PreSonus Eris 3.5 Monitors Give Me Studio-Quality Sound at an Affordable Price

Studio monitors aren't for everyone. 

If you plan on only listening to music in your room, you're probably better off with a simple Bluetooth speaker, like the Bose SoundLink Flex or Sonos Roam. These speakers are typically compact, easy to set up and offer a variety of smart features, like a built-in voice assistant and dedicated phone app.

However, if you're more into music production, sound design or simply want a more authentic listening experience, you definitely want to look at studio monitors. And while they might sound expensive, they don't have to be. Your journey into clearer, more detailed sound can start with the $100 Eris 3.5-inch reference monitors from PreSonus.

The second-gen Eris 3.5 monitors offer the studio-quality sound you're looking for, without breaking the bank. Unlike speakers, monitors like the Eris 3.5 provide you with the most accurate representation of sound -- unaltered by the boosting or cutting of certain frequencies.

Besides writing for CNET, I perform production sound mixing and post-production sound design in the film industry, and high-quality studio monitors are necessary when I need to listen to every detail in the sound that I capture in the field and design later on my computer. They also help me hear all the flaws in the music I produce, so I can go in and make the needed adjustments.

The Eris 3.5-inch monitors offer all of that functionality, at an affordable price.

And the best thing is, monitors can double as speakers, as long as you don't stray too far, so they can also be used for listening to music, playing video games or watching a movie. They can really do it all.