Andy Sz
Grip
- Joined
- Dec 24, 2002
- Messages
- 24
After doing a ton of research on this forum and others I decided that the set that would best meet my (and the wife’s) needs would be the HTD Middies (available at www.HomeTheaterdirect.com). I have seen only 1 first hand account of these speakers so I figured someone might like to hear what I (a total NON-audiophile) have to say.
First, let me say that customer service is GREAT. I traded quite a few e-mails with Chris over at HTD and he was very helpful with all of my questions. Now onto my speaker experience…..
PACKAGING- When I opened the boxes, I was impressed at how well they were packed. Double-boxed and protected on all sides by styrofoam. Well Done! Included with each speaker were an owner’s manual and a set of self-adhesive rubber feet and a set of foam feet. Speaker wire/Sub cable is not included. No problem. I went down to the local Home Depot and bought some 16 gauge wire as well as some “F to RCA” adapters to convert an old RG-6 cable I had lying around into a sub cable.
APPEARANCE- The Middies are smaller than I imagined. And this is a good thing, as the wife wanted something as close to Bose cubes as possible. The Middies are roughly the size of 2 Bose cubes stacked up. The dimensions are 9.5”(h) x 4.5”(w) x 5.25”(d). The sub’s dimensions are 14”(h) x 11”(w) x 15”(d). Again, it meets the WAF specifications…I bought the black set and the finish is VERY NICE. I like that the speakers are made of MDF rather than the typical plastic you usually find in this price range ($499).
PERFORMANCE- Here’s where my non-audiophile status comes into play. I don’t know a whole lot about the technology of speakers, but I do know what my ears tell me. And here is my point of reference: I recently auditioned the Bose Acoustimass 6-III in my house. Therefore I will be comparing the Middies to the Bose (unfair to Bose maybe?).
First thing I noticed were the gold 5-way binding posts on the Middies. Now I don’t know if this gives a performance boost over spring clips, but it does give the consumer a feeling of high quality to see them on the back of the speaker.
So after setting them up in the conventional way with the five sats going to the receiver and the sub connected to LFE out, I popped in the beach scene (scene 1?) of “Saving Private Ryan”……WOW!!!!! You could hear the soldiers on the vehicle puking right next to you as they approached the beach. You could hear the bullets whiz by your head. You could feel the explosions.
The Bose, on the other hand, hardly output any bass whatsoever. The cubes were crisp but had almost no mids or lows at all. And my ears got tired of the sound after about 10 minutes. With the Middies though, the sound was much warmer. You could hear the highs, the mids, and the lows. The sub, although it is only an 8” woofer, really put you into the action. I was VERY IMPRESSED and experienced no fatigue whatsoever.
Next I threw on “The Matrix”. In the first scene, Trinity jumps into the air and freezes while the camera circles around her. This scene really works out the sub so I was eager to see how the Middie sub handled it. Of course, it passed with flying colors. I repeatedly played that little part of the scene and every time I did, the smile on my face got wider and wider…….The it was on to the “Dodge This” scene. Again, absolutely amazing!
IMPROVEMENTS? – Whenever you purchase something, there will be some things that you would like to see improved. . As happy as I am with the Middies, they are no different. However, these things are VERY minor and have nothing to do with performance.
The first thing I noticed is that the grilles on all 5 sats are identical, meaning they all have a small “HTD” badge at the bottom of the grille. No problem, right? Well, I laid the center sat horizontally on top of my TV. Now the “HTD” badge is on the right side and the letters are sideways going vertically. It takes away a bit from the aesthetics of an otherwise attractive speaker.
The only other thing I’ve noticed is that the grilles come off very easily. Now nothing has happened in the 12 hours that I’ve had them set up, but I am a little concerned that the grilles will work themselves loose and fall off. However, as I have never owned a high-quality set like this before, maybe this is the norm. Perhaps you can tell me.
THE BOTTOM LINE- I’ve only had the Middies set up for about 12 hours, and have only listened to them for about 2 hours, but so far I am EXTREMELY HAPPY with my purchase. The speakers really look beautiful and perform even better. From what I’ve read about break-in, the Middies should only improve their already outstanding performance as I break them in.
If you are searching for a set of cubes to satisfy your space limitations or the WAF, take a look at the HTD Middies. They are a bit larger than Bose cubes but they definitely outperform them (it’s not even close)! You will not be disappointed.
By the way, if you would like any specific info on these speakers, please feel free to post a response here or send me a PM.
First, let me say that customer service is GREAT. I traded quite a few e-mails with Chris over at HTD and he was very helpful with all of my questions. Now onto my speaker experience…..
PACKAGING- When I opened the boxes, I was impressed at how well they were packed. Double-boxed and protected on all sides by styrofoam. Well Done! Included with each speaker were an owner’s manual and a set of self-adhesive rubber feet and a set of foam feet. Speaker wire/Sub cable is not included. No problem. I went down to the local Home Depot and bought some 16 gauge wire as well as some “F to RCA” adapters to convert an old RG-6 cable I had lying around into a sub cable.
APPEARANCE- The Middies are smaller than I imagined. And this is a good thing, as the wife wanted something as close to Bose cubes as possible. The Middies are roughly the size of 2 Bose cubes stacked up. The dimensions are 9.5”(h) x 4.5”(w) x 5.25”(d). The sub’s dimensions are 14”(h) x 11”(w) x 15”(d). Again, it meets the WAF specifications…I bought the black set and the finish is VERY NICE. I like that the speakers are made of MDF rather than the typical plastic you usually find in this price range ($499).
PERFORMANCE- Here’s where my non-audiophile status comes into play. I don’t know a whole lot about the technology of speakers, but I do know what my ears tell me. And here is my point of reference: I recently auditioned the Bose Acoustimass 6-III in my house. Therefore I will be comparing the Middies to the Bose (unfair to Bose maybe?).
First thing I noticed were the gold 5-way binding posts on the Middies. Now I don’t know if this gives a performance boost over spring clips, but it does give the consumer a feeling of high quality to see them on the back of the speaker.
So after setting them up in the conventional way with the five sats going to the receiver and the sub connected to LFE out, I popped in the beach scene (scene 1?) of “Saving Private Ryan”……WOW!!!!! You could hear the soldiers on the vehicle puking right next to you as they approached the beach. You could hear the bullets whiz by your head. You could feel the explosions.
The Bose, on the other hand, hardly output any bass whatsoever. The cubes were crisp but had almost no mids or lows at all. And my ears got tired of the sound after about 10 minutes. With the Middies though, the sound was much warmer. You could hear the highs, the mids, and the lows. The sub, although it is only an 8” woofer, really put you into the action. I was VERY IMPRESSED and experienced no fatigue whatsoever.
Next I threw on “The Matrix”. In the first scene, Trinity jumps into the air and freezes while the camera circles around her. This scene really works out the sub so I was eager to see how the Middie sub handled it. Of course, it passed with flying colors. I repeatedly played that little part of the scene and every time I did, the smile on my face got wider and wider…….The it was on to the “Dodge This” scene. Again, absolutely amazing!
IMPROVEMENTS? – Whenever you purchase something, there will be some things that you would like to see improved. . As happy as I am with the Middies, they are no different. However, these things are VERY minor and have nothing to do with performance.
The first thing I noticed is that the grilles on all 5 sats are identical, meaning they all have a small “HTD” badge at the bottom of the grille. No problem, right? Well, I laid the center sat horizontally on top of my TV. Now the “HTD” badge is on the right side and the letters are sideways going vertically. It takes away a bit from the aesthetics of an otherwise attractive speaker.
The only other thing I’ve noticed is that the grilles come off very easily. Now nothing has happened in the 12 hours that I’ve had them set up, but I am a little concerned that the grilles will work themselves loose and fall off. However, as I have never owned a high-quality set like this before, maybe this is the norm. Perhaps you can tell me.
THE BOTTOM LINE- I’ve only had the Middies set up for about 12 hours, and have only listened to them for about 2 hours, but so far I am EXTREMELY HAPPY with my purchase. The speakers really look beautiful and perform even better. From what I’ve read about break-in, the Middies should only improve their already outstanding performance as I break them in.
If you are searching for a set of cubes to satisfy your space limitations or the WAF, take a look at the HTD Middies. They are a bit larger than Bose cubes but they definitely outperform them (it’s not even close)! You will not be disappointed.
By the way, if you would like any specific info on these speakers, please feel free to post a response here or send me a PM.
I think HTD "quoted" me on their website because I ran these babies through some sound tests to see if they "really" played down to 100hz and they did! 
