MS55ti Speakers

A forgotten gem. That's basically how I would describe the MS55Ti speakers.

They are quite big by modern standards - a fair bit wider than most modern floorstanders, required by the fact that they have 2 8-inch woofers in each enclosure - something very rare by today's standard, but something I believe gives older speakers a geniune advantage.

You see, to make sound, you need to move air. To make sound with impact, you need to move a lot of air. Stands to reason?

So, modern speakers tend to have smaller woofers, in order to have smaller cabinets, be less intrusive to the living environment and therefore get the all important WAF (wife approval factor) which helps seal a sale.

With a smaller woofer, it needs a bit of help to make a dynamic sound - either by having a long-throw design (where it can move in and out more) or by adding a tuned port where the bass can resonate in the tuning tube.

Both of these have disadvantages technically, but from a listening point of view, I find that most modern speakers end up with a lack of realism and punch in the lower registers.

So, how do the MS55ti's sound? Lovely - that's how.

Rodrigo y Gabriela's guitars are in front of you and extremely lifelike. Kraftwerk's analogue synths are beautifully reproduced. On my "killer" track for testing speakers, A Day In The Life by The Beatles, the crescendos before the middle-8 and at the end of the track tend to leave a lot of speakers feeling really muddled and confused. The MS55tis handle it with aplomb and you can hear every instrument doing it's own thing as they go from their lowest note to a High E. The scale is almost overwhelming as it reaches it's climax.

So, is there anything wrong with these little (!) gems? Erm, unfortunately, yes.

Firstly, don't try driving these with a micro-system. It just isn't going to do them justice. You need an amplifier that can swing a decent current - something like a rotel RA820 or NAD 3020 at the lower end, ideally something like a Mission Cyrus or similar.

Secondly, they are getting on a bit. At least middle-aged in speaker terms. Whilst most of the components should be ok, the glue around the rubber surround and the white plastic trim has a habit of coming away if they's been stored or used in sunlight or a hot room.

These can be re-glued back in place with something like Aleen's tacky glue, but it's quite a precise and fiddly job. There are quite a few out there, so if it's badly attached, walk away and wait for the next pair.

What should you pay for them? For a pair in good cosmetic condition with intact woofers, grilles and cabinet, I would say around £50-70. Knock £10-15 off that for cosmetic damage (including rips/tears in the grille cloth), and if the woofer rubbers are coming away, no more than £25 for a pair. Replacement woofers are like hen's teeth, and can be prohibitively expensive.