Mirage OMD-5 Review

R

rnatalli

Audioholic Ninja
Having seen and heard these speakers before, I had to pick up a couple when I saw Vanns advertising $129 per speaker. I hooked these up to a simple Denon 590 receiver to see how they do in stereo. Mirage puts the OMD-5’s +/-3db point at 60Hz which Audyssey MultEQ confirmed, however, I found 90Hz sounded best to my ears. Audyssey was turned off during my listening.

Packaging: Mirage did a good job packaging the speakers. They wrap the grill separately (but in the same box) and the tweeter assembly of the speaker has shaped plastic over it so that you don’t put your finger on the tweeter while lifting the speaker out of the box. Vanns put both speakers into another box with additional foam which was nice and ensured the speakers would arrive without damage.

Build Quality: The build quality of these speakers is excellent. The finish is flawless and everything fits together perfectly. I’m a fan of wood finishes like the burled maple Mirage uses as every speaker will sport a unique look. The binding posts will accommodate bare wire, spades, and banana plugs no problem. One thing I did find on one of the speakers was a little adhesive inside the binding post attached to the little plastic red cap. A little Goo Gone took care of it and in went the banana plug.

Sound Quality: In the beginning, I didn’t really care for Mirage’s Omni sound, but I have to say, it has grown on me with time and I really like it now. The OMD-5 follows the same design as Mirage’s other Omni offerings so you have the tweeter assembly hovering over the angled midrange driver and another flying saucer looking assembly above the tweeter itself. Very early on, I thought this was a gimmick, but this design actually works as advertised.

I started out my listening with some Diana Krall on SACD. The OMD-5’s handle vocals superbly. Diana’s voice was full and the speakers were revealing of details without being overbearing or fatiguing. The ability of these speakers to simply disappear in the room was excellent as they threw an impressive soundstage.

I switched to my Chesky classical CD and found the upper frequencies to be smooth and extended. String instruments in particular were true to the real instrument. I personally love compositions that are heavy in strings so hearing them so well-produced was a real treat.

Imaging wasn’t as accurate as some direct radiating speakers I’ve heard, but instruments and voices found themselves in the correct general area. I’m really starting to buy into Mirage’s approach to sound as having that hyper-accurate imaging isn’t realistic when you compare it to a live performance.

In summary, the OMD-5’s are very well-balanced speakers. My only complaint would be that the lower midrange was a hair reserved and these aren’t really rock speakers. Also, these speakers love power. I would even go so far to say that an external amp would do them justice. They also don’t reach very low with authority so a good subwoofer is a must. At $129 per speaker, the OMD-5 easily stomps on speakers I’ve heard in the same price range including many of the ID brands. Someone in another thread described the OMD-5 as producing sound that is life like and I would agree with that assessment. Anyone looking for a 5.0 system should seriously consider 5 OMD-5 speakers for $645 shipped.
 
Matt34

Matt34

Moderator
I was going to pick a pair of these up when they got posted here on sale but I had to give priority to the Behringers. Glad you like them, I've never tried an omni speaker before.
 
edoggrc51

edoggrc51

Audioholic
I absolutely LOVE this speakers. I'm running pair of rosewoods as rears and could not be happier. :)
 
KEW

KEW

Audioholic Overlord
Thanks for the review! Having recently heard Bose 901's, I liked the reflected sound aspect of them, just wished they had a real tweeter. I might have to try a pair of these to see if they have that soundstage magic without an undue sacrifice in FR.
Could you comment on the speakers your normally listen to (ie your reference standard) and what differences you noticed between the two pairs?
 
R

rnatalli

Audioholic Ninja
Could you comment on the speakers your normally listen to (ie your reference standard) and what differences you noticed between the two pairs?
I use the Axiom M2v2 as a reference point. Compared to the OMD-5, the Axiom has more sizzle up top and a more recessed midrange. It also doesn't sound as full or as smooth as the Mirage. The Axioms are more efficient so they get up loud with a lot less. Overall, I'd say the OMD-5 is the better speaker being more balanced and smoother than the M2v2. I suppose that shouldn't be a surprise seeing that the OMD-5 originally retailed for $399/speaker. I'm thinking of going with an entire OMD setup paired with a simple receiver. The OMD-5 is also a cool looking speaker and nice change from the typical box style.
 
KEW

KEW

Audioholic Overlord
I use the Axiom M2v2 as a reference point. Compared to the OMD-5, the Axiom has more sizzle up top and a more recessed midrange. It also doesn't sound as full or as smooth as the Mirage. The Axioms are more efficient so they get up loud with a lot less. Overall, I'd say the OMD-5 is the better speaker being more balanced and smoother than the M2v2. I suppose that shouldn't be a surprise seeing that the OMD-5 originally retailed for $399/speaker. I'm thinking of going with an entire OMD setup paired with a simple receiver. The OMD-5 is also a cool looking speaker and nice change from the typical box style.
Damn! Another pair of speakers on the way.
Would you guys quit twisting my arm!:rolleyes:
 
Frans

Frans

Junior Audioholic
My God, they are ugly! Looks like a toilet turned 90 degrees.

Thanks for the review though! Much appreciated.
 
R

rnatalli

Audioholic Ninja
Vanns just lowered the price for the Rosewood and Gloss Black finishes to $149 per speaker.
 
dkane360

dkane360

Audioholic Field Marshall
I just bought a pair of the gloss blacks.


My name is Dan. I have an addiction. I do not require(want) help at this time :D
 
KEW

KEW

Audioholic Overlord
Visually, this is a more compact speaker than the dimensions suggest. Partly because it is rounded and partly because the front wall is only 5" tall (that edge kind of gets lost in all of the black in the photo). The Piano Black finish is much nicer than my piano's finish (which shows wood grain). The OMD's are truly high gloss. It also has a nice magnetic grill mounting system.

Here it is on top of an EMP E41-B and beside an S-2:


It is a nice sounding speaker and the spacious sound stage is enough different to make comparisons difficult.
I was surprised that the EMP's over-performing 4" woofer gave much more bass than the Mirage's 5.5" woofer, but that is of little concern if you plan to add a sub.
The other stand out difference was listening to a drum passage with rim taps and the OMD's did a better job capturing them!
I am not saying the OMD's are better than the EMP's, just that they do do at least this one thing better. In most places the EMP's sound clearer and more distinct, but the sound is different enough, I think it'll take me a while to really reach some conclusions.
Right now, I'm thinking this might be a good fit for my wife's ideal living room speaker - compact, and the "omni" aspect seems to provide a better sense of "fullness" at lower volume - say if we had guests over and wanted to have music in the background without it dominating a visit. At the same time, I wouldn't be embarrassed to crank them when the time comes.

I really liked the look of the burled Maple, but since the OMD-15 towers are no longer available in Maple, I decided to pony up the extra $40 just to keep options open in case I decided to make a HT system out of these.

http://search.vanns.com/sitesearch/search?q=OMD-15
 
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dkane360

dkane360

Audioholic Field Marshall
My Mirage OMD-5's arrived today!

The piano black finish is quite nice, and a stark contrast to my industrial B2031P's. They are unique looking speakers, and will look very cool on my desk. Everything came well packaged, with no expense spared on keeping them safe in transit. They both included polishing cloths and other goodies like a wall bracket (not sure how it works). I'm not at my apartment, so I have no other speakers to compare to, but so far I'm impressed with their sound quality. They definitely need to be used with a sub, because the lower frequencies are lacking. I was expecting the OMD-5's to dig a little deeper than they do. It's not too big of an issue though, as I will be using a sub in the future.

I'd comment more on the sound, but they're not set up in a way conducive to proper testing (plus I don't have a huge frame of reference like some people here). Pics to come as soon as I stop listening to Chris Botti/John Mayer/Blue Man Group :D

Also, the cabinets resonate more than I expected for such a uniquely designed enclosure. They could probably benefit from stuffing. I'll open one up when I find my screwdrivers.




for size comparison:


 
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A

alphaiii

Audioholic General
Visually, this is a more compact speaker than the dimensions suggest. Partly because it is rounded and partly because the front wall is only 5" tall (that edge kind of gets lost in all of the black in the photo). The Piano Black finish is much nicer than my piano's finish (which shows wood grain). The OMD's are truly high gloss. It also has a nice magnetic grill mounting system.

Here it is on top of an EMP E41-B and beside an S-2:


It is a nice sounding speaker and the spacious sound stage is enough different to make comparisons difficult.
I was surprised that the EMP's over-performing 4" woofer gave much more bass than the Mirage's 5.5" woofer, but that is of little concern if you plan to add a sub.
The other stand out difference was listening to a drum passage with rim taps and the OMD's did a better job capturing them!
I am not saying the OMD's are better than the EMP's, just that they do do at least this one thing better. In most places the EMP's sound clearer and more distinct, but the sound is different enough, I think it'll take me a while to really reach some conclusions.
Right now, I'm thinking this might be a good fit for my wife's ideal living room speaker - compact, and the "omni" aspect seems to provide a better sense of "fullness" at lower volume - say if we had guests over and wanted to have music in the background without it dominating a visit. At the same time, I wouldn't be embarrassed to crank them when the time comes.

I really liked the look of the burled Maple, but since the OMD-15 towers are no longer available in Maple, I decided to pony up the extra $40 just to keep options open in case I decided to make a HT system out of these.

http://search.vanns.com/sitesearch/search?q=OMD-15
I found the OMD-5 to be a little bass shy too in my experience. While the specs say -3dB at 60Hz... in my living room, Audyssey consistently selected a 120Hz xover.

By comparison, Audyssey selects 60Hz or 80Hz for my Energy RC-10's, which are rated -3dB at 50Hz.

My guess is that the different dispersion pattern has something to do with it... but what I heard also suggested they didn't have much low end.

If you think about it... the specs are anechoic... and in that case, there is nothing for the mid/highs to reflect off... In room... with such a uniform wide dispersion... the Audyssey mic is probably measuring ALOT of reflected sound... and it makes it seem like there is less bass.

I guess what I'm getting at... while Mirage's specs may be spot on for the speaker in an anechoic chamber... in my room, Audyssey and my ears don't necessarily agree.

Either way... still a nice speaker. The imaging seems a little diffuse unusual at first, and it takes a bit to get used to... But, on the other hand... the sound is very enveloping for lack of a better word... and I thought the mids/highs has good clarity, even if the highs were a bit prominent.
 
R

rnatalli

Audioholic Ninja
Audyssey set my OMD-5 at 60Hz interestingly enough. I raised it to 90Hz which I felt sounded best.
 
A

alphaiii

Audioholic General
Audyssey set my OMD-5 at 60Hz interestingly enough. I raised it to 90Hz which I felt sounded best.
I'd guess the room acoustics and placement are very different in our cases...
 
KEW

KEW

Audioholic Overlord



for size comparison:


Well, make my picture look like crap why don't cha?:D

Gorgeous photos!
What type of camera are you using?

Edit: Since I an posting, I can make a few more quick comments.
I think the Omni design works especially well for orchestral pieces with an emphasis on strings. I'd assume it has to do with the manner in which a violin projects sound into a room (fairly radially) as compared to, say, a trumpet which is decidedly directional. That is not to say the OMD's fall on their face with a trumpet - the trumpet sounds like it is farther back in a hall.
Switching back to the EMP 41B's tends to solidify the sound and the OMD's have an ethereal quality to them. That really shouldn't be a surprise considering the OMD's are designed to deliver myriad reflections to your ear - which is more or less appropriate depending on the nature of the content.
If you want to analyze and pick out every detail, the EMP's are better, but the OMD's offer good detail with spacious projection.
I am impressed with the quality of the drivers used by the OMD. While the Omni reflections reduce resolution of the finest details, it is apparent that these drivers send a detailed signal into the reflective surfaces.
I expect to see some nice hardware when dkane360 finds his screwdriver!
 
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dkane360

dkane360

Audioholic Field Marshall
Well, make my picture look like crap why don't cha?:D

Gorgeous photos!
What type of camera are you using?

Edit: Since I an posting, I can make a few more quick comments.
I think the Omni design works especially well for orchestral pieces with an emphasis on strings. I'd assume it has to do with the manner in which a violin projects sound into a room (fairly radially) as compared to, say, a trumpet which is decidedly directional. That is not to say the OMD's fall on their face with a trumpet - the trumpet sounds like it is farther back in a hall.
Switching back to the EMP 41B's tends to solidify the sound and the OMD's have an ethereal quality to them. That really shouldn't be a surprise considering the OMD's are designed to deliver myriad reflections to your ear - which is more or less appropriate depending on the nature of the content.
If you want to analyze and pick out every detail, the EMP's are better, but the OMD's offer good detail with spacious projection.
I am impressed with the quality of the drivers used by the OMD. While the Omni reflections reduce resolution of the finest details, it is apparent that these drivers send a detailed signal into the reflective surfaces.
I expect to see some nice hardware when dkane360 finds his screwdriver!
Haha, thanks for the compliment on the photos. I'm using a Nikon D5000. I don't get to use it too often though (my gf likes to steal it lol). I'm looking for my tools right now, so it shouldn't be too long before I have these suckers open.

On another note, they can definitely benefit from a good amp. I do not recommend using them on amps/receivers that are not 4ohm rated. I tried them on my Integra DTR 4.6, and they just sounded very restricted, lost all lower midrange and bass. I will definitely be using them with my Adcom amp (or splurging for an emotiva :D).

On another note, anyone wanna buy that integra? lol. Maybe I'll just bring it to the next audioholics gtg in my area and give it away :p

Update: I got all the screws off, and that woofer does not want to come out lol. I don't want to pry it out because I'll probably destroy the finish, and it's too nice looking to damage :D. Sorry guys, maybe someone else can have better luck
 
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