KRK VXT6 monitors: How long between breaks?

Question

I've owned a pair of KRK VXT6 monitors for about a year now. I'm very happy with them overall but they do seem to get rather hot after periods of extended use. Not burn your hand hot, but enough to make me wonder whether it's detrimental for the speakers.

I've consulted the manual and there's nothing in there regarding overheating. I guess common sense should prevail. I live in a hot climate (Bangkok) but the room is air conditioned and if anything, it's too cold.

Some days they're working, non-stop, from 7 a.m. to midnight. There are no heat sinks on the back of the cabinet.

So, without wanting to be too subjective here, and there any rules of thumb regarding how long speakers may be used before they earn a rest period? For example, in a proper studio, would a pair of monitors ever see 15-18 hours use?

Answer 1

Since KRK VXT6 are "active" speakers, ie have built-in amplifiers, I suspect it's the amps that causes the speakers becoming hot. High temperatures could, potentially, lower the quality but I wouldn't worry too much about it.

The speakers are after all marketed as studio monitors and in my opinion that should qualify them for use over long periods of time - 24+ hours non-stop recording sessions are not that unusual.

Answer 2

In a proper studio, it is not uncommon for studio monitors to see continuous use for days on end. Power amps get hot, but they are designed with tolerances in mind, so I doubt that you'd experience any problems based on that factor alone. Still, you may want to shoot a quick email to [email protected] to ask them what the typical temperature should be. They are actually responsive, unlike may MI manufacturers' service departments.