Mission Speakers

[Michaelholder1]

Hi, I am currently looking at buying my first proper audiophile system and am looking second hand at the moment. I had set my eyes on the B&W 600 series but I feel I should really be looking at other brands if i want to get a good deal. Its normally the case that the more of the speakers there are available second hand the cheaper they will go, and I have noticed there is an incredible amount of second hand mission speakers for sale but I can find very little about their older speakers. Does anyone know which of their older models are good and what sort of prices I should be looking at? My budget is around £100-£150 but may be pushed to £200 with a really good deal. I am very good at finding good deals so post ideas above my budget! Cheers for any help you can offer, Michael.

 

[matthewpiano]

The 751s are superb and available at good prices. These will still compete with far more expensive models.

 

[Michaelholder1]

What sort of price range should I be looking at with these speakers? Also what kind of sound do they give?
What about mission's floorstanding speakers?

 

[Michaelholder1]

What sort of price range should I be looking at with these speakers? Also what kind of sound do they give?
What about mission's floorstanding speakers?

 

[Dougal1331]

Mission produced some excellent speakers in the nineties. I've owned many of them...

My top picks would be, in no particular order:

753 - Amazing- top end of your budget but worth it if in good condition

752 - simply brilliant. Plenty online about these. Often cited as Mission's best speaker ever...

751 - diminutive standmounts with surprising bass, again excellent.

773e - upbeat, breezy floorstanders with tight, punchy bass. Very good, but not with thin sounding kit! Get it right and they sing.

782 - 3-way design, with bass unit on the side of the cabinet. Look great and sound it too. A little top-happy though.

780 - Whether the old model or the more recent version, you can't go wrong with a 780 or two.

and if you like it loud, but still good, try these...

732i - Bold, brash and big standmounters. Bass you could knead dough with. Not the most subtle but very enjoyable!

733i - Floorstander version of 732. As above but with more depth to the bass.

734i - Dual-driver floorstander. Capable of organ-rearrangement, but very good overall quality and detail. Can be had for about £150...

 

[AmigaNut]

I have Mission 700LE from the 80's fantastic sound, clear and fabulous sound stage.





Example on Fleebay

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/MISSION-700-SPEAKERS-/140950656721?pt=UK_AudioVideoElectronics_HomeAudioHiFi_HiFiSpeakers&hash=item20d15056d1

AmigaNut

 

[matthewpiano]

Reference the 751s (the original versions, NOT the Freedoms), they are a tight and rhythmic sounding speakers with surprising bass performance for the size but never ever boomy. Vocals are an absolute delight and the openess and sense of atmospheric detail is astonishing to the point where I've heard very few speakers that do atmosphere as well. There is no veil with the 751s yet they aren't harsh and always invite you into the music. I put mine on a couple of days ago for a change and I've been reminded why I've always loved them all over again.

 

[Michaelholder1]

So I take it the 751s, 752s, and 753s are the ones to be looking out for and theyre from around the late 90's? So how much should I be paying for these and is there any newer mission speakers to be looking out for? How do you find these compare to the B&W Dm600 series?

 

[matthewpiano]

I'd say somewhere around the £100 mark for the 751s, maybe more for a really mint pair. They leave anything you can buy new for less than £300 for dead so even as much as £150 is a bargain for a good pair in my book. They have much better mid-range and treble than the DM600 series IMO - more natural at the very top and with a less nasal sounding midrange, though both the Missions and the B&Ws are very good speakers. Worth mentioning that I've had the current 686 and 685 B&W models and prefer the Mission 751s and my Quad 11Ls with the 751s being my current favourites.

Mission went off the boil latterly and, to my knowledge, they haven't produced anything to match the 75 series since, although I haven't yet heard the new (and expensive) SX series.

 

[Michaelholder1]

Well I'll take the 685s of your hand if you dont want them . So I guess the 751s are great in my price range but you're clearly bias towards them so I'll probably keep Dm600 series on par with them. Any other speakers you'd suggest in this price range? What amps wouild you match with these speakers?

 

[matthewpiano]

Ha ha, the 685s are good speakers but I found them a bit tiring over long listening sessions. When I get the chance I like a good 3 or 4 hour session and the 685s started to grate on me after about one CD. The 686s aren't very good - too sludgy in the bass and no spaciousness in the midrange. I sold both.

I'm not particularly biased towards the 751s. I've had them a long time and they've had long spells in daily use and long spells in storage, but every time I go back to them I'm mightily impressed. Other forum members are just as evangelical about them, if not more.

I'll give some further thought to other suggestions and come back to you.

 

[GMK]

It's interesting you don't rate the 751 Freedom nearly so highly

 

[Dougal1331]

The 751 Freedoms had soft-dome tweeters instead of metal. They were too rolled-off at the top end, and sounded overly smooth. They are still good speakers but just can't match the originals for detail.

If you heard the original 751s, the Freedoms would seem disappointing by comparison.

 

[BigH]

The 780 SEs are pretty good and can be picked up for around £30 on fleabay. Stands will cost more than that.

 

[Michaelholder1]

Well £30 on ebay sounds pretty good but I want to try and get the most I possibly can for my money!

 

[Michaelholder1]

Meaning that I want to try use my full budget that is.

 

[Blackdawn]

I like the original Mission 700 model. Nicely made cabinet and larger driver with good sound. Unlikely to find in good conditon due to surrounds of cones deteriorating over time.

 

[Blackdawn]

The Boston Acoustics A26 are very good speakers for the price. You should be able to find some around £200. I would also be looking at the Wharfedale 122 speakers.

 

[Michaelholder1]

Well it seems from the 2nd hand experience I've gained from others; that I seem to have set my eyes on the mission 751/2/3s the B&W Dm series and the Monitor audio silver/bronze series. But what about other speakers in these price ranges, like mordaunt short, acoustic energy or tannoy? Is there an other speakers which were perticularly good which I should look out for in this price range? Also what amps would you suggest to match these? I know my brother just picked up a cambridge audio 640a V2 for £100 which seems like a good deal but I dont like the idea of a bright sounding amp; I'd rather something like the marrantz but i feel it might be harder to get a good deal on such an amp.

 

[BigH]

You may have to spend a bit more on an amp. you can get some good ones for about £200like the Arcam Alpha 9 which is fairly warm althought that sounds a lot when you can get a new Arcam A18 for £300. Others to look at are Creek, RK, HK, Audiolab and NAD. I'm others will give you more suggestions. I would look on fleabay and see what is available.

There is a Marantz PM17 on there at the moment.

How about a NAD C350 for about £150.

 

[Michaelholder1]

There is currently an arcam alpha 8 power/pre combination on ebay at the moment which I'm watching. The problem I find with the Nad and arcam amps is that they're often very old and it's difficult to decide how much theyre worth I find. I will have a look at the others in a minute though.

 

[BigH]

What source will you be using? Just beware that some amps do NOT have a phono stage, like Arcam.

Here is an old post that maybe of interest:

http://www.whathifi.com/forum/hi-fi/arcam-alpha-9-or

 

[the record spot]

The 751 Freedoms had soft-dome tweeters instead of metal. They were too rolled-off at the top end, and sounded overly smooth. They are still good speakers but just can't match the originals for detail.

If you heard the original 751s, the Freedoms would seem disappointing by comparison.

Indeed and they were when I had a pair just over a year ago. Couldn't get shot of them quickly enough. Sounded as if the tweeter had been removed.

The 751 were terrific in every way for my tastes; great bass for their size, lovely midrange, a while a lot of folk say that metal tweeters are always harsh, the 752 was anything but. Perfectly balanced (again, for my tastes) in every way. For £100-£150 they're a steal at the price and a good pair (i.e. in good condition) will comfortably sit alongside far more expensive speakers 20 years on.

 

[the record spot]

Well it seems from the 2nd hand experience I've gained from others; that I seem to have set my eyes on the mission 751/2/3s the B&W Dm series and the Monitor audio silver/bronze series. But what about other speakers in these price ranges, like mordaunt short, acoustic energy or tannoy? Is there an other speakers which were perticularly good which I should look out for in this price range? Also what amps would you suggest to match these? I know my brother just picked up a cambridge audio 640a V2 for £100 which seems like a good deal but I dont like the idea of a bright sounding amp; I'd rather something like the marrantz but i feel it might be harder to get a good deal on such an amp.

Sony ES TA-F630ESD or better. Circa £100 and great amps. Very well built, the ES series was a great line.

 

[Dw3]

Hi i just bought speakers mission m34i floor standing ,,they look soo good but i never hear them play becouse iam not xpert.. Can someone help me with amp plz??i dont know what kind of amp to use..i look to round max 1oo £ on ebay so plz if any 1 intrested to help, write me som models of amplifiers or links from e bay.. this speakers need to be biwired or something like that ,need find picture of conecting lol