ESI Aktiv 05 review

1 / 3

The ESI Aktiv 05 studio reference monitors are a little larger than a typical pair of bookcase speakers and quite a bit heavier at 4.5kg each. They’re also extremely well built, which is appropriate to the typical length of service and indelicate treatment your average studio speaker can expect. It’s worth noting, though, that there’s no grille at the front to protect the speakers’ delicate cones, which can make them prone to damage if you store them at floor level.

Unlike most hi-fi speakers, studio monitors of this sort aren’t designed to produce a room-filling sound with a broad sweet spot. What they’re really built for is accurate near-field listening when producing music. ESI has aimed to create a flat frequency response, particularly in the low- and mid-range. This means that the speakers are designed to output the sounds coming through them as accurately as possible without adding audio characteristics of their own.

At the back of the monitors, below a chunky bass port, is one level control. Those who’ve used large monitors will notice the difference between this and the banks of room size adjustment switches that you’ll find on larger speakers to help optimise their sound for different listening environments. This is because these 5in monitors are designed for use in a relatively small space with fixed positioning. There’s a single input, too, which can take either a balanced XLR input or an unbalanced 1.4in jack input.

Although EST provides configuration guidance on using the Aktiv 05 speakers as part of 2.1, 5.1 and 7.1 monitoring systems, these are rare and most users will, like us, set up the speakers in a stereo configuration, which requires them to be equidistant both from each other and from the listener.

We were pleased by the richness of the bass, which accurately reproduced the slap of drum skins and the vibrations of a bowed cello, while the ultra-heavy basslines of dubstep tracks grunted along with all the power we desired. When it came to fast cymbal hits, distorted tremolo guitar picking and fast violin work, we found the speakers’ performance at high treble frequencies to be not quite as precise as our admittedly more expensive reference speakers. However, we were very pleased with the Aktiv 05s’ performance in the mid-range, particularly when it comes to vocal reproduction. We were easily able to pick out and follow individual voices in choral pieces, while brass and piano sections were also extremely detailed. When mixing, you’ll want to bear in mind that the mid-range sounds relatively more powerful than higher frequencies.

Although we were able to pick out the monitors’ weaknesses fairly easily, they’re by no means a bad choice for mixing and they’re a brilliant pair of desktop speakers for music fans, whether you’re into production or just want a clear improvement on standard PC or hi-fi speakers, which typically colour the sound to a much greater extent than these pure and simple monitors. At £179 for the pair, the Aktiv 05 monitors are a good deal. They have excellent sound quality, but if you’re making your first step into the world of studio monitors then the M-Audio Studiophile AV-40 speakers are quite a bit cheaper and still sound great.