Thread: Mordaunt Mezzo Surround Speaker Packages

MORDAUNT MEZZO SURROUND SPEAKER PACKAGES, the components had arrived, we had high hopes that the Mezzo would give Da!i's all-conquering Ikon 6 a proper run for its money. After all, the Mezzo 2 standmounters that form the rear channels here scored five stars in their May 2008 First Test, and the Mezzo 6 floorstanders up front did likewise last month. The addi tion of a capable subwoofer and centre speaker could create a really worthwhile system. And that's more or less what has happened. The Mezzo 5 centre channel, with its elevated tweeter, might look ungainly, but it's a crisp communicator; the Mezzo 9 sub, usefully compact, nicely finished and packing a stack of adjustability as well as a remote-cum¬sowld pressure meter, is promising, too. So where has that fifth star gone.




Actually, let's consider the positives inevitable BatmanBeginsTrueHD soundtrack. During the many moments of high excitement, the Mezzo 9 subwoofer reveals itself to be more than capable: it digs deep, hits hard and controls the leading and trailing edges of bass notes without fuss. At the other end of the cinematic scale, when the going gets quiet and creepy, the M -S package ramps up the tension thanks to its fme detail retrieval and focused, revealing centre-channel dialogue. In-your-face presentation But, just as "I speak as I fmd" can mean ''I'm unflinchingly rude", the Mezzo's direct presentation can become tiring. The excitement that's lacking in the B&W is here, but a nod towards the same system's restraint wouldn't go amiss. Watch out with bright and compressed pop tunes - they won't sound great.