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KRK ROKIT 5 Gen 4 Review (Studio Monitor)

PeteL

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With these DSP monitors, isn't that a counterintuitive design to include an ADC/DAC which is likely inferior to what the user is using upstream? Or is the tradeoff to gain built in EQ > the drop in quality from a second ADC/DAC stage of lesser quality?

Seems to me the preferred signal path is analog only after the DAC from your source and to perform EQ in the digital domain at the source right?
Could be a trade off, or one could also argue that the adc-Dac chain, when compared to the distortion levels of the speaker is effectively pretty much transparent. That's debatable, but, interesting thing is many people pay more for their PEQ solution than the cost of one of these speakers. It's not that easy to find a solution that's an actual speaker or room correction at driver level , not at the application level, like using an EQ for your DAW, your media player, The output of your "Internet browser", all with different plugins, it can be off-putting for some... And then, and I know it's contradictory from some of my previous comments, but some will use it without computers too, KRK has some DJs or aspiring DJs using this out of a mixer at home, or anything you need monitoring really. Bottom line, this speaker would not perform as well without DSP, they make sure it's part of the package so people will love it, the benefit is greater than the loss. Now, would it be nice to have digital inputs? Sure it would, but it's a different product. We are looking at something here that's the result of quite rigorous cost saving analysis.
 
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MZKM

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You would not believe how many of today's "profession content creators" working from there bedroom with equipment like this.

Sound cloud, YouTube,twitch,IG,tiktok,Onlyfans,patron... and so on is actually a profession for some
And even more want to make it there profession but failing at it.
Yep, I see so many modern hip-hop/rap songs that get millions of plays being produced by guys with pretty cruddy equipment.

Whereas YouTube musician/reactor Rommie has a pair of coax Genelecs:
maxresdefault.jpg
 

testp

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I am going to show the 96 dB graph in absolute form as I always do. Question: should I switch to using 86 dB in the future for smaller speakers? It will make it harder to then compare all speakers together.

im fine for 96/91 dB , if i want a crappy speaker, this would atleast give me some hints..
 

Ajax

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My first "computer" based system was a Benchmark Media HDR DAC1 feeding a pair of Adam A7 Active speakers in my home office. Wonderful sound in a very simple and small footprint.

With incredibly cheap and good sounding budget speaker packages such as this KRK ROKIT 5 and the Adam TV5 I (amplification + speaker < US$500) I can't help thinking that the days of the traditional "amplifier + passive speaker" systems are numbered.

Active speakers, both budget and large towers just make sense to me as you can keep the signal in the digital chain for longer and thereby reduce the chance of degradation. You also have the added ability to manipulate the signal as required to obtain a flatter frequency response using DSP, which gives you so much more control over the systems performance so you can "tune" it to any room. Placing the power amplifier after the cross over also avoids wasting all that energy through heat dissipation.

Now I am retired one of my goals is to build a LX Mini speaker system designed by the late great Siegfried Linkwitz. I head them in one of the most hostile environments possible - a brick garage with a concrete floor and no acoustic treatment and they sounded sublime. I would combine them with pair of SVS SB 2000 subs.

With the advent of computer based digital cross overs, and those from companies like MiniDSP, combined with cost effective multiple channel DACs and Amps from the likes of Okto Reseach and our own member Buckeye such a project is not only feasible but not that hard for the technically challenged (famous last words).

https://www.linkwitzlab.com/LXmini/Introduction.htm

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siegfried_Linkwitz

https://www.diyaudio.com/forums/ven...-amps-hypex-nc502-nc252-amplifier-builds.html

Should be fun!
 

Zensō

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Seems like there is quite a few as well (or better) measuring alternatives around the same price point (JBL 305/6p MKII, Kali Audio LP-6, Adam T5V to name a few) so I wonder what would be the value argument for the KRKs specifically? Note that EQ facilities KRK G4 provide are not parametric - they are 25 EQ presets, in reality similar in function to the ones available in Kali and many others via mechanical switches.
Is it the combination of smallish size, front port and reasonably good measurements? Is the SPL capacity or distortion significantly better than the rest?

Not saying they are not a good option, just genuinely interested!

I would use these in a very close, nearfield setup, most likely on a small desk up against a wall or window (I currently use a pair of Adam A5X in this scenario). So for me, three attributes that would be important (other than sound quality) are a small footprint, minimal hiss, and a front port. This speaker checks those boxes. That said, the speakers you listed are certainly great options, and might be more appealing to others based upon their own priorities.
 

thefsb

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Question: should I switch to using 86 dB in the future for smaller speakers?
Yes.

It will make it harder to then compare all speakers together.
That doesn't matter. 1. The smaller graphs suffice for such comparison and show that 96 dB is beyond what the device can do. 2. What matters is our ability to evaluate the speaker's suitability for our applications. That can be done by comparing their practical limits (e.g. max power of an amp, max SPL of a speaker, by some objective definitions of "max"). And you can compare certain other performance metrics while they operate within their respective limits. But performance metrics while they are operating way beyond their limits are pointless.

Who cares the transaction throughput of a MacBook when running a database server with a 100 GiB dataset and OLTP workload? What sense does it make to compare its transaction throughput with the same app running on a proper server? The MacBook should be evaluated in terms of how well it serves the needs of laptop users, not DB admins.
 

ck42

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@amirm
On the KRK Classic 5 review, you had this in your conclusion:
I then remembered about the distortion exceeding 100% below 50 Hz so put a high pass filter there. Once there, performance improved substantially. This is a speaker with good bass capabilities with almost no dynamic limit in desktop use. As a result, I could turn up the volume as much as I wanted which always pleases me.

Wouldn't doing the same here with the ROKIT 5 be justified?
 
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amirm

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Wouldn't doing the same here with the ROKIT 5 be justified?
I made that point in the video review. You usually loose some bass response though so in some cases like this one, I chose not to do that. You need a roll off that is level sensitive which you can't do with simple equalization.
 

ck42

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I made that point in the video review. You usually loose some bass response though so in some cases like this one, I chose not to do that. You need a roll off that is level sensitive which you can't do with simple equalization.
Okay...must have missed that in the video review (was multi-tasking).
Had the same thought about the auto-roll-off too. Seems like if there's a DSP in there, they could program it to incrementally roll-off the bottom end as the gain increases past certain thresholds. I'd personally rather lose some bottom end at higher levels than listen to highly distorted bottom-end.
 

PeteL

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Okay...must have missed that in the video review (was multi-tasking).
Had the same thought about the auto-roll-off too. Seems like if there's a DSP in there, they could program it to incrementally roll-off the bottom end as the gain increases past certain thresholds. I'd personally rather lose some bottom end at higher levels than listen to highly distorted bottom-end.
I believe that for this price and seeing on a post the display and user interface of the EQ, the DSP ressources must be quite rudimentary.
 

Matias

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If it's so cheap but also good, how is the Genelec 8030C better in a way that justifies the price gap for example?
I'm going 8030C eventually: all analog, no port cancelling, smoother on axis, plus I like the looks better. I'm fine paying more once and forgetting about it in there long run. But to each his own.
 

xplosiv

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Yep, I see so many modern hip-hop/rap songs that get millions of plays being produced by guys with pretty cruddy equipment.

Whereas YouTube musician/reactor Rommie has a pair of coax Genelecs:
maxresdefault.jpg

He had Yamahas 3 years ago. Also, he is mostly known for his commentary / fun videos rather than his music. Genelecs seem like a sensible upgrade when you have the money but good gear does not guarantee views/success. As long as your content does not suffer too much from the quality of your gear, you're golden. Cheap KRKs, Yamahas, Adams are perfectly adequate in my opinion.
roomie-yamaha.jpg
 

PeteL

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kernelpanic Yes i can't live with DAC-->ADC/DSP/DAC.
its like taking a screenshot with a camera.:facepalm:
I think we will see this more and more. Assuming that a conversion always degrades the signal is a premiss a bit ideological. If this would have been the mindset, records would still be mixed to 2 inches tapes and live shows mixed on consoles the size of a car. In the end, that's what comes out of those transducers that matter, not how it got there.
 

Frank Dernie

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kernelpanic Yes i can't live with DAC-->ADC/DSP/DAC.
its like taking a screenshot with a camera.:facepalm:
No it isn't.
These are cheap speakers and the inexpensive circuit has limits.
That is like cutting your nose off to spite your face.
Transparent DACs have been available for decades, ADCs more recent perhaps, the fact is it may not be technically elegant but it is transparent, and you could probably get away with 5 or 6 more ADC>DAC conversions in line and still not hear it through speakers.
Cheap requires compromise, this compromise is not at the price of audible degradation.
Or buy something 10x more expensive.
 

skyfly

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Another speaker with tweeter without a protection from curious fingers. How much does a metal grill for a tweeter degrade sound quality?
 

Lambda

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No it isn't.
Yes it is.
Its maybe good enough in the end
but converting a digital signal to analog and back to digital to edit it and then back to analog is exactly like taking a screen shot wit a camera.

Everything Adds noise and distortion in this process
and i'm sure you will agree noise and distortion from (DAC + ADC + DSP + DAC + AMP + Speaker) > (DSP + DAC + AMP + Speaker)

DAC and ADC are probably not level matched at all so right there i can see >12dB dynamic getting lost.

could probably get away with 5 or 6 more ADC>DAC conversions in line and still not hear it through speakers.
That's surly not the best ADC because Cheap requires compromise.
If you think 5-6 of them don't matter why do we event bother testing and talking about the specs of DACs and ADCs that cost more then this speaker.
 

hyperplanar

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Another speaker with tweeter without a protection from curious fingers. How much does a metal grill for a tweeter degrade sound quality?
It's a long standing tradition amongst studio monitors at this point, the assumption being that they are to be used in a studio, which usually tends to not have children running around. Obviously this assumption isn't exactly valid for speakers like these that are likely to be used in a home studio or home listening setup, though. A metal grille can make the treble response more uneven unless designed/implemented/compensated for correctly, so I'd guess that grilles just aren't high on the priority list for most studio monitor designers. The KH80/KH120/8030/etc do have grilles though, as they were intended to be portable for OB van use and similar.
 
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