Upgrade from Presonus Eris 3.5

[aod]

Last December I purchased my first set of studio monitors, some Presonus Eris 3.5BT.

These are for my ‘home studio’ set-up – that’s a loose term as it’s just very amateur and for occasional use with personal projects.

I didn’t get chance to use them too much until the last month or so, and I’ve really liked them, but having tried to re-master some songs I have, they have come up short to my expectations.

The real issue is the lack of bass – I was aware of this having read reviews etc, but didn’t really appreciate how it would come across in reality.
I re-mastered a few songs initially using my Sennheiser HD 4.5 BTNC headphones, and then switched between them and the Eris monitors. It all sounded great to me.

Then when trying it on other speakers, and sending to friends, the bass was just too saturated – probably because the monitors couldn’t replicate some of the lower frequencies well enough.

This was primarily for Reggae music, which is quite heavily geared towards the low end.

I’ve decided I’d like to upgrade these monitors, and need something that can produce much more low end, but with comparable quality to the Eris set I have, and preferably a similar cost - I’m not bothered about the Bluetooth feature.

The Presonus Sub8 is too expensive as an add-on, and I don’t think the 4.5 will cut it.

The Eris E5 might be OK, but they are a little more than I wanted to spend. But If I’m spending that much, would I be better off with something like KRK Rokit RP5 G4 / Classic 5, which I’ve read are superb for the money?

This is for a very small room, approx 3m square.

Any recommendations would be appreciated.

[Forum Admin]

Worth considering the Kali LP-6 monitors. Very cost-effective. They've tweaked them since they won our Editor's Choice Awards in 2018.

Full review and link to manufacturer here:

https://www.soundonsound.com/reviews/kali-audio-lp-6

https://www.kaliaudio.com

[Forum Admin]

Sorry, re-read your post and realised your budget is low, so Kalis may be beyond your wallet?

Here's a list of other monitor brands from Gear4Music. Other retailers may sell for lower prices or match prices, of course.

If you stated a maximum budget for a pair of monitors, it'd help with more accurate suggestions.

[resistorman]

I can't even imagine trying to mix reggae on those speakers, or any other $100 speakers. You might have a look at these:

https://www.thomann.de/gb/akg_k_712_pro.htm

[Drew Stephenson]

Low budget + low end = headphones

A decent set of open backed headphones, maybe some correction software like Sonarworks, and spend plenty of time listening to your reference mixes and really learning your headphones and genre.

There really is no other low budget way to good bass sounds - it's just physics.

[aod]

Thanks for the replies.

Well this is for my first pair of monitors, but I'd prefer to have a pair of speakers over headphones, unless it's unfeasible.

What is the minimum budget recommended for something good enough then?

If I set my budget around £200 ($260), is there anything that will do the job?

[Drew Stephenson]

Add a zero on and you'll start getting there.
The Eris's are good for their price, but see what i said above about low budget and low end.
It genuinely is about physics and you can't get around that.
A good set of headphones is the best bet, use them in conjunction with your speakers, they're all tools in the inventory.

[resistorman]

Seriously, the AKG's I linked to are great, especially for the money. They cost more than twice that in the States, and I bought them specifically to help with the low end in my mixes, and I have a lot of money in speakers and room treatment. Even expensive speakers won't help if your room isn't treated.

[Arpangel]

Last December I purchased my first set of studio monitors, some Presonus Eris 3.5BT.

These are for my ‘home studio’ set-up – that’s a loose term as it’s just very amateur and for occasional use with personal projects.

I didn’t get chance to use them too much until the last month or so, and I’ve really liked them, but having tried to re-master some songs I have, they have come up short to my expectations.

The real issue is the lack of bass – I was aware of this having read reviews etc, but didn’t really appreciate how it would come across in reality.
I re-mastered a few songs initially using my Sennheiser HD 4.5 BTNC headphones, and then switched between them and the Eris monitors. It all sounded great to me.

Then when trying it on other speakers, and sending to friends, the bass was just too saturated – probably because the monitors couldn’t replicate some of the lower frequencies well enough.

This was primarily for Reggae music, which is quite heavily geared towards the low end.

I’ve decided I’d like to upgrade these monitors, and need something that can produce much more low end, but with comparable quality to the Eris set I have, and preferably a similar cost - I’m not bothered about the Bluetooth feature.

The Presonus Sub8 is too expensive as an add-on, and I don’t think the 4.5 will cut it.

The Eris E5 might be OK, but they are a little more than I wanted to spend. But If I’m spending that much, would I be better off with something like KRK Rokit RP5 G4 / Classic 5, which I’ve read are superb for the money?

This is for a very small room, approx 3m square.

Any recommendations would be appreciated.

Stick with the Eris, all the others, Rokits etc etc, won’t give you a significant increase in ability, maybe even less, they will be sideways moves at best.
The Eris, IMO, are the best of these budget monitors, very well balanced sound, not too hyped, and if you like them, I’d just go up the range, if you can.

[resistorman]

Stick with the Eris, all the others, Rokits etc etc, won’t give you a significant increase in ability, maybe even less, they will be sideways moves at best.
The Eris, IMO, are the best of these budget monitors, very well balanced sound, not too hyped, and if you like them, I’d just go up the range, if you can.

I agree the Eris sound good, I have the 5's for my composing area with a Sub8. It's not set up for mixing, just inspiration, but I probably could manage something decent If I turned the sub off, it would just fool me. I don't think that I could mix reggae on the 5's just themselves, the low frequencies are particularly "crucial". I'd have to have headphones to check.

[Arpangel]

Stick with the Eris, all the others, Rokits etc etc, won’t give you a significant increase in ability, maybe even less, they will be sideways moves at best.
The Eris, IMO, are the best of these budget monitors, very well balanced sound, not too hyped, and if you like them, I’d just go up the range, if you can.

I agree the Eris sound good, I have the 5's for my composing area with a Sub8. It's not set up for mixing, just inspiration, but I probably could manage something decent If I turned the sub off, it would just fool me. I don't think that I could mix reggae on the 5's just themselves, the low frequencies are particularly "crucial". I'd have to have headphones to check.

Yes, I’d say the Eris are the best of the bunch, at this level, I had them for awhile, they were fine. They developed a mechanical hum for some reason, unfortunately, and I changed them for Behringer Truths, which are OK, but not as detailed, or as open as the Eris, but it’s not a big deal right now.
All the others, KRK, ADAM, etc etc, all sounded like car speakers to me, very over-hyped.

[jimjazzdad]

As others have said, the Eris 3.5 are tiny in size and price, but are reasonably pleasant little monitors. But you cannot defy physics - you will never get accurate, extended bass response from such small speakers. Even if you ante-up for a pair of Neumann KH 80 at four times your budget you will not be satisfied with them for mixing reggae; classical maybe... Take your $260 and invest in some good headphones to sort out your LF mix (lots of good info and opinion to guide you here on SOS forums). Use the Eris 3.5 to assess the stereo image and the overall blend of your mix.

BTW, I have a pair of Eris 3.5 that I use when I am set up in a cloakroom or similar, doing location recordings. They suffice for playback when the talent wants to hear what's been captured or for background monitoring when I want to take the cans off and give my ears a rest. I love that a pair can fit in a bag I can sling over my shoulder...load-in/load-out always reminds me that I'm not getting any younger!

[aod]

Thank again everyone.

It sounds like the Eris are as good as I'll get for the price, and glad to read opinions that match the very positive reviews I read before I bought them.

I was fully aware of the limited low end response prior to my purchase, but as I said, I just didn't know how to perceive what this would be like until I actually used them - they are my first monitors.

I think i've been convinced to look into getting some headphones to compliment the Eris. I originally was planning on selling them and then spending maybe a bit more on some larger monitors - probably up to £300, but it doesn't sound like that will stretch to anything good enough.

The recommended AKG's seem to be the way forward!