Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 1-5 of 20
 Razer Mako Delivers Great Sound January 10, 2010
Midwest Guy (Chicago, IL United States)
14 out of 14 found this review helpful
My review is broken into three parts. Quick Take, A Bit More, and a Detailed Rant. I just want those who are considering this computer speaker system to get the level of detail that meets their needs.
Quick Take
This computer speaker system is very good. One of the best, if not the best, in its price range. It is very comparable to the Bose Companion 5 yet much less expensive. The control pad works very well. The Razer Mako is a very stylish system. I highly recommend this system. I've owned it a week and always update my reviews when products break so look at the date of my review and if I've not added any new information, then it is still working fine.
A Bit More
I mentioned the control pad works well, but it takes a day or two of use to get used to how to use it. I find it best to put my finger where I want to have the sound level and the bars will move to my finger. The bars start out blue but once the dial gets to, say, about 10 o'clock the bars turn red up to about 12 o'clock. Say the bars are at 9 o'clock and you want to turn the volume down to 7 o'clock. I just put my finger at 7 o'clock and the blue bars quickly move down to that point on the dial. This actually works really well and once you get it down, the dial is fantastic. There are more features than other comparable systems. Control pad also controls bass output, other systems have bass output controlled on the sub-woofer, which means getting down on the floor. The Mako system has two inputs that are user selectable from the control pad. This means you can set up the system to work off your computer and a second sound source. One input is a standard computer 3.5mm jack, the other input is RCA jacks which are standard jacks for many audio systems. Switching between the two inputs is done from the control pad. The control pad has an input as well so you can easily plug an MP3 player into the input there and the system will automatically to that input. You need a male-to-male cable though which is something you'll need to buy. The control pad has a headphone jack as well. This is similar to a few of the better computers speaker, including the Bose Companion 5.
Detailed Rant
I must get on a soapbox for a minute. This is one of the best COMPUTER speaker systems I've heard. However reviewers here and speaker manufacturers, including Razer, throw out terms like audiophile quality or high-end speakers for computer speakers. For those who own true audiophile quality equipment, you'll know little speakers on desk tops aren't going to compete with real audiophile equipment. Added to that fact, is the fact that an audiophile system is running a CD player and some sort of integrated amp or amp-preamp combo that will be close to $1,000 and often a fair amount more. Your computer, on the other hand, will have a CD-RW worth about $100 and an audio card that is probably $10-50. If that is not enough, people who know better realize that even CD technology which was invented in 1982 and uses a 16 bit rate does not do the best job of playing back music. That is why vinyl records are still going strong. But lets make it worse; iTunes or other MP3 music, has a lot of data removed so that a song can fit on a little iPod like device and be downloaded over the Internet without taking a lot of time. So what we are all doing is listening most of the time to a badly watered down MP3 version of a song, playing through a dirt cheap sound card, and coming out of little desktop speakers. Computer systems are not really set up to deliver high quality audio, period. Why people try to make that comparison is beyond me but it is like trying to convince someone that a $18,000 Honda Civic is every bit as great as a BMW 5 Series. Just about everyone would laugh at a comparison like that, so the comparisons of computer speakers with audiophile equipment are just as laughable. As an aside, I recommend still buying CD's and then recording them into your iTunes so you get the benefit of both worlds and having the higher quality CD for home and the ability to play music on a pocket sized device as well.
What the best computer speaker systems can to is sound fairly natural, with good definition, and sound smooth and clean from the lowest lows to the highest highs. They can also have a good dynamic range meaning that quiet sections of music are really quiet and loud sections are good and loud. The subwoofer should have good punch and be tight, but never boomy. The subwoofer should almost never bring attention to itself. That means the sound between the desktop speakers and that big one on the floor integrates well and sounds as one. If you get all these things out of a computer speaker system, you've gotten everything you should expect. Nothing more.
The Razer Mako is a great system for its intended use. But if there is a short coming, it is a slight lack of crispness in the high end where cymbals lack a little bit of zing. The Ground Plane technology does help give a surround sound feeling. Watching an episode of Glee, a scene on the football field had sounds placed well to the left and right of my seat making fans in the stands sound way over to the side. However, that large scale did not seem real for a small jazz ensemble. The spread of sound in this case seemed slightly out of place. At times, the sound seems ever so slightly processed. For music that is heavily synthesized the sound seems very good. However, on orchestral music, the sound seemed slightly unnatural. I am being overly critical. Even after saying these things, I can, with confidence, say this is about the best sounding computer system speaker I've heard and I've listened to a lot of them. Considering the great price, the Razer Mako sounds better than it has any right to sound. I have no regrets with my purchase.
One other item that was important to me was to have a speaker system that would not take up any more room on my desk. Most speaker need to be put to the left and to the right of the monitor so that the speakers are not covered. The Razer Mako speaker grills are along the bottom of the speaker. As you can see from the pictures, I've added. I've placed the speakers behind my iMac. Placed here, they are out of the way and sound great.
Razer is a company best know for their gaming accessories. With an image that appeals to teenagers, it is possible to see the Mako as something better suited to gaming or teenagers. In truth the Razer Mako should be considered by discerning adults too and can go up easily against the more button-up appeal of the Bose system. The initial list price of the Mako was about $400. I think the goal was to compete directly with the Bose Companion 5 and that comparison is a good one. But at its current price, the Mako is truly a great deal. If you enjoy good quality sound, the Mako delivers in spades.
Best 2.1 system in a while! May 4, 2008
L. Curry
13 out of 14 found this review helpful
After having this system for over a week now, I'd have to say it is great! Like the other reviewer I have other high end speaker equipment for my home theater and am pretty critical over sound qualiy especially when I'm using it for my computer.
This unit replaced my Logitech z500's 5.1 set which was great when it came out 6yrs ago but 5.1 on the desk can get annoying after a while.
The unit's volume control is slick and the speakers definetly fill the room in terms of sound and bass. I havnent heard any hiss sound from the speakers when not in use, only reason I know to look for this is because my logitech used to do the same thing (drove me nutz). Only issue I would have is the lack of an optical output.
The Best PC speakers on the planet September 5, 2008
HLN (Orlando, FL)
11 out of 14 found this review helpful
Just got it and the sound is just incredible. The best speakers on the planet for PC. There is a reason why the price is $400 bucks, but it sounds like it should be $3000 dollars. I am throughly impressed.
IF YOU HAVE PROBLEM WITH THE VOLUME CONTROLLER:
I also read that many people are having troubles with the touch volume slider and how it is hit and miss. Let me clear this for you. "You are touching the wrong part of the slider". DO NOT touch the lines in blue. Right under the blue lines is a strip where you control the volume and it is super sensitive and responses very well.
Read your manual. It explains it better in there (with pictures).
Run, don't walk, and buy these speakers. In this case, buy from Amazon and you will be amazed of the best audio you will ever heard.
Beautiful looks and beautiful sound (even on carpet) August 2, 2009
Brad
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
This speaker system is both beautiful in appearance and sound, even on carpet. Having read a review prior to my purchase that was critical of its sound performance on carpet I was somewhat apprehensive about this purchase. That apprehension was misplaced as the sound quality and volume on my carpet is outstanding. The sound is complete with a voluminous base and crystal clear middle and upper ranges. If these speakers were any more powerful my laid-back neighbors would likely have to call the authorities.
I was impressed. June 8, 2009
C. J. Dorton (VA.)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Recently I'd grown quite tired of having a 5.1 setup on my desktop.
Switching to ATI HDMI audio outputting to my LCD TV monitor left much to be desired, so I purchased these speakers as a replacement to my setup.
To be short and to the point:
Sturdily made.
Excellent performance in ALL aspects.
Nice looking.
Easy to set up.
Absolutely worth the cost.
Showing reviews 1-5 of 20
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