M&K S150 and X10 sub

[AVSMike]

M&K sent me a pair of their S-150 speakers and their X10 subwoofer. The S150 uses two 5.25" woofers and three 1.1" soft dome tweeters mounted in a shallow waveguide. Fit and finish was very good and the speakers feel very solid. These speakers are designed to be used with a sub, since their -3db crossover point is 75db. They paired up nicely with the X10 sub crossing over at 80hz. The X10 sub uses two dual push pull 10" drivers in a sealed cabinet. Once again, the cabinet felt very solid, when you rapped your knuckles against it.


I connected these up in my family room system to my Denon AVR and tried them out with music and as right and left mains in my home theater set up. I used Audyssey XT32 for room correction. The clarity and dynamics of the speakers was good. Nothing was masked or muddled. And with three tweeters, the clarity and dynamics were still there, even when turning up the volume. The S150's performed equally well at high volumes, like you would expect from a good HT speaker. When used as two channel, the imaging was good, giving a nice sound stage between the two speakers.

The X10 sub was placed at the front of the room and was used as a speaker stand for the right S150. The X10 with dual long stroke 10" drivers provided good strong bass response. I normally run my subs a little hot, but with the X10, I did not feel the need to do so. The sub had good output and impact for movies, but was not overly intrusive for music. The bass was solid, not bloated.


I had this system in my house for a little over a week. The performance of the speakers and sub were good and a complete M&K HT setup would set a nice benchmark for performance, especially if you like your system to be able to perform well at higher volumes. If you get a chance to listen to M&K's speakers and subs, be sure and do so. If you have any questions on M&K products, be sure and give us a call.

[AVSCraig]

Here are some photos -

[AVSCraig]

And the X10 subwoofer -

[AVSCraig]

The fit and finish on these is fantastic. And I love the magnetic grill attachment on the S150's !

[AVSCraig]

I have to say that so far these speakers sound fantastic. I have a long time M & K owner buddy coming tomorrow to listen to them. So more impressions later this week.

[AVSCraig]

The M & K demo speakers are wowing my friends, and I might have someone that wants to buy them based on hearing them for their first time.  The first comment out of his mouth was " I want these " - he was that impressed. I have the S150's set up in my dining room with the X10 sub, and I'm running them as 2 channel audio with the subwoofer. I'm playing some really good jazz CD's for demo material, and I'm getting comments on the clarity of the sound, and the amazing sound field these produce. I debated on whether to set these up in my home theater, or on their own, and I'm glad I kept them on their own. People are impressed with these speakers! I have a long time M & K owner coming tomorrow, so I'll let you know what he thinks.

[BigScreen]

Mike,

Is there guidance from M&K about the placement of these speakers?

i.e. Do they work best on stands with airspace around them, or could they be mounted in a wall cavity surrounded by fill so that they would be flush to the wall?

[AVSMike]

Mike,

Is there guidance from M&K about the placement of these speakers?

i.e. Do they work best on stands with airspace around them, or could they be mounted in a wall cavity surrounded by fill so that they would be flush to the wall?

They will work baffle wall mounted.

[AVSCraig]

My M & K speaker demo was quite the hit. My long time M & K owning friend was extremely impressed with how they sounded, the crossover, and how the S150's sounded seamless with the X10 subwoofer. Some of my demo CD's are shown. These are outstanding speakers !

[AVSCraig]

I'd like to get these eventually for myself.

[dc2bluelight]

Sorry for bumping an older thread.

A little more background on the M&K S150. 

The original S150, designed by Ken Kreisel, looked identical to the current model, but there are differences in the drivers and crossover.  The S150 was, at one time, very much a defacto standard in the film industry for smaller mixing rooms.  It still has a strong presence in the film.

The new version is different in several ways, notably the crossover and drivers, of which the new MK Sound company has made effort to improve manufacturing control.  The result is a somewhat smoother sound than the original, though honestly, the difference is not huge. 

Of note about the 3 tweeters and two woofers...the point is to control vertical dispersion.  The original Home THX standard (now THX Ultra2) specifies wide horizontal dispersion but limited vertical to keep less energy from reflecting off the ceiling and floor of an untreated room.  It does work, quite well.  The actual energy coming from the upper and lower tweeters is quite low relative to the center.  The smooth off-axis response is responsible in part for their neutral sound.

As to mounting, they can work well in most common positions.  Remember that the original Home THX specs relate to high performance in common "living room" type spaces.   M&K makes an in-wall version, the IW150 too, basically the same speaker without the back box. 

As to legacy M&K speakers, there simply are no more original drivers available and the new ones are not a compatible replacement, though the crossover can be repaired if damaged by a defective amplifier.

[AVSCraig]

I really like the sound of the M & K's. I know Tom B. bought some from me. Maybe he will chime in.