Every up-and-coming DJ needs some quality speakers for DJing at home. Whether you are mixing, recording, or editing, only the best studio monitor speakers provide the most accurate representation of music, allowing you to make required adjustments and get your mix into sounding just the way you want.
There are variety of options to choose from and they might not always suit your every need. For this reason, some of the most important features you want to be particularly mindful of, as well as 5 of the best studio monitor speakers are presented below.
What to look for in DJ speakers for home use?
- Power: even at your home or studio, a power handling of your system is going to have a significant effect, not only in terms of volume, but also on the overall sound, its definition, and dynamic range. Many people would be surprised by the fact that higher wattage allows you to hear more transient detail so that you are able ta make even more precise adjustments. In case of insufficient wattage, a distortion and possibly even clipping might occur.
- Subwoofer: subwoofer enables you to hear what is going on in the lowest bass octaves. While subwoofer isn’t always necessary, it can be useful when your audience is going to listen your mix through a powerful dance club system. If you decide for a subwoofer note that smaller rooms just aren’t large enough to allow bass frequencies to fully develop.
- Frequency range: since you want an accurate representation of the sound, your speakers need to have the ability to handle the full frequency range of your recordings. For majority recordings, a frequency range from 50Hz – 20kHz is sufficient. Not only that, you also want to make sure speakers can handle the frequencies relatively evenly. Therefore, variation to up to 2 decibels provides sound that is also balanced enough.
Best DJ speakers for home use:
PreSonus Eris E3.5
The Eris E3.5 are small, pretty accurate and great sounding speakers. They are arguably the best active studio monitors in their price range. A combination of quality components, such as Kevlar low-frequency transducers, professional acoustic-adjustment controls, responsive class AB amplification, and silk-dome tweeters create a superior sound.
In addition, Acoustic Space accommodates the frequency response for the three most common monitor placements (near-, far, and mid field) providing more than enough flexibility for every DJ. In conclusion, the Eris studio monitors are powerful enough for any home or studio and yet affordable enough for any budget.
- Power: 25 watts per speaker
- Inputs: 1 x stereo, 2 x TRS, 2 x RCA
- Frequency response: 80 Hz – 20 kHz
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PROS |
CONS |
| · Accurate, consistent and smooth sound
· Compact · Affordable |
· No XLR inputs |
M-Audio AV32
The AV32 are great entry-level compact studio monitors to form a solid basis of any small home studio. The manufacturer really wanted to make speakers that provide the same sound quality as their predecessor and are even more compact at the same time. For this reason, and by using a special medium-density fiberboard (MDF) they dropped weight by nearly a half. Additionally, a unique reinforcement was designed specifically in order to absorb vibration and minimize distortion.
By combining the standard 1-inch ferrofluid-cooled silk cone tweeters with 3-inch polypropylene-coated woofers, AV32 produce a define bass and fairly solid highs. What is more, newly-designed Optimage IV waveguide improved the already optimal listening-area sound coverage. For the price given. A32 represent a perfect starting home DJ speakers.
- Power: 10 watts per channel
- Inputs: 1 x AUX, 2 x RCA
- Frequency response: 80 Hz – 20 kHz
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PROS |
CONS |
| · Solidly built
· Really competitive price |
· Sound a bit pitchy in the high notes and don’t have much depth of sound
· Hard to position in the near field |
KRK Rokit 6 G3
The Rokit 6 G3 are perfect for professionals who need a versatile but accurate studio monitor. KRK Systems is one of the worlds most respected manufacturers of studio reference monitors. Rokit 6 G3 includes a 6-inch glass-Aramid composite woofer and 1-inch soft-dome tweeter that produces optimum vocal clarity and bass performance.
Multiple connection options mean that Rokit 6 G3 will easily connect to a large variety of studio equipment. Furthermore, proprietary waveguide, radiused front battle, and front-firing bass port give this studio monitor the ability to be ideally positioned in any situation.
- Power: 73 watts
- Inputs: XLR, TRS, RCA
- Frequency response: 38 Hz – 35 kHz
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PROS |
CONS |
| · Great overall sound clarity
· Impressive frequency range |
· Some sense of lower-mid-range congestion
· Monitor stands feel a bit cheap |
Pioneer DJ DM-40
The DM-40 brings excellent audio quality to your home setup. These budget monitor speakers that have inherited best from Pioneers Pro Audio speakers and S-DJX series. Features like DECO technology for a wider reach and sweet spot and a front-loaded bass reflex system for rich and tight bass are something, normally found on much more expensive monitor speakers.
All these and many more features make DM-40 a perfect for choice for DJing at home. If you aren’t exactly an audiophile, you won’t even be able to distinguish these speakers from any professional ones.
- Power: 21 watts per speaker
- Inputs:1 x RCA, 1 x mini jack
- Frequency response: 70 Hz – 30 kHz
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PROS |
CONS |
| · Full and rounded sound
· Solid, wooden build · Front ported speakers |
· Speakers don’t silence when you plug in anything with 3 receivers |
JBL Professional 305P MkII
The 305P MkII delivers outstanding performance and an enjoyable mix experience at an accessible price. Based on JBL legacy of producing high-quality sound performance studio monitors, 305P MkII retained and even upgraded some of the impressive LSR3 series features, such as image control waveguide that provides great detail and imaging.
305P MkII has updated high-frequency and low-frequency transducers that allow impressively deep bass with lower harmonic distortion. All in all, JBL 305P MkII enhance critical capabilities of any modern workspace and is quite stunning piece of DJ equipment, considering the price.
- Power: 82 watts
- Inputs: XLR
- Frequency response: 43 Hz – 24 kHz
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PROS |
CONS |
| · Great price to quality ratio
· Accurate and clear sound production · Sleek, glassy design |
· Lacking in euphoric’s |