Any opinions on these Morel speakers?

birdwizard · « **on:** 24 Aug 2004, 02:32 am »

http://www.morelusa.com/home/mlp-403-5.htm

The way I figure it, the retail price of the raw drivers alone is around
$454 without a cabinet or crossovers. And the speaker is going for $595
shipped!

Any thoughts on this speaker? What do you guys think about the sealed design?

Drivers: MDT-30 tweeter, MSD-56 midrange and MW-2200 woofer.

ooheadsoo · « **Reply #1 on:** 24 Aug 2004, 02:39 am »

morel usa is not the traditional morel we think of with the nice tweets. The "real" original morel is based in Israel. Not to say that I know that this speaker is good or bad, just a heads up.

birdwizard · « **Reply #2 on:** 24 Aug 2004, 02:50 am »

http://db.audioasylum.com/cgi/m.mpl?forum=speakers&n=130531&highlight=morel+israel&session=

jackman · « **Reply #3 on:** 24 Aug 2004, 03:02 am »

I don't know about the politics but I am a big fan of Morel drivers, especially their tweeters. I have a pair of speakers that Dennis Murphy put together for me with Morel MD29 tweeters and Hivi F5 woofers. The crossovers were too large for the little Partsexpress cabinets (also good for the $$$) so I have to build boxes for them. They sound great and have very good high end response. I have also heard Morel mids in a Selia Audio speaker and thought it sounded great. Don't know how good those speakers are but the drivers are high quality and the cab's don't look bad. There is a 7 day trial if you don't like them. Also, you may be able to persuade one of the DIY gurus to take shot at re-designing the xovers if you don't like the stock sound.

I'm also a fan of sealed speakers and believe those are sealed. Maybe you can get Danny Richie to fix the crossovers. I hear he's done a good job on other three way designs

.

J

ooheadsoo · « **Reply #4 on:** 24 Aug 2004, 03:17 am »

Right, a dealer I know said some stuff about it being a spat between brothers etc etc. Thing is, are they morel drivers or morel usa drivers in the design? (The Dennis Murphy one.) I haven't heard them, but the dealer (and speaker designer - he worked at Speaker City in Burbank, CA) felt the originals were superior.

Are you going to take the plunge?

WEEZ · « **Reply #5 on:** 24 Aug 2004, 04:36 pm »

For what it's worth, Morel drivers are used in many high end speakers- especially the tweeters.

The speakers from Morel you cited look to be a real bargain.

JoshK · « **Reply #6 on:** 24 Aug 2004, 05:00 pm »

It looks as though the drivers are Morel USA, meaning the good ones. I haven't heard their tweeters but I have heard that mid (55mm soft dome) and it is fantastic! I am sure these are a great bargain. Can always redesign the crossover like others have said. Actually, now you got me wanting to buy a pair.

jackman · « **Reply #7 on:** 24 Aug 2004, 05:07 pm »

Josh,
Their tweeters are excellent. I have the MD29 in a pair of speakers and can't say enough about how good it sounds. I think Merlin uses Morel tweeters. I would take a shot at those if I didn't already have too many speakers in my "collection". Along with the Morel/Hivi F5's, I have a pair of OW1/Revelator 5.5" monitors that were just built. The Revelator/OW1
s sound good, but I'm thinking about putting these on Audiogon and getting the Morels. The Morel speakers will probably go lower and be easier to integrate with a sub because they are sealed (mine are ported). This deal is tempting because I could probably get close (about $500 or so) to the Morel price for the REV/OW1 monitors. Heck, parts cost on these little monitors is more than the Morel speakers...hmmm.

Decisions, decisions...

Cheers,

Jack

JoshK · « **Reply #8 on:** 24 Aug 2004, 05:11 pm »

Yeah I was thinking these would make great mains for my HT system. I heard Rick Craig's RC3R, which is a totally different design but did use the Morel middome and the mids were silky smooth.

jholtz · « **Reply #9 on:** 24 Aug 2004, 05:58 pm »

Just a quick comment on the speakers in question. I've used both the MSD-56 and MDM-55 and the MDM-55 is a better driver, IMHO. The MDT-30 is an excellent tweeter but it's greatest strength is it's ability to crossover very low which isn't needed in a mid dome design. Crossover with a mid dome can easily be in the 3.5K - 5K area so it's a natural for a 3/4" dome or ribbon that can't be crossed low. No comment on the woofer as I've no experience with it.

BTW, Rick did the crossovers for both speakers and I believe his sentiments agree with mine. If not, I'm sure he'll chime in.

HTH

Jim Holtz

Quote from: JoshK

Yeah I was thinking these would make great mains for my HT system. I heard Rick Craig's RC3R, which is a totally different design but did use the Morel middome and the mids were silky smooth.

jackman · « **Reply #10 on:** 24 Aug 2004, 06:13 pm »

Jim,
Can you tell by the picture which midrange is used?

Also, I heard your speakers in Iowa and was very impressed. Hope to see you this year!

Jack

JoshK · « **Reply #11 on:** 24 Aug 2004, 06:34 pm »

Awww...he's right, that is the MSD-56. Too bad.

jholtz · « **Reply #12 on:** 24 Aug 2004, 07:00 pm »

Hi Jack,

Thanks for the kind comments. I appreciate it.

JoshK is correct, that is the MSD-56. It's not a bad driver by any stretch but it costs more than the MDM-55 which is just an overall nicer driver. Very smooth and detailed.

To be fair to the MSD-56 though, I bought them new/used for little money and then used them in a super low budget pair of surround speakers for a while which one of my Sons has inherited. They actually sounded pretty good but the MDM-55 is much nicer, IMHO.

I'm looking forward to seeing you again and hope you can make it to the house on the Friday night before the DIY event to hear my Omegarrays, and socialize too of course.

See you then!

Jim

Quote from: jackman

Jim,
Can you tell by the picture which midrange is used?

Also, I heard your speakers in Iowa and was very impressed. Hope to see you this year!

Jack

birdwizard · « **Reply #13 on:** 25 Aug 2004, 01:34 am »

Morel has told me that the only thing I will lose if I refund them (7 day trial) is my return shipping.
So I'm going to order a pair tomorrow

thundernz1 · « **Reply #14 on:** 27 Aug 2004, 03:37 pm »

Hey,

Could you post something about how they sound after you get them? I saw the deal and was thinking of ordering a pair myself. thanks..

Nick

birdwizard · « **Reply #15 on:** 27 Aug 2004, 09:35 pm »

Ok,
but I am leaving town and am not having the speakers delivered until Tuesday the 7th. I know the Walnut is almost gone and I dont know how many black are left. They might be gone before I post my thoughts.

You could always do the 7 day trial and return them if you dont like them. You only would lose return shipping.

By the way, does anyone have any good thoughts or good reading on sealed vs ported design? Any first hand observations integrating sealed speakers with a sub?

Jason

birdwizard · « **Reply #16 on:** 10 Sep 2004, 05:33 pm »

Um, OK.

These speakers are the bomb.

I havent even broken them in. They are very good right out
of the box.

They are bigger than I thought.

They dont play like a monitor. They sound big, big , big.

Voices are excellent. The midrange dome sounds very nice.
Bass is tight and deep. These are not for a very small room.

They are very easy to drive and play very loud.

I need more time for a more complete evaluation

btw, I have 3 speakers so I will also add my impressions as a complete front stage for HT and multichannel music later.

thundernz1 · « **Reply #17 on:** 12 Sep 2004, 04:49 pm »

Excellent...Just wondering what you are diriving them with and how big your listening room is. I have a pair of floorstanders right now that I like but the bass is overpowering in my 15 by 15 foot room.

thanks

birdwizard · « **Reply #18 on:** 13 Sep 2004, 12:29 am »

Right now I am driving them with a Pioneer 2012 (45tx) Reciever*.
Im using a Philips 963sa in 96hz upsampling mode and also as an SACD player.

My listening area is somewhat nearfield, 8.5ft to each speaker. The tweeters of the speakers are 66 inches apart with a (guessed) toe in of 10-15 degrees. This is my Home theater setup, so it is not optimized for 2 channel. I have a center channel in the middle below the TV. The speakers are 23" up and the tweeters are at 41". Midrange is exactly at ear level, and I like it best that way so far. The speakers stick out 6 inches in front of the TV.

The bass is great in my room, but not boomy; super tight. Kick drums sound perfect. Stand up bass is great until the very lowest notes which are shy. I would guess bass drops around 40hz. Its not gradual, its steep.
I have a slight bass hump around maybe 55-60hz, but its room related and not bad.

These speakers have a very natural sound. NOT hyper detailed, but the air is there, as is all the decay and detail. Upper midbass seems a touch recessed, but I had Rocket 750s for a long time which are very midbassy, so I dont know exactly what right is here.

Voice is nearly as good as the Europa, with a touch less dimension. Cymbals are very very good. Jazz horns and woodwind sound very holographic, more than the Europas. Female voice sounds superb.

They sound very good at lower listening levels. Similiar to the Europas.
I like these guys a lot. For the price they are a steal

*(For a reference, the amps in this reciever sound identical to my Chiro C-200 I had recently- very good to these ears. As an aside, I've had Precision Fidelity, Chiro and Cinenova amps recently, and the only detectable difference to me was the increased bass control of the Cinenova. Go figure)

thundernz1 · « **Reply #19 on:** 13 Sep 2004, 02:16 am »

Interesting...thanks for the review. I've been looking for a good monitor that can at least approach 40hz...think I'll try a pair.

regards