Why do most studio monitors look so blah? I mean I know they're supposed to be
utilitarian and they're supposed to sound flat but are they supposed to look
flat? Things are finally changing! The JBL 104s are not just about looks
but the sound surprised me and put a smile on my face as soon as I started
listening to them at home. These cost $150 for a pair.
So if you're looking for studio monitors that are in that price range you need to
be looking at these. But there are a few things that you should consider before
clicking the Buy button. first don't forget to subscribe to my channel to
keep up with my videos on music production tips, gear reviews, and
tutorials. a couple months ago I saw these online and I was like there's no
way that these could sound decent. then surprise surprise the JBL team sent me a
pair to try out. I've heard great things about JBL from other producers but I've
never really tried them myself. I've owned several studio monitors over the
years even the Yamaha NS10's that you see in all of the pro studios. I
really need to get those out of storage. But for the past few weeks I've just
used the JBL 104's. They have a 4.5 low frequency driver and 0.75 high frequency
driver. they're powered by a 60 watt internal amp outputting 30 watts to each
of the speakers. like other powered monitors you just run your quarter inch
balanced or RCA cables from your audio interface or your computer straight into
the back of one of the speakers. then you run a speaker wire to the other one. in
the front you've got a volume control and a headphone jack. when you plug in
the headphones the speakers actually mute automatically which is a pretty
nice feature. okay let's talk about the design. these look fantastic!
honestly they look even better in person I know design is subjective and
maybe you won't love the design but I think it's refreshing to see a company
making efforts with monitors. and to me they got it right. especially considering
the look of competitors at this price point. these are heavier than they
look - about 10.5 pounds. but they're kind of small. JBL advertises
these as portable but if you think you can throw these in a backpack with your
keyboard and computer think again. I kind of find them a little too heavy and
bulky for that. still they're much easier to carry around than other speakers at
this price range. the JBL 104's are acoustically designed to sit on your
desk. That's something to consider for your set up. but I kind of think that's where
most people are gonna put them anyway. they've got a nice rubber base, hard
plastic body with a metal grill. everything feels tight and well built.
okay well how do they sound? I was surprised
at the sound coming out of these as soon as I plugged them in. it literally put a
smile on my face. the details in my mixes came shooting out at me with really good
highs and mids. now I typically mix with a subwoofer so immediately I was like
where's the bass? I did miss the low end when using the 104 's alone but when I
added my sub to them, Wow things sprang to life! if you mix music where sub
frequencies are super important I'd recommend pairing these with a sub.
JBL makes the LSR310s which is $350. that's kind of typical for an
entry-level sub. now I'm not a sound engineer so I won't pretend to rattle
off the specs like I understand it all. But that really isn't the point, is it? if
you're able to mix adequately at home with these, what else matters?
check out the mix I made with the song in this video, mixed on the 104's alone. I
didn't use any other speakers or my other monitors for reference. if you're
interested in buying these I'll put a link in the description of the video. if
you've got a question about them leave it in the comments below.
keep making the music you love. I'll see you guys later