In a home studio, adding a monitoring subwoofer (also called a “sub” or “monitoring bass box”) to your monitoring speakers can be a good idea to support the low end of the frequency spectrum and simply have “more bass” than what your speakers can originally generate.
Especially if you make electronic music or rap, musical styles for which hearing low frequencies well is crucial during the production and mixing stages.
Through this article, which follows the line of my many other home studio equipment tips, I offer you a selection of a few subwoofer models that make sense to me in a home studio context or why not in medium-sized studios.
A small note: the cheapest model recommended here costs around €300.
Yes, it’s already a small budget, but I can only encourage you to avoid ultra-entry-level models, which may be sufficient for listening to music but cannot be seriously used for music production or mixing.
In short, this article is divided into two parts: first, I will give you some installation tips, and then you will find my selection of monitoring subwoofers — if you want to get straight to the point, feel free to click here to go directly to my equipment recommendations.
How to connect a monitoring subwoofer?
Before buying a bass box for your home studio, it is important to understand how you will connect it to your speakers.
In other words, understand what you will plug in, where, and with what cable.
Otherwise, you risk making mistakes during your purchase! 🙂
Connecting a monitoring subwoofer is, however, simpler than one might initially think: instead of connecting your speakers to your audio interface, you should connect them directly to the bass box using a balanced cable (with XLR or 6.35mm jack connectors, it doesn’t matter).
Then, it is the subwoofer itself that you will connect to your audio interface, again via two balanced cables that will transmit stereo audio information (one cable for the left channel, one cable for the right channel).
The sub will then take care of sending the signal to each speaker and filtering out the mid and high frequencies that it cannot reproduce.
Some remarks, however:
- Make sure that your subwoofer has balanced inputs. On some entry-level models, you only have unbalanced inputs with RCA connectors — which is not ideal as it may provide a sound with more interference.
If you’re interested in the subject, check out this article on home studio cables. - Some subwoofers allow you to adjust a crossover frequency, that is, to select the cutoff frequency above which the sub will not operate.
80 Hz can be a good starting point, but this parameter should be adjusted based on the acoustics of your room and the ability of your satellite speakers to reproduce low frequencies. - Don’t forget that the placement of the subwoofer and the acoustic treatment of your room are important elements to ensure that the frequency response of the bass is as balanced as possible.
I therefore recommend that you take acoustic measurements of your room. - You can buy a bass box from a different brand than your speakers, it poses absolutely no problem.
My selection of the best monitoring subwoofers for the (home) studio
While there are many different models available, I have grouped my preferences below, avoiding the ultra-entry-level models that perform poorly and the really high-end equipment (> 1000€) that requires substantial budgets.
1. KRK S8G4
Brand: KRK
Driver: 8 inches
Frequency range: 34.5 – 133 Hz
Power: 109 Watts RMS
KRK is not necessarily my favorite brand, and I never recommend their monitoring speakers (although they have improved in the latest versions…).
That said, I find their 8-inch active subwoofer to be a decent choice for those on a small budget, making it typically suitable for home studio use.
Admittedly, the lower frequency of 34.5 Hz is a bit high, and the speaker protection grille is optional, but it still features a crossover with 4 options (70, 80, 90, and 100 Hz) and a complete set of asymmetric (RCA) and symmetric (XLR and Jack) connections that will allow integration of the subwoofer in any context.
We also appreciate the presence of a ground lift to remove grounding in case of interference issues, as well as a switch to invert the audio signal phase.
A good choice at the entry level.
► See the price of the KRK S8G4 at: Thomann
2. JBL LSR 310S
Brand: JBL
Driver: 10 inches
Frequency range: goes down to 27 Hz (@ -10 dB)
Power: 200 Watts RMS
While the brand does not communicate very clearly about the frequency range associated with this monitoring subwoofer, it is indeed a nice subwoofer for home studio use — very consistent in terms of quality with the famous JBL LSR speakers, which themselves have an excellent quality/price ratio.
At the back of the subwoofer, there are symmetric connections, with of course a volume control and somewhat limited crossover options, which does not necessarily allow for precise adjustments.
A phase inversion switch is, however, integrated.
Overall, the JBL LSR 310S offers a pleasant and fully usable bass reproduction, although you may hear some vibrations at very high volume.
► See the price of the JBL LSR 310S at: Thomann Woodbrass Amazon
3. Yamaha HS8S
Brand: Yamaha
Driver: 8 inches
Frequency range: 22 – 150 Hz
Power: 150 Watts RMS
You have probably heard of the HS series speakers (HS5, HS7, HS8) from Yamaha, which are very commonly found in home studios and are actually part of my recommendations for monitoring speakers.
Well, unsurprisingly, the monitoring subwoofer from the same series is just as high quality.
Indeed, with the Yamaha HS8S, you find yourself with a subwoofer that offers a very good quality/price ratio, reproducing low frequencies very honestly with a good level of detail — even though the positioning in the room and acoustic treatment will remain important elements to enjoy the sound.
The power of 150 Watts is also more than sufficient in most home studio / small studio situations.
At the back of the subwoofer, you find symmetrical connections, a switch to reverse the phase, and a volume level adjustment.
Positive point: you can also independently adjust the high-pass filter and the low-pass filter, for a truly perfect crossover optimization in your room with your acoustics.
A very good choice, I think, for a home studio.
► See the price of the Yamaha HS8S on: Thomann Woodbrass Amazon
4. Adam Audio Sub 8
Brand: Adam Audio
Driver: 8 inches
Frequency range: 28 – 150 Hz
Power: 240 Watts RMS
Adam Audio is a brand that I really appreciate in a way, and it makes a lot of sense in a home studio when you want to invest a bit in your listening system.
(I admit, I am a bit biased because my speakers are Adam A7X, but still… 🙂 )
In fact, their Sub 8 subwoofer (with an 8-inch speaker) is really efficient, although if your budget allows, you might want to take a look at the Sub 10 for example.
The Sub 8 goes deep into the bass and effectively complements the frequency spectrum already delivered by your speakers.
On the front, you find two knobs: one controls the volume, and the other the crossover (between 50 and 150 Hz), providing good flexibility to adapt the subwoofer to the acoustics of your room.
At the back of the sub, you find symmetrical and asymmetrical connections, as well as several adjustments allowing you to filter the sound from your satellite speakers.
For me, a very good investment for your home studio, with an interesting quality/price ratio.
► See the price of the Adam Audio Sub 8 on: Thomann Woodbrass Amazon
5. Focal Sub One
Brand: Focal
Driver: 2×8 inches
Frequency range: 32 – 120 Hz
Power: 200 Watts RMS
With the Sub One, we stay under the 1000€ mark even though we are slightly increasing in price.
This subwoofer, a proposal from the French brand Focal, stands out with two 8-inch speakers, each paired with a 100 Watts amplifier.
Unsurprisingly, we are dealing with something that sounds good, with precise, clear, and distortion-free bass, but we will also appreciate the various settings:
- a potentiometer allowing for fine control of the phase rotation of the signal (from 0° to 180°);
- a variable low-pass filter and a high-pass filter with two options (60 and 90 Hz) to filter the signal from the satellite speakers;
- an automatic standby option (which can be disabled if needed).
► See the price of the Focal Sub One on: Thomann Woodbrass
6. Dynaudio 9S
Brand: Dynaudio
Driver: 9.5 inches
Frequency range: 22 – 175 Hz
Power: 300 Watts RMS
9 and a half inches.
With that, you really dive deep into the lows (22 Hz claimed by the brand!).
Moreover, the amplification behind this Dynaudio 9S is really powerful (300 Watts).
So, it is more suitable for a fairly large room; in other words, I think it will likely be a bit oversized in a small home studio.
That said, it is a very good investment for precise and dense bass, with a solid build quality.
The available connections are balanced and XLR only (which isn’t really a problem but is worth noting).
At the back, a crossover filter of 50-150 Hz, a high-pass filter switch for the satellites, and a phase inversion switch allow for fine management of the subwoofer’s response in the room.
There is also a disableable automatic standby option to save energy if you haven’t turned off the beast.
In short, a very good subwoofer under the 1000 euros mark.
► See the price of the Dynaudio 9S on: Thomann Woodbrass Amazon
In conclusion
There you go, you now know my recommendations for monitoring subwoofers for your studio or home studio.
However, if you have any questions, feel free to ask them in the comments below.
► And if you also want to learn about monitoring speakers, don’t forget to check my advice in this detailed guide.