Ruark Audio MR1 MK2 Soft Grey

I bought these for my desktop PC to replace my Creative 5.1 speakers that I'd had faithful service from for over 15 years.I'm no audiophile (far from it), so I can't give details of range frequencies and tonal distortions etc. I do however recognise and appreciate quality and these speakers have it in spades. The sound is very rich and full and gives great detail and clarity.The design and build is "old school". They are compact, heavy and solidly built, with a practical no frills styling. The light grey was my colour choice. I love the single dial/button that is conveniently placed (not all speaker makers are so considerate) on top of the right speaker and controls on/off, volume, and input selector.I must admit that these were more expensive than most of the speakers I looked at but the reviews and recommendations could not be denied and I've certainly no regrets for paying more.

I bought Ruark MR1 MK2 and I am disappointed by a strange and very audible vibration from the left speaker. I have checked and it is not the surrounding objects or my desk that causes the vibration. This is such a shame because otherwise the speakers sound fantastic and I didn't expect such hi-fi level sound coming out from such desktop speakers. Too bad I have to return the item (and it seems that Amazon now do not provide free return and I have to pay for the shipping, which is particularly disappointing).I am quite sure I will buy it again, but perhaps I will have to wait until I get the refund. Ruark Audio, if you are reading this, it would be greatly appreciated if you could help me solve the problem! If it can be fixed in a simple way, I will not have to return it.

I've been looking for a new set of speakers for my PC to replace my B+W MM1 speakers which were donated to my wife. I was happy with the sound of the MM1 speakers, but they're discontinued I started looking for similar compact speakers capable of great sound quality. After an extensive search of online reviews, I finally decided to try the Ruark MR1 Mk2 speakers, they seemed to offer the right balance of size, quality and budget.Well I have to say the reviewers were right, these speakers are brilliant. They're perfect for hooking up to a PC, working equally well for music, video and gaming purposes. For such small speakers the quality of the sound is superb (audibly superior to the B+W MM1 speakers!), crystal clear with no distortion even at high volume levels. The bass is also more than adequate for use on a PC; however, you might want to consider adding a sub-woofer if you're planning to use these in a home theatre setup.

Ok so these are really compact speakers - desk speakers even, smaller than a regular bookshelf model like the Q-acoustics offerings. Considering they are powered speakers this is an impressive offering indeed.Of course there are acoustic compromises - you won’t get deep, well-defined bass, bright midrange and clear crisp high tones from such small speakers but only the bass is noticeably lacking to be fair and the mid- and high ranges are well handled. These can be paired with a sub-woofer (which I don’t have) and that ability is there for a reason I suppose.But if you want to get good audio for everyday use as a non-audiophile, without losing all your desk (or shelf) space to speakers then these will do the job, without being tiring to listen to or obtrusively coloured in their sound.If I have one criticism it’s that the speakers will “sleep” if you aren’t actively playing through them (in AIX in mode) and it takes them a second or so to wake up or you need to turn them off and on with the (infrared) remote. Not fatal, and better for the speakers and the environment to save a few watts in standby, but you’ll notice it. And isn’t it time remotes on these sort of devices used wireless, not infrared? Don’t cover the sensor …

Very impressive speakers that will reward being supplied with a high quality source yet also present well with low quality compressed (Spotify) material. The bottom end is very well managed providing a clean controlled bass and overal tonal balance whatever the volume.The blue tooth integration has suprised me allowing reliable switching between tablets and even an Amazon Spot clock. You can ask Alexa to connect/disconect very effectively or, as an alternative use the remote control. Being in control of how your source is connected is important as you don’t want your Alexa morning alarm balsting out if the soeaker unexpectedly- Ruark have done a great job putting you in control.Bluetooth audio performane has also exceeded expectation - really rather good.Appearance is also a strong feature, in the light grey thay look stylsh and very high quality.These are not just another blue tooth speaker and you will quickly feel rewarded for spending that littke bit more for a well sorted product with HIFi performance.I have no affiliation with the vendor and don’t usually do reviews, I am just very pleased with this product.