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Razer Mako 2.1 Advanced Desktop Audio

14 Mar 2009

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			<h2 class="header-green">Aural Showdown - 2.1 Multimedia Speakers Shootout</h2>
		<span class="byline">Article by Kenny Yeo on Saturday, 14 Mar 2009</span>
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		 		<h2 class="page-title">Aural Rumble</h2>
		 		<h3 class="page_title">Aural Rumble</h3>
<p>If you've been a long and loyal reader of HardwareZone, then you might know that it has been eons since we last did a full fledged review of audio speakers. While we've actually brought you speaker articles every once in a while via our quick first-hand experience in our First Looks section, we haven't actually done a full fledged speaker review since the Altec Lansing 621 2.1 speaker system back in January 2003. Well, we're back today in full force with this high-end 2.1 multimedia speaker system shootout.</p>
<p>Incidentally, 2.1 speaker systems are perhaps still the popular choice of speaker configurations in households, and for good reason. For one, they offer the best compromise of space, price and performance. Multi-channel speakers systems such as 5.1 and 7.1 speaker systems are all fine and good if you have the money and space, but more than that, they are also painstaking to setup. First and foremost, positioning is of utmost importance, and so is the shape of the room if you hope to get the best out of your speakers. And do we need to remind you of all those unsightly wires trailing all about? Your wives/girlfriends/mums would definitely not be pleased. There are wireless versions but unfortunately, they are few and far and have their own limitations.</p>
<p class="rtecenter"><img alt="" title="This graph shows how a 7.1 speaker system should ideally be set up. We shudder at the thought of the amount of preparation and cable work involved. (Image from www.thx.com)" src="http://images.hardwarezone.com/upload/files/2010/03/9f65d7405f.gif" /></p>
<p class="rteleft">Hence, for the rest of us, a 2.1 speaker setup would suffice. It's far easier to setup, and for much less money, a decent set can equally still blow you away. As such, we pulled out all stops to bring you this shootout with seven of the very best 2.1 multimedia speaker systems you can find. If you are hunting for a good PC speaker system, this is one shootout you cannot afford to miss. With offerings from Altec Lansing, Bose, Creative, Edifier, Klipsch, Logitech and Razer, we've got some real heavyweight systems covered in this shootout.</p>
<p>Join us now as we introduce our candidates one by one, but first a quick look at their specifications.</p>
<table cellspacing="0" cellpadding="5" border="1" align="center" style="table-layout: auto; width: 95%;">
    <caption>Specifications of Speakers</caption>
    <tbody>
        <tr>
            <th>Speaker Model / Specs</th>
            <th>Altec Lansing MX 5021</th>
            <th>Bose Companion 5</th>
            <th>Creative Gigaworks T3</th>
            <th>Edifier S730</th>
            <th>Klipsch ProMedia GMX A-2.1</th>
            <th>Logitech Z-Cinema</th>
            <th>Razer Mako</th>
        </tr>
        <tr align="center" valign="middle">
            <th rowspan="1" colspan="8" center="">Basic Specs</th>
        </tr>
        <tr>
            <th>Satellites (per speaker)</th>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">1 x 1-inch tweeter<br />
            <br />
            2 x 3-inch full-range driver</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">2 x 2-inch full-range driver</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">2 x 2-inch full-range driver</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">1 x 2-inch tweeter<br />
            <br />
            1 x 3.5-inch midrange driver</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">1 x 0.75-inch tweeter<br />
            <br />
            1 x 3-inch midrange driver</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">1 x 1-inch tweeter<br />
            <br />
            2 x 3-inch midrange driver</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">N.A.</td>
        </tr>
        <tr>
            <th>Subwoofer Driver</th>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">1 x 6.5-inch woofer</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">1 x 5.25-inch woofer</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">3 x 6.5-inch woofers</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">1 x 10-inch woofer</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">1 x 6.5-inch front firing</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">1 x 8-inch woofer</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">N.A.</td>
        </tr>
        <tr>
            <th>Power Output</th>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">Satellite: 20W x 2<br />
            <br />
            Subwoofer: 50W</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">N.A.</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">Satellite: 15W x 2<br />
            <br />
            Subwoofer: 50W</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">Satellite: 75W x 2<br />
            <br />
            Subwoofer: 150W</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">Satellite: 14W x 2<br />
            <br />
            Subwoofer: 50W</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">Satellite: 35W x 2<br />
            <br />
            Subwoofer: 110W</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">Satellite: 50W x 2<br />
            <br />
            Subwoofer: 200W</td>
        </tr>
        <tr>
            <th>Surround Sound Capability</th>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">-</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">Yes       <br />
            (TrueSpace surround)</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">-</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">-</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">-</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">Yes<br />
            (SRS TruSurround HD)</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">Yes       <br />
            (by virtue of speaker design)</td>
        </tr>
        <tr align="center" valign="middle">
            <th rowspan="1" colspan="8" center="" text-align="" bold="">Inputs / Outputs</th>
        </tr>
        <tr>
            <th>3.5mm Headphones Jack</th>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">Yes</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">Yes</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">Yes</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">Yes</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">Yes</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">Yes</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">Yes</td>
        </tr>
        <tr>
            <th>3.5mm Auxiliary Jack</th>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">Yes</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">Yes</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">Yes</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">Yes</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">Yes</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">Yes</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">Yes</td>
        </tr>
        <tr>
            <th>Digital Optical input</th>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">-</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">-</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">-</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">Yes</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">-</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">-</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">-</td>
        </tr>
        <tr>
            <th>Digital Coaxial input</th>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">-</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">-</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">-</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">Yes</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">-</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">-</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">-</td>
        </tr>
        <tr>
            <th>USB</th>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">-</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">Yes</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">-</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">-</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">-</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">Yes</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">-</td>
        </tr>
        <tr align="center" valign="middle" style="font-weight: bold;">
            <th rowspan="1" colspan="8" center="">Dimensions H x W x D (in mm)</th>
        </tr>
        <tr>
            <th>Satellites</th>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">132 x 63 x 260</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">225 x 147 x 97</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">93 x 76 x 149</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">N.A.</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">N.A.</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">250 x 115 x 112</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">N.A.</td>
        </tr>
        <tr>
            <th>Subwoofer</th>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">220 x 310 x 398</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">218 x 173 x 425</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">287 x 236 x 213</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">N.A.</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">N.A.</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">292 x 290 x 414</td>
            <td align="center" valign="middle">N.A.</td>
        </tr>
    </tbody>
</table>
<p><em>If you were hoping for more comparisons such as Acoustic Energy's Aego series and others, we did try our best to contact the appropriate distributors, but they didn't have a speaker unit available in time for this article.</em></p>			</div>
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Razer Mako 2.1 Advanced Desktop Audio

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