Monster Rockin Roller Reviews – Buyers’ Guide, FAQs, Performance, Budget Alternative & More: If you are looking for outdoor party speakers, chances are you already have come across Rockin’ Roller models from Monster. The American brand is quite popular in the audio equipment market for its various speakers, headphones, earphones, microphones, AV cables, and many other products. Whether it’s an entry-level or a high-end unit, there’s a Monster speaker available for buyers in every price segment.
When it comes to big-format party speakers, you get to choose from hundreds of appealing options at various price ranges. However, it’s essential to pick the best one that can get loud enough to fill a crowded space.
Such speakers are often large and heavy, but the bass they reproduce is more on the deeper and thumpier side. They usually come with extra inputs to connect them to external audio devices. Those who don’t want to deal with external power outlets should also pick up a battery-powered unit for an untethered outdoor party. Additionally, some units come with an IP rating for water resistance. It allows them to withstand light rain and survive spills and splashes.
The Rockin’ Roller speakers from Monster check nearly all the following boxes, and they aren’t even super expensive. If you are a party aficionado and searching for a carriable party speaker, the Rockin’ Roller 270 is a fantastic choice.
Monster Rockin Roller Reviews: In-Depth
We highly recommend you go through some of our Monster Rockin Roller reviews before making a final purchase decision. This article will tell you everything you need to know about the speakers.
Monster Rockin’ Roller 270 Portable Indoor/Outdoor Wireless Speaker
The Rockin’ Roller 270 belongs to Monster’s lineup of large battery-powered party speakers. It’s designed to provide optimal sound for outdoor events, delivering up to 200 watts of power. The speaker unit also has a built-in battery, giving it up to 100 hours of playtime.
Like most other party speakers, the Rockin’ Roller 270 is pretty big and weighs quite a bit. It resembles a medium-sized carry-on suitcase. The handle and wheels make it easier to move around, given its not-so-portable form factor.
This is an outdoor speaker with an IPX4 weather resistance rating. The exterior is made of tough and rugged material, keeping the internals protected from extreme weather conditions. It also does have wireless connectivity, and you can control the speaker via Monster’s official companion smartphone app.
For a party speaker that costs a fraction of similarly-equipped units from more popular audio brands, the Monster Rockin’ Roller 270 offers fantastic value. The following breakdown of the speaker will give you a more in-depth idea.
Design & Build Quality
- Dimensions (W x H x D):2 x 18.6 x 10.8 inches
- Weight: 13 kg / 28.66 lbs
- Material: Plastic
The Monster Rockin’ Roller 270 has a straightforward design that doesn’t attract too much crowd. The exterior cabinet is mostly made of solid, matte black plastic, with three silver metal grilles covering the front and side drivers underneath.
The front control panel gives you access to the various physical inputs and a wireless pairing switch, along with dedicated buttons for controlling the audio playback, switching tracks, adjusting the bass/treble, changing the audio source, etc.
There’s also a large volume knob, with gain and echo adjustments for the guitar and mic inputs. The small LED seven-segment screen above the control panel shows the music playtime and indicates the battery life, FM radio, and connected sources.
There’s nothing special on the back of the unit, other than the power switch and an AC power outlet for charging the speaker. The entire back features a cool honeycomb pattern design that you won’t likely notice for the most part.
The top grooved portion of the speaker unit acts as a storage compartment for your smartphone. It even has a Qi wireless charging pad below it, which can top up a supported device while you listen to music. Alternatively, you can use the 5V/2.1A USB port to charge your phone from the speaker’s internal battery.
The Rockin’ Roller 270 isn’t very portable, given its weight and dimensions. Luckily, it has a handle and two wheels built-in so that you can move to different places without picking up the entire unit. It’s also battery-powered, meaning you don’t need to keep it connected to an active power outlet.
Overall, this Monster speaker has a decent build quality. The plastic doesn’t look or feel cheap at all, and there are no weird seams or edges for dirt and debris to get stuck. The IPX4 rating for water resistance also makes the unit immune to light rain and other weather conditions, though we haven’t tested its claims.
Connectivity
- Inputs: 2 x ¼” Guitar/Mic plugs, 1 x 3.5mm AUX, 1 x USB Type-A (only for charging)
- Wireless: Bluetooth 5.0, NFC
The Monster Rockin’ Roller 270 offers versatile connectivity options, including two standard quarter-inch jacks for connecting microphones and musical instruments and a single 3.5mm AUX port for a wired audio source (e.g., smartphones, iPod, music players).
In terms of wireless connectivity, it features Bluetooth and NFC support. Connecting to the Rockin’ Roller 270 is as easy as putting the speaker in Bluetooth pairing mode and selecting it from your device’s settings menu. Or, you can simply put your NFC-capable smartphone on top of the speaker to connect automatically.
It’s worth noting that there’s also a full-sized USB Type-A port, but you can only use it for charging purposes.
You can even connect two Rockin’ Roller 270 speakers in truly wireless mode. It simply requires you to put them within 10 ft. of each other and then press and hold the “TWS” button for a few seconds. You won’t need to carry a lengthy cable anymore.
Performance
- Max Output: 200 W
- Sound Coverage: 270°
- Speaker Drivers: 1 x 50 W, 2 x 15 W, 1 x 10 W
The Monster Rockin’ Roller 270 claims to provide up to 200 watts of output. Along with the primary driver, there are two smaller ones on the sides of the unit, offering a 270-degree room-filling sound that’s ideal for indoor and outdoor parties.
In our tests, we found the Rockin’ Roller 270 to have a decent frequency response accuracy. With the bass level set to “01,” the speaker has a boomy yet balanced sound profile that suits various genres of music. If needed, you can press the red “Bass Boost” button to add more bass to your audio output.
One odd thing we noticed is that the speaker performs slightly better while connected to a power outlet. While this leaves Monster’s signature sound profile intact, it results in a slightly louder audio playback. If you find a power source nearby, you may want to plug it in.
The Rockin’ Roller 270 also has a good soundstage. It can playback stereo tracks without downmixing them to mono. Since there are multiple drivers laid out on the front and sides, the output has some directivity, and it sounds clear from most angles.
While the speaker has pretty decent dynamics, the output gets slightly distorted at maximum volume.
When playing music from a smartphone via Bluetooth, we didn’t notice any audio cut-offs or noticeable quality drops, even when the devices are placed within a few feet apart. Output from a wired source also comes out crystal-clear.
All in all, the Rockin’ Roller 270 sounds excellent both indoors and outdoors. We are quite satisfied with its performance and believe you would find it enjoyable as well.
Battery Life
- Battery Capacity: 9Ah / 9000mAh
- Power Input: AC
The Monster Rockin’ Roller 270 offers a monstrous battery performance, thanks to its 12V 9Ah cell. This speaker can offer up to 100 hours of playback time from a single charge, though it can vastly vary depending on your usage.
A few minutes of charge gives it plenty of juice to go on for a few hours. It also automatically enters standby mode after 15 minutes of inactivity, giving you more playtime. You will never have to worry about battery life with this Monster speaker.
Smart App Controls
The Monster Rockin’ Roller 270 is compatible with the Monster Zone Control app, available on Android and iOS. It’s a basic companion app featuring EQ presets so you can tune the speaker’s sound to your preference.
Not only that, but the app also offers options to link two Rockin’ Roller 270s to cover a large space. In addition, you can control the volume, adjust the bass and treble, switch between input sources, and surf through FM radio frequencies.
We didn’t mention lighting up until this point, but the Rockin’ Roller 270 does have two LED lights you can easily control via the app. It offers various lighting effects, a brightness slider, and an intuitive color palette for you to change the LED color to your liking.
But that’s not to say the app doesn’t have issues. We encountered several instances where the Android app would outright refuse to pair with our Rockin’ Roller 270 for no reason.
The iOS version fairs slightly better in that regard, though sometimes it would simply stop responding and crash. Hence, we think the companion app needs dire fixing.
Monster Rockin’ Roller 270: Verdict
The Rocking’ Roller 270 from Monster is an exceptional speaker for the price. It’s great for outdoor parties, even though it isn’t the most portable party speaker out there. Luckily, it has a carrying handle and heavy-duty wheels, making it convenient to take it with you on the go.
The large speaker driver gets very loud, and the smaller drivers on two sides provide some directionality to the audio output. It’s suitable to use in crowded spaces. Battery life is also outstanding on this speaker as it lasts up to 100 hours from a single charge. This ensures you never have to connect it to a power source outdoors.
The only caveats of this speaker are the compression artifacts at maximum volume and mediocre companion app experience. If you can overlook the cons, the Monster Rockin’ Roller 270 is the best wireless party speaker you will ever need.
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| Monster Rockin’ Roller 270 | |
| Pros | Cons |
| It gets decently loud | Distortions at max volume |
| 270° audio, good soundstage | The companion app isn’t great |
| Dedicated button for bass boosting | It isn’t very portable |
| Rugged build, IPX4 rating for water resistance | The USB-A port can’t be used as a playback source |
| Built-in Qi wireless charging pad | |
| Fantastic battery life | |
| Reasonable price | |
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Budget Alternative: Monster Rockin’ Roller 4
- Dimensions (W x H x D): 18 x 16 x 9 inches
- Weight:5 kg / 25.5 lbs
- Inputs: 2 x ¼” Guitar/Mic plugs, 1 x 3.5mm AUX, 1 x Line-Out
- Wireless: Bluetooth, NFC
- Playtime: Up to 100 hours
The Rockin’ Roller 4 is a much smaller party speaker than the 270, but it manages to achieve maximum 100-watt output. It’s more than enough for small beach parties and is also great for indoor usage.
The drivers in this portable speaker get surprisingly loud, producing rich, crystal-clear sound for the crowds. It can last a day’s worth of continuous usage on a full charge, though you can squeeze up to 100 hours at lower volumes.
The Rockin’ Roller 4 features two quarter-inch inputs for connecting instruments and microphones, a regular 3.5mm audio jack for use with smartphones and music players, and two USB ports for playing music right off a flash drive. There’s also a line-out port in case you want to use two Rockin’ Roller 4 units simultaneously.
This speaker has Bluetooth connectivity so you can go fully wireless as well. It also allows for linking two RR4’s together and wirelessly streaming synced audio from both units. Plus, there are built-in slots that let users stack and lock the second unit on top. It enables a clutter-free setup and secure transportation.
Speaking of transportation, the Rockin’ Roller 4 has a built-in telescoping carry handle and two rolling wheels that make carrying the speaker around more convenient.
The nifty control panel gives you access to all the necessary buttons and knobs you need to make the most of the speaker, but you can do the same from your smartphone using the official Monster Zone Control app. There’s also LED lighting on the speaker that you can customize to your preference.
Other features of the RR4 speaker include easy access to NOAA Weather Radio forecasts and a built-in bottle opener. These small additions make outdoor weekend parties safe and fun.
If the Monster Rockin’ Roller 270 is out of your budget, the Rockin’ Roller 4 should be a more reasonable choice, given its lower price.
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| Pros | Cons |
| Impressive performance for its size | Lacks weather-resistance rating |
| Portable, easy to carry around | Mediocre smart app controls |
| You can wirelessly link two of these | Limited availability |
| Long-lasting battery life |
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Monster Rockin Roller Reviews: FAQ
Q1. Are Monster Rockin’ Roller speakers worth the price?
Considering most Monster Rockin’ Roller speakers are value-oriented and often heavily discounted on online shopping sites, we think they are worth the price.
However, it’s also easy to overpay for a Monster party speaker if you don’t know the retail price, so make sure to verify that before you place an order. You can also click our buying links to check the current price of the above-listed Rockin’ Roller models.
Q2. Does the Rockin’ Roller 270 really offer 100 hours of playtime?
It’s possible to get close to advertised playtime at lower volumes. When using the speaker at higher volumes, it can be close to half of the claimed battery life, which is still respectable for a portable party speaker.
If you want the most playtime out of the Rockin’ Roller 270, make sure to turn it off when not in use. Disabling the lighting effects and not using the Qi charger will also improve the speaker’s battery life.
Q3. How to use NFC to connect to a Monster Rockin’ Roller speaker?
In case you already forgot, the newer Rockin’ Roller speakers come with NFC (Near-Field Communication) connectivity. As long as you have a compatible smartphone, all you need to do is tap it to the speaker. Your phone will automatically send a Bluetooth pairing request to it.
NFC makes connecting to a Monster speaker straightforward and intuitive, but sometimes it may not work reliably depending on your device. In that case, you have to follow the tried-and-tested method of connecting via Bluetooth.
Conclusion
Monster offers some of the best speakers of various shapes and sizes, and its wireless Rockin’ Roller models are quite appealing. If you are in search of the best outdoor party speakers, this article covering monster rock n roller speaker review should finally help you make a solid purchase.
Note that we chose not to mention the Monster Rockin’ Roller Mini and Rockin’ Roller Charge here, since they have been recently discontinued. That said, the speakers may still be available for purchase depending on the leftover stocks.
Those who have more questions regarding the following party speakers can ask us in the comments below. If you wish to see more of these reviews, let us know as well.
