Mordaunt Short Carnival 5.1 AV Speaker System - any good?

[admin_exported]

I just saw this on e-bay at £215.21 (inclusive of free delivery & free 40 metres speaker cable and interconnect for sub-woofer). It looks like an awesome system but I can't seem to find any reviews anywhere.

Does anyone have this system or heard it or know of a review anywhere?

Thx.

 

[Anonymous]

Nobody here has any idea at all about these?

 

[Anonymous]

This is odd - 57 visits and not one who has this package or heard it or anything?

 

[Andrew Everard]

We haven't reviewed this package as it's not officially sold in the UK.

I've just checked with Audio Partnership, which makes Mordaunt-Short, and the word from a spokesperson is that:

"Carnival is widely distributed in several countries but is not officially available in the UK. The examples referred to can only be non-official grey imports and do not have the backing of Mordaunt-Short's UK distributor."

 

[Anonymous]

Thank you Andrew for answering - much appreciated. I guess I better stay clear of this one then.

The set up looks very tempting, as do the price. Just wondered if it's any good, especially compared to JAMO, which is in the same price bracket.

 

[Anonymous]

I have been in touch with Peter Tyson and he assures me that the unit carries a full manufacturers warranty.

 

[Anonymous]

I have just purchased the Mordaunt Short Carnival 5.1 system from E-bay for £215.00 (inclusive of free delivery, 40 metres of speaker cables and sub-woofer cable).

I recently posted a query to see if anyone had this system but received no reply. I figured I would get it and compare it to my Jamo A102 HCS5 system.

I will hook it up and post feedback (from an amateur's point of view).

 

[radovantz]

So, you have purchased the Carnival series.. how is it?

Another problem is, Mordaunt-Short speakers usually need thousand hours run-in time to deliver their best performance.. a very long time to wait then

 

[professorhat]

radovantz:Another problem is, Mordaunt-Short speakers usually need thousand hours run-in time to deliver their best performance

That's ludicrous - that's nearly 42 days constantly running.

ÿ

 

[radovantz]

It takes nearly one year for those who run-in them 3 hours per day.

 

[Anonymous]

radovantz:

So, you have purchased the Carnival series.. how is it?

Another problem is, Mordaunt-Short speakers usually need thousand hours run-in time to deliver their best performance.. a very long time to wait then

I second that. My MS 908i needed hundreds of hours run-in time. It took me about 3 months using it by an average of 8 hours a day before I realized that I made the right choice. I think this is one reason why some MS speakers won't get an excellent review because obviously the reviewer can't wait that many hours testing. At first, I thought these speakers are rubbish--the side firing subwoofer is not producing much bass and the tweeters and mid-ranges are harsh. However after several months of using, it has improved a lot-- the side firing subwoofers are firing and the tweeters and mid-ranges are producing excellent detail---clear and lively sound. I can say that the MS 908i is a fantastic value for money.

 

[Anonymous]

Does it really require that much time to run in? That perhaps explains why it sounds quite muddled up next to the JAMO, which was great out of the box! Dialogue and bass depth is better (funny, considering the MS sub is only 65watts!) but clarity and detail resolution is better with the JAMO.

The MS looks substantially good value for the money....very nice speakers and sub with free cables and subwoofer cable....looks really nice...at the end of the day one has to go...at the moment, it looks like the JAMO has the edge!

 

[radovantz]

I agree with you, MS Carnival looks great. Slim and serious.

Why not give them some time to improve and let us updated with your findings.

My MS914 works fine after one year but stilll can't match wharfedale diamond 9.1. Maybe I'll have to wait for another one year to give them a chance for further improvement. Yet my MS905i Centre that I just bought one month ago still sounds very painful.. Hopefully it is worth to be patient.

 

[Anonymous]

I will do exactly that radovantz. Not quite prepared to get rid of it just yet.....it just looks so nice!

 

[Anonymous]

The MS speakers ARE settling in well now, with continued use. Dialogue appears to sound more natural than the Jamo and definitely much better sounding with music. What really sets the Jamo apart from the MS is it's subwoofer. The SUB200 is simply superior and with 200 watts, is far superior to the MS sub putting out 65 watts (although arguably, still good!)

I've tried both speaker set ups with the same movies (the usual suspects, i.e., Transformers, Iron Man, King Kong, Dark Night) and as a whole system, the JAMO wins for it's clear, lucid presentation and superb bass.

I then tried the MS with the Jamo subwoofer, and PRESTO - this is what I was looking for! Now, it sounded better than the Jamo, so I might just keep the MS and add another subwoofer. Still carrying out further tests with other dvd's and music to be absolutely certain of my choice.

The MS just looks so much better than the Jamo's - that's what's swaying me at the moment.

 

[radovantz]

Thank you Valian TX for the update. Very good information and encourageous..

 

[Anonymous]

I have decided to keep the Mordaunt Short and sell the JAMO. Overall presentation is better with more heft and agility (IMO) although I will need to get another subwoofer to compliment the existing one. The JAMO sub is superb.

 

[Anonymous]

Add a Mordaunt Short 309 sub and you've got a cracking system. I agree wholeheartedly that the standard sub is pretty underwhelming.

 

[Anonymous]

Jan - any idea how the Mordaunt Short 308 sounds like?

 

[Anonymous]

Not too spectacular unfortunately, it doesn't have a lot of welly.

 

[Anonymous]

As far as i'm concerned, you should get somthing like a REL 201e as the provides hudge power for such a small enclosure.ÿ

This is what I would advise...

They are on ebay all the time for arround £200

Have a lookround, let me know how you get on....

Joshÿ

 

[Anonymous]

Agreed. The REL's are great but disproportionate to the cost of my speakers in terms of cost. I have now got a Yamaha subwoofer (for the lower frequencies) to complement the existing MS sub, so it sounds fine now.

Thank you for your suggestion.

 

[Anonymous]

Sorry I forgot to mention, The REL is as good to buy second hand and doesn't take long to run-in, you'll find the bass get richer after a couple of months depending how old it is when you buy it.

You should be ok to buy second hand because they are ÿbuilt like tanks and over engineered to last forever, along with the protection circitary you can't go wrong!

Bare in mind that the REL will go down to 17Hz@ 200w where the mordaunt short will only go to 35Hz @ 175w! This makes a hudge difference in films. my fronts, Beolab Pentas mkIII go to 40Hz and I noticed a Enormas difference....ÿ

ÿ

 

[Anonymous]

Hhmmm...17Hz....that makes a difference! Even the Yamaha only goes down to 28Hz...I will keep my eyes out for one...cheers mate.

 

[Anonymous]

justa quicky, the Rel 150e ,ay be worth a look as it goes to the same knd of depth but a little less power, 150w instead, making it a little cheaper...

I would advise though that the150e is one of the highest rated small subs ever....