I picked these up on craigslist about a year ago and have been amazed at them ever since. These are incredible towers, the bass response on them are unbelievable, I have a Polk PSW10 hooked up with them and I'm not sure that I even need it. They're hooked up to my Sansui G4500 reciever at 40wpc, these things really sing! If you happen to see a pair of these used, pick them up! You won't be disappointed, with the right set up, these can provide a great amount of audio enjoyment! I listen to just about everything and everything I have thrown at these things sounds incredible..everything from Rock to Jazz, Prog, Fusion etc.. Great speakers that seemed to have flown under the radar unfortunately...

The only weakness I can think of with these things are the height, I wish they were just a bit taller and the veneer on the outside seems a little cheap, but doesn't take away from the phenomenal sound these speakers produce.

Broad sound stage. Smooth tweeter.

Not the Om series

I purchased these speakers about 3 years ago. I dont think they are being continued as mirage is now pushing the omni & Om series speakers( nothing wrong with that). Speakers are to me about personal taste in tone ( within a set budget) Some you like and some you don't, does not necessarily mean one is bad and another is good, only that they do or do not match your personal taste. Personally I love these speakers, I really enjoy the broad expanse of sound that the bi-directional speakers give. It was important to me that the treble was not harsh when listenning to music and I find that the bass can still rattle the windows when viewing DVD's. These were my first Mirage but were not my last. You could probabaly pick these up pretty cheap now and I recommend you give them a listen with a wide variety of music.

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Tannoy Mx3 & Mx4. Boston Acoustic, Jamo, JBL, Richter

everything!

are you kidding!

exellent balanced and natural sound.beautiful cherry finish.typical api fit and finish!

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paradigm,camber,realitic,jbl.

Clear Mids and Highs

Bass, Sounstage, List Price

Overall, not too impressed with these speakers. During their 8 month trial, I kept convincing myself they would break in, or I would learn to appreciate them. They seem to lack the full, natural sound of other speakers in the $500-600 price range. Mids and highs are quite clear, but seem too restrained, dry and lifeless. Bass is most definitely lacking (to be expected in a speaker this size). Definitely not worth 549.00, and not even worth the 299.00 (IMHO). Traded them for a pair of Klipsch SB3B bookshelves (a significant upgrade).

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Klipsch Synergy & Reference Series, Boston VR series, PSB, EPI, Definitive Technology

they have a smoothand delightful sound. not to bright and not to bassy

no complaints

for the price these speakers are best in there class.

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energy ex l15..

Imaging,soundstage,smooth and accurate

Structure

I've used the Mirage FRX5's in my system as a front speakers and as a rear speaker for about two months.
As a front speaker, I was pleasantly suprised by it's smooth sound while maintaining exceptional clarity.
The build quality, while not top grade, is fine for a speaker in this price range. Rapping my knuckles on the side I noticed more of a hollow sound than I am usually accustomed to. The only comparably priced speaker I had on hand was an Energy 3.1E. It seems more solid to the knuckles but it's also half as tall.
Despite the somewhat thinner walls, these speakers were a pleasure to listen to. This speaker went lower than it's size might suggest. The bass was more on the accurate side than on the loud boomy side. Some people might say this speaker is bass shy, but it's there, just not in your face like many lesser speakers.
The soundstage stretched from speaker edge to speaker edge, giving accurate placement of the instraments. I've been using bipolar speakers for quite awhile now on my front channels and switching to the front radiating FRX5's was quite refreshing with it's imaging.
With multichannel sources it was equally impressive.
Mirage makes the FRX-C to be paired up with thse speakers but I opted for the OMC-3. I think the added cost was well worth it. I was suprised how well thse integrated with each other.
Moving the FRX5's to the rear channels and alternating between the Mirage M7's and Energy Audissey 3+2's in the front, I found the FRX5's to make a fine rear speaker, although a bit short. Be creative and raise it above ear level. I prefer a direct radiator in the rear channels and with the added bass extension of the FRX5's, you get quite a sonic improvemnt over many of the small bookshelf speakers that are often used in the rear. I've used Mirage 90i's,Energy 3.1e's,Energy Take 2's and Energy Audissey's as rear channels. I'd say aside from the Audissey's, the FRX5's were my favorite.
I think that the list price may be a bit high on the FRX5's. If you can get them for 25-30 percent off, I'd say they are a good value. You slouldn't have any trouble finding them at these prices.

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Energy 3.1e, Energy 4.1e

full dynamic range, sweet lows, to crisp highs.. beautiful.

none

After picking these speakers up a month ago i'm still amazed - i simply can't believe how good the sound is that comes out of them... they completely blow anything audio i've ever owned away. I can't stop chucking in cd after cd just to hear "how something will sound now" the first day i got them and hooked them all up - my jaw just dropped as soon as the bassline kicked in... i couldn't believe from such a small speaker size (5 1/4 i believe) such amazing deep bass, and dynamically rich sound could emerge.. I'm by no means an audiophile - but i may just become one now that i know how good "higher" quality audio stuff can sound, and this isn't even mirages top of the line product - how much better can something sound? heh.

when i first got these home i ran them through a JVC rx890 - with previous speakers i've owned in the past this amp always sounded flat to me,.. i never knew exactly which was the culprit (the amp or the speakers), but i now know it was definetly the speakers - as the music was gorgeous. I've since upgraded to a Yamaha rx-v596, as i've always loved yamahas and needed to get into the 5.1 world at the same time - and the sound just got even better - tighter, smoother bass.. crisp highs, and all with depth. with either rig you can't go wrong... as they say a good setup will always begin (and end?) with the speakers.

i'll be adding some rears shortly (you can guarantee they will also be mirage)and a sub (possibly not mirage - maybe yamaha) shortly... for now my center channel is a jbl

i would have paid quadruple what i paid if i knew beforehand i would be THIS happy with them.... no joke.

*pleaes note these were bought in canada and the actual price i paid was 600 CAN, not sure what the equivalent is in US... so i guessed*

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altec lansing, jbl, audio reseach, tryed out bose 201's

Great sounding speakers, excellent bass performance even without a subwoofer.

Overall, these speakers sound excellent for the price. If you have the money I'd recommend the FRX-9's which have a powered subwoofer built into each main speaker. If you're like me and on a budget, the FRX-5's will give you the most bang for your buck.

I went with a friend to check out Canadian speakers, as they offer the best deal for Canadians. He wanted to check out the Energy Take 5 system. In the end he decided on the Mirage FRx-Fives (I previously purchased the FRx-Threes vs the Energy e-XL 16s).
He listened to the Take 5 system and was not impressed, although they are good for what they are. He then tried the Energy e-XL 25s and liked them. He also listened to the Mirage FR-x Threes and Fives. He prefers floorstanding speakers. He enjoyed the sound of the Mirages a lot more, finding them to have a sweeter midrange and high-end. It appears the Mirage's tweeter is better than the Energy's. For fun we also listened to the Mirage OM series and the Energy c series. He preferred the FR-x series over the OM series, although I believe this can be attributed to a narrow listening room with too many projection TVs surrounding the OM series speakers. The enviroment was not suitable for these speakers. Personally I could tell the OM series are much better than the FR-x series. Finally, we listened to the Energy C series. Wow, what a difference from either the e-XL or the FRx series. The bass was better defined, has more authority and the mids and highs were so much smoother and sweeter.

Although the cheapest of the Energy C series was in my friend's price range he decided to go with the Mirage FRx-Fives because he is buying a home theater system and wants to purchase the surrounds, the center and the sub later. Doing a similar thing with the C series is beyond his price range.

In conclusion, all the speakers mentioned provide great sound, although I would suggest one spend a little more and go for the Energy eXL series if the person is considering the Take 5 system or one of its cousins from Mirage or Sound Dynamics. The higher fidelity will be much appreciated for a couple hundred dollars more, at the most.

My friend ordering:

Energy C series
Mirage FRx series
Energy eXL series

My ordering:

Mirage OM series (I like that Omnipolar sound)
Energy C series
Mirage FRx series
Energy eXL series

The Take 5 system and its cousins from Mirage and Sound Dynamics are not included as some of the above mentioned series will blow them away for not much more. An example is the Mirage FRx-Ones front and rear, FRx-C centre and the Energy ES-8 subwoofer. A little more, but a much more refined and involving sound.

The speakers were auditioned at Oakville Sight and Sound which carries all 3 brands and was very helpful.

PS. Paradigm Monitor series were also auditioned at another store, but my firend and I both preferred the Audio Products International offerings.

I checked these out at HiFi Buys in Atlanta GA. I initially made the drive to a remote store intending to pick up a pair of Polk Audio RT 800s that were on clearance. Upon arrival I found that one of the woofers was punctured. It was the best thing that could have happened. I checked out the Mirages vs. some Klipsch speakers in the same price range. The Klipsch are more efficient and therefore louder, but were too brash sounding for my taste. The FRx 5s sounded much sweeter. I checked out the Polks and some Infinitis next door, and there was just no contest. I have since added the FRx C and upgraed my receiver, and I plan to add the rears with a subwoofer and upgraded to the FRx 7s or 9s in the future. I'm sold on Mirage.