Replacing studio monitors with in-ears

Studio in ear monitors are finally gaining the respect they deserve. It wasn’t long ago that records were recorded in big studios costing thousands of dollars per day. Today, DAWs have overtaken tape, and prices on really great quality gear have dropped. There has been a great migration to smaller home and project studios.

The migration started with artists and producers recording out of their own studios. Then personal studios gained traction with artists buying gear to record their own records and projects. While big labels bemoan the loss of album sales, great records are made in basements, granny flats, and spare rooms. Artists who might otherwise be excluded from industry participation have access to fans through the internet and streaming outlets.

Electronic music production methods have made it possible to create records with little to no actual “recording”. At least until we record vocals. Records can be mixed in a hotel, at the beach (maybe by the pool would be better, no one likes sand in their Mac) or in a basement studio and still top the charts. A great set of monitors is an essential tool (besides your iLok, sigh) for mixing and producing on the road or a smaller studio.

Recording, podcasting, editing from home

Recent world events have placed further importance on the personal studio. Not just for music. Personal studios are being used for podcasting, live streaming, video editing, and more. The remote workplace has forced us to do more recording in smaller places.

These personal studios are not always ideal sound production environments. We might be in a bedroom with 3 sets of parallel walls. It might be too small to have the mix position 1/3 of the way into the room. We might have our monitors right up against the wall. We might have noise from children, blenders, lawnmowers, you name it, bleeding into our “studio”.

Using in-ear monitors for mixing, producing, and editing solves a lot of problems. With the quality of today’s in-ear monitors, entire records can be mixed on in-ear monitors. Detecting conflicting harmonics, hearing phase issues, and detailed reverb placement is actually easier with a great in-ear monitor.

As an added bonus, most people listen to music on headphones or earbuds so you get an idea of what most people are hearing.

Of course, we think it’s always a good idea to test your mix on as many systems as you can. With a quality set of studio in-ear monitors, you can get 99% of the way to a great mix.

In Ear Monitors Developed for the Studio

Alclair has developed studio in-ear monitors designed to help mixers and producers make hit records anywhere. Each design maximizes clarity and balance. This gives producers and mixers an accurate picture of what is going on in their mix.

We’ve got hip-hop producers who have mixed and released entire songs on their Alclair Studio4 and Electro electrostatic studio monitors. Nashville engineers who get 95% of the mix done on their Alclair in-ear monitors, then jump into the studio check the mix for reference. Session players are able to track at home and know that what they record is exactly what they hear.

Our Studio4 and Electro both come with a premium cable and more ports than our standard stage monitors. Why does that matter?

A port is where sound comes out of the in-ear monitor to your ear canal. When multiple drivers share a tube and port, the audio encounters some turbulence and interference on the way to your ear canal. Granted, the distortion (not the guitar kind, but the THD kind) is very minimal and not necessarily audible, but it does have a sonic impact.  By using a single tube and port for drivers working in the same frequency range, the sound to mixes in your ear canal, not the tubes. This reduces distortion and allows a more clear and detailed sound.

Our premium cable is a pure, oxygen-free copper in a Litz geometry. The Litz geometry effectively eliminates the skin effect (watch our video above for more info). This also contributes to a more detailed sonic signature.

Alclair’s Studio In Ear Models

The flagship of Alclair’s studio monitor line is the Electro six driver hybrid electrostatic monitor. With four balanced armature drivers and a dual electrostatic tweeter, the Electro has incredible balance and hyper-detail. It brings out every subtlety and every nuance of a mix. And while it is accurate and detailed, it’s not clinical so you preserve the dynamics of your recordings. At $1499, it costs less than a nice pair of studio monitors. And they are much easier to set up in a bus, van, or airplane tray table.

The ST3 triple driver is musical and effortless. Some engineers use a set of headphones that is closer to how people consume modern music. The ST3 is clear and dynamic with a subtle low and upper-mid contour slightly similar to consumer earbuds. For many of us in the shop, it’s our favorite monitor. It’s bold, energetic, and extremely musical. The ST3 is $549 and, as one user put it, “ruins every other monitor in my drawer.” As a bonus, it is particularly well suited for use with a Premium Copper Cable upgrade.

The RSM is popular for front of house or monitor engineers but it also excels in studio environs. It is punchy in the low end, so kick and bass punch through a mix. It’s overall accuracy and clarity coupled with a wide soundstage make it ideal for hearing music without added color. At $699, the RSM is a very versatile monitor that can be used on stage or for studio performing as well as engineering and mixing.

The Studio4 quad driver features a hyper-balanced and accurate sound. It falls along the lines of more traditional “un-colored” monitoring. It has a wide soundstage and depth. The Studio4 is perfect or mixing reverb tails and placing instruments front to back as well as left to right. For those mixers who need super flat but with astounding clarity, this is the one. It lets you distinguish reverb types and tails, and gentle delay modulations. The Studio4 runs $999 and will give you “portable perfection” in monitoring.

All three models feature precision-tuned high-performance parts with multiple sound bores for exceptional clarity and reduced distortion. They are all paired with a premium custom copper cable that brings out the best in these studio masterpieces.