EEVblog

Fixing another two Gen 2 KRK Rokit 6 near field monitor speakers with the black gunk of death and failed capacitors.
How wide spread is this problem?
kit.com/EEVblo...
LOL at KRK Systems: imgur.com/O6lIen1
Forum: www.eevblog.com...
EEVblog Main Web Site: www.eevblog.com
The 2nd EEVblog Channel: / eevblog2
Support the EEVblog through Patreon!
/ eevblog
Stuff I recommend:
kit.com/EEVblog/
Donate With Bitcoin & Other Crypto Currencies!
www.eevblog.co...
T-Shirts: teespring.com/s...
💗 Likecoin - Coins for Likes: likecoin.pro/@...

[@EEVblog]

Given all the "experts" on here with opinions of which speaker is best for studio mixing, what are the best monitor speaks for *speech* reproduction and why, i.e. video editing?

[@BMRStudio]

EEVblog for speech? Yamaha NS-10M only. Nothing else can tell You if You have some weirdness in the mid range. Sounds like crap if the problem present:) sounds neutral, when the EQ-ing is good for most of reproduction on the listener side. The new Yamaha line is also freaking good for video editing. Cheap but excellent monitor speakers. I recommend the HS 7 for You. You will love it!

[@saiprasad8078]

HS5 great for this type of work IMHO☺ --- high VFM -- other option baby genelec doubles the price 😐

[@alext9067]

I hear crickets.

[@bradleyphillips5254]

EEVblog my 2 cents Dave, most folks will be watching on their laptop, phone or flat tv. All have tinny sound.. so I think, edit on something like those, folks with good quality sound systems can probably adjust balance etc for themselves.

[@VRMS_VRMS_VRMS]

Seeing as how studio monitors are designed to be uncoloured (i.e. they should get the waveform you're working with to your ears in as close to a 1:1 reproduction as possible), there shouldn't be any great preference based on source material type. That said, since speech will generally lack a lot of low-end components, that probably means you can get away with putting your money into the overall quality (good brand) rather than trying to go for the larger woofers with more accurate bass reproduction.

[@spingary]

I bought a used Rokit 8 G2. It worked great for a week. I left the power on for about a week and the heat must’ve heated up the black hunk to a point where some of it started conducting. When I tried to use it again a loud high freq noise came out and fried the tweeter. I replaced the tweeter but the problem persisted. I was quick to power down before it did any damage. After watching this video I opened it up and found no bad caps but the gunk was conductive, in some of the same spots of video. I scraped the gunk off best I can. Cleaned it all up and put it back together. Voila! It’s back up and running again! THANK YOU DAVE!

[@RusticRockMusic]

Glad to find this video. One of my 10 year old KRK 5s loss the low freq. I opened it up and found the famous black goo melted to the PCB and components. It chips off kinda like peanut brittle with an Xacto blade. Be careful not to dig into the board and damage a trace. Also, you can't help but flex the caps and soldered components while chipping away at the burnt slather. As you flex the solder joints of a component, you may crack a solder joint, causing the component to work intermittently. It's a careful game to remove the melted insulating goop and not damage the PCB. I've done most of it, I'll report back on how my speaker works after I connect it.

[@juandavidmendezsabogal7122]

Did it work? just got back from a repair shop that could not fix them and I'm guessing this is the issue.

[@RusticRockMusic]

@@juandavidmendezsabogal7122 It did not work. None of the capacitors are swollen nor any visible damage except scrape marks on the PCB. Did the shop say why they couldn't fix yours?

[@juandavidmendezsabogal7122]

@@RusticRockMusic Oh that's unfortunate ;( The shop didn't really know. They did tell me it was a short circuit (I don't really know much about this stuff haha) and I guess it could be the black gunk of death! I'm gonna try, hopefully it works.

[@RusticRockMusic]

@@juandavidmendezsabogal7122 Good luck. Removing the black gunk of death has worked for some. Black Gunk Of Death is a good band name. Lol.

[@juandavidmendezsabogal7122]

@@RusticRockMusic thank you! And that's a pretty awesome idea. I think it could work haha!!

[@PietroCappello]

Hi Dave, just got done a week ago fixing my second krk to fail. The first one had power on Pop and noise. I simply replaced a bunch of the electrolytic caps and cleaned some grey gunk. Everything was fine. Oddly a couple, of days before I saw your vid I decided to work on the krk to get my home studio up and running. I was interested to see what I would find. Sure enough black gunk, but it was like a putty. To my dismay , I was forgetful and failed to put on some nitrile gloves and the putty gunk started rubbing off on my firger tips. My fingers began to burn. It was awful. Got most of the gunk off my fingers that night. A week later fingers are not all that much better. SO BEWARE! However repaired the speaker perfectly. All the best

[@montreadormontrez9378]

Good video, Dave. Just opened up my Rokit 8's and the same gunk was everywhere. One of the monitors broke a while back, kept getting a weird crackle in the tweeter. Spent the day cleaning this crap off and changing a few caps. Good as new! Cheers!!

[@oddgeirs]

This inspired my to check my humming Infinity Primus PS 8 powered subwoofer, that I stowed away in the attic years ago. And there was actually some brown gunk on the solder side of the PCB. After physically removing it with a small screwdriver and cleaning it with electronic cleaner and alchohol, the humming went away. Thanks mr. EEVblog 🙂

[@darrenanderson4550]

Just by chance happen to be using KRK rokits while watching this! Served me well both as reference speakers, and now just general use for probably 7 years now, no issues whatsoever!

[@independenttechnologiesllc514]

We were repairing one of these, the primary cap on one monitor wasn't even soldered to the board. The black goop was the only thing holding the cap in place.

[@hsxenon]

"Sounds like there's no woofer at all." And Dave's voice remains the same.

[@NeuronalAxon]

hsxenon LOL - :)

[@EEVblog]

LOL, I'll pay that.

[@Brendon_yup]

Managed to fix my monitors after watching your videos! Probably saved myself a couple hundred dollars! Thanks so much😊

[@mUbase]

EEVblog. Dave!! It is a massive problem!!!! I worked for a company in London that had the contract on these!!! I repaired hundreds if not over a thousand of these G2 models with the black glue problem!!!! G2's are also notorious for the volume pot failing. To fix that you desolder it and tighten the lugs with a pair of pliers and bingo, its fixed. Resolder it and your pot is as good as new!!!

[@NeuronalAxon]

Stephen Scutt - How long did that fix work?

[@mUbase]

well indefinitely! Squeeze the 3 pot lugs tight to just before the inside of the pot. if the pot was too far gone it got replaced. 20 Kohm if i remember rightly...

[@Power-Wiesel]

!!!!

[@l3p3]

!!!!

[@l3p3]

Power Wiesel, I wrote the same by coincidence!

[@mikesradiorepair]

I can verify that heat speeds up the decomposition of that crap. Doesn't matter what type it is or what it's in. Translucent, opaque tan, black, it all does it.

[@garamelb]

I have to disagree, planned obsolescence is just suicidal for any company attempting to market to the professional industry. Whereas consumer electronics are reviewed at the beginning of their life, professional electronics are typically reviewed based on recommendations within the industry and will include information on the longevity of the item. Intentionally reducing the lifespan of a professional product would destroy the reputation of a manufacture.

[@garamelb]

Wow, lol sorry I replied to the wrong comment.

[@tiavor]

you know that you can edit and even delete your own comments?

[@GeneralPurposeVehicl]

I see one exception: LED lamps. Their efficiency goes down with age anyways so designing them to fail when they become too inefficient with some degree of repairablity would make sense.

[@johnfrancisdoe1563]

MikesRadioRepair Can you tell us which particular chemistry or brand of gunk to avoid?

[@GapRecordingsNamibia]

A bit of a clarification though, studio monitors with headphone jacks and volume controls on the front are more for home and amateur use, Studio monitors such as Rokit, Yamaha, and Presonus (which I use) that do not have the controls on the front are for full on mixing studios or higher end home studios that have audio interfaces like Focusrite, Presonus, and many many more. So basically, the different monitors will be used in different setups. Just my 2c.

[@antoineroquentin2297]

6:53 when there is a short on your circuit board who you gonna call? gunkbusters!

[@techstuff0918]

You are absolutely right, Dave! I had a pair of Rokit 8 Gen2 monitors purchased in 09. Both worked great for 7 years. But in 2016, the right monitor started exhibiting a 60Hz hum leak-through on the woofer. It would hum for about 2 seconds and go away, and everything would be fine. This kept happening, more frequently as weeks went on. Until one day, a final hum played on the woofer. The hum disappeared and so did the woofer, forever. Only the tweeter worked after that. Left speaker was still fine, but I bet in time it would have failed. I gave them to my brother. He ended up pawning them for cash. Ah well!

[@gavsmith1980]

My right 8 gen 2 has just started doing this, buzzes til it warms up then once it’s warm you can’t. Ale it happen again, even by turning it off and on again, glad I read your comment, I’ll be taking it apart and fixing it before using it again.

[@glegalee]

Just picked up a set of these today for FREE ;P Have taken them apart and found the conductive gunk. Going to have a good go at cleaning and fixing them up. Thanks for the detailed video documenting the issue.

[@TonyLing]

I've got some Radio Spares black hot snot glue sticks for potting. They came in hemetically sealed bags with instructions stating that they are hydroscopic, and to put them in a drying oven if they are left out in the atmosphere

[@ranzee]

Dave, I've shared your video with some more global music industry media outlets - hopefully the word gets out and puts some pressure on KRK to act sensible here. My biggest concern is that they've used this gunk everywhere - and someone might get a mains shock.

[@EEVblog]

Thanks, but I doubt they'll ever admit it. They have had the gen 3's out for a long time now I think.

[@richrenken]

Ranzee, Rich from KRK here. We didn't use the stuff, the factory did and we stopped them years ago. Way before G3 even came out. They even tried to argue with us but they finally realized were were right and stopped. It is old news for us. But this great and interesting video is bringing it up again. Just want you to know we are very sensible. :)

[@EEVblog]

Rich Renken - Thanks for the response. KRK are responsible for the manufacture of their products. You can't just say "we didn't use the stuff", because, yes you did use the stuff.

[@seanieb64]

But are you approving warranty claims or extending a warranty to customers that own $400 worth of speakers? The fault for destroying those boards should be with your factory providers not the customer right?

[@richrenken]

Sure, totally agree. But we did not approve it. Once you start shipping a product, sometimes they change things on you. It is hard to catch it all. Plus, as you show, this happens over time. Pretty nuts.

[@chrisroberts2266]

I see this all the time in my work as an Electronics engineer for this very area dealing with repairs of both new and vintage equipment. Brands like KRK that you see in the pro audio world are just to proud to admit mistakes. An example is Crane Song that refused to accept an issue in the micro-controller for a Microphone Preamp worth a LOT of money. where it was meant to change a relay over, it only flicked the relay momentarily. It took a lot to get them to admit their mistake send reprogrammed IC‘s (which were socketed so easy to change) and they made no effort to let any other customers aware of the issue.

[@paulogusmaoguedes4409]

Had the exact same problem on the woofer. Cleaned it up, and now it's working. Thank you very much. I can't hear a particular noise in the tweeter, though.

[@DJignyte]

And years later, one of my gen two Rokit 5's just failed in the same way. No woofer, and now that you mention it, the hissing from the tweeter is far louder in the failed monitor compared to the one thats still working. The one that failed didnt do so suddenly though, the woofer would cut out randomly and only for a very short moment. But it got worse and worse with time until today, it's just not doing anything. Thanks for the vids as always, Dave. This will be instrumental in my repairs!

[@shreddz]

Yep! My Gen2 5's suffered similar problems. I once got the excursion, but one of them had the hiss as well. After replacing the main 4 caps I now get the full power going through the woofer. Clearly heat is the major culprit here. Aus being very hot I wonder if this is as much of an issue in cooler climates? Studios (even project) tend to run quite warm with all the gear. Either way, heat is the enemy of that stuff. Possibly the soldering of stuff could help age the dark gunk too? Gibson bought KRK, so you won't see any accountability at all. They're also circling the drain financially.

[@EEVblog]

Is there anyone who has never had a problem with their Gen 2's?

[@FLYT3-DJ]

I have just found this video 🙏 One of my KRK RP8 G2 is farting from the woofer when i increase the volume when Im mixing but the other speaker isnt..🤔 Could I possibly get some advice on solution 🙌 Kind regards​ @EEVblog

[@SidneyCritic]

It's the classic case where you ask a supplier for a recommendation, thinking they are experts, and over time it fails because it wasn't long term endurance tested in those conditions. Happens in every industry, even saw it in the automotive industry where someone was selling std bearings, knowing it was going in race engines, and they all failed causing tens of thousands of $ worth of damage.

[@mman454]

Where’s the guy from the comments of the last video who said he worked for Krk? Said he was going to pass that video over to engineering and report back.

[@Hcbj123]

Man, i love those fix videos, from dumpster. Please, always do!

[@emersevr]

If you're in any doubt as to the condition of the amp, do NOT power it on while connected to the drivers. Any DC on the output will burn out the drivers in seconds. It really doesn't take that long to disconnect, power on and stick a multimeter across the output with no input and it can save a lot of ball ache!

[@JTHelectronics]

Worked at guitar center for 4 years, can confirm rokits are the best sellers. High frequency hiss in tweeter is common; krk are decent prosumer grade, but that's a common complaint with audiophiles

[@Darieee]

Man I love these followup videos - keep em comin' !

[@Petertronic]

High end equipment had gunk problems too, I used to service Sony Betacam VCR's and there was an audio board that got affected by a cream coloured 'gunk'

[@EEVblog]

Yes, Sony used to use a lot of gunk on stuff.

[@Diggnuts]

Perhaps related to possibly the adult content media industry? Juck!

[@Blox117]

huh, i wonder if that cream colored gunk was the same body fluid, I mean food that i p̶u̶r̶p̶o̶s̶e̶l̶y̶ accidently sprayed into my vcr

[@Petertronic]

@Blox117 Grow up

[@video99couk]

They used it on the domestic Beta (Betamax) machines too. A whole range of Sony Beta machines had a Hall Effect sensor underneath the head drum motor, which would get eaten by gunk. Fiddly thing to change, I've done lots of them.

[@djmikolajczak]

This might have already been mentioned but the reason why it's important to ensure all small holes are sealed, especially in a sealed sub enclosure (verse a ported enclosure), is because small air leaks will make a whistle sound.

[@waynecook3]

Thanks for putting this video up. Helped me sort out my crackling rokit 8's

[@DigitalStains]

Just bought some 3rd gen speakers, scared me for a bit! Glad to hear they supposedly fixed it on the 3rd gen

[@willynebula6193]

DigitalStains mate if i was you i would have a looksy inside

[@DigitalStains]

Willy Nebula gotcha, thanks

[@EEVblog]

Photos would be great, I couldn't find any readily available photos of the Gen 3 PCB's.

[@jusb1066]

well 'supposedly' fixed....

[@herbstmeier]

there's a video of the 3rd gen pcb by sadowick: kzbin.info/www/bejne/h2e6iayFZdyanc0

[@hi-friaudioman]

I dig it! A while back I purchased a pair of JBL LSR502 monitors from eBay and the owner stated that they were both broken, when I received them only one was broken, the other I examined up and down left and center and gave it a clean bill of health but the other had a bad amplifier board, turns out it's a somewhat common issue with those monitors, anywho I picked up an untested $20 replacement and it worked! At the time they were about $150/each and I got the pair for $110. Needless to say I see these monitors in pawnshops all the time, maybe I'll get myself a pair. :-)

[@urspufos]

The consumers should join together and file a class action suit against the company. You could be an expert witness in the trial Dave!

[@damienlobb85]

It's miraculous that the second tweeter issue, didn't blow the tweeter like the first one you fixed.

[@ericBcreator]

I've been using my Gen 2 KRK 8's for almost ten years now every day without any problems so far. Your videos do make me want to check the PCB's. BTW: my tweeters also produce a soft hissing sound, the volume setting doesn't affect it. Not really a problem, when I'm sitting at my listening position it is barely audible.

[@ThomasBrasser1]

I'm in the same situation. My RP8 G2's are probably the only devices I own that I didn't open up yet. (also have them for around 10yrs now). But if I can remove the black crap before they die on me it'll be worth it. I use them not as studio monitors but as a regular stereo pair, and for that they're perfect imo.

[@ericBcreator]

Right, those KRK's are decent speakers for their price. 10 years without any problems is great in my opinion, I have seen equipment fail much sooner. What lifetime did KRK aim for anyway?

[@Schradermusic]

Look forward to that hissing sound getting louder and louder over time until you want to throw things at your monitors because it is so damn annoying. PS: I heard that you can expect capacitors to fail after 5 years on a PC-forum. Maybe that only goes for the ones on Motherboards, though.

[@ericBcreator]

Some hissing seems not uncommon when you listen close to a speaker. I can hear it with other monitor speakers, PA equipment, etc of popular brands.

[@ThomasBrasser1]

ericBdrums yeah, it's analog signal amplification, you'll always have some noise, even when you use the balanced inputs.

[@Qban220]

I was repairing Alesis Mk2 monitors with similar issue. This one had yellow gunk on the board. My power board exploded! I have replaced over 20 components, and cleaned that damn thing . It's not only with KRKs Dave.

[@bluplow]

Hey outta time! I picked up a pair of these a long time ago and replaced the caps and it fixed one of them. However, I do get a crackle out of one of them. It also has a dimmer logo. Not sure if its a burned out LED. The crackle sounds a lot like a blank spot on a record. Yes, independent of volume. I've been too lazy to take them back apart. However, I didn't remove all of the black gunk. The tweeters were a little crushed in shipping so I was going to replace them. I'll let you know what I find next time I take them apart. Love your show. Thinking about starting something similar just for fixing things.

[@samlee2562]

Mine just stopped working last night, I unplugged it then and just opened it up now and scratched all the black gunk I could find off with tweezers... works fine now (hopefully!) thanks!

[@squidcaps4308]

I shared this in our little group and immediately started getting responses: this is VERY common and this rokits are coming in the shops in regular intervals. It is well know problem.

[@GrulbGL]

i think this massive hissing sound is coming from the power amp, and the knob vary the gain of the pre amp, that is why it does not change the whitenoise level. in your USB speakers probabbly you're changing the gain of the power amp itself with the potentiometer, so the noise change as well.

[@0e0]

i was just helping my friend with this issue. thanks for making this video

[@craigeriksson]

oh man I FIXED MY KRK!! All I could keep thinking was you saying ' aw man this stuff is medieeeval' horrible stuff to scrape off especially next to all those delicate components D: Nice one!

[@AgneDei]

I guess it should than also say the you should seal it with silicone or something, but the what's the point of using that black stuff instead of silicone in the first place.

[@ElmerFuddGun]

How about using a small heat gun (ie. your SMD gun) on a low 100° setting to help melt and loosen that gunk up? As long as you keep the temperature down and are careful around the capacitors I think it would make it much easier.

[@Renulph]

What would happen if you use it around the cap? Explosion?

[@ElmerFuddGun]

@@Renulph - Ya, you don't really want to get electrolytic capacitors very hot. Best to use a small SMD hot air station and not a big hot air gun that will heat everything up. LOL... this is an old comment you replied to!

[@Renulph]

@@ElmerFuddGun Would a Wagner furno 300 work?

[@ElmerFuddGun]

@@Renulph - I had to Google that. No that is way too big IMHO. Search for "hot air soldering station". I have an 858D (very common) that I would suggest. Hope that helps.

[@Renulph]

@@ElmerFuddGun Thank you, is that the Sumsour brand? Surprisingly cheap for something that seems kind of dangerous?

[@WalterGalindo]

I actually had to open my rokit 6 gen2 to check for that, thankfully none of that gunk in them

[@thelastofthemartians]

The delayed bass at power up could be because they've replaced the anti-pop relay with a ramped bass filter...that could explain the 16-pin IC

[@AngryDonutGuy]

Had to scroll down for some time to find someone mention this.

[@therealblujuice]

I have the revision 2 G2 with relay and still have delayed bass on. Still trying to figure out where the fault is. I have replaced a lot of caps and cleaned as much as possible. Also changed the resistors he changed with higher wattage ones as mine were also burned.

[@UncleWalter1]

Both of my Rokit 5 G2s failed. They both got the startup thumps and a crackling sound.

[@EEVblog]

Crazy!

[@UncleWalter1]

Yup. But I wasn't particularly mad about it, though. They're a prosumer monitor, and I had long since replaced them. They got me through when I was starting out and they were pretty cheap, even new.

[@UncleWalter1]

By the way, that crackle starts quiet, and then over a matter of weeks of regular use, it'll get louder and louder until they're unusable.

[@CTRIX64]

Sounds like caps are on way out! Got a set of Tapco's off ebay for $30 with a similar issue -- a recap and they are great holiday monitor I can chuck in the car.

[@UncleWalter1]

I have considered repairing them for something to have on the workbench for tunes. For monitoring in my actual studio, I use Focal Solo 6s. But it's not really worth my time at the moment.

[@filenotfound__3871]

the reason the yihon cap failed is because one of 2 balancing resistor was open, sending duble the voltage on one capatitor, nothing wrong with the brand

[@mattmoreira210]

16:43 might be due to spur oscillations either on the power amplifier or the preamp. I recommend checking the bypass caps on the preamp side and adding Zobel networks at the power amplifier outputs, if there aren't any already. Should get rid of most of it.

[@RaulLopez-ke7be]

Bought a Rokit5 G2 from Ebay for a hundred USD repaired it.Now I know the secret solution to the problem.The best sounding monitors in the market.

[@michaeledwards6339]

A nice set of row-kits

[@EEVblog]

If they want the damn rock, include the C!

[@michaeledwards6339]

Hey dave! Sorry just being a smart ass

[@biggityboggityboo8775]

That low level crackling just sounds like upper harmonics from rectified mains creeping in.

[@DjentyDjamie]

Seems like an extremely common problem. At least its not that difficult to replace (soldering was taught in school for me, so maybe not for everyone, but this looks easier to repair than soldering an XLR or TRS connector onto a cable)

[@Subparanon]

12:58 that woofer has a damaged voice coil. Touching it freed it momentarily but I'd expect frequent cutting out until its replaced.

[@PA2OLD]

Hi, A friend of mine also has 2 KRK's, although they work fine, I think it is wise to check them too.

[@xsquaredthemusician]

holy shit this is making me change my mind on my boyz @ KRK. need to check if my monitors are gen 2 or 3. this was fascinating, thank you for the upload!

[@MrDunk66]

Just opened my Rokit 5 RPG2 cabinets and the gunk is still non-conductive. Gunk still rubbery, caps look OK. Fingers crossed.

[@TooliusTech]

Genelec's... mine have been going solid for the last 17 years :D the 1031A are the ones to get :D

[@tubical71]

but we had the 1026A....;)

[@mikewallace1270]

TooliusTech how much?

[@TooliusTech]

check sweetwater mate for latest prices :) I got mine for like 2000 US Dollars back then :)

[@WDaland]

Holy crap, thanks for this. Got two Rokit 5 RPG2, that both failed as well. Might actually open them up and check it out

[@antiquemold]

Solid video! I’m about to attempt this repair on my rokit 8’s. They both failed:o

[@Richard_Ashton]

That gunk is called 'kind dedication' as they say they pour it into every product, according to the link you have.

[@povilasstaniulis9484]

I've read on electronics forums (IIRC, Badcaps) that some computer power supplies had issue with conductive glue as well. But in their case, the PSU would literally explode when the glue became conductive enough.

[@-IFFTI-]

Best solution for this junky speakers is total recap of preamps/filter and amp board! All solid capacitors in the filter block after several years of operation in this oven are suitable for disposal. Bad sound and other surprises are their merit.

[@redtails]

1W1 resistor next to Wun Hun Lo capacitor is a ticking time bomb. They must have perfected the art of planned obsolescence

[@Audio_Simon]

More audio stuff please Dave :) Love it!

[@AdderoYuu]

For that first speaker, the moment I said 'that woofer's dead' it came back😂 it KNEW

[@gordonwelcher9598]

I used to see this gunk problem over 20 years ago on crt computer monitors. They have not learned to stop using this stuff.

[@CalHallows]

Two of mine (bought as a set) both exhibit the problem, one has a completely shot woofer the other one has crackling on the tweeter. Took one apart and removed as much gunk as possible, replaced the two larger woofer caps but problem still persisted. I could tell that the same resistor was corroded as yours are, however still read 2.2k... I also noticed a diode had also been significantly chewed up but couldn't get a reading for it, so replacement is unlikely... Wish KRK would just own up to the black gunk issues and send out a revised PCB to users competent enough to replace them...

[@RolandElliottFirstG]

Interesting to note, I am almost 99 percent sure I have seen these boards on a chinesium site that have them available in bulk, I will try and find the link.

[@tubical71]

this is how the industry works....

[@Schradermusic]

Please tell me if you find it. I'd rather swap the whole board than clean it up and switch out all capacitors.

[@RolandElliottFirstG]

I will , it was not very expensive either from memory.

[@baklap141]

Mine where working perfect last night , turned my 6g2's in today and the left one started crackle and now got no sound anymore. Took out the amp and its full of that conductive stuff around the caps, lights still work. I need to replace the amp board too.....I have these speakers just about one year now 😒 I think I buy a second hand speaker and clean the working board from the conductive glue stuff.....

[@dhpbear2]

You should check and see if they're not putting out DC to the speaker!

[@WaltonPete]

I don't think the potting compound is to blame. It looks to me that the bulging cheap input cap has leaked, seeping under the potting compound and affected the surrounding components.

[@LutzSchafer]

Could it be that the caps have leaked into the potting compound making it conductive?

[@arthurvin2937]

I think it's time to take mines apart, two 10^3 Rokits RPG2. Fortunately, I didn't use them at all, they were just collecting dust in very dry room (I live in Arizona) at room temperature for 2 years. Wonder if they will have the same issue. Any suggestion what's the best gunk removal approach, and shouldn't it be replaced with some other gunk to prevent vibration?

[@skandiaart]

Arthur Vin no you don't have to replace it please don't

[@gerryjamesedwards1227]

Yellow inks fade quicker than other colours. It's why so much box-art in shop windows ends up cyan, as the yellow goes first, then the magenta, leaving the blacks and cyan. I wonder if they'll ever sort that out with synthetic dyes?

[@cw41486]

6:52 Love your Ghostbusters reference. Nice Job!

[@RealZomBiE8192]

This is actually the manufacturers fault. I've seen this on few other active speaker models too. They're cutting corners and using mdf glue in pcb's where it doesn't belong.

[@gavincurtis]

I wouldn't be surprised if the black "dye" used to make the goo black is recycled toner powder which is conductive if memory serves. Once the base material solvent evaporates to the point where the carbon toner particles start making contact with each other aka dry and crusty stuff, you have a paint on resistor. Special secret cheap Chinese recipe.

[@jojoposter]

The Dollar Guy thats actually genius! I like it.

[@willynebula6193]

Godspeed The Dollar Guy you know to much 🤐

[@ZXRulezzz]

Why would a toner powder be mixed in into the compound in the first place? To fake visual properties of some other, proper compound, I suppose? It's the only thing that comes to my mind... I wouldn't buy *that* for a dollar :P

[@wobblysauce]

You might if the other goo was $10.

[@InsideOfMyOwnMind]

When it's all new it's a light/medium tan. Only the heat turns it dark. This was an extreme example of how bad it gets. What is not shown is how it can leach into the pcb and leave it conductive even after you clean the surface. Not good for high impedance circuits. It's the perfect product when used as intended which is to limit the life of the product it's used in. Seriously, there are so many other compounds they could have used that even though I'm not a big conspiracy guy this crap stretches me very thin.

[@michaelklein7451]

Good monitors for nearfield? Neumann KH 120. Not exactly cheap, but precise.

[@jirkasmejkal1698]

Hi, would you kindly cover the hydrogel battery technology ?

[@haxxx0rz]

Incredible! Big fail from KRK. Those who bought Roket 6 gen 2's should be compensated by replacing their monitors by gen 3's for free by KRK.

[@Schradermusic]

It's not just the 6. It's all Gen2 speakers.

[@jmannUSMC]

I'm listening to this video on Gen 2 Rokit 5's. The woofer cones also protrude when powered on, but only if they've been off for a few hours so I expect it to be the same caps in each. The mains filtering is pretty bad too, it picks up the dimmer noise from our kitchen downstairs. None of my other amps pick it up so I also suspect the same bad caps again. I could probably replace them but honestly I'm waiting for them to fail so I can just get another brand. Not a single recall issued, screw KRK.

[@jmannUSMC]

Well here I am again, and the problem finally deserves a proper repair lol. Lost the tweeter now so we'll see what can be done to save it

[@Equiluxe1]

That black gunk has absorbed the contents of the capacitor that leaked.

[@watahyahknow]

the noise is prolly some current still moving / shorting across the circuit board from somewhere , maibe you can use some solvent to get the residue off the boards (prolly removes the writing on the boards too though )

[@UriahSwope]

I've got 2 KRK Rokit 8s Gen 2, one is going strong the other has similar issues. Plus the same nasty gunk inside. I'm going to remove the gunk, and replace the some of the caps.

[@gordonwelcher9598]

Sometimes the liquid that come out of the gunk smells like vinegar. Vinegar is conductive. I think it helps to clean this with water, not contact cleaner.

[@DimaDSP]

12:54 I also did not work. Two resistors and two diodes were rotted. It is necessary to change.

[@kd1s]

I think you leave out one important thing. It's evident in the Yihcon capacitors - it's built to a price point.

[@SaccoBelmonte]

My Genelecs had been running since 2007 non stop.

[@sketchydetail7910]

I had the same buzzing/whine using RCA, swapping to TRS cables fixed it

[@patrickhult]

Hi and a good video dude. Have you report this to KRK management or perhaps sent them this video about their speakers? If not plzzz do. Keep it up.

[@btizef2008]

Man I used to list after these. Was jealous when my mate got a set. I wonder if his still work now lol

[@sandiegodan]

Did you ever find a solvent that breaks down the compound?

[@errornosignal]

I would like to know this as well. I found some replacement amps at fullcompass.com for 1/2 the price of a new monitor. Maybe I can peel it all off of there before installing the board in the enclosure.

[@p_mouse8676]

The sealing isn't overdone btw. Beside that your response will change a little, even a speaker this size will give turbulence noise. To unfortunate Murphy problem. Can ruin your company.

[@cormacjordan7173]

I've just had one of my 8s go a bit shonky. the sound is kinda there then rolls off to a midrangey muffled quiet sound. Looks like I'm going on a gunk hunt!

[@biggityboggityboo8775]

Certain cone materials actually get darker on gradual exposure to UV light.

[@thurejan]

My pair (both of them) just died after 8 years - there were two days between the left and then the right failing. Gunk of death shorted out both of them

[@Xyrium]

Looks like the Rokit line gets the parts bin construction...I wonder about the VXT line!

[@Dassick89]

I got a good deal on 2 gen 2 5s with a 10" sub. First speaker set i ever bought. Within two weeks one speaker stopped working literally blew a uole in the PCB where the woofer resistor was. So i bought another used one. Then the second speaker went out. So i did research and figure out the problem. I replaced it with a gen 3, which doesnt use the black death. Funny how they wont do anything about their product self destructing, but fixed the next gen.... Anyway, i stopped using them a long time ago, and have 2 speakers for the price of 4. Wont be using krk products again.

[@1djbecker]

There is a predictable result from complaining to the compound supplier: "You are holding it wrong" uhmm "You are storing/mixing/curing it wrong". Which might be the case, but the compound shouldn't be so sensitive to conditions that it fails in such a damaging way. There is a lot of high reliability / environmentally robust equipment that is potted. It's frustrating to analyze failures only to find that it's in the expensive potted modules pitched as highly reliable. (I'm looking at you Lambda.) You have to carefully carve away the compound . Inevitably you find that the compound has shrunk, pulling apart anything it can. That's usually laid-over caps which have the leads pulled out of the cans.

[@Schradermusic]

Can you tell me how to remove this gunk if it's still too sticky so scrape it off? Isopropanol?

[@1djbecker]

Compounds are made to be resistant to the environment, which usually means that common solvents and heat are ineffective.

[@billflake8015]

i ran into that stuff ! in the late 70 it was yellow then turned dark brown...eats up metal ! we called it mitsubishi glue ...it was used for years