Studio monitors are extremely important in order to mix your audio properly. The most important concept to remember with studio monitors is that placement matters. The angle and height can drastically change how your mix is perceived. Ideally, studio monitors should be placed directly at ear level without any objects blocking it. This is where their trusty counterparts, studio monitor stands, come in.
Obviously, you don’t want to get studio monitor stands that are cheap and will fall apart six months after you get them. Maybe you want something that is both decent quality as well as affordable, or maybe you want the most high-quality studio monitor stands that the market has to offer. To make it easier for you, we have put together a list of the top 10 best studio monitor stands for your home recording studio.
Ultimate Support – JS-MS70
- Height-adjustable stand for studio monitors
- Locking pin ensures stable and accurate height positions
- Low profile base can be easily positioned into tight spaces
The JamStands MS70 model by Ultimate Support is quite possibly some of the best studio monitors stand out there. These things work best with smaller studio monitors but are sturdy enough to hold bigger ones. Their height is adjustable and locks into four different places ranging from 32.5” to 44.25”, so they’re not the type of stand you’re going to want to put on your desk; these are designed to be set on the floor. The base of the stand has floor spikes for carpet use and rubber feet for hard floors to ensure no slipping on any surface.
The biggest advantage and disadvantage of these is their base. It’s pretty big, which gives it a lot of durability and stability, which is great because it ensures that the stand won’t fall over if it’s bumped, but the size and triangle shape of the base also makes it a bit harder to find a spot to put it in if you have a lot of floor space taken up. These would likely be more ideal for someone who has a larger studio with plenty of space between the wall behind their computer and the back of their desk just to ensure that nothing gets in the way of these bases.
You can get a pair of the JS-MS70s for a very reasonable price on Amazon.
Gator Frameworks – GFW-SPK-SM50
- Studio Monitor Stands
- Rubberized Pedestal Surface to Protect Your Speakers
- Wide Base Design For Stability
Another great option is the GFW-SPK-SM50 Studio Monitor Stands by Gator Frameworks. These are super durable and are made from steel so they’re definitely not falling over even with bigger monitors on them. These stands are adjustable from 31” to 53” so they’re ideal if you’re taller, have a higher desk, or multiple levels of monitors. Like the JS-MS70s, they have floor spikes and rubber feet for whichever flooring you have in your studio.
A really nice feature of these is that they have rubber on the actual platform of the stand where the monitors go, so your monitors won’t slip off or get scratched by the steel. The only real disadvantage of these is that they’re probably not suited for heavier monitors. Bigger, lightweight monitors should be fine, but if they’re big and also heavy, that might cause some problems due to the height making it a bit easy for them to be bumped and thrown off balance with something heavier on them. They’re pretty tall, and with a heavier monitor sitting on them if you have them at one of the higher positions, they’ll definitely be prone to tipping very easily, especially because the monitor stands themselves are extremely lightweight.
I was surprise to see how much the price was for these stands on Amazon.
On-Stage Stands – Desktop Monitor Stands
- Adjustable. Height adjusts from 9″ to 12.5″ and the platform angle adjusts 15...
- Dependable. Height settings are adjusted and set using a tightening knob and are...
- Stable. Flat 10” x 10” bases provide a sturdy foundation to ensure stability,...
For those of you that don’t have space for super tall stands, desktop monitor stands are ideal. The Desktop Monitor Stands by On-Stage Stands are the perfect height, adjustable from 9” to 12” tall. The bottom of the base has rubber feet to dampen any vibration you might get from the audio. They’re made from steel, so again, they’re very durable. They’re a bit heavy for desktop stands, though, at 16.3 lbs each, but again, these are very good quality stands.
The best feature about these stands is that the angle of them is adjustable, not just height. They have a little lip in the front of them that prevents the monitor from slipping off the front if you decide to tilt them down. I don’t really see too many major disadvantages with these stands, but if you’re someone who cares about your monitors getting scratched up, these stands don’t have any rubber protection to keep the monitors from getting scratched. The lack of rubber might also create some unnecessary resonance and a boost in the mid-range frequencies.
These desktop stands are pretty affordable and can also be found on Amazon.
Ultimate Support – MS-90
- Sonic Isolation and Decoupling
- Three Channels for Cable and Weight Management
- Ultimate Support Design
The MS-90s are some of the most high-end studio monitor stands on the market. If you’re looking for something made for professional monitoring, these are your best option. They’re made from aluminum so they’re really rugged, and additionally, they have a channel in them where you can fill them with sand to increase the weight and stability of the stands if you’re using heavy monitors. They have four rubber pieces that your monitors rest on to prevent vibration and slipping. As for height, these stands come in a 36” option and a 42” option. Unlike the previous standing monitor stands, these ones have a three-leg base, which I think makes placement a lot easier and makes the base less cumbersome.
A really awesome and advantageous feature of these monitor stands is that they have a channel in them to put your cables through to allow for a really sleek aesthetic, rather than having the cables dangling off the back of the monitor stand and getting in the way of other gear. A disadvantage to these stands is that they’re not height adjustable.
These ones are pretty expensive, but for such high quality, they’re worth it. You can get them on Amazon.
They are slightly more expensive than the other stands on this list but have excellent built quality and a good all rounded reviews.
Zaor – Monitor Stand
The Zaor Monitor Stands are a bit different than typical monitor stands. They’re much blockier, but this is for a good reason. These things are made from wood. They’re definitely not going to fall over, and they’re able to support quite heavy monitors. These Zaor Monitor Stands have an isolation pad on them that not only prevents your monitors from getting scratched but also helps to increase monitoring accuracy and stereo imaging. These monitors are also adjustable from 31.5” to 45.3”.
The biggest advantage of these monitors is that they’re made from wood. Metal monitor stands can add frequencies in the mid-range to your audio because of the resonance through the metal. With wood, this doesn’t happen, so you’ll get the most accurate response out of your monitors with these stands. Additionally, if you care about the appearance of your studio and your monitor stands, these will work well if you have other wooden accents in your studio.
The biggest disadvantage is the price, however. For just one of these monitor stands, it will cost you $400. If you’re a true audiophile and want the most accurate sound, it’s definitely worth it.
You can find out more about these monitor stands from reading the review on the soundonsound website.
Ultimate Support – MS-80
- High-quality desktop monitor stands (pair)
- Easily Adjust the Angle and Axis of Your Monitors
- Ultimate Support Design
If you’re looking for a very compact, portable desktop monitor stand, the MS-80 by Ultimate Support is an amazing option. These are most ideal for touring musicians, traveling DJs, sound engineers… pretty much anyone who needs to be on the go or have access to monitor stands with great resonance control as well as portability. The MS-80s have an adjustable-angle base and non-slip acoustic foam to help with isolation and vibrations to eliminate rumble from the low end of your audio. They only weigh 3.3 lbs each so they won’t add much weight to your gear bag.
The biggest pro about these things is that they’re so portable and don’t take up much space. Really the only bad thing about these (which really isn’t even that bad), is that they have a weight limit of 20 lbs, so if you’ve got really heavy monitors these won’t work for you.
For being so small, these stands are a bit expensive. You can get a pair of these desk monitor stands for a fairly good price on Amazon.
IsoAcoustics – ISO-Puck
- Weight capacity: 20 lbs (9 KG) per unit. It is recommended to use 3 or 4 units under...
- PATENTED ISOACOUSTICS ISOLATION: Tested at the National Research Council of Canada...
- EXCITING THE SUPPORTING SURFACE: The isolators manage the energy of the speaker to...
Along with traditional studio monitor stands, I wanted to put something a little different on this list. IsoAcoustics offers sound isolating pucks called ISO-Pucks. They’re essentially little hockey puck type pieces of rubber that you can put under studio monitors, amplifiers, CD players, and similar items, to help achieve better isolation of sound and reduce vibration while clearing up low-end rumble. If you don’t want to use a traditional monitor stand, these are your best bet.
The clear biggest advantage of the ISO-Pucks is that they’re extremely portable. They have a weight limit of 20 lbs per puck but are small enough to fit in even the smallest gig bags. I really don’t see any disadvantages with these, but if you’re someone who isn’t very organized and has to travel with these pucks, they’re small enough that you could easily lose them. I highly recommend getting multiple packs of them for that reason.
You can buy a four pack of these on Amazon.
VideoSecu – Speaker Stands
- Height adjustable from 26.5 inch to 47 inch (673mm - 1193mm)
- Side clamping top plate can adjust width from 5.5 to 11 inches (140mm-279mm). For...
- The top plate can pan 180 degrees and tilt +/-10 degrees for level adjustment
These monitor stands by VideoSecu are the best option if you’re looking to save a ton of money but also get a really great pair of stands. The VideoSecu stands are super adjustable; they pan 180 degrees with 10 different levels, have height adjustability from 26.5” to 47”, and you can adjust the width of them from 5.5” to 11” to help fit bigger monitors. They also have rubber feet that you can screw in for stability. These stands support up to 30 lbs and are made of steel.
The VideoSecu Speaker Stands have one really cool feature: lips on the left and right side. This prevents your monitors from falling off the stands if they get bumped, unlike other monitor stands that don’t have this feature. I can’t find any cons with all these awesome features.
The price of these monitor stands is outstandingly cheap on Amazon.
IsoAcoustics – ISO-200 Subwoofer Acoustic Isolation Stand
- 7.8” (200mm) Wide x 10” (254mm) Depth 3.5” (90mm) Height. 75lbs weight...
- PATENTED ISOACOUSTICS ISOLATION: Tested at the National Research Council of Canada...
- EXCITING THE SUPPORTING SURFACE: The isolators manage the energy of the speaker to...
One thing I haven’t addressed here is subwoofer stands. Subwoofers are just as important as regular monitors, and whether you’re a beginner at recording and mixing music, or a seasoned pro, you’ll have a need for subwoofer stands as well. The ISO-200 is an aluminum desktop monitor stand made with subwoofers in mind. It directly gets rid of rumble and vibration, which allows for a cleaner bass signal. The rubber feet on it are huge, which stabilizes the subwoofer while neutralizing any vibration.
A big advantage to this subwoofer stand is that it uses IsoAcoustics’ special decoupling technology. The stand is called a “floating stand,” which means that only the legs and frame touch the subwoofer. This helps to remove any acoustic distortion and resonance that other stands might cause because they have more material coming in contact with surfaces like your desktop or desk shelf. The less material coming in contact with the monitor, the less resonance, rumble, and vibration there will be. The only bad thing about this stand is that it’s not adjustable, but subwoofers don’t usually need to be adjusted at a special angle if you have them on your mixing desk.
You can get one stand for a mid range price on Amazon.
Argosy – Spire 420Xi
This Spire 420Xi by Argosy uses technology from IsoAcoustics that decouples the monitor from the enclosure. This allows the monitor and the stand to float and work separately from each other. If there’s less surface area between the monitor and the stand, it reduces vibration and energy that’s transferred through the stand and to the floor. Because of the minimal loss of energy, you get the full effect from your monitors and very little dampening. The decoupling also helps to keep the speaker cone on-axis with any movement from the vibrations, which keeps the stereo image of your audio really accurate.
The Spire is made out of MDF (medium density fiberboard), has a height of 42”, and the base of it is more ideal for bigger monitors, although smaller ones should be fine as well.
The clear advantage here is the technology used in the design of this stand. The only disadvantages are that these aren’t adjustable and they’re pretty expensive, but there’s another (cheaper) model that comes at 36” if you want something shorter and a tad easier on your wallet.
These stands are the most expensive on this list and can be found on Amazon.
