By Studio Electric is a boutique loudspeaker brand offering a selection of stand-mounted and floorstanding loudspeakers. The Studio Electric M4 loudspeaker is their entry-level two-way stand-mount design, featuring a proprietary 6.5-inch copolymer midrange/woofer and a one-inch soft dome tweeter. The sturdy cabinet is constructed of a combination of HDF (high-density fiberboard) for the front face and MDF (medium-density fiberboard) for the remaining walls. The Studio Electric M4 feels solidly built, weighing a substantial 21 pounds for a speaker of its small size.
The speaker is available in a variety of wood veneer finishes. David MacPherson, founder and CEO of Studio Electric, sent me a review sample covered in a beautiful rosewood veneer with natural finish, which carries a modest $160 upcharge over the other wood finishes offered (walnut, white oak, or figured maple). There are also two accent strips of inlaid maple wood that run from front to back on the top of the speaker, providing an additional stylish detail. The Studio Electric M4 sports a rather unique wire mesh grille that adds an upscale look to the otherwise rather bland-looking black front baffle of the sealed cabinet. It looks and feels much more luxurious than the typical fabric-covered plastic-framed grilles found on most stand-mounted speakers. While some speakers look better with their grilles off, I definitely preferred the look of the Studio Electric M4s with the grilles on. The mesh used for the grilles is the same material utilized for the windscreens of many professional microphones; it tended to gleam from the overhead lighting in my room.
What Makes the Studio Electric M4 Loudspeakers So Special?
- Vocals shine through the Studio Electric M4 two-way stand-mounted speakers, a testament to the seamless transition the crossover provides from the tweeter through to the midbass driver.
- The Studio Electric M4 speakers deliver a soundstage that is quite wide, with clearly defined spaces between instruments.
- The presentation of the Studio Electric M4 speakers sounds fast and energetic, being just a bit more forward than my reference Aerial Acoustic 7T towers.
- The bass response of the Studio Electric M4 speakers is among the best I’ve heard from a sealed-box stand-mounted loudspeaker. Other sealed design stand-mounts I’ve heard have tended to sound thinner in bass output, especially the lower couple of octaves. My experience was that the Studio Electric M4 had solid bass response down to its stated lower-frequency range of 44 Hz. I attributed this to the proprietary 6.5-inch copolymer midbass driver employed. The Studio Electric M4s should more than suffice without the addition of a modest audiophile subwoofer for most genres of music. However, the sealed-cabinet speaker has its limits in terms of bass response. For those enthusiasts who primarily listen to bass-heavy music, the addition of a subwoofer would be necessary, in my opinion, to deliver lower bass notes with authority and impact.
- Like many stand-mounted speakers of similar size, the Studio Electric M4 delivered precise imaging on well-recorded tracks, providing a greater sense of realism to the recording. For example, playback of “Bohemian Rhapsody” by Queen through the Studio Electric M4 provided definite instrument separation of the complex arrangement, adding to the emotion and enjoyment of the track.
- The build quality and finish materials of the Studio Electric M4 provide a high-end aesthetic that will compliment most any decor.
- The Studio Electric M4’s sealed-cabinet design provides placement flexibility, more so than the typical bass reflex speaker designs of stand-mounted speakers. Although I mainly auditioned the Studio Electric M4 located four feet from the front wall, I also experimented with them placed as close as one foot from the front wall, with no significant decrease in performance.
Why Should You Care About the Studio Electric M4 Loudspeakers?
Available listening spaces come in all shapes and sizes. The Studio Electric M4 stand-mounted speaker is an excellent option for listeners with small to medium-sized spaces. In this environment, listeners may prefer a less obtrusive form factor than a floorstander. The Studio Electric M4’s design also means it’s an excellent option for those spaces where speakers must be placed close to the front wall. Indeed, most listeners don’t have a dedicated space where they might have the option to pull their speakers out a few feet from the front wall. In addition, the high-end design aesthetic of the Studio Electric M4 means it should blend well with existing room décor. The Studio Electric M4 delivers a wider soundstage and greater bass extension than most other stand-mounted speakers of similar size and design. I found its fast, slightly forward presentation more engaging, leading to greater listening enjoyment.
Some Things You Might Not Like About the Studio Electric M4 Loudspeakers
- While the Studio Electric M4 produces a wider than average soundstage, it did not appear as deep as some other stand-mounted speakers I’ve auditioned in my listening space.
Listening to the Studio Electric M4 Loudspeakers …
I placed the Studio Electric M4 speakers on Pangea Model DS400 stands. These robust stands are 28 inches tall, placing the tweeters at ear height from my listening chair. Initially, I experimented a bit with speaker positioning, finding placement to be less fussy than with many other speakers. While I ended up with the speakers four feet from the front wall, two feet from the side walls and slightly toed in, I also had them as close as one foot from the front wall without a significant drop in the resulting sound. I chalked that up to the sealed-cabinet design of the Studio Electric M4, versus the more common ported design stand-mounted speakers. The speakers were driven by a Classé Delta series amp. With a sensitivity of 88dB and a six-ohm impedance rating, the Classé amp was more than up to the task. I would expect an amp with even one-fourth the power to still be sufficient to adequately drive the Studio Electric M4 speakers. Music sources included a dedicated Mac Mini server, with Roon installed for streaming from Qobuz or Tidal, and an Esoteric CD/SACD player for silver discs. I initially connected sources to the Teac UD-507 DAC/headphone amp/preamp I had recently finished reviewing, since I was now quite familiar with the component in my system. I followed the TEAC preamp up with my reference, a Classé Delta series preamp for the balance of my Studio Electric M4 listening sessions.
During my listening, I soon noted some consistent key strengths, as well as limits, of the Studio Electric M4s. First, upper frequencies and vocals stood out in the best ways with the Studio Electric M4s. Whether listening to Alison Krauss sing “When You Say Nothing At All” from her album Now That I’ve Found You: A Collection (Tidal, 44.1 kHz/16-bit), “Bohemian Rhapsody” by Queen (Qobuz 96 kHz/24bit) or Amy Lee’s cover of “Going To California” from her Recover Vol. 1 EP (Qobuz, 44.1 kHz/16-bit), the upper frequencies and vocals of these well-known artists sounded detailed, bright and airy, but never sibilant, even when singing in their upper registers. Lee’s vocal versatility is highlighted on the Led Zeppelin classic, accompanied up by guitar and mandolin. The high notes of Lee’s powerful vocals sound as smooth as glass. The instruments’ timbre as well as transient attack and decay are clearly and accurately reproduced. Harmonics appear delicate and nuanced through the Studio Electric M4s, bringing that extra sense of reality, thanks to the seamless integration of the soft dome tweeter with the proprietary midwoofer, compliments of the somewhat unique 3.4 kHz included crossover.
I listened to familiar bass-heavy tracks from several genres as a sort of torture test of the lower limits of the frequency range the Studio Electric M4s were capable of delivering. Tracks included Hans Zimmer’s “Time” from the album Inception (Music from the Motion Picture), The Weeknd’s “Wasted Times” from his EP My Dear Melancholy, and “Attention” from Charlie Puth’s album Voicenotes (Qobuz, 44.1 kHz/16-bit). In Puth’s track, there is a terrific bass guitar solo (actually produced by Puth on a keyboard) that begins at the 0:48 mark. The Studio Electric M4 stand-mounts, delivering surprising bass extension for their size, still didn’t quite provide the same level of bass energy and impact I’ve heard from larger speakers, such as my Aerial Acoustic 7Ts, for example. The physical limits that the smaller cabinet and midbass driver size, coupled with the sealed design, place on the Studio Electric M4s became apparent when playing tracks with deep bass elements. The bass through the Studio Electric M4 speakers was still energetic and fun, it’s just that the sound lacked that last extra bit of lower bass impact that a larger cabinet and driver can deliver. This was mainly noticeable when doing direct side-by-side comparisons of the Studio Electric M4 and my Ariel floorstanders when repeating the same track. The bass energy was still better than any other sealed-design stand-mounted speaker I’ve reviewed before and as good as most bass reflex design stand-mounts of similar size. Every speaker that’s not truly full-range obviously has its limits in bass extension, but the bottom line is that the Studio Electric M4 is better than most in its size class. The only stand-mounted speaker of similar size I’ve heard that is capable of matching the bass of many floorstanders is the Alta Audio Alyssa (read review here), which uses a combination of transmission line and tuned port technologies to achieve clear and impactful bass down to 30 Hertz.
A wider than expected soundstage from the Studio Electric M4 speakers was highlighted by several different tracks I used for evaluation. While most stand-mounted speakers are commonly known for their imaging prowess, they’re not as often known for creating a wide soundstage, a trait the Studio Electric M4s consistently exhibited. For example, listening to the Ariana Grande track “Imagine” from her Thank U, Next album (Qobuz 44.1 kHz/24-bit), there are heavy echoing beats that appear to originate from the right wall and about two feet in front of the Studio Electric M4 speakers. I definitely sat up and took notice, because I’ve not heard that expansive a soundstage from this track on any other speaker I’ve reviewed. To top it off, the piercing whistle notes sung by Grande beginning at the 2:44 mark sounded pure, with absolutely no shrillness through the Studio Electric M4s. The speakers always managed to exhibit tight control and accuracy in the upper frequencies.
Will the Studio Electric M4 Loudspeakers Hold Their Value?
The Studio Electric M4s, like all boutique brands, might take a little longer to sell than a mainstream brand. However, the speakers are made in the U.S., the company has been in business for about 20 years, and the speakers represent a good value at their retail price. Many audiophiles will already be familiar with the brand and appreciate the build quality and performance. All told, they should hold their value as well as or better than most.
What is the Competition for the Studio Electric M4 Loudspeakers?
There are quite a few high-performing stand-mounted loudspeakers to choose from these days. For example, the rear-ported Bowers & Wilkins 705 S3 speaker (read Jerry Del Colliano’s review) is similarly priced and a highly-regarded stand-mounted design with the tweeter enclosure mounted on top of the cabinet rather than built into it. Another great stand-mounted speaker is the Revel Performa 126Be (buy at Crutchfield), which features a two-way bass reflex, rear-ported design with a beryllium tweeter and ceramic composite aluminum midbass driver. Even though it’s ported, the Revel can’t dig as deep into the lower frequencies as the Studio Electric can, but what it can do in terms of bass, it does very well. Finally, the Alta Audio Alyssa speaker (read the review) is a stand-mounted speaker of similar size that employs a combination of transmission line and tuned port technologies, resulting in the clearest, deepest bass I’ve heard from a speaker of its size.
Final Thoughts on the Studio Electric M4 Loudspeakers …
The Studio Electric M4s possess exemplary build quality, appealing aesthetics, and surprising performance for stand-mounted speakers of their size and price. Their ability to image so precisely while also producing a wide soundstage is an enticing combination. Their placement flexibility will appeal to those wanting to fill a small to medium-sized multipurpose room with great sound in a smaller form factor. While not the last word in bass extension, their bass capability exceeds expectations, compared to most competitors of similar size and design. And the bass they deliver is clear, tight and fast. The Studio Electric M4s might just be the best stand-mounted speaker I’ve heard in their size and price range. For those in the market for stand-mounted speakers in this price range, it would definitely be worthwhile to seek out an audition of the Studio Electric M4s at a regional audio show. If that’s not an option, the Studio Electric M4s are sold direct and also come with a 30-day return policy to insure your satisfaction.
