KRK VXT User Manual

USER GUIDE

KRK VXT SERIES

BI-AMPLIFIED

STUDIO MONITOR

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ntroduction

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Congratulations on your KRK purchase! And welcome to the growing family of KRK
owners.

KRK’s VXT Series of powered studio monitors are precision speakers designed to
forever change the way you handle your most demanding audio jobs. VXT means truth in
French and that’s just what these monitors are all about - they reveal the truth in your audio
material.

The VXT monitors feature key design elements that continue to make the KRK sound a
“studio standard”. The series was created using stringent design philosophies similar to
KRK’s flagship close-field monitor, the Exposé.

The VXT Series includes new custom made woofers and tweeters, a curved front panel for
improved imaging, a new cabinet design that provides improved structural integrity and
extended low end and slotted ports that greatly reduce port turbulence. What’s more, we’ve
provided valuable and practical features like an improved speaker protection circuit for
added confidence and new drivers for extended frequency response.

The result is a studio reference monitor that you can trust, delivering defined low end,
articulate midrange, and precise, natural highs.

Whether you are making critical mixing decisions or need to capture the subtle nuances of
a unique sound, you’ll quickly discover that the VXT Series is as precise about your work
as you are.

This manual is intended to inform you of the many features of your new VXT monitors and
their operation. We encourage you to take a few minutes to familiarize yourself with this
manual. Thank you for choosing KRK!

IMPORTANT NOTE: Your VXT monitor was originally packaged in a specially
designed carton. Please save these items. They should be used when transporting
or shipping your monitors.

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Design Philosophy

A studio monitor is a tool used to aurally “measure” the changes in an audio path. Ask any
seasoned recording professional what they think makes a great studio monitor and you’ll
get basically the same answers: “Accuracy, transparency, flat response, and the truth.”

Simply put, recording engineers want the electrical signal entering their monitor to be
reproduced mechanically by the transducers and they want this to occur without any
deviation or compromise to the original signal. Professionals depend upon their monitors to
deliver their artistic vision in a way that will translate as accurately as possible to a
variety of audio mediums. Technically, this is accomplished by designing a monitor that
addresses three critically important criteria: Spectral Balance, Distortion Management, and
Resonance Management.

1. Spectral Balance (Timbre)

Research confirms that proper spectral balance is important for a studio monitor.

Spectral balance is defined by:

• Smooth on-axis response

• Smooth octave to octave response

• Smooth off-axis response

From years of listening to feedback from some of the top engineers and producers, KRK
engineers have come to understand how a properly tuned monitor can become a valuable
recording tool.

The VXT monitors have been designed to be as flat as possible so that what you hear
represents the true nature of the audio material without coloration or enhancement. You
can be confident in the fact that your mixes will be accurate and phase coherent.

2. Distortion Management
Any loss or addition to the audio signal is a distortion and this can occur in the speakers
themselves. The VXT series has very low speaker distortion which, of course translates into
improved reproduction accuracy.

Various amplifier distortions have been eliminated as well; the most common being
intermodulation, transient intermodulation, and harmonic distortion.

Distortion can also occur when the waveform is impacted by physical conditions such as
port turbulence and diffraction. KRK engineers have implemented design concepts that
eliminate or minimize these damaging conditions.

3. Resonance Management
Resonance is the tendency of something to vibrate at a particular frequency after the
source of energy is removed.

Resonances also play a major role in impacting the performance of a speaker. KRK design
elements minimize driver and enclosure resonance.

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Design Elements

New Custom Made Tweeter and Woofer Designs – KRK is renowned for designing high
performance studio monitor drivers. Your VXT monitors are no exception. A woven Kevlar® low
f

requency driver was custom-designed specifically for each model. Kevlar® is one of the
strongest, lightest, most rigid materials that can be used in modern speaker cone construction.
Kevlar’s unique physical properties minimize axial or conical break up modes. Both tweeters and
woofer provide faster attack times. The new tweeters provide enhanced high frequency
extension with improved distortion characteristics.

Resonant Free Extended Low Frequency Enclosure Design - The cabinetry of your VXT
monitor is constructed from ABS Structural Foam which provides stronger structural
integrity compared to cabinets made from standard ABS solid materials. Because of the
increased strength of this process, the cabinet walls can be thinner than would be from using
MDF, increasing the interior volume of the cabinet which equates to extended low
frequency response. Structural foam also provides enhanced dampening characteristics which
greatly reduces cabinet resonance.

New cabinet design provides many benefits – Due to the radical design of the cabinet, your VXT
monitors are manufactured using ABS Structural Foam. The Cabinet has inner and outer walls
with a lightweight foam filling. ABS Structural Foam has many advantages over the
standard ABS enclosure. One advantage is the Cabinet can be made with thicker walls. Having
the foam between the inner and outer hard shells acts as a damper and reduces the potential of
resonances. Another advantage is that the walls can be thinner than they would be in MDF. This
allows for more internal volume allowing the system to extend its lower frequency capability. The
third advantage is that there are no parallel internal walls. This eliminates standing waves and
or nodes which are extremely detrimental to the internal and external acoustical response of an
enclosure. These characteristics aid in eliminating the cabinet from potentially coloring the
sound of the speaker system.

Active Filter Crossovers - The VXT series power amplifiers contains three active filters.
(Subsonic, low-pass and high-pass filter) These three filters work together to provide a
seamless integration of the driver components ensuring a smooth spectral balance.

Bi-amplifier Design– KRK’s amplifier consists of audiophile grade components and a
simple audio path for transparency. Output power is balanced to match LF and HF driver
sensitivities and power handling. Your VXT monitors use a toroidal power transformer for low
hum and minimum noise.

Contoured Faceplate – Like the KRK flagship close-field monitor, the Exposé, all cabinet edges
and port openings are heavily contoured to reduce diffraction resulting in better detail and stereo
imaging. The curved faceplate offers improved off axis dispersion aiding in off axis imaging

Slotted Ports – Slotted ports reduce the port turbulence and distortion commonly found in
poorly designed round ports.

Defeatable Limiter ­protection. The Default setting for this switch will be in the OFF position.
to mitigate the negative effects of over driving the amplifier and or the speaker’s drivers. The lim­iter, when engaged, can greatly reduce the risk of harming a driver. It can however be defeated
using the “Clip Indicator/Limiter Switch” on the rear panel. This is only recommended if you are
using your monitors well within their limitations. Use the indicator on the front baffle to help
determine the optimum level without audible distortion.

The monitors contain a limiter circuit which provides improved

The limiter is designed

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