Razer Mako 2.1 Speakers

  • By SarjuS, GameSpot
  • Posted Feb 6, 2009 5:42 pm PT

Razer products have style. Starting with the Boomslang from years ago, the company always kept an eye on form, presentation, and functionality. The Mako 2.1 speaker system doesn't veer away from the company's roots in the least. Like other Razer products, the Mako has looks to kill and sound...

Razer products have style. Starting with the Boomslang from years ago, the company always kept an eye on form, presentation, and functionality. The Mako 2.1 speaker system doesn't veer away from the company's roots in the least. Like other Razer products, the Mako has looks to kill and sound quality to match. Priced at $399, the Mako doesn't exactly sit alongside budget computer speaker setups, but it more than justifies the price tag.

Simple, refined, and understated the Mako satellites sit easily on your desk, happy not to make a nuisance of themselves. The two matte-black, bowl-shaped speakers sit low enough to plunk down directly underneath an LCD should space be a concern. The downward firing design of the satellites makes them great for desks. By using a table to reflect off of, the sound becomes more diffuse, which makes it harder to obfuscate. Consequently you get a fuller sound across the room rather than just directly in front of you.The subwoofer looks like a large black mushroom on the floor, acting as the central point for all connections as well as the source of bass.

Unlike most speakers, you won't find binding posts on the backs of these speakers. A simple CAT5 connector replaces the archaic red and black screw posts. Setup is pretty much foolproof when you don't have to worry about wire polarity anymore. That goes doubly so for a bi-amped setup like the Mako. Separate amplifiers located in the subwoofer power the tweeter and woofer of each speaker. By using discrete amplifiers for each speaker component Razer ensured accurate component level power adjustments via their Class HD amplifiers. The amplifiers are actually a modified form of Class D amps, tweaked to give high efficiency and lower noise levels.

For Razer, even something as mundane as a volume knob can be point of distinction. Shaped like a shiny black puck, you won't find a single button on the device. The entire UI is touch based and lights up with soft blue glow. Dial up the volume to ridiculous levels and you'll enter red LED territory. Hold your finger down on the logo to turn the set on and off. You'll also find connections for headphones and a line-in on the side of hub.

Razer sent over a few development mockup shots of the Mako. It's interesting to see how the product evolved over time and what design decisions the company made in the end. Somewhere along the way, Razer ditched the buttons and high gloss finish. Looking at the finished product, we'd have to say they made the right changes.

The sound quality is stellar. Crisp, detailed treble. Bass that's not overly boomy. You don't get deep visceral bass that rattles your rib cage, but for that you're going to have to get something considerably more sizable. The 120Hz subwoofer crossover is noticeable, but it's not much of a problem if you keep the subwoofer close to the satellites to minimize sound localization issues. We're kind of bummed that the set didn't have any digital inputs, Razer indicated that they considered adding the functionality but decided against until MP3 players start to come with them. Outside of that, the Mako didn't disappoint in the least. It's a great addition to an office space or bedroom.

16 Comments

  • beymod

    Posted Jun 6, 2009 5:39 am PT

    thanks.....

    http://www.beymod.com.tr

  • cobra_units

    Posted Apr 28, 2009 10:55 pm PT

    awesome..the design is beautifully crafted..

  • heesmang

    Posted Apr 2, 2009 1:55 pm PT

    Woot, you guys ho say its overpriced need to hear thoes things, after you hear the crystal clear sound of these babies you will talk differently.

    Aldo i need to say that the shinny on thoes older speakers looks nice with the blue uplighting razer logo though, the older control pod sucks with the stupid buttons.

  • shawnanthony

    Posted Mar 9, 2009 9:56 am PT

    JBL DOT FTW

  • Stevewins1

    Posted Feb 16, 2009 7:20 am PT

    Wow, that's quite expensive...

  • 69

    Posted Feb 10, 2009 5:16 am PT

    $399 for a 2.1 pc speaker setup, is pretty crazy.
    You can get a set of Logitech Z5500's 5.1 for just a hair more.
    Unless you need to save the space, i wouldnt be able to understand justifying $399 for a 2.1 setup. In defense of these speakers tho, i will say they seem to of gotten fairly favorable reviews, which is more then i would of expected for a 2.1 setup at this price. Course, reviewers dont actually have to PAY for the product, so that might help with the bias

    PS: These speakers have actually been out quite a long time now. Seems like GameSpot does their hardware reviews at a snails pace.

  • tidyspidey

    Posted Feb 9, 2009 6:10 am PT

    They look good, but overpriced IMO..... I have a set of Harmon Kardon's for my PC speakers and they blow even my actual HI-FI out of the water in terms of quality, and I managed to get them for a snip at £85 GBP.

    OK, I haven't actually heard the above speakers, but I think $399 (£200+) for a 2.1 speaker setup is just too much money.

  • teetsaar

    Posted Feb 9, 2009 2:15 am PT

    The aliens need to try harder, it still looks like a flying saucer.

  • Hellfire93

    Posted Feb 8, 2009 12:34 pm PT

    I'm full up of Razer gear but I doubt this'll be next till the price drops

  • jazzyrider

    Posted Feb 8, 2009 12:27 pm PT

    I have a Razer mouse and I like how the design is well thought out so I would expect the same for these speakers. My only problem with this set is the price - reminds me of Bose computer speakers...just too expensive.

  • max

    Posted Feb 8, 2009 10:16 am PT

    Just so this comments section isn't a TOTAL loss, I have owned the Mako 2.1 system since they were first released and they sound amazing.

  • Bigbobalue

    Posted Feb 7, 2009 8:45 pm PT

    we having fun yet?

  • max

    Posted Feb 7, 2009 7:14 pm PT

    Suck it, McCain!

  • Maverick4Ever

    Posted Feb 7, 2009 2:40 pm PT

    Complaining about someone wasting precious bandwidth is an even worse waste of bandwidth. Also, he at least has "some" originality in his screen name.

  • max

    Posted Feb 7, 2009 11:14 am PT

    1) Writing "FIRST!" is stupid and a waste of precious bandwidth.
    2) You misspelled your own screen name. Other than that, nice work!

  • scortchedEarth posted Feb 7, 2009 9:25 am PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    scortchedEarth

    Posted Feb 7, 2009 9:25 am PT (hide)

    First!!! Hell ya!!!

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