Evaluating The Soundscience rockus 3D|2.1 Speaker System

I recently had the opportunity to test an interesting range of speakers aimed at PC users, the Soundscience Rockus 3D | 2.1 designed by Antec. At first glance, these speakers might not stand out with their small-looking satellites and unassuming rectangular sub, but upon closer inspection, there's obviously something special going on here.

Before I go into some details, let me briefly point out the main features and specifications of the Soundscience rockus 3D|2.1 speaker system (Feature list and specifications courtesy of soundscienceaudio.com):

3Dsst digital surround signal processing - 3Dsst is a suite of DSP (Digital Sound Processing) algorithms that creates a virtual surround sound experience from 2.1 stereo speakers.

Active subwoofer with passive radiator - This compact unit produces an extended low frequency response and produces deep bass from a compact subwoofer enclosure, eliminating the need for a larger, bulkier subwoofer.

Pre-assembled speakers/stands - The speakers are shipped out of the box for a quick setup.

Magnetically shielded speakers - This ensures that your components and speakers are protected from interference from other magnetic fields.

Three entrances - Enjoy three audio sources simultaneously. Connect your computer, console game and portable device at once.

A look at the specifications reveals nothing out of the ordinary, except perhaps the speakers' support for digital 3Dsst surround signal processing. But dig a little deeper and some very interesting features become apparent.

The Soundscience rockus 3D|2.1 loudspeaker system consists of a subwoofer, two satellites and a wired control unit. Let's start our discussion with the satellites. The cylindrical enclosures, which house 2.5-inch drivers (25W each), are made of anodized aluminum. The volume of the enclosures is specifically tuned to the driver, and due to their shape and rigid construction material, they help minimize distortion.

Moving on to the Control Pod, the simple-looking, round devices allow users to easily adjust, select and input volume, and change sound mode selections from 3D to music modes. There is nothing more to say here. The pod does its job and works as it should - but the cable that came with it was a bit longer for me.

Now to the subwoofer. Like most other 2.1 channel speaker systems, the sub-assembly houses the kit's amplifier, and the satellites and control console are all connected directly to it. The sub is powered at 100W (total power for the kit is 150W) and features a 6-inch passive radiator driver. If you're unfamiliar with the term, a passive radiator is somewhat similar to a typical driver, but it lacks the large magnet and is not powered. Instead, because they are in the same physical enclosure, when the actual subwoofer vibrates, the air within the enclosure is compressed (or decompressed), forcing the passive radiator to move with the subwoofer. The use of a passive radiator extends the bass range, which means that the Soundscience rockus 3D|2.1 can generate deep bass from a relatively small sub.

Music:
Overall, the looks of the Soundscience Rockus 3D|2.1 probably won't appeal to everyone - the satellite's cylindrical casings with chrome trim and large honeycomb grilles aren't particularly attractive. But the sound that this kit can produce is simply impressive. We listened to a variety of music sources on the Soundscience Rockus 3D|2.1 speaker system, including low-quality streamed internet radio, high-bitrate MP3s, and store-bought CDs. They have excelled all along the line. The almost total lack of distortion from the speaker system itself seems to mitigate some of the poor audio quality of streamed content at all, except at the highest volumes. Playback of high bitrate files was just superb. Listening to a variety of top 40 tracks, including artists like Pink, Cee Lo Green and Rhianna, we were consistently impressed with the speaker system's sound quality. Highs are clean and very crisp, mids are clear and easily distinguished, and lows are solid and punchy. Ditto for the store-bought CD playback, which was also excellent. We tried CDs that had everything from the Walk the Line soundtrack to children's tracks by Laurie Berkner and they all sounded great.

Movies:
Watching movies was also mostly very good on the Soundscience rockus 3D|2.1. We watched a handful of movies, including Zombieland, WarGames, Saving Private Ryan, Forgetting Sarah Marshall, and Walk the Line, and the sound quality was great throughout. Vocals were particularly distinguishable and highs were crisp. As good as the sound quality was, however, this 2.1 channel setup just can't compete with a true 5.1 setup in terms of positional audio/surround sound effects. While the sound quality was great, the movies were perhaps not as immersive as they would have been with a surround sound setup. Which brings us to the kit's 3Dsst support. That's how it's explained...

“3Dsst is a suite of DSP (Digital Sound Processing) algorithms that create a virtual surround sound experience from 2.1 stereo speakers. The technology analyzes the frequency content and panning/positioning of sounds in the incoming audio stream, and then uses certain types of filters and phasing to expand the soundstage and create the effect of hearing a much larger surround speaker system.”

Personally, I didn't find any content that was particularly enhanced by 3Dsst. However, it's easy to turn off, so it's not an obstacle in any way.

Play:
Many of the same comments we've had regarding movies apply to games as well. We played a lot of Left 4 Dead and Left 4 Dead 2, F1 2010 and Bad Company 2. BC2 and F1 2010 performed exceptionally well. The quality was excellent and the shots and explosions in BC2 were clean and clear. These are great speakers for gamers who don't have the space for a true surround sound setup.

Ultimately, I really liked the Soundscience rockus 3D|2.1 speaker system. For under $200, they're definitely worth considering.

By: Evaluating The Soundscience rockus 3D|2.1 Speaker System