View other reviews for this product:
themaddog « Good starter monitors »
Published on 06/04/11 at 17:42As I started building my home studio, it was apparent I needed a decent pair of monitors. I went to Guitar Center and these were the best sounding monitors that I could afford ($300 for the pair). They are active monitors, meaning they have built in amplifiers and do not need to be connected to a power amp. They can accept 1/4", XLR, or RCA inputs. The high frequencies can be cut but -2 or -1 dB, or can be boosted by +1 dB. The volume of the monitors can be changed from -30 dB all the way to + 6 dB, depending on your input or output needs. Since these are active monitors, a user would likely set this value once and change the volume level on his or her mixing console. All of the inputs, control knobs, and power switch and supply are located on the back.
SOUNDS
These monitors produce a flat response with a great deal of depth to material being played. If you have never heard music through studio monitors before, you will probably be surprised at what a difference playing back your favorite records through these speakers can make. That being said, if you were to lay out a lot more money for more expensive monitors, you would be totally blown away by the little nuances that you would be able to easily pick out within professional studio recordings. The monitors themselves produce very little noise when playing back silence, which is not noticeable at all once music kicks in. These speakers do a great job with mid-range to high-end sound, but do not produce a lot of bass. This is partly because they are designed to produce a relatively flat response among all of the frequencies, but in addition, they are only five inch speakers and cannot replicate the bass frequencies as larger speakers can. Pair these speakers up with a subwoofer, and tune your sound system appropriate between these monitors and your subwoofer, and you'll have a great little setup.
OVERALL OPINION
These are great monitors for entry level, but do not approach any of the higher end gear that KRK has manufactured. For the price, these are a good speaker, and occasionally you'll see them on sale for less than the $300/pair that I paid. I eventually replaced these monitors with KRK V8's that I got for a steal. At that point, I took my Rockits and made them my home stereo speakers paired with a Cambridge Soundworks subwoofer. They excel at this, and a I get a great, full sound out of a relatively compact package.
SOUNDS
These monitors produce a flat response with a great deal of depth to material being played. If you have never heard music through studio monitors before, you will probably be surprised at what a difference playing back your favorite records through these speakers can make. That being said, if you were to lay out a lot more money for more expensive monitors, you would be totally blown away by the little nuances that you would be able to easily pick out within professional studio recordings. The monitors themselves produce very little noise when playing back silence, which is not noticeable at all once music kicks in. These speakers do a great job with mid-range to high-end sound, but do not produce a lot of bass. This is partly because they are designed to produce a relatively flat response among all of the frequencies, but in addition, they are only five inch speakers and cannot replicate the bass frequencies as larger speakers can. Pair these speakers up with a subwoofer, and tune your sound system appropriate between these monitors and your subwoofer, and you'll have a great little setup.
OVERALL OPINION
These are great monitors for entry level, but do not approach any of the higher end gear that KRK has manufactured. For the price, these are a good speaker, and occasionally you'll see them on sale for less than the $300/pair that I paid. I eventually replaced these monitors with KRK V8's that I got for a steal. At that point, I took my Rockits and made them my home stereo speakers paired with a Cambridge Soundworks subwoofer. They excel at this, and a I get a great, full sound out of a relatively compact package.