I recently purchased pairs of the M3ti and M2ti speakers for evaluation. I expected the M2ti to be more accurate based on the measured frequency response curves. However, I found just the opposite to be true in my small listening room, which is about 12' by 13'.

By the way, my room is almost completely lined with bookshelves. I placed the speakers 28" stands about 8' apart and about 18" from the rear walls.

I measured the frequency response at several points near my listening position, and was surprised to find that the M3ti produced a significantly flatter overall response.

One reason was that my room has a suck-out at 100Hz, and the M3ti bump at 100Hz helped to offset this. But the main difference was that the M2ti produced elevated levels between 4KHz and 8KHz, about 4db above the mid-band readings. The M3ti was fairly flat in this region. I also found that the M3ti produced better than expected bass in my room. It was flat down to 45 Hz and only down 6 db at 40Hz.

The subjective results of this are that the M2ti sounded a bit bright and harsh compared to the M3ti, although more detailed too.

The lesson here is that even though one speaker might seem to have a flatter frequency response based on lab measurements, it's the in-room response that matters. I suspect that the M22ti would produce similar results to the M2ti.

In my room the M3ti speakers sound and measure more accurate than the M2ti speakers (and probably the M22ti since it has similar curves). I'm keeping the M3ti speakers.

Wow, Kim, thank you so much for sharing your experience!

You've nailed the "forgotten component" - your room!

Excellent report. Thanks again.

Thank you, Kim. Just further proof that the room is one of the most important components in an HT setup. Also, a good explanation as to why someone will describe a speaker one way, while someone else describes it quite differently.

Oh good. I just got some M3s and now I feel better about passing on the M2s. My room is smallish - 9 feet wide and 20 feet long. Maybe similar to yours.

I don't really trust my ears over the short term, and am not about to measure anything. I like the bass of the M3s for when the multichannel cds and dvd-as don't have a sub track.

(Multichannel through my Onko receiver is not allowed to be dolbyized - you have to live with what they give you or buy an Outlaw ICBM. (For that price I might as well get M60s).

(The SACD/DVD-A player is the Pioneer 563a that has bass management issues AND degrades the sound quality some if you set speakers for anything but large (off).

(At least this is what I understand about it. Maybe I am being obsessive about it.)

Yes, Don, your concern appears to be for the most part unnecessary. As was previously said, the 120Hz crossover for SACDs on the 563 is slightly higher than ideal, but there's no "degradation" and that's the best you can do with your present equipment. Set all speakers small and for the digital connection between the 563 and 501(CDs, DVDs)set the crossover at 80Hz on the 501. For the multi-channel analog connections for your Channel Classics SACDs(do you have the Rachmaninoff 2d Symphony with Fischer?)set the 563's bass management which will do the 120Hz cross for SACDs on the analog outputs.

Enjoy the music and don't be concerned with what you may have read elsewhere.

Thanks for spelling it out. I will have the time to really learn this one day - for now I just want to pop in a disc and play it.

There is some talk that I think is accurate that if speakers are set to small on the 563a you get a lot of degradation - but you are still in SACD/DVD-A territory so it would probably be hard to hear the difference on my system.