Solid construction and quality components for superior sound As you expect from PreSonus, Eris active studio monitors deliver the goods through a combination of well-designed Kevlar low frequency transducers, low-mass silk-dome tweeters, responsive Class AB amplification, and professional acoustic-adjustment controls. But this is just the start; the real magic happens when the sound hits your ears. Plus, Eris are lightweight, compact and look as professional as they sound so you can feel comfortable adding them to your studio. | The controls you need for accurate playback in any studio environment Acoustic Space tailors the frequency response of Eris to accommodate for for the three most studio common monitor placements. Midrange and High Frequency controls are designed to address situations when mixing in spaces with high reflective surfaces or acoustic treatment, and Low Cutoff helps coordinate the bass output of your Eris monitor system when used with Subwoofers like the Temblor T10. Lastly, Input Gain lets you optimise the signal-to-noise ratio of the audio coming into Eris through its three flexible input options (RCA, TRS, XLR). | Powerful enough for any studio, yet affordable enough for any budget PreSonus products, including Eris active studio monitors, are used every day on radio, TV, streaming music, online videos, and movie and gaming soundtracks. PreSonus makes the technology that audio engineering professionals use to record, broadcast and deliver high fidelity audio yet Eris-series speakers remain ultra-affordable, making them a terrific value. And with three models, you can easily find the Eris monitor that best suits your studio needs. |
There is a constant hiss coming from the speakers. It is not particularly loud but it is present regardless of if the volume is turned all the way down or not, and above around 70% volume the hiss gets louder. It is not affected by any adjustments to volume from the source (PC) and the hiss is still present even when there are no cables other than the power attached.
That being said, I do not know whether this is normal for a pair of speakers like this. I upgraded from a pair of Creative Gigaworks T40 speakers, which had a noticeable hum and hiss above 50% volume. This hiss from these PreSonus Eris E4.5 BT speakers is much quieter and it took me about 3 days to even notice it. I am sensitive to what might be considered to be annoying noises, but I do not consider the hiss to be particularly obnoxious or annoying – in fact, with my tinnitus it is almost comforting. It’s not a dealbreaker for me, but this is still something potential buyers may wish to know and consider before committing to purchasing these speakers.
As for the quality of the audio from these speakers, they really are a huge step up from the aforementioned Creative T40s. It seemed at first that there wasn’t much bass, but after turning up the low end frequencies on the acoustic tuning controls I can say with confidence that these speakers can produce ample amounts of bass. Just keep in mind that adjusting these controls can defeat the point of using the speakers as reference monitors since certain frequencies will become enhanced or stifled depending on how you set them.
Overall a great pair of speakers, only marred by the quiet hiss that I now find impossible not to notice. Not a dealbreaker for me, though, and I’m still satisfied with them for the price.
I bought those to replace a set of Creative Gigaworks T40 II’s and Creative T100’s as I felt something was missing from the sound so I looked at those monitor speakers as they were discounted.
I’m not an audiophile but I do like good sound and these speakers have it in spades. As soon as I swapped my old speakers off my desk, I was amazed by how much clearer and well better defined the sound was.
Although I dabble a bit with a MIDI controller with virtual instruments sometimes, I’m not a musician but I can see those being of use to some people who do create music on computer.
The most surprising thing of all was the price, they were around the same price as the Gigaworks T40 II’s when I bought them and cheaper than the Creative T100s. Although I’ll keep a hold of the T40s as a spare set, I’ll be getting rid of the T100s as I was never satisfied with them. For the price, this set are excellent value.
I’ve tried them in games as well, I can hear footsteps and voices around buildings in some FPS games that I’ve heard via headphones but never heard before on speakers so clearly. To sum it up, I’m very pleased with them!
I wasn’t expecting much from this device, as there is a good quality Adam Sub in my main studio that i’ve owned for 6+ years. This was purchased for my decks setup, and i have to say i am quite impressed.
Great value for money, and It fits nicely into an IKEA Kallax square, which is very convenient for hiding it away.
How could they improve it? put a volume control on the fro
Did a lot of research before choosing these. Got great reviews and I can hear why so many people love them.
I wasted 8 weeks! … of thinking time deciding whether to buy these! They arrived today and I have hit them with everything, 3.5mm to RCA from MacbookPro, and Bluetooth from my iPhone. They sound breathtaking! Ignore any reviews saying they lack bass, they are really punchy. What they do deliver is a stunning stage of sound, great separation, and the type of depth that makes you think you’re in the studio during the recording. Massively recommended!**** … Update, I’ve just ordered the Eris 3.5BT for a different room
I wasted 8 weeks! … of thinking time deciding whether to buy these! They arrived today and I have hit them with everything, 3.5mm to RCA from MacbookPro, and Bluetooth from my iPhone. They sound breathtaking! Ignore any reviews saying they lack bass, they are really punchy. What they do deliver is a stunning stage of sound, great separation, and the type of depth that makes you think you’re in the studio during the recording. Massively recommended!**** … Update, I’ve just ordered the Eris 3.5BT for a different room
I use these for a second, more portable production rig. You need to check lower bass frequencies on bigger monitors or decent headphones, but other than that 5 stars for price.
Great speaker sounds great has a decent low end so if you have a smaller room no sun is needed
Happy with them
For 150, the Eris Sub8 is great value for money. I’m a big fan of Presonus gear, and once again I am impressed. For me, one of the great things is the TRS connectivity, making it very easy to connect to your audio interface and your monitors. There are also numerous settings on the amp to tweak the sound to your liking. There is a bit of a noise floor, but it isn’t too significant. I would definitely recommend this subwoofer to anyone looking for a budget option that still sounds great.
I did my research before purchasing these. They have not disappointed. Have them attached to my record player, rock is crisp and clear, drum and bass is punchy, funk is….well funky. Overall recommend.
Used to use our old surround sound system with the turntable, but we got rid of it. These little speakers sound amazing! You still need your preamp with a turntable as there’s no phono input. Fabulous product for the money. Loads of bass!
You wont regret buying these, So happy with my purchase. Spent all evening listening to how good they are.
Perfect for my pc set up and use with my DJ controller
Great sound from a small package
I love the easy setup and form factor. The sound is great. I have them connected via line in to my mac and via blootooh to my my work laptop at the same time. The Bluetooth connection is instantaneous and always ready to start working away. No need to switch between sources.
I use the monitors for video editing.
These look nice and are built well.
The cables are fairly long. Could be a little longer but long enough for most desks.
The volume can go very loud without losing too much quality. Louder than i will ever need.
These are meant more for music people who want to hear things more accurately. This means that for music production the are pretty good but some things and voices in practically sound a bit off.
They are okay for gaming as they have good bass and good sound quality although again, some things do sound a little off.
Most of these things are not that noticeable if you are not listing out for it though.
They also angle sound very “straight”. By this i mean if you are directly in front of the speakers they are very loud but if you step to the side you can notice a drop in volume. Sound obvious but its more noticeable than with other speakers that i have used.
All in all i think they are pretty good for the price and very good if you are using them for electric instruments or music production.
If you would like a small compact yet powerful set of speakers to be used in a small room, these are really good. However, if you’re after something with a bit more kick in a slightly larger room then you should probably go for the 4.5 inch version as the 3.5 inch version really lack bass. I love the 3.5 inch version of the speakers but it does lack volume, they don’t go very loud so if you’re recording at low volume in your DAW software playback will lack the volume that you so desire. The sound quality is good though.
Update:
Just under a week and they’re broken, there’s a fuzzy noise coming from the left cone when a certain bass frequency has hit and it sounds garbage now!!!!
If you would like a small compact yet powerful set of speakers to be used in a small room, these are really good. However, if you’re after something with a bit more kick in a slightly larger room then you should probably go for the 4.5 inch version as the 3.5 inch version really lack bass. I love the 3.5 inch version of the speakers but it does lack volume, they don’t go very loud so if you’re recording at low volume in your DAW software playback will lack the volume that you so desire. The sound quality is good though.
Update:
Just under a week and they’re broken, there’s a fuzzy noise coming from the left cone when a certain bass frequency has hit and it sounds garbage now!!!!
It’s been stated in other reviews that these speakers punch way above their price and size. I agree.
The sound from the speakers is big and open. The tweeters provide really great rendition on all sorts of cymbals and the set up picks up all guitars, pianos, violins and cellos, brass, reed and vocals and provides a remarkably authentic, clipping free level of fidelity for their price and size.
If they have a failing, it’s in low end bass. Anyone expecting too much of that from a 3.5″ mid/bass, may be somewhat optimistic.
I matched these units with an existing sub unit and the overall sound quality is outstanding for the price. The 3.5s bottom out at 80Hz. Bear that in mind. On their own they are superior to many desktop speakers, but you need a sub if you want a full ‘sound stage’.
There was some buzzing on install. The supplied cables are – adequate. I thought I might have to invest in some better (shielded) ones. However, judicious positioning of the power and input cables solved the problem.
Would I recommend these? Yes. I don’t know what comes near them at their price.
I don’t usually do reviews, for this product I will make and exception. Total value for money, build quality is superb, sound quality is amazing. Connected to my turntable and was blown away with the sound quality. Highly recommended.
Pretty impressed. Just received these and set them up using a Focusrite Scarlett 2i2 as the interface and TRS cables from WORLDS BEST CABLES (Van Damme Tour Grade Classic XKE Starquad). Also an Anker USB-C to USB-C 643 Cable as I have spare USB-C outputs on my computer. You do get a standard USB-B to C cable with the device. I wanted something more than the usual computer speakers and think I have made the right decision. How can they sound this good and only cost 87.
Bought from Amazon warehouse as none in stock at the time, I was disappointed to find no Instructions or software as advertised . More alarming was the lightweight build quality that has a hollow ring to it when you tap the cabinet. I was not expecting great things, but I was wrong (mostly)
There is plenty of power for nearfield monitoring and it digs deep keeping the notes tuneful and tight, no flabbiness at all. I was impressed! If only it didn’t look and feel like a cheap imitation of the real thing it would have got 5 stars. I also would like the power light to go out or at least blink when it enters standby.
These are incredible. I used to own Yamaha HS8 monitors (450) and these have comparable mid and high end. Lacking low end but that’s just because the drivers are small so no complains there. Honestly if you need a pair of music/gaming/movie/producing speakers, get these.
I didn’t experience any mains hum, even when plugged into a 10-way extended with 6 other devices connected. 10/10
These are incredible. I used to own Yamaha HS8 monitors (450) and these have comparable mid and high end. Lacking low end but that’s just because the drivers are small so no complains there. Honestly if you need a pair of music/gaming/movie/producing speakers, get these.
I didn’t experience any mains hum, even when plugged into a 10-way extended with 6 other devices connected. 10/10
These are incredible. I used to own Yamaha HS8 monitors (450) and these have comparable mid and high end. Lacking low end but that’s just because the drivers are small so no complains there. Honestly if you need a pair of music/gaming/movie/producing speakers, get these.
I didn’t experience any mains hum, even when plugged into a 10-way extended with 6 other devices connected. 10/10
These are incredible. I used to own Yamaha HS8 monitors (450) and these have comparable mid and high end. Lacking low end but that’s just because the drivers are small so no complains there. Honestly if you need a pair of music/gaming/movie/producing speakers, get these.
I didn’t experience any mains hum, even when plugged into a 10-way extended with 6 other devices connected. 10/10
Ok, I’ve been looking at these speakers for about a year! Read all the reviews, good and bad. One minute a ‘must have’, another minute ‘best avoid’. Crikey, we all get headaches going in circles when we read so many differing opinions and experiences. Here’s MY truth:
These were THE perfect size for my limited footprint. I wanted MTM (mid, tweeter, mid) arrangement and I so wanted these to be good. Most were either too big or simply out of my budget. This is a small speaker. Most bad reviews were to do with high levels of mains hum and interference when connected, so that’s a no-no. But the good reviews never mentioned this so after a year of worry and sweat, I thought, surely it can’t be that bad? I should find out for myself. I could always send them back right?
They come nicely packaged and look pretty cool out of the box, if not just a little plastic. Yes there is hum, but thankfully not as bad as some people had suggested. Maybe inconsistent manufacturing? Both mine are identical in that respect. When positioned about 1m away my old ears could not hear them at all. My computer is way noisier even when the fans are on low. Make sure though, that you mount them correctly using high density rubbers to avoid contact with any hard surfaces as this will likely transmit the hum to an audible level at your normal sitting position. Definitely a little noisy on connection even when using balanced inputs, but this is easily resolved to acceptable levels by attenuating the input gain on the back of the units. They’re plenty loud enough! If yours are making unusual noises even when not connected, they’re probably faulty!!
Sound quality – surprisingly good and better than I had imagined a speaker of this price range and size would sound. I’m actually a hater of the phrase ‘they sound great for the price’…. What the heck does that even mean? You just want to know if they sound good or not. Yes they do. Are they flat? No, not exactly, but this will depend on your room and they do have various acoustic settings to help with your positioning which is very effective. Mine are wall mounted so they are close to the wall. There’s a setting for this. My studio has a low ceiling so they are close to the ceiling (similar to being in a corner of the room). There’s a setting for this also and when engaged they sound great. Even expensive ‘flat’ studio monitors will sound different from one room to another. What’s important is that you can hear all the instrumentation with clarity and have a good sound stage for correct stereo placement and so on. These speakers have a good stereo image and are very clear, so box ticked.
Listening fatigue – I have not yet experienced a particularly long session with these speakers but initial thoughts are, that at the right volume these speakers are not fatiguing. No harsh mids, no sibilant trebles and no drone. But I guess time will tell. So far I’m happy and yes ‘they are good for the price’ @$!
They’re great, but don’t skip on the Bluetooth unless you really won’t use it. Has other mid and low knobs on the back, so they’re a little more versatile than just flat sounding when required.
I bought the Sub8 to go with a pair of PreSonus Eris E5s that I just bought. The sound of the E5s on their own was pretty impressive but with the Sub8, just brilliant. Easily as good as units costing way, way more. The Sub8 is great value at under 200, very sturdily built, good control and connection options and sounds great. Highly recommended at the price.
The speakers don’t have any problem. It’s rather my mistake that I bought it knowing that I have an amp, which this one already has internally. Good thing that I’ve only tested the left speaker as the right speaker has the amp – so connecting it to the amp I have would have killed it. I’ve bought passive speakers instead from a local shop. Thanks
These are great sounding and have a lovely tone straight out the box with a Class AB amp at the heart, serious punch and I was really impressed with the bass response, for what is in the end a pretty small cabinet. They do get quite warm as this is propped old school electronics inside, but that’s part of there charm, paired up with my SMSL DAC they sound epic.
These are great sounding and have a lovely tone straight out the box with a Class AB amp at the heart, serious punch and I was really impressed with the bass response, for what is in the end a pretty small cabinet. They do get quite warm as this is propped old school electronics inside, but that’s part of there charm, paired up with my SMSL DAC they sound epic.
I like these monitors, I believe I have made the right decision buying these little monkeys. Would’ve liked to see a visible marker on volume knob. Also needs L shaped power cable instead of straight. Took me 43 minutes to think of something to write here. You’re extremely welcome.
bought these to attach to record deck Great, fuss free connection, good sound and volume, bluetooth easy to set up and again good sound. having power switch and volume on the front is also good.
These small and unassuming-looking speakers deliver amazing punchy sound quality and have a great selection of inputs. I use balanced TRS from my Behringer XR18 Air main outputs – the sound quality is superb and ticks every single box for my little home studio set up. I can’t recommend them enough.
I bought these as a replacement for some awful mackies speakers around the same price which had a soft buzzing whenever they were on.
These are excellent in comparison. They were easy to set up and sound great. No weird feedback at all. The quality is crisp and clear and being able to adjust the bass and treble a little is a nice bonus.
They’re pretty hefty on my small desk but look really nice and fit in with my minimalist pc set up really well.
Highly recommend these speakers!
These blew me away with the sound clarity..
I was instantly able to recognise where tracks needed to be ducked because the frequency interference is so visible (for want of a better word!) through these..
Mine are paired with a little Behringer audio interface only – and my goodness.. I heartily recommend them to anyone who is using a DAW for any kind of semi-professional use upwards.
These blew me away with the sound clarity..
I was instantly able to recognise where tracks needed to be ducked because the frequency interference is so visible (for want of a better word!) through these..
Mine are paired with a little Behringer audio interface only – and my goodness.. I heartily recommend them to anyone who is using a DAW for any kind of semi-professional use upwards.
Fantastic speakers.
For such a small unit (3.5) I was surprised at the depth of sound from these little gems.
I’d originally bought acoustic pads for underneath but they come with small adhesive pads which do the job well and stand sturdy which means no movement when pressing the power switch.
Great speakers for a desk setup.
So to start I would say this is a good speaker for the price and goes really well with the presonus monitors. I have after a lot of fiddling about got my set up so that the monitors sound like much bigger speaker while minising any bass traps in the room. It’s very loud.. almost too loud so thr volume on this woofer is normally in the 2% range. Better for bigger empty spaces but I’m still glad I got it.
So to start I would say this is a good speaker for the price and goes really well with the presonus monitors. I have after a lot of fiddling about got my set up so that the monitors sound like much bigger speaker while minising any bass traps in the room. It’s very loud.. almost too loud so thr volume on this woofer is normally in the 2% range. Better for bigger empty spaces but I’m still glad I got it.
Sound quality is arguably one of the best for this price range, I turned to youtube for a review of these as I was split between these and M Audio speakers and the review showed that these had more bass and a clearer sound.
When they arrived and I plugged them in I was very impressed with the design and size (they’re quite small) especially when I plugged them in and cranked them up a bit to find out they really do pack a punch and it’s all clear no distortion.
I’m currently usimg them for gaming and transformed my room/man cave into the inside of a car wheb I’m drifting or a post apocalyptic warzone when I play mad max or borderlands haha but I’m planning on getting back into music production soon and these were a perfect choice hence 5*
Sound quality is arguably one of the best for this price range, I turned to youtube for a review of these as I was split between these and M Audio speakers and the review showed that these had more bass and a clearer sound.
When they arrived and I plugged them in I was very impressed with the design and size (they’re quite small) especially when I plugged them in and cranked them up a bit to find out they really do pack a punch and it’s all clear no distortion.
I’m currently usimg them for gaming and transformed my room/man cave into the inside of a car wheb I’m drifting or a post apocalyptic warzone when I play mad max or borderlands haha but I’m planning on getting back into music production soon and these were a perfect choice hence 5*
it’s the best budget sound monitor you can buy. before I move to the UK I had a pair of MS40 Behringer which was an amazing sound monitor. This one is much smaller than my old MS40 but it has kinda the same sound quality and it’s lower than you need. don’t buy its bigger version if not necessary.
Out of the box, the speakers are pretty bass heavy and have a muffled low/mid sound. It left dialogue and footsteps feeling very muted but explosions and any music very dominant. The knobs on the back to adjust the treble and bass only do so much (not a lot).
However as I use them with a PC, applying an equaliser like Dolby Atoms, you can balance out the highs, mids and lows to get the best out of these speakers.
Once adjusted the speakers have the ability to produce clear highs and lows, albeit the lows can still be heard more.
Overall 4/5 for price, build quality and noise quality.
Out of the box, the speakers are pretty bass heavy and have a muffled low/mid sound. It left dialogue and footsteps feeling very muted but explosions and any music very dominant. The knobs on the back to adjust the treble and bass only do so much (not a lot).
However as I use them with a PC, applying an equaliser like Dolby Atoms, you can balance out the highs, mids and lows to get the best out of these speakers.
Once adjusted the speakers have the ability to produce clear highs and lows, albeit the lows can still be heard more.
Overall 4/5 for price, build quality and noise quality.
I saw a few reviews that mentioned a hum but I didn’t have that issue. Crystal clear sound via Bluetooth or patch leads to my helix floor. Exceptional for the price. Best Buy of 2021 and I do like my gadgets 🙂
As an EDM artist I like my tracks to have plenty of low end, and 3-7″ monitor speakers fail to provide that deep sub bass reproduction, so a dedicated sub will always be needed to monitor them low frequencies, headphones get a part of the way there, but you will still miss valuable frequencies as true sub bass is felt instead of heard.
I’m very impressed with the impact of such a small unit, it drives them body blows of sub bass straight to your gut, and really fills that gap in my frequencies, it’s speeded my workflow up tremendously as I now need not play my mixes in the car before uploading them, or when I do play then in the car they are much closer to being final.
It’s a very well isolated unit also, having the rubber legs really helps avoid transference to the surface it stands on, and the fully frontal facing driver and reflex port allows me to be more directional with the sound, not that it matters too much because this thin fills the entire room and leaks in to the rest of the house.
Sounds great, I would recommend for home mixing, can go loud, very detailed, very good budget profiler.
Would not recommend for listening to youtube videos etc, as you can hear every detail and if someone hasnt mixed down their audio, you will hear the reverb in the room they are in.