Studio Monitor Placement: Desk Or Stands?

Studio monitor placement is crucial to creating an accurate mixing environment. While it is possible to place studio monitors on a desk, it is not always ideal. Placing monitors directly on a desk can limit their ability to produce clear and balanced audio as the sound waves bounce off the hard, reflective surface before reaching your ears. Additionally, monitors transmit their vibrations to the surface they are resting on, which can lead to unwanted noises and rattling. It is recommended to use monitor stands to raise the speakers closer to ear level and prevent early reflections from interfering with the listening environment. However, if working in a tight space or on a budget, isolation pads can be used to mitigate vibrations and raise the monitors to the correct height.

Speaker placement and geometry

The placement and geometry of your studio monitors are crucial to achieving an accurate frequency response and a solid stereo image. Here are some key considerations for optimising their arrangement:

Form an Equilateral Triangle

Ideally, your listening position and the two monitors should form an equilateral triangle. This means that the distance between the left and right speakers and the distance from each speaker to the back of your head should be equal. This setup helps create a natural stereo "sweet spot", allowing you to move around slightly while maintaining optimal sound.

Speaker Height and Angle

The tweeters of your studio monitors should ideally be at the same height as your ears when seated, typically about 47-55 inches (120-140 cm) from the floor. If you need to clear the top of your computer monitor, the speakers can be placed slightly higher and tilted down towards you, but be cautious to avoid toppling.

The monitors should be angled towards your listening position, at an angle of around 30 degrees, to align with your ears. This ensures that the sound reaches your ears directly and minimises high frequencies bouncing off the side walls.

Distance from Walls

Solid surfaces in your room can cause sound reflections, phase cancellations, and other acoustic issues. Therefore, it is essential to maintain a minimum distance between your monitors and the walls. For nearfield monitors, a general guideline is to keep them at least 20-30 cm (8-12 inches) away from walls, with a maximum distance of 60-90 cm.

Additionally, ensure that the distances between the monitors and the side and back walls are different to avoid creating corners in your listening position. For rear-ported monitors, maintain a distance from the wall that is at least equal to the diameter of the port (typically 5-10 cm) to mitigate bass issues.

Speaker Isolation

To avoid unwanted reflections and vibrations, it is recommended to separate the monitors from the desk or console surface. This can be achieved using monitor stands, decouplers, or isolation pads. Monitor stands also provide flexibility in adjusting the distance and orientation of the speakers.

Subwoofer Placement

If you are using a subwoofer, it should be placed after optimising the positioning of the main monitors. Unlike the main monitors, the subwoofer does not need to be within the equilateral triangle as lower frequencies are non-directional. Place the subwoofer along the front wall, ensuring it is not too close to avoid reflective surfaces.

You can fine-tune the subwoofer's position by playing audio with low frequencies and moving the subwoofer around the room to find the spot that delivers the desired bass response.

Acoustic Treatment

While not directly related to speaker placement, acoustic treatment is crucial to optimising the sound of your studio monitors. Treatments such as bass traps, absorption panels, and diffusers can help minimise sound reflections, control bass build-up in corners, and improve the overall accuracy of your listening environment.

Symmetry is key

Form an Equilateral Triangle

Your listening position should form an equilateral triangle with your monitors. This means that the distance between the left and right speakers and the distance from each speaker to the back of your head should be equal. This setup creates a natural stereo "sweet spot", allowing you to move around a bit while maintaining consistent sound.

Centre Your Speakers

Place your speakers at the centre of a wall, preferably one of the longer walls if your room is rectangular. This centred position ensures symmetry and provides a more balanced listening experience.

Avoid Corners

Try to avoid placing your speakers in corners or too close to walls. Setting up your speakers away from walls and corners will help prevent bass build-ups and phase cancellation issues caused by sound waves reflecting off surfaces. Aim for a distance of at least 8 to 12 inches between the speakers and walls.

Speaker Height

Adjust the height of your speakers so that the tweeters are at the same height as your ears when you are seated. This ensures that the high frequencies, which are more directional, are accurately directed towards your ears.

Speaker Orientation

Ensure that your speakers are oriented correctly. They should form a mirror image of each other, with the tweeters on the outside. Some speakers can be placed horizontally or vertically, so refer to the manufacturer's instructions. Feel free to experiment with different orientations to find the best sound for your space.

Speaker Distance from Walls

The distance between the speakers and the side walls should be equal. Additionally, the distance from each speaker to the back wall should be different from the distance to the side walls. This prevents the creation of a corner with your mix position, reducing bass build-ups.

Use Monitor Stands

Consider using monitor stands to raise your speakers to ear level and provide more flexibility in positioning. If you must place your speakers on your desk, use isolation pads to decouple them from the desk and mitigate vibrations and sympathetic resonance.

Positioning for ear level

The ideal height for studio monitors is for the tweeters to be at head height or ear level. This ensures that your ears are directly in front of the speakers, giving you the most consistent and best sound. If your speakers are too low, you can use speaker stands to elevate them. For example, the IsoAcoustics ISO-155 isolation stand can be used to raise your monitors.

The high-frequency driver should be at the same height as your ears. High-frequency content is much more directional than low-frequency content, so you can hear more accurately when high frequencies are directed at your ear. Once you have created the sweet spot, sit down and make sure that your ears are level with the centre of the tweeter.

In some cases, especially with large speakers, placing the speakers vertically may result in the tweeter being aimed too far above your ears. One way to solve this is to simply invert both monitor speakers so that the tweeters are on the bottom. It may look unusual, but it works.

Monitor stands are worth the investment. Placing your speakers directly on your desk can limit their ability to produce clear, balanced audio because the sound waves are bouncing off a hard, reflective surface (your desktop) before they reach your ears. Studio monitors also transmit their vibrations to any surface they are resting on, including your desk. This can lead to loose screws rattling or other less obvious noises that can muddy up your mix. Furthermore, your desk will most likely have a resonant frequency or two, so as you turn up your monitors, the desk itself will boost particular frequencies by sympathetically resonating with the vibrations of your monitors.

Desktop placement also puts most speakers below ear level, which is not ideal. Monitor stands can raise the speakers closer to ear level and help prevent early reflections from interfering with your listening environment.

Avoiding reflections

Reflections from a studio desk can impact the accuracy of the sound produced by studio monitors. To avoid this issue, there are several measures that can be taken:

Firstly, it is recommended to position the studio monitors in a way that minimises reflections. This can be achieved by ensuring that the monitors are not placed too close to the walls, especially in the corners of the room. The ideal setup is to form an equilateral triangle, where the distance between the left and right speakers and the distance from each speaker to the listener's head is equal. Additionally, the monitors should be placed slightly behind the listener's head, pointing directly towards their ears, to minimise high-frequency reflections off the sidewalls.

Another strategy to reduce reflections is to angle the desk surface. By tilting the work surface, the reflections from the desk can be directed away from the listener's ears. This can be achieved by using an angled desk or by adjusting the height of the desk legs to create an incline.

Furthermore, the use of absorptive materials on the desk can help eliminate reflections. This can be in the form of absorbers, foam, or blankets placed on the desk to reduce the reflection points. Materials such as Basotect are recommended as they are lightweight, flame-retardant, and effective in reducing reflections.

In addition to these measures, it is also important to consider the height of the studio monitors. Ideally, the tweeters of the monitors should be at ear level when seated, typically about 47-55 inches (120-140 cm) from the floor. If the monitors need to be placed higher, they can be tilted downwards, but care must be taken to avoid toppling.

Lastly, for lightboard setups, a Circular Polarizing Lens (CPL) filter can be used to eliminate monitor reflections. CPL filters work by taking advantage of the polarised light emitted by LCD displays, preventing the reflection from reaching the camera. However, it is important to note that some LCD monitors use diffuser lenses that may prevent the CPL filter from working effectively.

By implementing these strategies, reflections from a studio desk can be significantly reduced, resulting in a more accurate listening experience when using studio monitors.

Adjusting for sound

Now that you have your studio monitors set up on your desk, it's time to fine-tune their placement and settings to optimise sound quality. Here are some tips to help you adjust for the best sound:

• Symmetry is key: Place your monitors symmetrically, forming an equilateral triangle with your head. This ensures a balanced stereo image, with consistent sound across the left and right speakers.
• Position along the short wall: Place your monitors along the shorter wall of the room to minimise early sound reflections from nearby walls. This helps to achieve more accurate sound in smaller spaces.
• Get the height right: Adjust the height of your monitors so that the tweeters are at your ear level when you are seated. This ensures that the high frequencies are directed at your ears for the most accurate sound.
• Avoid hard surface reflections: Reflections from nearby hard surfaces like walls or desktops can interfere with the sound. Use a mirror to identify these reflective surfaces, and then apply absorption treatment to minimise reflections.
• Fine-tune the angles: Angle or "toe-in" your monitors so that they form an equilateral triangle with your head. This creates a "sweet spot" for optimal sound, allowing you to move around a bit without losing sound quality.
• Adjust monitor settings: Play music that you are familiar with and adjust the monitor settings until it sounds right. If there is too much bass, move the monitors away from boundaries (like walls and corners), and adjust the low-frequency settings if available.
• Use monitor stands or isolation pads: Placing your monitors on stands or isolation pads can improve sound quality by reducing vibrations and early reflections from your desk. Stands also allow you to raise the monitors to ear level and fine-tune their angles.
• Optimise subwoofer placement: If you have a subwoofer, find the best location by temporarily placing it in the mix position and moving it around the room until you find the smoothest bass response. Avoid placing it too close to reflective surfaces, as this can exaggerate bass energy.
• Calibrate your system: Once you have positioned and adjusted your monitors, the final step is to calibrate them according to the manufacturer's instructions.

Frequently asked questions