M&K 150thx (1 Viewer)

[brian a]

I went and listened to a set of these today and was blown away by them. I'd really love to pick up a set, but I'm concerned about SACD and DVD-A. Since these are designed to crossover at 80Hz, I'm not sure how they would perform with those technologies. Anyone have experience with this combo?

 

[Chris Rein]

Brian,

I just received my M&K S-150 system (with SS-150 surrounds) about a week or so ago. I do have a Sony 9000ES SACD player, but haven't checked the sound on the 150's yet. I do not have a subwoofer...yet, but I'll be more than glad to check out the sound.

On another note, RAF would be the man to check this out for you. He's got the 150's and some new toys that makes his system rock. Try sending him an email. He's great about replying.

Chris

BTW, the S-150's are amazing for home theater. I haven't done too much music listening with them yet.

 

[Bhagi Katbamna]

Those are very good speakers. Audiophiles don't usually like them because they are accurate and expose faults in the recording.

 

[BrianAM]

Hi,
I've been running M&K 150's for a few years now and continue to be amazed with these speakers. Like a post above mentioned - they are absolutely incredible for home theater - but, are also striking on music. It is true that they will reveal the details of the recording - good or bad - but isn't that what you want in a speaker? When I pop in a good recording, turn the lights down, and listen to my five S-150's with the Tripoles on the sides - all being driven by my MC-1 in Music Logic with 200 watt Parasound amplification all around - it's an incredible thing. My planned half hour listening to music easily turns into hours (if I have the time ).
Seriously, these speakers sound great with music, and while I currently don't run SACD or DVD Audio, I can't imagine them sounding anything but spectacular with these sources. In fact, many recording studios use these same speakers to mix 5.1 and movie soundtracks.
I say buy them and never look back. Also, look into M&K's stands. While pricey, they are exceptional - especially the ST series.
Good Luck

 

[Chris Rein]

I fully concur what Brian has mentioned.
The M&K stands are incredible! I have the LDM 125's (large) stands and they look gorgeous. They are heavy as hell, and are filled with sand. I've also heard the ST's are great too (and mega heavy!). It did take a couple of emails to good ole RAF about the LDM's, and I'm glad I got them. They come with spikes and enough mounting options to make you crazy. They are pricy, but well worth it. And, the LDM's are wife friendly too
And, if this helps you at all, my wife liked my home theater before I got the M&K's. Now that I have them, she's so glad I upgraded. That's huge in my book!

 

[brian a]

Thanks, guys. I'm doing a more extended demo this weekend, so I'll try to run s SACD player through them and see what I get. They sounded fantastic on the DVD material that I watched, so I have no doubts there. I'll let you know what I find how they do with a SACD demo this weekend. I'm without a processor until the 950 ships and get a little farther down the list, so I can do a home demo until that happens, but I want to have all my home work done by that time and narrow the speaker upgrade choices down a little.

 

[Gregory S]

Hi Brian,

I was in the same boat you are about 9 months ago. I was looking for a stand mounted speaker for music and home theater. I auditioned the M&K S-150, Klipsch RB-5, NHT 1.5, Paradigm (several - can't remember) and the B&W 805. I narrowed it down to the B&W 805 and the M&K S-150...until I read all of the reviews of the ACI Sapphire III LE.

If I was going strictly or for the most part home theater, I would have gotten the M&K's. The B&W's sounded good for home theater, too, but I thought they sounded just a bit harsh and they listed at $1800.00, I believe - the most expensive of the bunch.

I bought the Sapphire's for music and movies - they sound great, but I'm still running them through an old stereo, but with an M&K MX-80 subwoofer. I'm getting ready for the next upgrade. What I like about the Sapphires is their ability to reproduce the lower frequencies and this was what I was looking for in a music speaker. I like M&K speakers, except for the fact that all of them roll off at ~ 80 Hz - great for THX standards. I probably would have bought them if it was not for the bass. What I like about the Sapphires is that you can lower your sub's crossover a little more and avoid the localization issue.

If your talking mid bass - M&K's have great snap, but so do the Sapphires. The only thing the Sapphires can't do is play as loudly - but, they still play plenty loud and clean. The Sapphires are a bit cheaper than the M&K's and also larger, plus I think they look better.

Summary:

> 70% movies: M&K S-150 - can't go wrong

Music and movies: give the Sapphires a listen, especially if lower bass is a concern.

Hope this was useful and not confusing - good luck!

Greg

 

[brian a]

Thanks for the tip. I'm probabably around 80% movies in the theater. Maybe I'll take a look at the Sapphires for the living room where there is a lot more music. I was planning on moving my energy C-6's into the living room for music, but I might start doing some auditioning for music speakers.

 

[brian a]

Do any of you guys have these mounted on the wall? That how they are always shown in the ads. Just curious if that's a good placement.

 

[Russ B]

Brian

All five of my MK-150's are wall mounted. The ST mounts though pricey are excellent. Not only do these mounts allow you to swing the speakers horizontally but there is also a vertical adjustment which allows one to mount them just about anywhere.

 

[Chris Rein]

Russ,

Are you using the Omnimounts for the S-150's? Just wondering. I'm getting some for my surrounds very soon. Just thought I'd ask what you're using to mount them to the walls.

Chris

 

[Russ B]

Chris
I should have expanded a little on my earlier post. I am using M&K's ST Tilt Wall mounts for the front three M&K S150's. They are expensive and the price seems to keep rising (I paid $100 apiece a couple years ago). You can check these out at Link Removed
I looked at omni mounts but I couldn't find any I thought would do the job. Either I thought they were too flimsy or they wouldn't point the speaker to my viewing/listening area adequately.
I am using omnimounts for the two rear SS-150's surrounds as they only rest against the rear wall. No need for the horizontal tilt option nor do they have the weight considerations of the S-150's.

 

[Tony Genovese]

I like M&K speakers, except for the fact that all of them roll off at ~ 80 Hz - great for THX standards. I probably would have bought them if it was not for the bass. What I like about the Sapphires is that you can lower your sub's crossover a little more and avoid the localization issue.

Crossing over at 80hz using the THX crossover removes any localization issue. You simply cannot localize a sub at 80hz. I've owned the Sapphire's, and while very good on music, do not play loud enough to obtain reference levels, if that's what you're looking for. In addition, I found them a bit too "polite" up top, where the M&K's are accurate.

 

[Gregory S]

Hi Tony,

Localization at 80Hz - it depends...for me anyway. I did some experimenting. If I play test tones from audio test disc I can definitely localize the sub at 80 Hz, but not at 60 Hz. Music is a different story. If the bass content is mixed in with other music, localization is not really possible. However, in those moments when only the bass is playing...solo bass guitar, Jurassic Park CD, etc., bass localization can be an issue. Most of the time it's not an issue.

Another point that others have brought up on another forum is distortion. If your subwoofer is being overdriven, higher order harmonics will be audible increasing the chance to localize the sub.

For me - I like the 60Hz crossover for music. Probably could live with 80Hz for movies to squeeze out all of the dynamic range that the Sapphires have.

Like I said, the M&K's do player louder - they're THX certified - they have to hit 105 db on the peaks in a 3000 cu. foot room. However, the Sapphires still play loud, just not like the M&K's. Depending on room size, they still might hit reference level - would definitely need to cross them over at 80Hz then.

It depends on your priorities.

Have a good weekend,

Greg

 

[Brian Corr]

I'm also using M&K 150's with a Denon 3802 as pre/pro and an ATI1505 to power them. I haven't listened to SACD but DVD audio sounds great. They are fantastic speakers for movies and music, although there strong point is movies.