What Size Of Monitors Do You Need For Your Home Studio? Near Field Vs Mid Field 2021

This week our friend and mix master extraordinaire Mike White of Music-Production-Guide.com comments on a common topic in discussions with our customers. It concerns the difference between mid-field and near-field monitors. This is something you need to think about before you purchase a pair for your home recording studio.

Near Field Versus Mid Field Monitors – What’s The Difference?

Mike White – It’s important to understand how the size of the home studio space and your distance from the speakers affects the accuracy of your mixes. Remember, the key issue here is to hear the music accurately.

If you have a small room (like the average bedroom desktop studio) you will probably be better off with a small pair of near-field monitors. You can always add a subwoofer if you want to extend the low end for casual listening.

Mid-field monitors tend to give you a much broader frequency spectrum than near-field monitors, especially on the low end. However, mid-field monitors require that there be a minimum distance from the listening position of 4 feet to 5 feet. They also require that you avoid placing them against or near walls. So unless you have a sizable space, it probably makes more sense to have near-field monitors that you can place 2 or 3 feet away from you.

Something else that may be relevant to your situation is how loud the monitors need to be. For example, you may have a fair-sized room where others may be listening along with you while you mix a project. In this case, mid-field monitors will be able to give you more volume or sound pressure level required. And in some cases, you may decide to have both mid-field monitors for group listening, and near-field monitors for individual use. But for most small bedroom studios near field monitors will probably be the best solution.