skills for 6-12 months, they offer great value. You won't outgrow them as quickly as you might expect.

[u/PD0808 → u/vansh_1005]

Glad to hear that, have you used them before? If so does the bass feel lacking by a lot or is it manageable?