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© copyright AudioEnz 2000
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a review from www.audioenz.co.nz
The flat response
Mission's speakers make a discrete package.
By Michael Jones
Mission fs2-av home theatre
speaker system. $3399
Anyone following the UK hi-fi press
over the past three or four years is sure
to have heard of a new speaker technology called nxt.
Long in promise but - to date - short
in application, nxt is supposed to
change the way we view speakers, by
allowing the use of small flat panel
speakers.
A conventional loudspeaker drive
unit moves backwards and forwards to
create sound - you can see this most
clearly in woofers playing low notes.
Instead of this traditional motion, a nxt
panel vibrates microscopically over its
whole surface to produce sound.
The Mission system is available in a
variety of configurations. The fs2-av
(which I auditioned) is a home cinema
package. It comprises five panels and a
subwoofer.
The fs2-a ($1899) is for stereo use two panels and a sub. If you later want
to upgrade this to
I was very
a home theatre
system, the fs2-3
impressed with
pack supplies the
the Mission fs2-av remaining three
panels. Finally the
system
fs2-2 pack comprises two panels. This is designed to
clip into an existing panel, making for a
bigger speaker and increasing the power
handling and volume capabilities.
With the fs2 system, the panels are
small and flat. The basic structure is
designed to clip into an end cap, or into
a desktop stand (all included in the
package).
The back of the structure is engineered so that it can be screwed flat to a
wall, or screwed into a corner. Once the
mounting platform is in place, simply
clip the panel in and you’re done.
Examining the speakers, it’s immediately obvious that this is a very well
thought out package. The Mission fs2-av
system is designed to have everything you
need to install and set up the system in a
couple of hours. There is 45 metres of flat
cable inside the box, along with doublesided tape to install and hide the cable
(the cable can also be painted over).
December 2000
All of the screws and hardware to
install the panels is included, so you
won’t be left unable to install the system
after the hardware shops have closed!
As you’d expect, small panels don’t
plumb the depths
of bass. To make
the fs system full
range, the fs2 subwoofer is included. This is a nicely
designed unit,
shaped to go in a
room boundary
(such as the intersection of a wall
and the floor, or
in a corner).
While this has certain aesthetic
advantages (the subwoofer can easily be
hidden under a couch or behind the
TV) there are good acoustical reasons
for this as well. Placing the woofer in a
room boundary increases the level of
bass, without requiring the cone or
amplifier to work harder.
The design niceties go further. All of
the connections and controls are on the
front baffle of the subwoofer, hidden by
the grill. The overall level of the woofer
can be set (relative to the panels) and a
contour control (basically a tone control) allows some alteration of response
depending on room conditions.
Setting up a
system like the
Mission can
take two or
three hours to
install and hide
away all of the cables. Because of my
aversion to drilling holes in my lounge
walls, and because Peter Munt from
Smith Sounds had done such a nice job
setting up a room with the system instore, I made use of the facilities of
Smith Sound for auditioning this speaker system.
At Smith Sound I used the Denon
DVD-1500 DVD player and AVR-2801
AV receiver, along with a lovely Loewe
widescreen television to audition some
music and movies. The system has been
set up with four panels in the corners of
the room and one screwed to the wall
above the television.
First up was music. Although the fs2AV really isn't designed to compete with
Mission’s (or anyone else’s) conventional hi-fi speakers, the system did a creditable job. Playing one of my favourite
jazz CDs, the trio of trumpet, guitar and
bass come across very well. Both the
trumpet and guitar and good presence,
but the bass player could sound a little
lumpy at times.
When I saw Starship Troopers at the
movie theatre I giggled all the way
through the movie. The story of allAmerican young guys and gals fighting giant bugs has that affect on me.
Watching and listening to the movie
through the Mission system brought
back the giggles.
Vocals were clear and articulate.
Ambience and sound effects were also
very effective.
One really nice aspect of the nxt panels is their dispersion. Normal speakers
will sound very different depending on
where in the room you are. The dispersion of the nxt panels is so good that
you can move around the room without
the sound changing. This means that
everyone in the room will receive basically the same sound.
I was very impressed with the
Mission fs2-av system. The sound quality of this system is competitive for the
money and the aesthetics and ease of
use can't be beat!