Eve Audio SC204 and SC205 Put to the Test

We bring into the lab this pair of compact monitors, ideal for small studios (home studios, professional recording and post-production rooms) and for portable applications, given their dimensions, light weight and ease of transport. German quality that shows that big sound sometimes comes out of boxes that aren't so big. Here we go.

Among Eve Audio's Smallest

This is the product of a German manufacturer based in Berlin. The company was founded in May 2011 and is owned by Roland Stenz, an engineer with a degree in electronics, and specializes in the design and production of high-quality studio monitors. Both the SC204 and the SC205 feature a SilverCone SC woofer (4" and 5") with an AMT (Air Motion Transformer) tweeter, a technology patented by the company itself. They are complemented by two 50W amplifiers and a high-resolution DSP.

On unboxing we find the power cable, the unit, the tweeter grilles and adhesive rubber pads to avoid decoupling issues if they're placed on a rigid surface.

Front

On the front we find the woofer and the tweeter, with a protective cover that can be replaced by a grille (included). When you make this swap, which is easy since it attaches magnetically, you'll find more nuance and definition in the highs, without harshness. We'll talk about the sound a little further on.

A very German look. Sturdy, well finished, combining sobriety with the futuristic touch of its LEDs and control through the front button located at the bottom. It's a push-and-rotate wheel that lets us make the monitor's adjustments: standby, volume (which is displayed in a very attractive, graphic way through its LEDs), filter selection and LED intensity.

Rear Panel

On the back we find the DIP switches that let us lock the volume, in case we want to leave it fixed at one position, lock the filters previously selected from the front knob and, third (only for the SC 305 and SC307 versions), set the woofer/bass output mode.

Outputs are available in analog, balanced XLR and unbalanced RCA format. We also find threaded holes (female thread) for mounting the monitors either on a wall or on a stand (in addition to the aforementioned rubber pads included for placing them on a rigid horizontal surface).

Ideally, it's advisable to keep the monitors at least 0.5 mm from the wall. They are also designed to work optimally in a vertical position, although they could work horizontally if we're forced to, as long as we place them at the proper height relative to our ears.

Sound and Configurations

We haven't had the chance to hear the system with the optional subwoofer (not included). The word on the street is that once you hear these "little ones" working with the sub, you don't want to go on without it. In any case, I'll say I was pleasantly surprised by a truly "round," balanced sound. When I connected the monitors and while positioning them before listening, I expected something a bit "thinner" given their size and the woofer's dimensions. Instead I found more than healthy power (I did the tests in an acoustically well-treated room of about 12 m). Full, punchy lows (considering their size) that are well defined, with no distortion whatsoever even when pushing "the machine."

As for the highs, a healthy amount of detail, clarity and transparency without becoming harsh. In summary, my assessment of the sound is highly positive relative to its price and monitor class. Good balance of lows, mids and highs, without causing listening fatigue.

"A good grade for sound relative to its size and price. Balanced lows, mids and highs, with fatigue-free listening"

As for configuration, we can work with the pair on its own, in 2.1 if we add the sub, and in multichannel 5.1 mode (left, right, center, left and right surrounds + sub).

The Filters

The filter option is designed, as you can guess, to adapt the sound of your pair of monitors to your space: to the room and to where they're placed. As we well know, a flat response that doesn't color the sound is a must. Within a listening experience that suits our preferences, we need to know what is happening in the mix as faithfully as possible. For that, we'll use the High Filter, the Low Filter, the combinations of the two and the desktop filter to attenuate or boost the frequencies that are distorted by the room or placement. Let's look at some examples.

Conclusions

I've had the chance to work with a wide variety of monitors although, until now, I didn't know Eve Audio's performance and capabilities. My experience with this pair, even though it's among the smallest in the family, has been excellent. I've felt especially comfortable with its sound for work in small spaces and recording/production tasks. I also liked the LED system that shows the volume we're working at and the power/standby state of the pair. It's hard to be surprised when trying new things, since we often find no distinctive contribution from the brand. In this case EVE Audio has shown a marked personality, valid for demanding, professional work environments.

Wrapping up the conclusions with the price. Although the recommended retail prices are €299 for the SC204 and €399 for the SC 205, with a bit of digging we find the monitors cheaper. For example, in keeping with the fact that in Spain you can already buy for less than in Germany, at Microfusa we found them at €269 and €319 (respectively). Thinking in price tiers, we're in the same ballpark as the JBL LSR 305 or Pioneer DM 40 (below) and the Focal CMS 50 or Neumann KH-120 (above), to cite a few references.

* frequency response