Adaptable Speakers?

[Lewis Sheppard]

I hear a lot about some speakers being adaptable as such and some not. Like the Mordaunt-Short MS-902i's are apparently "not as adaptable as some" what does this mean?

 

[j_garcia]

Give an example? Never heard that comment and I've owned the previous 902s. They were a bit bright, but overall very pleasing and well built cabinets. The cheap veneer was my only issue with them. May simply refer to the fact that they may not be very forgiving of a poor quality track.

 

[markw]

I've never heard the term "adaptable" to speakers and I've been playing with these things since the early 60's. Can you clarify what this means?

 

[ski2xblack]

It was mentioned in a What Hi Fi review, no measurements provided, just a description of a potentially hot top end.

To me, "adaptable" should relate to specifics, such as a smooth polar response thus allowing the speaker to play nice in a variety of acoustic environments. Something like this:

 

[markw]

So, it's a term invented by a hi f reviewer in a Brit hi fi magazine? Now I don't feel too bad.

 

[Lewis Sheppard]

So, it's a term invented by a hi f reviewer in a Brit hi fi magazine? Now I don't feel too bad.

Haha, not to bad then. So is it something I should be worried about?

 

[markw]

Haha, not to bad then. So is it something I should be worried about?

Dunno. I still have no fargin' idea what it means.

Hi fi reviewers make up "terms" to suit their whim and a lot of their sycophants simply lick them without knowing what they mean, like cats do cream. "PRAT" is another one that comes to mind.

 

[Lewis Sheppard]

Dunno. I still have no fargin' idea what it means.

Hi fi reviewers make up "terms" to suit their whim and a lot of their sycophants simply lick them without knowing what they mean, like cats do cream. "PRAT" is another one that comes to mind.

Reckon I'll just ignore it. Thanks Mark.

 

[Lewis Sheppard]

Give an example? Never heard that comment and I've owned the previous 902s. They were a bit bright, but overall very pleasing and well built cabinets. The cheap veneer was my only issue with them. May simply refer to the fact that they may not be very forgiving of a poor quality track.

Worth £50/60?

 

[zieglj01]

Haha, not to bad then. So is it something I should be worried about?

NO
Do not get caught up with that type of hype.

 

[Lewis Sheppard]

NO
Do not get caught up with that type of hype.

It also states, http://gyazo.com/b700628becde194c86658ee73f88c99d.png What does this mean? Anything serious or just stupid again?

 

[zieglj01]

It also states, http://gyazo.com/b700628becde194c86658ee73f88c99d.png What does this mean? Anything serious or just stupid again?

Some people feel that electronics have a lot of personality (tone color), I would
not be too concerned about.

 

[markw]

Lewis, hi fi writers live in a cattle pasture and you seem to be stepping into every cow flop they drop. Stop reading and start listening.

 

[Rickster71]

I hear a lot about some speakers being adaptable as such and some not. Like the Mordaunt-Short MS-902i's are apparently "not as adaptable as some" what does this mean?

The only thing I can think of is maybe, adaptable as far as placement goes.
I guess an example as a non-adaptable (placement wise) a pair of Maggies.

I had a pair of Design Acoustics PS 103 that had a switch on the back that change the tweeter output from flat, to -3dB and -6dB. I guess that could be considered adaptable?
I get the impression in your case it was referring to placement or ability to play different types of music well?

 

[j_garcia]

I think that for whatever idiotic reason they are trying not to use the word "bright". The Mordaunts are not harsh but as I mentioned, they are a bit bright on the top end. I prefer a more even handed top end, but I owned the 902s for 2 years and they were not fatiguing or difficult to listen to. That said, I think the Cambridge Audio ones you asked about before would probably be a better choice - the S30, not the S70.