The soundscience rockus speaker system is appropriately named

I usually don't take the time to review desktop speaker systems, but lately I've been on an audio kick. It started with the purchase of a Sonos system (review coming soon) and has recently led me to the soundscience rockus Speaker System.

If you're not familiar with the rockus offering, it includes the usual tricks, including two satellite speakers, a subwoofer, and a remote control pad. What differentiates this offering, though, is what it calls its 3Dsst 3D technology. According to the company, it

"actively analyzes incoming stereo audio signals and intelligently places them into a 3D sound field."

I tested the rocks speaker system with different styles of music, games and movies. The music ranged from classical to rock, and in each case, the music setting of the rockus did a great job of reproducing the sound. I could clearly make out the vocals, when they were present, and was able to enjoy the highs and lows.

When it came to the 3D setting, I was not that impressed. Vocals did sound like they were coming from the middle, but sometimes they sounded muffled. The highs definitely exposed themselves, even at low volumes, so there's definitely potential there. Where the 3D setting shines is in gaming. Even when watching a movie, the music setting was the better option, but once I started gaming, I felt like I was being surrounded by the enemy time and again. The rockus also comes with optical input options, so you can imagine how crisp and clean your games could sound.

Overall the rockus definitely delivers on its name. I haven't tested its maximum volume yet, since I think I might break some windows, but take my word for it when I say that this thing cranks without distortion. It also delivers on bass, and comes set on the subwoofer at the lowest level, but can easily be switched to really bring the bass.

Unfortunately for me, there were two reasons that presented themselves that will keep me from making the rockus my primary speaker system. First off, there's no headphone jack on the remote control pad. My office is below my son's bedroom, so when it's night time I like to throw some headphones in. Also, if I Skype, I usually use a great mic that I have and then use a pair of headphones for the listening end. Since I couldn't easily do this, I kept unplugging it from my Macbook, and then replugging it in the next morning.

The second drawback was the lack of a visual indicator of where the volume knob is set at. I found myself accidentally blowing away the house when I would turn it on at times.

Overall, the Antec: soundscience rockus speaker system is a solid offering, and is a decent buy at $200. For me it's a pass as a primary, but I might end up bringing it to work, since it definitely delivers a solid sound experience.