I never had a chance to listen to the Scansonic speakers because there's no dealer nearby (DFW TX). I am very interested in the MB-2.5 but wonder how it sounds. I recently auditioned Wilson Sophia III, Magico S1 and S3 and those are very good sounding speakers. How would you compare MB-2.5 with those speakers? |
Yeah I hear you Missioncoonery. I kept hearing that Scansonic is $10,000 good from people. That's why I got curious about it. My impression with S1 is that it's good, but lack of bass. You can tell it's less 'complete' when compared to the S3 and others. So your opinion is MB-2.5 is nowhere close to the S1 and the others? |
Thank you xti16. Thats about 150 miles away from Dallas. I have had a hard time to convince myself to drive 4.5 hours round trip to audition a pair of $2,500 speakers.
Missioncoonery, thanks again for your advice. Sounds like the 2.5 is a keeper for you. I know its hard to describe. But since you have experience with both 2.5 and D3, whats the 'missing' 20% from 5he 2.5 in your opnion. Can you PM me the dealer who you boght your 2.5 from? There are a few sellers of 2.5. I am debating to buy new or used. |
Hi Acman, thanks and that sounds like a good plan. |
I bought a pair of dealer demo 2.5s today. The speakers will probably arrive around Thursday or Friday this week. Will keep you guys posted. BTW, I am using Hegel H200 integrated as my main amp. |
Received my MB-2.5s last Friday. The speakers were literally brand new as the dealer said. Then of course they sound brand new, too. My first impression: Large, deep sound stage with pretty decent treble and mid. The bass is boomy as everybody said when these speakers are new and not broken-in yet. I only have a few hours on these speakers so I still have a long way to go. They do need to be separated far. I placed them 9 feet apart as Xti16 suggested and the sound stage is quite impressive. |
I am still breaking in my MB-2.5s so it's too early to give any advice now. I didn't audition my Hegel H200 nor Maggie before I bought them; but they turned out to be very good purchases. I did my research on the Hegel and Maggie and the feedback for these 2 products were all very positive. So I took my chance and bought them. I have enjoyed the music brought by these gears so far. I did the same thing for the MB-2.5s. I bought these speakers without listening to them first. So far I feel the treble and mid of the MB-2.5s are as good as my Maggie. The width and depth of the sound stage is quite impressive. But just like I said, it's too early to tell at this moment. I'll post my updates as I get to listen more. |
Ok, it's been almost a month since I received the speakers. I have about 50 some hours on them so far. Not quite broken in yet but they sound pretty good now. These speakers sounded awful when they were new. So don't rush to sell them if they are new and sound bad. There are a few things to keep in mind: They like to be separated apart far. 9' was the advice I got from Xti16. That's a magic number and it saved me a lot of time. These speakers give a lot of bass; much more than their small and slim size. I came to realize that my room has standing waves issue after I replaced my Maggie with the MB-2.5's. So the size of room and the room acoustic treatment are things also need to be taken into consideration. Once you got everything setup right, these speakers sound great. They sound like Maggie with some good bass IMHO. The high and mid are so good that you can see the singer right in front of you when you play a good vocal recording; nothing in between the singer and you. It gave me goose bumps when I played Amanda McBroom's Live from Rainbow & Stars. They still fall a tad bit short of the overall delicacy and coherence compared to the much more expensive speakers. I found the review written by Alan Sircom is very accurate. Do yourself a favor and read that review first if you are interested in these speakers. I'll sit back and continue to enjoy the wonderful music brought by these speakers while they're still being broken in :)
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Hi Murgeshj,
What's size of your room and the rest of your system configurations? Your experience sounds very similar to mine when I first plugged my speakers. Here is what I have:
Room: 20'(L)x12'(W)x10'(H)
Amp: Hegel H200 integrated
Source: Rega Planet CD Player; W4S DAC-2
Speakers are placed 3.5' from the backwall and about 9' apart. My listening position is about 3' from the backwall. I have bass traps at the 4 corners of the room and the backwall of the speakers. The speakers DO NOT like to be placed close to the backwall.
You should hear crystal clear sound once everything is setup right. 'Lean, clean, detail machine' described by Alan Sircom is exactly what I've heard from my MB-2.5s. I have only heard similar sound quality from much more expensive speakers but not from speakers in this price range.
I'd suggest you to evaluate your room acoustic and speaker placement first. Hope this helps.
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Hi Murgeshj,
Glad you didn't give up on them. Melody was on my short list when I was shopping for amps. They sound great and they are reasonably priced. I end up with choosing solid state due to maintenance consideration. Happy listening. My MB-2.5's continue to surprise me everyday :) |
Have you tried putting bass traps on the corners? I dont think mine has 90 hrs yet but the muddy bass issue was gone after 40 or 50 hrs with bass traps. I am not familiar with your Spec amp so cant comment. Alan mentioned using Hegel H80 and I guess why I am getting good result with my H200. I am still breaking in mine 2.5's but it has become a quite enjoyable process for me. |
Xti16 ~ I did try removing the bass traps once before and it didnt sound good. Not due to boomy bass but blurry mid and high.i think thats because the standing waves in my room. I'll give it another try when mine hits 150 or so. Thanks for all the advices you gave. These speakers are really good bang for the buck. But I have say they are pretty picky too. They are not easy to drive and place. But very rewading when you got everything right. The over all performance is quite close to the other pricey big name speakers. |
I'll try plugging foam into the bott port. That sounds like a logical approach and it's easy to do. |
I plugged foam to the bottom port and it seemed to help. Bass is tighter and cleaner. I'll do more testing and keep you posted. |
Murgeshj,
It sounds like your bass issue is more related to room acoustic and speaker placement. My 2.5's are about 9' apart(from the outter side). They are quite close to the side walls (less than 1.5'). 3.5' away from the back wall. Even without foam plugged to the port, I didnt have the boomy bass issue. Bass traps are still must have for me otherwise the mid and high are blurry (by using electrostat's standard). I havent heard Raidho's myself so I cant comment. But I can tell you the MB 2.5's soudstage and the darkness of the background are comparable to a few name brand speakers that I owned or auditioned before. I used to regret selling my Martin Logan and Maggie, but not anymore. I recently audioned some 10k plus speakers and I think 2.5's are still a strong contender in the space. I am not sure whether 2.5's are the right speakers for you or not. But I am sticking with them for now :) |
I posted a video on YouTube to show how my MB-2.5's sound. I'm not good at A/V production so both video and audio quality are not too good. The audio quality is only a fraction of what it really sounds in the real world. The song is 'The Song My Mother Taught Me'. |
I think I am a little bit over 100 hrs since I lost track of time. Per Xti16's suggestion, I plugged some foam (not a lot so the air can still flow) to the bottom port. The bass sounds cleaner and tighter. I invited a few friends over this weekend to listen to my system. They all thought the system is balanced and lively. We tried different USB, interconnect and speaker cables. The system revealed the characteristics of those cables precisely. I had a rocky start but I'm having a lot of fun now. BTW, I also tried USB Regen brought by my friend. That little thing worked beautifully. I'm going to buy one for myself. |
Xti16 - Thanks again for the advice. I'll keep track the hours and try paper once it's over 250 hrs. My speakers are sitting on carpet now. I'll try adding concrete/granite slab under them and see what difference that makes.This is a lot of fun :) |
Murgeshj - Glad it works out for you too. I've been enjoying the sound brought by these puppies and playing with different cables and tweaks. As I said before, the break-in process is quite enjoyable now :) |
I am still at the 200 hrs range with foam.Sounds fantastic even not fully broken in. I tried putting granite tiles under the speakers but didnt like the sound so gave up on that. |
Hi Murgeshj,
I think the MB-2.5 is lean, clean and fast. They are also very revealing. Different source systems and cables can make quite a bit difference based on my experience. I've been experimenting interconnects recently. The sound from Synergistic impressed me the most. But they are pricey ($2,000+ MSRP). A budgeted alternative I've found is Silnote Morpheus II Series II (purple label). I think your 'life-like' description is very similar to my experience with the MB-2.5's when they're paired with the right components and cables. Enjoy! |
I know it sounds unreal to the 'non audiophiles' that cables make difference. You can find a lot of debates if you google the related subjects. Cables do make significant difference in my system. Even the USB cable. Yes, a lot of people criticize the high end USB cabkes and say they are snake oil. I cant explain why (I have a MS degree in Computer Science) but my cuurent USB cable (Anticabkes USB) sounds the best after I've tried several. The are priced from $10(Belkin) to $1,000. Interestingly enough, none of them sound the same. Power cord is another important one if you havent explored yet. But cables are also very system deoendent. Make your own judgement call is what I'd say. Have fun with your 2.5's is the most imoortant thing, isnt it? Happy listening :) |
I don't think there's a simple answer to the cable selection question. It depends on the whole system from end to end. And some times the answer could be subjective. I try not to over spend on cables since I believe majority of the investment should be in the source, amp and speakers. Cables can really push the system to its limit once you've settled on the major components. Seriously, I think my MB-2.5's outperform some of the entry level big name speakers that are priced at $10k range. But that's just my opinion :) |
Murgeshj,
Glad to know that you enjoy your 2.5's. The 2.5's could be a little bit short in the mids as you said. I found that can be compensated by cables. Several interconnects I tried sounded very detailed and dynamic but too lean when they're paired with the 2.5's. But I think I've found the one that fits my budget with the sound I like. Anyway, congrats 9n yiur success with the 2.5's. Keep us posted if you find new tweaks. |
Has anybody auditioned the MB-6's? If so, would you mind of sharing your experience?
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Davegoodrich, I bought my MB-2.5's from Alfred without listening to them first. Luckily there were Audiogon members like Xti16 who advised me during the initial setup and break-in period. I like my MB-25's a lot and they sound way above their price point even at the $3.6k MSRP. As good they sound, there are things to be aware of still:
1. Room size and placement: These speakers are not designed to fit into a small room. My listening room is 14x20x10. I place my speakers 9' apart and 3.5' from the front wall as Xti and other members suggested. Their sweet spot is a little bit narrow but much better than the planar speakers.
2. Break-in: They didn't sound good at all when they were just out of the box. They need at least 200 hours or more break-in time to start sounding good. The difference is night and day. For those who sold their 2.5's with less than 100 hours, I feel sorry for them since they haven't heard the real sound of the 2.5's yet.
3. Room treatment: Don't be fooled by their slim size. The 2.5's produce high volume of bass that could be excessive for rooms with hard surfaces and glass windows. Bass traps and sound panels are tweaks may be considered.
4. Source, amplification and cabling: The 2.5's are very revealing. They are lean, clean and fast. I think they are power hunger but there are members on this forum have successful experience with low wattage amps. Since the 2.5's are so revealing, the selection of source and cabling will also significantly impact the outcome of your system.
Since audio is a very subjective and personal hobby, I'd still suggest you go listen them first before making a purchase if possible. |
The Scansonic sound is quite additive when everything is setup right. I have about 500 hours on my 2.5's and they sound great. Upgraded my DAC and power cord recently and my system's sound continues to improve.
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I still enjoy the sound of my MB-25's after almost a year since I purchased them. As a former owner of Maggie and Martin Logan speakers, the best I could describe the MB-2.5's sound is they sound like like a pair of Maggie's plus some quality bass. They need a bigger space than a bed room for sure, they need to be placed carefully, they are power hungry, they like quality source and cables, room treatment is almost a must-do, they need at least 100 hrs or more to break in. But they are also very rewarding once you have everything in order. I could understand why there are so many low-hour MB-2.5's for sale on Audiogon. Because these speakers sound HORRIBLE before they are broken in and they are not the easiest speakers to deal with.
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Murgeshj I am glad that you've found a pair of speakers that you like. The best part of our hobby is that there is no single correct answer to all of us. I'm still happy with my 2.5's. I think I will sell them one day just like what I did with the other speakers that I've owned before. Until then, I still consider the 2.5's one of the best investments that I've done for my system.
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Murgeshj I experienced the 'boominess' in the early days of my 2.5's but it hasn't been an issue after 200 or 300 hrs. May be my ears were 'trained' to get used to the sound :) I saw your posts on YouTube and I think the 2.5'a may not be the best speakers for your listening environment. I grew up in Southeast Asia and I am quite familiar with the living environment there. The concrete and tile constructed hard surface structure can be a major issue for speakers like the 2.5's. Have you tried British made speakers like Harbeth or Spendor? My guess is those speakers may sound pretty good in your listening room.
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Jonmc138 it's nice to know that I am not the only person who likes the 2.5's. I am lucky enough to be able to separate my 2.5's 9' apart and still have about 1.5' from the side walls. The 2.5's don't sound as good as the much more expensive speakers if you like full orchestra music. But for the music l like and listen to frequently (Jazz, Vocal, Chamber), my 2.5's have done an outstanding job for me. |
Murdeahj,
ATC SCM7 are very good sounding speakers. I think adding a Rega CD player to your system will make your bed room a very enjoyable place. |
I suggested Rega was because of the SCM speakers. I used Rega Planet, Apollo CD players before. I borrowed my friend's Rega DAC and DAC-R and used them on my system for extended period of time too. I owned my Planet for more than 10 years and never had any issues. Sold it dirt cheap and felt like to keep it still :)
Rega products all have the similar signature sound. The difference is in the details. They all sound very open and natural. I changed to Hegel HD-25 after I sold my Rega and W4S gears. I have also tried Ayre DAC on my system and I like it very much, too. So give Hegel and Ayre DACs a try if you have a chance. |
I have had them sing quite loud a few times by plying drums and percussion. I don't think they 'rock' at the concert levels. They can sing loud but I don't think they sing well for rock concerts.
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