In today’s world, of all the hurdles musicians must face, the most pressing matter is, of course, money.
In between the debts of touring, selling merch, being strangled by record labels, and selling your soul just to be featured on some 17-year old’s Spotify playlist, musicians must constantly ask themselves whether they’re willing to starve for weeks or buy a decent piece of much-needed gear. What’s worse is that the affordable gear is often junk.
Enter the Mackie CR3.5, a pair of which cost less than $100, and at a glance, may serve as a potential solution to the whole food/gear conundrum. My opinion? Meh. Still junk, but they might be useful to pawn off at a later date.
Final verdict
While these monitors are incredibly cheap, their performance could have been bolstered quite easily had Mackie taken the time to do so.
The CR3.5 monitors make a good option for beginners, hobbyists, or even for computer desktops and gaming. What they don’t make a good option for, is music-making at any professional level.
What I like
- Insanely affordable.
- Small footprint.
- Good for mobile recording.
What I don’t like
- No low end.
- Harsh treble.
Why you should trust this review
As a producer and audio engineer for over 15 years, I’ve laid fingerprints on a wide range of gear in all sorts of setups.
I’ve learned how to stretch a budget, working with everything from second-hand monitors from a buddy to cheap pawn shop desktop speakers.
I’ve mixed on consumer-grade models, repurposed radio speakers, high-end monitors, and everything in between.
This hands-on experience, along with years of problem-solving in different recording environments, has taught me what monitors are worth investing in – and which aren’t.
Power and frequency response 2.6
The Mackie CR3.5 has a frequency response of 70 Hz – 20 kHz at the -3 dB points (and 60 Hz – 20 kHz at -10 dB), which is fairly respectable for speakers this size. Powerful enough for close-listening, a pair has a peak level of 100 dB SPL.
Unfortunately, I can’t recommend these speakers for any serious audio mixing purposes. Besides offering little to no information in the low end, the smiley-faced frequency response shape and boosted high end makes it nearly impossible for me to say that this monitor should be used in any professional setting.
At higher levels, I can hear a lot of distortion, particularly in the “low end”, aka the lower mid-range in Mackie’s case. The upper bass honks, there is no lower bass, the treble runs hot, and overall the speakers sound harsh.
I/O and controls 4.0
A pair of CR3.5 consists of one active and one passive speaker. On the rear panel of the active speaker is an On/Off switch as well as several input options. Featured are two TRS jacks, unbalanced RCA inputs, as well as a 1/8-inch stereo input.
There is also a 1/8-inch stereo headphone input upon the front panel of the active speaker, as well as two knobs that control the volume and tone for both the headphones and monitors.
Build quality 3.8
These Mackie speakers are small and lightweight (around 8 pounds each). I wouldn’t say that they feel particularly solid, but overall, they appear to be well-built.
Compared to other studio monitors
While a pair of Mackie CR3.5 is probably the best choice under $100 for any type of creative work, here are a few other options to compare against these monitors.
Mackie CR3.5 vs PreSonus Eris 3.5
Neither of these monitors should be bought for serious mixing applications, but if you must pick out of the two, the Mackie is slightly more neutral which gives it the upper hand.
Even though the Mackie lacks the EQ controls that the PreSonus offers, I still find that the CR3.5 speakers perform better.
Read the full PreSonus Eris 3.5 review
Mackie CR3.5 vs Yamaha HS5
If you have the means, please buy the Yamaha HS5. The Yamahas are actually usable for professional mixing, not the Mackies. If you’re looking for a cheap, and over-glorified computer speaker, the Mackies will do, but that’s the most I can say.
Read the full Yamaha HS5 review
Mackie CR3.5 vs Behringer MS16
Let’s save everybody the headache here and just say that the CR3.5 is better. Behringer has plenty of other products that may be worth your consideration, but these aren’t.
See the Behringer MS16’s current price
Who are the Mackie CR3.5 speakers best suited for?
The Mackie CR3.5 speakers are best suited for those seeking a pair of multimedia monitors on a very tight budget.
See current price at: SweetwaterAmazon
