Creating a DJ setup at home is exciting and something that requires a little planning. Whether you are a pro or a novice, the first thing you need to look at is what space you are working with. You have your DJ equipment, and you have your tracks, now all you need is a pair of DJ Monitor Speakers. But where do you start? You are presented with so many options, a lot of technical jargon and a variety of prices. Here we have created a guide to hopefully help you decide which are the best DJ monitor speakers for you.
Best DJ Speakers for Home Use
One of the main reasons to invest in good quality speaker monitors is to reproduce sound that is crystal clear and minimises distortion. We have been looking through our catalogue of speakers and have extracted a few ranges that are of the highest quality, from leading manufactures and at prices to suit a variety of budgets.
Pioneer DJ VM Active Speaker Monitor Series
The Pioneer DJ VM range of speaker monitors are perfect for the home environment. There are three units available within the series, VM-50, VM-70 and VM-80, all offering varying woofer sizes, 5-inch, 6.5-inch and 8-inch. Each monitor unit is a bi-amp 2-way bass reflex active speaker and feature high-quality components including aramid fibre woofer cones, 1-inch soft-dome tweeter, constant directivity horns, Class D amplifier and advanced DSP setting that allows the speaker to be adjusted to suit the room.
The low frequency (LF) and High frequency (HF) Amplifier wattage differ for all VM monitors. The VM-50 has a 30w LF and 30w HF, whilst the VM-70 has an LF at 70w and HF at 30w, and the VM-80 has an LF of 90w and HF of 30w. The stats are impressive and make for a great home DJ speaker.
The speaker unit outer shell is robust, sturdy and sleek looking. There are flexible connections available on the rear of the units, including an XLR/TRS combo input, an RCA input and DSP control, which features a Low and High EQ knob. Pioneer DJ designers have decided to remove the old HF Level Adjust and instead provided each low and high knob with four options allowing for potentially sixteen EQ settings. Also featured on the rear is Pioneer’s Vortex Bass Accelerator, where a powerful bass is produced.
Mackie CR-X Speaker Monitor Series
The Mackie CR-X Speaker Monitor range features professional high-quality sound replication for modern music creators, musicians, DJs and producers. There are several speaker size options from 3-inch, 4-inch, 5-inch and 8-inch with an 8-inch Subwoofer (with Bluetooth) added to the series mix. There is also a separate Bluetooth version of the speaker monitors if that better suits your needs.
The sleek-looking units feature a brushed metal panel with a quirky outline that ensures they look classy within any DJ/Music Producers home setup. Each unit includes premium woofers, tweeters and high-powered amplifiers for punchy, clear sound. The warmth and natural resonance originate from the wooded cabinet. On the front of the speaker is a knob that acts as a power switch as well as volume control, and a headphone output. On the rear of the unit is a switch that controls which side of your desk you would like the volume control on, 1/4-inch RCA inputs and 1/8-inch AUX input. The matching 8-inch subwoofer has a powerful 200W amplifier, is Bluetooth enabled and comes with a CRDV desktop remote.
KRK Rokit RP Active Monitor Speaker Range
KRK has a broad range of speakers and subwoofers, along with years of experience. Chances are you will have seen them in many home setups, and notice them from their iconic yellow dome. You may well be thinking why we have included them here if they are used in home studios. Well, they are proven to be a popular choice by many to use them within their home DJ setup, as they are incredibly versatile, and relay superb sound.
Within the range, they have the Rokit RP5 G4, Rokit RP7 G4, Rokit RP8 G4 and Rokit RP10-3 G4. They all feature the same quality components except for the woofer sizing; which comes in 5-inch, 7-inch, 8-inch and 10-inch. They are all bi-amp studio monitors except for the KRK RP10, which is tri-amp. Each of the speakers features a Kevlar Aramid Fibre woofer (sizing varies depending on speaker purchased), a 1-inch Tweeter made with Kevlar technology, have an in-built Class D power amplifier and exclusive speaker drivers built internally from the ground up. The sound they produce is clear and precise on all frequencies and reduces any listening fatigue.
The Rokit speakers feature an exclusively built limiter that automatically activates at peak amp-levels to protect the system and offer broader dynamics. The active DJ & Studio monitors feature an LCD screen which provides visual aid of EQ settings. There is a DSP driven room tuning system that provides 25 visual EQ settings that work with your room to minimise and correct any acoustic issues. Additionally, there is an app that works alongside to provide real-time analysis, which aids in you getting the ultimate sound optimisation for the environment.
The cabinets all feature a front-facing bass port that gives you a fantastic low-end punch and extension. The enclosure has been tuned to offer consistent air pressure to ensure stereo 3D and that ultimate sweet spot. The monitors are fitted with high-density open cell acoustic iso-foam pads that work to reduce vibration when placed on a surface, resulting in even more flexibility of where they can be positioned.
Please note the KRK Rokit RP10-3 G4 speaker includes three drivers in the form of a 10-inch woofer, 4.5-inch mid-range woofer and 1-inch tweeter.
M-Audio BX Powered Speaker Reference Monitor Range
M-Audio has a few options within their BX range, the BX3, BX4, BX5 D3 and BX8 D3. Again these are primarily music production speakers but are also finding their way into a lot of home DJ setups, thanks to their versatility. The BX5 D3 and BX8 D3 speakers feature a Bi-amplified design with a power of 100 watts (60 LF and 40 HF) for the BX5 and 150 watts (80 LF and 70 HF) for the BX8. The BX3 and BX4 are the babies of the range yet feature 120 watts of crystal clear sound, along with continuous power of two 25 Watt RMS.
The M-Audio BX5 D3 has a 5-inch Kevlar low-frequency driver with a high temp voice coil and damped rubber surround, and a 1-inch natural silk dome tweeter, while the BX8 D3 has an 8-inch low-frequency driver and 1.25 dome tweeter. Both come with two Class A/B internal amplifiers which drive the woofer and tweeter individually.
M-Audio's BX3 has a 3.5-inch black Kevlar low-frequency driver with 1-inch natural silk dome tweeters, whilst the BX4 features a 4.5-inch black Kevlar low frequency driver with 1-inch natural silk dome tweeters.
The sound output is clear and precise, with powerful low-frequencies and broad mid-high frequency ranges. There is great flexibility with connections and placement options, thanks to the various input and output configurations. All the components are housed within a robust casing and feature M-Audio’s iconic Keyhole design.
Best powered DJ speakers
It is difficult to pinpoint what the best speaker for home DJs is. All components that make up these powered speakers are of high-quality. The sound output varies depending upon the manufacturer, but they will always be up there in the list when looking for a good quality speaker. What you have to look out for is low distortion, clear low, mid and high frequencies. We think overall, it comes down to how much you want to spend. Cheap DJ Speakers obviously won’t produce a top sound like a more expensive speaker, so make sure you carry out your research thoroughly before making your final decision. Better still, if you’re still unsure, contact us, and we will be happy to talk through the choices with you, as well as providing our personal experiences.
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