M&K S 150 THX Ultra vs 750 THX select (1 Viewer)

[John Menoni]

My theater space is 21 feet long. I have an L shaped room with a very narrow seating area. I am going to power the speakers with Outlaw audio 7100 amp and 950 pre. I am undecided on weather to settle for the 750 select system or go for the 150 system that I always wanted. Is it worth it? Thanks.

 

[David Barteaux]

I upgraded from 850's. The 150's will simply blow them away. Yes they are worth the extra.

 

[John Menoni]

Thanks Dave. You just made my mind up for me.

John Menoni

 

[Kenneth Harden]

I am making the same decision!!!

David, please compare the 850's to the 150's for me in some more detail. I am very interested.

I have demo'ed the 750's and am very impressed - I cannot imagine what the 150's would be like!

I'll let you in on a little secret: these will be going in a 13 X 13'6 room for a few years

 

[David Barteaux]

You must audition for yourself if they are right for your room. The 150's are THX speakers and have a very narrow vertical dispersion as per spec. You must aim the tweeters directly at the listening position, the same as a professional recording speaker.
The bass response is better than the 850's. They image better, and have more dynamic range. I know because I had both in my room and the 150's are by far superior. That is saying alot because the 850's are a very good speaker as well. The 150's will also be better with dedicated amplification as opposed to just a reciever...they demand good clean stable amplification to sound their best. The amp should be rated for 4 ohm load. Some of the high end recievers will do the job also, but amplfication is the key to get the M&K's to sound their best. If properly set up like a recording studio, it's almost a religious experience

 

[Phil_DC]

I spent almost six months researching, listening to , and reading reviews on just about every known speaker system I could find and when I finally heard the M&K 150's I was done.

I have a 7.2 M&K 150 configuration with two M&K 350 subs and not only are they outstanding for movies they are equally as outstanding playing DVD-A and SACD music.

They do have one drawback, when I demo my system quite often people are so taken by the sound they don't want to leave.

 

[Phil_DC]

I agree!

I use the Sunfire Cinema Grand seven amp very clean virtually tailor made for the M&K 150.

If you plan on listening to a lot of SACD or DVD-A music on your system then I would also highly recommend getting a M&K BMC Mini Bass Management Processor. I use one and I in my system and I love it.

 

[John Menoni]

Wow! Now I really can't wait to get the MX 150 system. It is the system I always wanted and I am going for it. I am going to power it with the Outlaw audio 7100 7 channel amp. I believe it is 165 watts a channel with 4 ohms. That is exactly what M&K used to power their powered version of the 150 system so I assume it should be good. I can't wait!

John Menoni

 

[John Menoni]

Phil, I also have a 350 sub and plan to get one more. My room is 21 feet long and anywhere from 6-10 feet wide in the seating area(my furnace room juts out and cuts into the middle of my seating area). Do you reccomend that I place both subs in the front of the room. Or should I put one sub in the front of the room and another toward the middle of the room? Thanks.

John Menoni

 

[Kenneth Harden]

Thanks for the info!

I listened to the 750's at work and I was impressed. I tried a Linkin Park DVD-A disc and drove them with a Denon 3805 (what I want to buy, would add a seperate amp later) - if you have ever heard Linkin Park, like the music or not, it is extremly dynamic and demanding.

I had the volume WAY up and it was very clear. I cannot imagine what THREE tweeters would do!

Hell, I bet for my 13 X 13'6 bedroom, the 750's would be fine - I am just crazy and want a big system for down the road.

I also need to dig up a sub.

PS: I realize the 3805 isn't rated to drive 4 ohms, but M&K said they use them and love them, and it works fine - obviously a nice amp would help!

 

[Scott Stephens]

couple of questions...i am VERY interested in the 150 series. i plan on building a dedicated home theater (room size roughly 25' x 20') with 2 rows of 4 chairs. the second row will be on a riser, placing it several inches higher than the first row. will the vertical dispersion limitations of the 150's present a problem in this setup?

also, i am planning a 7.1 setup. while i think the tripoles would be ideal for all 4 surround speakers, that is a lotta buck. i was thinking about using the tripoles for the 2 side surrounds, and then just the standard direct 150's for the rear surrounds. i'd like to hear what some 150 owners think of this proposed setup. thanks.

 

[Kenneth Harden]

Scott, only a $350 difference between S-150's and SS-150's - so not a big deal if you are dropping that sort of cash.

I wouldn't be too concerned about the dispersion - I think the idea is you can't toss them up on stands or a shelf and be done with it - you need to SET THEM UP like you would any good speakers. Probably angle the speakers so they were pointing at the seating areas exactly (not 5, 10 degrees up or down)

 

[Phil_DC]

There is a better way to go other than a second 350 and that is to get a SVS PC ultra sub, apparently the 350 and SVS compliment each other very well. There was a website that had detailed info on how to properly set up the combo but it is gone.

The jest was since the SVS will go lower than the M&K 350, the SVS was set to do everything I believe lower than 35HZ and the 350 to handle everything above 35Hz. This way you get the ultra lows that the M%K can’t produce but still get all the great lows is can.

I wish that site had not vanished I was planning on adding a SVS to my system using it as a guide line. Now when I do it I will have to play it by ear literally.

 

[Kenneth Harden]

The M&K's really only go to 35 Hz or so? Seems kinda weak.

 

[Phil_DC]

That is what I have,

You would want tripoles for the sides that’s for sure, you could go with either tripole or the S-150 in the rears, I have tripoles in the rears my self.

The SS-150 tripoles are very versatile; you can setup them up as tripole, THX dipole or direct radiator. So you can easily modify the rear tripoles to suit your listening pleasure should you wish to have the tripoles in the rear.

 

[Scott Stephens]

kenneth,

i haven't spoken to a dealer yet (still about a year out from building my house and home theater), but i was under the assumption from previously published prices that the s-150's were about $1750 a pair, while the ss-250 tripoles were about $1500 EACH. let me know if this is erroneous...if there is a negligable prices difference, of course i would prefer to go with the tripoles for my rear surrounds...thanks...

 

[Kenneth Harden]

Sorry, I thought you meant the SS-150's.

Nevermind!

 

[John Menoni]

Supposedly the M&K 350 and 5000 THX subs go down below 20 HZ. I have the 350 and although I don't have a sound meter to prove it, it seems like the bass is very low. Should I realy consider going outside the M&K family?

 

[Phil_DC]

They have a anechoic response as low as 18hz and typical room response as low as 20hz the SVS PC ultra will go as low as 12hz.

By no means are the M&K subs weak my pair will easily rattle the the dishes in my china cabinet which is in another room more than 40ft away from them.

If you go with dual M&K 350s I would suggest you put them in the front side by side close to a corner with about a 12- 18inch separation between them. Rooms vary so you will probably have to adjust them a bit closer-farther apart to get them where you want them sound wise.

 

[John Menoni]

Thanks Phil! I will look into that other sub as well.

John Menoni