Headphones, monitors and the room: where to invest first in a home studio
The most expensive gear in the world won't save a room that lies about the bass.
Every producer starts with the same question: buy headphones or reference monitors? The answer depends less on the gear and more on the place where you work.
The room plays too
Parallel walls and empty corners reflect sound and build up bass. In an untreated room, you hear frequencies that aren't in the music and miss others that are. Good monitors in a bad room keep misleading you.
A sensible order
- Closed-back or open-back reference headphones with a flat response. They ignore the room.
- A simple audio interface, for clean sound and low latency.
- Basic treatment: absorbing panels at the first reflection points and something in the corners.
- Only then, studio monitors sized for the room.
