Beautiful sound and looks.

Not enough bass for movies

Mission initially made the 773 (without the ‘e’), which failed to impress. They then went back to the drawing board and came up with the 773e, which more than made up for the initial 773. Please remember if you are purchasing this speaker (which I fully recommend) to ensure it is a 773e and not the 773 – without the ‘e’.

Sonically the 773es’ are superb, driven by the more than capable Nakamichi AV-10 (see my review of the AV-10 on this site), it handling any dynamic thrown at them, anything from rolling R&B to the tight drumming of Dire Straits’ Money for Nothing. Those two sexy smooth aerogel mid/bass drivers are always in control showing superb handling of transients where others flounder. These floorstanders are placed about 45-50 cm from the rear wall for which I get the best results. The treble is always clean and has a lovely tinkle to them and the vocals never cease to be pleasing.

What I found was that – as was the case when auditioning them, the lower bass sounded a little restrained however listen to them for a while and you’ll realize just how balanced everything is. The bass grows on you and once you’re used to them, you find that in other speakers, although they initially sound like they have more bass than the Mission, you start to miss the refined smoothness of the 773e’s. Never have I had a case where a complex bass mix caused any sort of ‘loss’ in sound. The jazz CD - Superbass by Ray Brown has some most complex bass sets I’ve heard yet it was just a stroll in park for the Missions. The idea behind using 2 smaller drivers (instead of a single larger driver) means each has a lower inertial mass and thus can handle transients better and it works brilliantly for these Missions.

When I first unpacked the 773e I noticed that the fabric dome tweeter was not fixed to the front panel but on spring type system. Upon investigation it seems that the engineers at Mission try to isolate or decouple the tweeter from vibrations it may receive from the two mid-bass drivers, which may affect its delivery of sound and it seems be a quite a good idea as it works very well. The treble is always clean and clear. The one thing I found was that the Missions did take a while (a long while) to run in properly but once it had done so it has been nothing but delightful.

By placing the tweeter between the two drivers ensures that sound comes to you as coherent as possible, a simulation of a single point source. Combined with the spring-loaded tweeter and those two smooth aerogels, the 773e builds an impressively focused soundstage. Playing some of the Vangelis’ tracks one almost feels agoraphobic at the wonderful soundstage this speaker builds. It also performs not just well but superbly with any type of music which suites my wide variety of musical tastes very well.

Physically, these speakers are gorgeous; they’re slim and look elegant with the tapered front panel that comes to driver units. Build quality is simply exceptional with very good quality binding posts of which there are 2 sets for bi-wiring (and please bi-wire). The speakers are supplied with spikes and an outrider, which can be attached at the rear for more stability. Due to the slim design I found that the outrider was necessary. Had to fight with spikes a little to get it balanced well but luckily this is not something done very often.

Using the 773e for home theatre once again demonstrates its adeptness in transients where explosions and gunshots are immediate. Using its matching centre, the 77C1 (see my review of the 77C1) ensures that the integration is seamless – just about the best that I have heard regardless of price. The solid soundstage demonstrated in stereo assists in the total involvement in 5.1.

The issue of bass does become an issue for the more bass intensive home theatre and here is were the 773e require some assistance – i.e. the use of a subwoofer. The problem was that I needed something that would blend with everything that I had and not interfere sonically with the 773e. To my luck I managed to ’persuade’ a retailer to part with his beloved REL Storm III (see my review of the subwoofer on this site). And this was just right – the smooth bass of the REL blending in with that of the 773e.

As main stereo speakers the 773e is just about the best you can get for the price. Is sonic abilities are only matched by its lovely looks. It does all types of music with great ability and is easy to drive and match. For the price this is certainly an exceptional buy. I commended Mission on their 701 for its high performance versus price ratio and once again here for a beautifully made speaker. I still get surprised by the detail and sound from these speakers which want me to just keep listening and hence it certainly gets my full recommendation.

Similar Products Used:

other missions, B&W, AE, Boston

Beautiful sound and looks.

Not enough bass for movies

Mission initially made the 773 (without the ‘e’), which failed to impress. They then went back to the drawing board and came up with the 773e, which more than made up for the initial 773. Please remember if you are purchasing this speaker (which I fully recommend) to ensure it is a 773e and not the 773 – without the ‘e’.

Sonically the 773es’ are superb, driven by the more than capable Nakamichi AV-10 (see my review of the AV-10 on this site), it handling any dynamic thrown at them, anything from rolling R&B to the tight drumming of Dire Straits’ Money for Nothing. Those two sexy smooth aerogel mid/bass drivers are always in control showing superb handling of transients where others flounder. These floorstanders are placed about 45-50 cm from the rear wall for which I get the best results. The treble is always clean and has a lovely tinkle to them and the vocals never cease to be pleasing.

What I found was that – as was the case when auditioning them, the lower bass sounded a little restrained however listen to them for a while and you’ll realize just how balanced everything is. The bass grows on you and once you’re used to them, you find that in other speakers, although they initially sound like they have more bass than the Mission, you start to miss the refined smoothness of the 773e’s. Never have I had a case where a complex bass mix caused any sort of ‘loss’ in sound. The jazz CD - Superbass by Ray Brown has some most complex bass sets I’ve heard yet it was just a stroll in park for the Missions. The idea behind using 2 smaller drivers (instead of a single larger driver) means each has a lower inertial mass and thus can handle transients better and it works brilliantly for these Missions.

When I first unpacked the 773e I noticed that the fabric dome tweeter was not fixed to the front panel but on spring type system. Upon investigation it seems that the engineers at Mission try to isolate or decouple the tweeter from vibrations it may receive from the two mid-bass drivers, which may affect its delivery of sound and it seems be a quite a good idea as it works very well. The treble is always clean and clear. The one thing I found was that the Missions did take a while (a long while) to run in properly but once it had done so it has been nothing but delightful.

By placing the tweeter between the two drivers ensures that sound comes to you as coherent as possible, a simulation of a single point source. Combined with the spring-loaded tweeter and those two smooth aerogels, the 773e builds an impressively focused soundstage. Playing some of the Vangelis’ tracks one almost feels agoraphobic at the wonderful soundstage this speaker builds. It also performs not just well but superbly with any type of music which suites my wide variety of musical tastes very well.

Physically, these speakers are gorgeous; they’re slim and look elegant with the tapered front panel that comes to driver units. Build quality is simply exceptional with very good quality binding posts of which there are 2 sets for bi-wiring (and please bi-wire). The speakers are supplied with spikes and an outrider, which can be attached at the rear for more stability. Due to the slim design I found that the outrider was necessary. Had to fight with spikes a little to get it balanced well but luckily this is not something done very often.

Using the 773e for home theatre once again demonstrates its adeptness in transients where explosions and gunshots are immediate. Using its matching centre, the 77C1 (see my review of the 77C1) ensures that the integration is seamless – just about the best that I have heard regardless of price. The solid soundstage demonstrated in stereo assists in the total involvement in 5.1.

The issue of bass does become an issue for the more bass intensive home theatre and here is were the 773e require some assistance – i.e. the use of a subwoofer. The problem was that I needed something that would blend with everything that I had and not interfere sonically with the 773e. To my luck I managed to ’persuade’ a retailer to part with his beloved REL Storm III (see my review of the subwoofer on this site). And this was just right – the smooth bass of the REL blending in with that of the 773e.

As main stereo speakers the 773e is just about the best you can get for the price. Is sonic abilities are only matched by its lovely looks. It does all types of music with great ability and is easy to drive and match. For the price this is certainly an exceptional buy. I commended Mission on their 701 for its high performance versus price ratio and once again here for a beautifully made speaker. I still get surprised by the detail and sound from these speakers which want me to just keep listening and hence it certainly gets my full recommendation.

Similar Products Used:

other missions, B&W, AE, Boston

good looking, great sound - these truly shine with good electronics

really need stands, sound poor out of the box, spikes are a pain

I got these speakers without hearing them - I know, bad idea, but the reviews on this site convinced me, plus the price from ubid was UNBELIEVABLE. ($359 with shipping - sure, the shipping charge is steep, but $359 for a $1000 MSRP pair of speakers is a layup!) The rosewood veneer looks absolutely stunning...

These sounded OK out of the box - I had some really bad speaker wires at the beginning (Monster XP), and had them hooked up to some poor electronics too. A weekend of break-in with DeBussy's "La Mer" helped a lot, but they really started to cook when I shipped in a Cambridge Audio D300SE CD and a Cambridge Audio A500 int. amp, with a KK PBJ interconnect in between. I bi-wired these with some KK 4PR about a week later and BOOM! the sound was improved several fold.

My room is fairly resonant so I find that keeping these close to the wall (say, 10-15 cm away helps a lot) - also, I got some 8" stands from Sanus that have improved the sound tremendously - the tweeters are just not far enough off the ground without them. Stands made a MAJOR difference in sound quality for me, about twice as good as when they were right on the floor (spiked, of course), with everything else equal.

They now sound FANTASTIC - just enough bass for my tastes. Some recordings sound a bit bright, but the 4PRs and the PBJ have not really burned in fully and I'm sure this will fade. I am cheating a bit and using the tone controls on the A500 rarely - please forgive me, but it really does sound better some times!

All in all, great sound at a GREAT price. I haven't and lots of these go up on ubid in the past month, but who knows? ubid is a nightmare, so beware - these took a month to show up, and communication from ubid as to the delay was abominable. The stands were also off of ubid, however, and they showed up in about a week...

Neutral, well balanced, nice soundstage, price, real craftsman finish

none that I can think of

This is a wonderful pair of speakers which reproduces string and wood instruments like no other. Although I also like the vocals, I find the highs tend to be a bit bright. They are great for listening to all types of music. I have not performed the modification and I don't think it's neccessary, but everyone ravs about it. (usually I do) Mission products are great, and i think that everyone that reads this should go out and buy these speakers.

Wonderful clear mids and highs

Drop off completely around 50-60Hz

These speakers sounds great for a pair of $300 speakers. My old roomate had a pair of Amirita that I absolutely loved, but are no longer made. These 773s match the Amiritas in mid and high clarity and the Amiritas were over $1000/pair. I was disturbed by the absolute lack of base for home theater, so I went out and purchased a sunfire junior. This sub is outstanding and completed the low end for the 773s. I am planning to buy a 77c1 center to complete my system.

System:
Onkyo 676 Reciever
Onkyo DVC600 DVD
773 fronts
sunfire junior sub

Similar Products Used:

Amirita, B&W

Good Imagery
Excellent Midrange

None

I use these with the Cinema 7 package.

These speakers are excellent value for money, they have great timing and kick when required. Make sure you utilise the room boundary if you have a large room as they can sound light. Hence the sub.

Buy a Rel Strata or Storm (music) or Q series (movies) Sub for the Sub-Bass.

If you can audition a Q400E this drops to 15hz and has 400W RMS to control a 12inch rigid driver.

Similar Products Used:

Jamo
Celestion
JBL

Great clean sound!

Don't know yet!

This relates to Mission 773e speakers:

I'd just like to thank the people who put reviews on this site.

I bought these speakers based on the reviews when I saw them for £199 at richer sounds and figured if they're great at £400 they must be a real bargain at £200!

Sure enough - they're excellent! I can't wax lyrical about soundstages etc etc, coz I don't know what that means!

What I can say is that the music I play,(everything from Motorhead to Mozart) sounds much clearer and stronger than it did with my Gales. I can also assure everyone that the bass they provide is definitely strong enough! As suggested elsewhere, if you think it isn't, then there's probably something wrong with your other equipment or the acoustics/positioning in your room.

Anyway - thanks again for the help!

For those that are interested in such things, here's a list of the equipment they're hooked up to, good middle of the road stuff:

Amp = Arcam alpha 7
CD = Harmon Kardon FL8300

cheers

PS: I notice from the mission web site that the 773e got voted best sub £400 speaker by What HIFI in 1999

Similar Products Used:

Gale

This speaker is hidden jewel. Unfortunately it is not always easy to find or to recognize for what it is. It has been crafted beautifully with real hardwood veneers, making it a beautiful addition to any system. Of course the sound is the important issue. When I first heard these in the listening room of the store from which I bought them I almost wrote them off because they had not been properly configured. Once I got them home, bi-wired them, and rescued them from the grip of a poor receiver they performed in marvelous form. Imaging and detail is very clear. Bass is coherent, although if you use these speakers for heavily bass oriented music the addition of a subwoofer would be recommended.

Over all, these speakers, if treated well, properly wired and powered, will not disappoint. They are beautifully musical and smooth. While bass is less than overpowering, it is accurate down to about 55hz and is easily augmented if that is your desire. I would recommend looking at the 774 or 775 if this concerns you.

Similar Products Used:

Boston Acousics, Polk Audio, Paradigm

my setup
denon avr 1601
mission 773e
mission 77ds
mission 77c1
nakamichi md8

.. 773e speakers sound great ....

Very beautiful cosmetically! Excellent mids' & highs. Great for music & home-theater, although a sub is a must. Can be purchased cheaply on ubid & ebay, as low as $360/pr. (Retail is $800/pr.)

Can't go too low, may want/need a sub-woofer. Bottom out easily in movie scenes/music with heavy bass. Not a speaker problem but Ubid moves glacially slow when shipping items out.

I bought these beautiful speakers on ubid after reading very positive reviews on this site and in What Hi-Fi magazine. I certainly received a lot of speaker for my money! As mentioned, these are very beautiful speakers that take up little space but really perform for their size. I also purchased the Mission 77C1 center channel speaker and combined with my Denon AVR-3801 receiver these sound awesome! Excellent for home-theater use and perform well on jazz and classical music. The 773e's don't get too low (check out the 774's) so I would definitely recommend a sub to get the most out of them for home-theater and music with lots of bass. (Any recommendations?) All-in-all, a great purchase at around $ 350-400/pr. Can't go wrong with these Missions as you get lots of bang for your buck.

Similar Products Used:

Infinity SM 185's & 225's.