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Presonus Eris E3.5 Nearfield Monitor Review
In this Presonus Eris E3.5 Nearfield Studio Monitors review, we’ll go over how they sound and whether they’re the right pair of speakers for you.
Having used many speakers over the years, I figured it might be helpful to share my experience with you on how they might compare to similar bookshelf speakers.
So we’ll answer all of that and more in this helpful review!
Presonus Eris E3.5 Review – A Quick Summary
The Presonus Eris E3.5s are fantastic sounding nearfield speakers that are particularly great with music. Their gripping clarity and minimal distortion makes them great for the casual listener simply wanting something that sounds good without the hassle. Their sonic fidelity is also great for desktop setups. Plus bluetooth capabilites, and their smaller stature gives them additional versatility with placement.
The appearance of the Presonus Eris E3.5 can best be described as subtle yet refined.
Up top you’ll notice the 1 inch silk dome tweeter hidden behind a black metal guard.
Under that is the 3.5 inch woven composite woofer that’s a subtle blue in color that I think looks really cool.
Towards the bottom of the speaker you’ll notice a volume knob, auxiliary inputs for mobile playback, and a toggle power button.
There’s also a small Presonus insignia to the right that adds a splash of color and flair.
On the back you have acoustic tuning knobs that control bass and treble, and under that are 2 sets of inputs – 2 balanced TRS inputs and 2 unbalanced RCA inputs.
Interestingly, amplification is only in the left speaker meaning you have to connect the included cable to the right speaker for them to both work.
It’s the reason why one speaker has acoustic controls and the other doesn’t since it’s to control them both.
The cabinet of the speakers themselves are made of a medium density fibreboard with black vinyl laminate that actually looks premium in person.
The front is made of plastic though I did notice that they tended to pick up fingerprints so you’ll want to occasionally wipe them down.
There’s also no XLR input like the higher end Eris models so that’s something to keep in mind.
They’re also pretty small in stature at 6.4 x 5.6 x 8.3 inches making them great for smaller spaces.
Over I’d say they’re a good looking speaker that blends in; though there’s no speaker grille which would have been a nice inclusion admittedly.
They have a really likeable design though, and feel solid while still remaining light weight at 6.39 pounds.
Features
Quality 3.5 Inch Drivers
Made of Kevlar, these 3.5 inch woven composite drivers output a powerful bass response. The weave pattern on the drivers specifically gives them a more balanced sound that’s also cleaner overall.
1 Inch Silk Dome Tweeters
The Eris E3.5 monitors have 2 ultra low mass silk dome tweeters that allow it to put it out crystal clear sound without any harshness. They also have a wide dispersion pattern that allows the sound to emanate more freely around the room.
3 Different Types Of Audio Inputs
Through the 3 different types of audio inputs; 1/4 inch TRS inputs, a pair of RCA inputs, and a front panel 1/8 inch unbalanced line inputs for mobile devices. you’re able to connect to pretty much any line level sources. This gives you flexibility with how you use the speakers.
Even Frequency Response
An even response makes these speakers a great choice for near field listening and continues the prestigious audio that Presonus speakers are typically known for.
Easily Adjustable Sound
With high and low frequency controls, you can adjust the sound to your liking for your specific listening conditions.
How To Set Up The Presonus Eris E3.5 Speakers
Setting up the Eris E3 luckily is pretty simple.
First take the included speaker wire and connect the corresponding red and black wires from one speaker to the other.
Then connect the included power cable. From here you can either connect via bluetooth or connect an external device to pair with it.
Turn it on and adjust the sound to your liking.
Thoughts On The Sound Quality
Initial First Impressions On Them
To put it simply, I would say that the Presonus Eris E3.5 speakers sound really great.
If anything their sound signature could be described as neutral (or at least that’s how they sounded to my ears.
Sometimes I like to see what the frequency response of a speaker is like so as a fun little experiment I decided to measure the frequency response to see what it would look like with these speakers.
Interestingly enough, there was a slight dip in the midrange that I didn’t notice by ear.
Everything else was a pretty flat line.
I thought that was pretty interesting since it wasn’t something I noticed in every day listening.
For an audio professional or recording artist, that would be something to either test for yourself or just be aware if you’re meticulous about accuracy.
I haven’t seen similar sentiments echoed on forums or reddit or anything, so maybe that isn’t even the case and it was simply my room acoustics.
But again as far as the audio quality itself goes though, it was definitely pristine, and a lot louder than I initially thought they’d be.
Everything sounded crisp and clear, and content played through the speakers was really enjoyable.
As a general overall assessment, the speakers honestly sounded great. But let’s dive deeper..
Their Performance With Music
For casual nearfield/desktop listening with music, these speakers definitely shine.
Instruments are represented with precision, and the vocals come through really prominently.
Even with regards to the bass quality, each kick of a drum or drop of a beat came through with a satisfying thud.
The bass didn’t sound muddy or lacking and was actually really substantive I felt.
It wouldn’t replace a fully dedicated subwoofer obviously, but they perform really well all on their own.
For listening to music in a larger room, surprisingly I found the speakers to still hold their own in terms of clarity.
Now I did notice a slight drop off in the force of the bass at those higher volumes, however never once did they distort which is really worth commending.
But another interesting I found was they responded to EQ really well.
The acoustic tuning controls on the speaker itself worked with adjusting how things sounded too, but using EQ software for bass and treble really opened these speakers up even more.
So It really seemed like these speakers work particularly well with equalization which is nice.
Their Performance With Movies
Their performance with movies was similar to music. Everything sounded crystal clear and immersive.
However given that the speakers only go to about 80 Hz normally, I’d definitely recommend a subwoofer if watching movies is your primary reason for considering these speakers.
Luckily Presonus actually makes really good subwoofers and one in particular, the Eris sub 8, actually pairs with these speakers.
But besides the bass aspect, the midrange and treble sounded incredible, and worked really well with movies.
There was no harsh sibilance, no hard to hear vocals — just good clean sound that was hard not to appreciate.
Are Presonus Eris 3.5 Good For Mixing?
Now are the Presonus Eris 3.5 good for mixing?
Honestly if your intention is to specifically mix and record audio, I would probably opt for the larger variant in the lineup, the Eris E5 BT 5.25 monitors since the drivers are larger and the class D amplifier allows it to output more power.
I’d say the Eris 3.5 is still good for mixing, just keep in mind the smaller drivers may not be able to output as much volume.
The BX3 monitors are technically more powerful than the Eris 3.5s so with that in mind, they technically might get louder.
But sound quality wise, the Presonus are still pretty comparable, it’s just the former gets louder.
Who Are They For?
The Presonus Eris E3.5 are for the more casual listener that just wants something that sounds good without the hassle.
They work best as nearfield monitors meaning they’re better for desktop or close range listening, rather than as a main component in a large room home theater.
Recording artists or audio professionals would probably find the E5 BT-5.25 inch a more suitable option.
Pros/Likes
Suprising clarity
Solid bass
Adjustable bass & treble
Ample volume
Easy to setup
Not very large
Nice design
Cons/Dislikes
Can’t be wall mounted
Bass rolls off at 80 Hz
Picks up fingerprints
Final Thoughts
That about wraps it up for this Presonus Eris E3.5 review.
In short, they’re great nearfield speakers for content creators or even the causal listener & manage to surprise with gripping clarity and precision.
They’re particularly great with music and have a sonic accuracy that makes them fun to listen to.
Hey everyone it’s nice to meet you. I'm Jay, writer & founder of the site Easy Home Theater. I've been with this hobby of home entertainment for many years now. I decided to create this site to be a helpful resource, and share everything that I've learned from personal experience with you. I also happen to be a huge gamer, lover of all things tech related, and a major fitness buff (love weightlifting)
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