Fancy Razer Orbs Redefine Sound

The Razer Mako is a great speaker system that will blow you away. Not only is it good for gaming, it can also be used to add depth and breadth to movies and music.

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The speakers incorporate the THX’s Ground Plane and Slot speaker technology which makes use of the desktop surface to improve the overall sound presentation across all frequencies. The downward firing design and Slot Speaker technology uses the surface to its advantage to increase sound output and deliver smooth and even response.

Out of the box, you get two downward firing speakers, a large sub, and a touch sensitive control wheel. It took us about five minutes to set up the Mako system. The sub hosts all the connection ports which includes the CAT-5 ports for the speakers, a Line 1 (3.5mm jack) and Line 2 port (RCA stereo port), AC port, and control wheel port. After plugging the unit in, users have to hold down the Razer logo on the control wheel to turn the system.

The touch sensitive control wheel has five additional icons in the middle that allows a user to flick between the two line inputs, bass adjustment, volume adjustment, or mute the system altogether. Users have to touch the area under the LED to adjust the volume or bass level, which is tricky at times and may take some time to get used to. A headphone jack and extra line-in port is also available on the system and is located along the side of the control wheel.

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We first hooked up the device to our PC and played EA’s Command and Conquer: Red Alert 3. Cutscenes in Soviet missions sounded clear and crisp, while aerial strikes, machine gun fire, and Tesla Coils in skirmishes came in all directions and sounded solid. Bombs also had that ‘oomph’ and made its presence felt, which is great for gamers who want to immerse themselves into the game.

Not only is the unit good for games, it can also handle movies without problems. While watching the car chase scene in Transporter 3, we heard the cars moving from one side of the room to the other. The speakers were also able to handle the musical score, dialogue, and additional sound effects in addition to the sound of screeching cars, which is a plus considering its system setup.

The speakers were also able to reproduce sound from various audio tracks without problems, with the Mako reproducing clear highs and mids as well as thumping lows. Users can also turn up the system without breaking up and allow everyone to enjoy the music thanks to its omni-directional speakers that push sound 360 degrees.

Overall, we are satisfied with the Razer Mako: it sounds great, has that thumping bass, and will redefine the way you listen to your music, games, and movies. Its price of $799.95 is steep for a 2.1 speaker system and we are sure that typical users would not want spend for ‘just a pair of speakers,’ but for those who want a THX-certified system that eats any source for breakfast, then it may just be the system for you.