Mirage OMNISAT v2 FS

[MikeBC]

I have a question about the mirage OMNISAT v2 FS 's--i understand from reading Mark Sanfilipo's very helpful review here that these speakers depend a lot on wall reflections for best results. I am trying to fit out a room where the listening/viewing area will be bounded on 3 sides (front, back, and right side) but the nearest wall on the left side is 15-20' away from where the left speaker would be placed. The front wall will be about 11' from the listening sofa. Does the absence of a left-hand side wall near the speaker make these speakers not appropriate for this room? I know the absence of the left wall is generally a handicap for me but I am wondering if these speakers in particular will be especially hobbled by the layout.

If these speakers are ill-advised for me, can someone kindly suggest a pair of floor-standing speakers in the similar price range, ideally with a small footprint and similar versatility to the V2 FS's in terms of being used for music and for a 2 (or 2.1) channel home theater?

Thanks in advance!

 

[Pianoman84d]

Can you post pics of your room? that should help us help you

 

[MikeBC]

Ok, I will post pix once I get home. Thanks for responding!

 

[MikeBC]

picture

Here is a picture of the main listening/viewing area. This exaggerates the size (it is the realtor's photo, go figure ) It shows future location of my equipment and sofa (the actual items in the photo are long gone). the window wall is about 12' wide and 10' high. the floor is wood, the walls are painted, and we'll probably be using cloth curtains on the windows. the part of the room behind the camera is another 10 feet or so to the wall (so it is around 26 feet total from the windows to the wall parallel to the windows), and the room bends a corner in an "L" shape to become the kitchen on the right-hand side. Sorry if this is too much unnecessary information. . .

Thanks again for any help.

 

[MikeBC]

here is a rough drawing that might be more useful in conveying the room arrangement. X is the sofa, (S) is the approximate speaker location.

I'm also considering the Monitor Audio Radius 270s (can anyone tell that SAF is a factor here? )but there aren't a lot of comments or reviews about them. It appears they will be less dependent on reflected sound than the mirages but I do like the idea of the large sweet spot that the mirages allegedly give, if only I would have some guidance they would actually work properly in my room. I am planning on auditioning the Radius 270s this weekend.

Thanks for any help or advice.

 

[jhammer22]

I tried them and they we're ok sound wise. I would suggest getting them and trying like the front three. I did and was only out $25 when I sent them back. Maybe only $20. Not bad.

 

[Jacksmyname]

Hi Mike.
First, some background from me.
I'm a fan of Mirage speakers. I have a pair of their M760's that I bought back in 1989. They're typical box type floorstanders. When I listened to them at the dealer, I like them right away as they sounded great. Surprisingly, they sounded even better when I set them up at home. I then added two pair of the M260's for rear surrounds and front presence (used with a Yamaha stand alone DSP unit I had at the time). I'm still using the M760's now in a room that's terrible as far as proper speaker placement goes due to space limitations. I'm using them with a Mirage Omnisat v2 center and two Omnisat v2 sats for surrounds (the surrounds are mounted on Mirage stands about a foot from each side of the sofa), and a Mirage S12 sub. Receiver is a Yamaha RX-V2700.
Given the lousy room constraints, the system sounds terrific.
Before I connected the 760's, I ran a pair of the Omnisat v2 floorstanders for a while. They also sounded great. Not the same as the 760's of course, but that's to be expected given the differences in the two (bass is quite good from the Omnisats, but they really should be used with a sub. With the 760's, I really don't *need* a sub). Again, with no room for adjusting placement on the Omnisats, I was very pleased with the results. I have a similar situation as you. The sidewall on the right is about three feet away, and the sidewall on the left is about five feet away.
I'm building a new house, and the living room will be much bigger, and will allow for much better speaker placement. However, while the left sidewall will be about two to two and a half feet from the left speaker, the right sidewall will be about five to six feet from the right speaker; very similar to your room. I have no doubt that my old 760's will be fine, but I'll be looking at new mains for the new house. The 760's still look and sound like new, but they are, in the end, black boxes. I'd like something with a nicer finish. So I've been considering the new Mirage OMD-15's in rosewood.
I called Mirage and spoke to their product manager (Martin) about using the OMD-15's in my new house as I have the exact same concern as you. Martin felt I'd have no problem, and I suspect he's right. And keeping in mind that adjustments such as eq and levels can be made to each individual speaker via the receiver, I'm pretty confident the the OMD-15's will be fine in my room and the Omnisats in yours. Of course I have the advantage of already owning the Omnisats to try. So, I'd say if you want to try them, order from a good outfit like Crutchfield, so you can return them if you decide you don't like them. The only money you'll risk is the return shipping.
HTH
Jack

 

[MikeBC]

Thanks very much for the advice.