Design

Words can't really describe how well these speakers are designed.  In short, they are a perfect blend of high style and high technology that will not only blend in well with your latest hardware, but will also look great in just about any environment.  After taking them out of the box and setting them up, I can't stress this enough.  With that said, plenty of pics are provided below to not only depict its unique style, but its incredibly high level of quality as well...

**click to enlarge**

Its pod-like design with stealthy matte black finish may not be impressive in photos but when you see them first-hand, you'll absolutely fall in love with them.  These speakers are simply stunning!

Let's start with the large and extremely heavy subwoofer.  Yes, I would like to emphasize on weight because I would say it easily weighs close to 18+ pounds.  The outer shell sports a quality matte black finish and while it may seem to some that the top Razer logo's on each speaker is illuminated, it is not.  Some very early prototypes showed this but the final product design was changed before it was ready for shipping.  No wood here!  These speakers are made of metal and the finish is outstanding.    Moving on, the bottom back is where you'll find its connectors, some of which obviously look very familiar and may even confuse most who purchase this product.  I'll get to that in the install portion but let's just say it is why Razer chose to slap on some warning labels on all of the included cables.

How about a size comparison? 

**click to enlarge**

It is hard to depict in pictures but above is a subwoofer size comparison.  On the right is the sub of my trusty old I-Trigue 3200's.  It looks much bigger on this picture but it really isn't.  The I-Trigue sub is taller but the Mako's sub is much wider.  Now, when you talk about weight, that's a whole other story.  The Creative I-Trigue sub is a feather in comparison.  Yes, the Mako's sub is that heavy and its quality is nothing short of impressive.

The satellites are quite large but unlike the sub, are quite light.  Personally, I find them to be just the right size.  On the rear of each is just one connector that resembles that of a standard LAN jack.  Also note that the bottom of each sports a rubber layer to help keep them in place on just about any surface. 

**click to enlarge**

The most impressive part of its design is the downward-firing, omnidirectional sound it produces.  This provides room-filling sound and I will tell you that it make a hell of a lot of difference over conventional speakers.  I can't begin to tell you how annoyed I've been in the past when something is placed on front of a standard satellite speaker, muffling the sound and affecting overall sound as a result.  Both the large sub and the satellites sport this same design and they are simply designed the way any modern speaker system should be.

**click to enlarge**

Last but not least is that super cool control pod this speaker system sports.  I can't begin to tell you how disappointed I've been with many of them, including some with radio dials that simply can't withstand much abuse.  Razer's answer?  A quality, all-in-one control pod that sports a touch-sensitive LED dial.  All sound controls are touch sensitive and it just darn looks great!  For those wondering, it also features a headphone jack, as well as a line-in jack to support external devices such as your MP3 player.  I will comment more on the control pod in the performance section because I have found that many have commented negatively on it and I do not agree at all with their comments.  The control pod is very cool and I will even demonstrate its features and touch controls via a custom video in the performance section.

Installation

Installation of these speakers couldn't be any easier.  Why?  Well, unlike your average speaker system, the unique yet "fool-proof" cables and connectors make it impossible to screw up somewhere along the lines.  There's just no way to connect the cables improperly, unless you end up plugging them into your network jack or video card!  They are simply designed this way to not only provide the best possible connection, but to make the whole install process as simple as possible. 

**click to enlarge**

When you first open the box, the first thing you'll see are the speaker cables.  At this point, you will not only be highly impressed, but may get slightly confused as well.  Why?  Well, the Mako's ship with very high quality speaker cables that look just like standard CAT5 network cables complete with a standard RJ45 jack.  The only physical difference is that they are flat instead of rounded.  They are super long and of the highest quality. 

This is also why you'll find a number of warning labels attached to them.  Like the control pod, the speaker cables have a label attached to basically inform you that they aren't really what they appear to be. 

Thanks to the proprietary cables, setup is really a no-brainer.  Connect the speaker cables to to the satellites and then plug them in to the subwoofer.  On the back of the sub are clearly labeled connectors.  This includes the connections for the LAN-like speaker cables, main line-in jack, power connector and finally, the VGA-style connector that is for the included control pod.  Yes, even the control pod has a warning label on it so that you don't foolishly try and connect it to your video card!  In terms of standard connections, the sub also sports some RCA audio jacks to connect to other external sources if needed.

**click to enlarge**

Finally, I leave you with distant setup shot to demonstrate just how good the satellite speakers would look on your computer desk.  Contemporary in style, the bottom line is that these speakers will truly enhance any decor.  Like me, chances are that someone you invite over will eventually ask you what the heck the they are.  Certainly a conversation piece to say the least.

Next: Performance