ADAM Audio D3V Black

First of all - they do sound great and have that signature Adam airy treble/upper mids, which is magical. That's why I wish I could have kept them. Ordered B-stock - wrong charger, had to send back. Ordered brand new - auto standby did not work.... lost patience and bought other monitors instead.

If you lucky and got a well functioning unit - keep it. For small desk they are really great for listening to music, mixing with them is also nice. They lack the deep bass, but that's rather obvious given the size. I found the tone well balanced and bass sufficient for my needs, I would not however like to track bass or mix bass heavy music on them, but then you can use the headphones or get a sub.

These are just perfect speakers for my desk. Overkill really. I don't make music, just really like to listen to tunes while I work. Nice and crisp sound. The low-end goes way deeper than you would expect. The volume won't be enough for a party in a medium room, but more than enough for me at my desk. The usb connection to my laptop works immediately without installing anything.

Small comments, but really nothing negative: - The speakers and feet are sturdy, but if someone would bump hard against my desk they probably will fall over. - More EQ options would be even better.

An upcoming firmware update will address two small niggles: the tweeter going inactive at low volumes, and sleepmode options (it currently shuts off after 20 mins, and doesn't have auto-wake). I'm happy that that firmware update is in the works.

My previous experience with adam speakers was in the studio. I've liked them ever since. I mostly play metal music and some ethno world music, now I decided on this model because I need small, portable speakers to record instruments and do basic editing. I immediately noticed that the sound coming out of my recording is more serious than the previous speakers. What I would like to emphasize is that they are ideal for my needs, that at normal volume and at low volume everything can be heard beautifully in the mix. These are speakers for near listening. It is ideal for my needs, just what I was looking for. I like that the speakers turn themselves off after 20 minutes because I don't have to turn them off every time, and I turn on easily. There are many great options and I recommend these speakers.

I expected much more from these speakers. I own the iLoud Micro Monitor, and when my son wanted something similar or slightly better, the reviews for the D3V sounded convincing. Once the speakers arrived, however, the experience was not what we hoped for.

In most music, the D3V feels tiring to listen to, and the bass lacks the deep, controlled low end that the Micro Monitor delivers. The Micro Monitor is not perfect either; its bass can lose strength or distort at higher volumes. But at normal listening levels it sounds balanced and enjoyable, especially considering its size. With the D3V, only a few tracks actually sound better, and even then the improvement is small.

The D3V clearly has more power, but that extra power doesn’t always help the sound. In many songs it makes the presentation harsher and less pleasant. The room is untreated, I’m using the USB‑C digital input, and although I’m not a trained musician, I’ve been in the hi‑fi world for many years. I hope these speakers improve after break‑in, because if this is their final character, they don’t justify the higher price compared to the Micro Monitor.

Gaming performance was also disappointing. In ARK, creatures like the T‑Rex and Giga sound thin and small, almost like a little Raptor, which is a big downgrade from how they sound on the Micro Monitor.

We will continue testing after the break‑in period and will also try the analog inputs with a better audio interface. I’ll update my impressions once we have more results.