Edifier MR5 Review

[sphenicstands]

still hear the "thwapping" sound on low bass tones

It might be worth posting a recording. It's very hard to describe sounds with words

is >50% volume considered overdriving the speakers? Not trying to be hyperbolic. Just want to understand if these are just limits of the speakers. I know from an actual listening point of view, I'd only play it this loud if I was home alone and wanted to enjoy some thumping beats...

I think the volume level on the speakers doesn't mean much in isolation without knowing what the input signal is. For example, two different sound cards can produce very different SPL even though both were at max volume: https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...s-powered-active-subwoofer.68573/post-2609438 The only way to compare volume is by measuring the SPL. You could try some free meter apps like Decibel X and NIOSH SLM to get a rough idea.

I used a tone generator and the unwanted noise at low frequencies (from low 40hz and up) is noticable and more noticable on the passive speaker.

The Lo groove bass tone seems to exacerbate that sound

40Hz is pretty low for the MR5s. They are very attenuated at that frequency so if you're pushing loud at that frequency, you might just be pushing too hard. Do you hear any issues with normal tracks or only the Lo groove one? If only the latter, it's potentially just not something to worry about. That track I would suggest is more aimed at sub woofers that can push down to 30Hz or 20Hz at volume. Listening to it on the MR5s without a subwoofer, I suggest you should expect it to sound "great" but be missing sub bass. Whereas if you're expecting to hear the sub bass and have the volume up enough to hear it, you're probably pushing them too hard.

I've tried reversing the channels in the edifier app and it didn't change the issue.

I would also suggest physically swapping the speakers when you reverse the channels in the edifier app. That will help identify whether it's a placement issue or inherent in the passive speaker. If it's placement, then the issue will now appear to be with the active speaker.

I moved the speaker away from the wall, pointed it so there’s basically nothing behind it and it still has the same noise.

I would also try moving the speakers off the dresser onto something else like chairs, preferably something open all around. This would rule out interaction with the dresser.

 

[sphenicstands]

I'm hearing it on all frequencies all the way up to 60's 70's etc... You get it in low 40s only?

I think they probably meant you shouldn't expect to hear much at 40Hz on the MR5, which has a spec of 46Hz - 40kHz frequency response.

Okay, 60 and 70 isn't that low. They're within the linear band of the MR5. It would be interesting to see what happens if you get them off the dresser onto other surfaces.

 

[raindance]

is >50% volume considered overdriving the speakers? Not trying to be hyperbolic. Just want to understand if these are just limits of the speakers. I know from an actual listening point of view, I'd only play it this loud if I was home alone and wanted to enjoy some thumping beats...
.

Where the volume is set is meaningless. It sounds like you're overdriving them. Like most small active speakers they don't get very loud when they are played full range.

 

[machineglow]

Here's an audio recording using my iphone 13 mini. Starts off at the front of the speakers, then to the rear and I go back and forth between the passive and active speaker so you'll notice the rattling is different between the two speakers and worse on the passive speaker. The volume was not excessively loud. I'm also in a different room on a different table and the weird sound is still there. no new vibrations from other objects even though the table I was playing on was littered with junk. Was playing a 50hz tone but the sound exists in varying degrees across wide range.

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It might be worth posting a recording. It's very hard to describe sounds with words


I think the volume level on the speakers doesn't mean much in isolation without knowing what the input signal is. For example, two different sound cards can produce very different SPL even though both were at max volume: https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...s-powered-active-subwoofer.68573/post-2609438 The only way to compare volume is by measuring the SPL. You could try some free meter apps like Decibel X and NIOSH SLM to get a rough idea.



40Hz is pretty low for the MR5s. They are very attenuated at that frequency so if you're pushing loud at that frequency, you might just be pushing too hard. Do you hear any issues with normal tracks or only the Lo groove one? If only the latter, it's potentially just not something to worry about. That track I would suggest is more aimed at sub woofers that can push down to 30Hz or 20Hz at volume. Listening to it on the MR5s without a subwoofer, I suggest you should expect it to sound "great" but be missing sub bass. Whereas if you're expecting to hear the sub bass and have the volume up enough to hear it, you're probably pushing them too hard.


I would also suggest physically swapping the speakers when you reverse the channels in the edifier app. That will help identify whether it's a placement issue or inherent in the passive speaker. If it's placement, then the issue will now appear to be with the active speaker.


I would also try moving the speakers off the dresser onto something else like chairs, preferably something open all around. This would rule out interaction with the dresser.

Thoughts?

 

[sphenicstands]

Here's an audio recording using my iphone 13 mini. Starts off at the front of the speakers, then to the rear and I go back and forth between the passive and active speaker so you'll notice the rattling is different between the two speakers and worse on the passive speaker.

Definitely sounds like something's vibrating but it's hard to tell what. It sounds more like something I'd associate with the environment rather than anything within the speaker itself, although it does remind me of the sound my PC case sometimes makes when one of the panels isn't sitting correctly, so maybe something inside the speakers isn't seated correctly. Can you by chance feel the table vibrate when you place a hand flat on it? With a 50Hz test tone, my table vibrates if I increase the volume higher than my normal listening volume.

I presume the vibration/rattling sounds quieter when you're farther away from the speakers? So here's a suggestion that hopefully isn't as dumb as it sounds:

1. Using RCA inputs but with only the passive speaker input plugged in, test the passive speaker on its own, verifying you can still here the vibration/rattling and with you right in front of the speaker.
2. Now hold up the passive speaker in the air in front of you at the same distance from you, as far away from furniture and the floor you can manage and see if the sound is still there and just as loud as step 1. If it's just as loud, I'd say there's either a defect with something inside the speaker vibrating or else you're driving the speakers harder than they can deliver. If it's less loud, I'd say something in your environment is likely vibrating.

volume was not excessively loud

Unfortunately this doesn't convey much because one person's normal is another person's deafening and I think humans are less sensitive to bass frequencies so not that loud can still be significant decibels. Bottom line is we can't compare without measurements. Also, if it is actually something in the environment vibrating, from my experience, a constant pure bass tone doesn't have to sound very loud for it to occur. I experience this with my floor and windows.

no new vibrations from other objects even though the table I was playing on was littered with junk

I'm not sure if it's possible to know this. If 50Hz is causing objects to vibrate, I think they'll be vibrating at 50Hz and the resulting higher frequency sound of them hitting whatever other objects they're in contact with may very well sound the same across completely different objects. I don't know.

Is this issue only noticeable on test tones and the Lo groove track or with real material as well? Test tones don't occur in practice and the Lo groove track, with it's description, doesn't seem to reflect real world usage, either.

 

[sphenicstands]

Here's an audio recording using my iphone 13 mini

BTW, forgot to mention, sharing via icloud shows your name with the download. On an otherwise anonymous forum, you might not want that.

 

[machineglow]

BTW, forgot to mention, sharing via icloud shows your name with the download. On an otherwise anonymous forum, you might not want that.

Ah damn Apple. Thanks, changed it to a rando storage service. Hopefully there’s no mp3 metadata to worry about either. . lol.

 

[machineglow]

Definitely sounds like something's vibrating but it's hard to tell what. It sounds more like something I'd associate with the environment rather than anything within the speaker itself, although it does remind me of the sound my PC case sometimes makes when one of the panels isn't sitting correctly, so maybe something inside the speakers isn't seated correctly. Can you by chance feel the table vibrate when you place a hand flat on it? With a 50Hz test tone, my table vibrates if I increase the volume higher than my normal listening volume.

I presume the vibration/rattling sounds quieter when you're farther away from the speakers? So here's a suggestion that hopefully isn't as dumb as it sounds:

1. Using RCA inputs but with only the passive speaker input plugged in, test the passive speaker on its own, verifying you can still here the vibration/rattling and with you right in front of the speaker.
2. Now hold up the passive speaker in the air in front of you at the same distance from you, as far away from furniture and the floor you can manage and see if the sound is still there and just as loud as step 1. If it's just as loud, I'd say there's either a defect with something inside the speaker vibrating or else you're driving the speakers harder than they can deliver. If it's less loud, I'd say something in your environment is likely vibrating.



Unfortunately this doesn't convey much because one person's normal is another person's deafening and I think humans are less sensitive to bass frequencies so not that loud can still be significant decibels. Bottom line is we can't compare without measurements. Also, if it is actually something in the environment vibrating, from my experience, a constant pure bass tone doesn't have to sound very loud for it to occur. I experience this with my floor and windows.


I'm not sure if it's possible to know this. If 50Hz is causing objects to vibrate, I think they'll be vibrating at 50Hz and the resulting higher frequency sound of them hitting whatever other objects they're in contact with may very well sound the same across completely different objects. I don't know.

Is this issue only noticeable on test tones and the Lo groove track or with real material as well? Test tones don't occur in practice and the Lo groove track, with it's description, doesn't seem to reflect real world usage, either.

1. I did what you suggested and played audio only on the passive speaker and picked it up and walked into middle of room and I can distinctly hear the noise coming out of the rear port still.

Guess I'll pack it up and roll the dice on a 3rd set. or maybe I'll wait for the MR3 or mr4 to come back on sale as I was able to snag the T5s speakers on a promo price courtesy of Edifier.

 

[sphenicstands]

Guess I'll pack it up and roll the dice on a 3rd set. or maybe I'll wait for the MR3 or mr4 to come back on sale as I was able to snag the T5s speakers on a promo price courtesy of Edifier.

What seller do you buy from? Sounds like they have a very generous change of mind policy if you can return a 3rd time, although I can't remember ever returning for change of mind so maybe it's common.

The T5s has a listed frequency response up to 115Hz. Were your issues with the MR5 isolated to below that threshold?

 

[machineglow]

What seller do you buy from? Sounds like they have a very generous change of mind policy if you can return a 3rd time, although I can't remember ever returning for change of mind so maybe it's common.

The T5s has a listed frequency response up to 115Hz. Were your issues with the MR5 isolated to below that threshold?

I’m just buying from Amazon.

The issues are definitely isolated to below 115. If I set the cutoff to 80-100hz and -24, the noise basically stopped but so did the low end bass. But I didn’t buy the MR5 to not use its 5” woofer. Might as well save some money and pick up the MR3 or MR4.

I will say, the T5s is a beast. Can’t run it more than 10-15% without it overwhelming everything. I definitely get vibrations from things all around the room when running tones through this.

 

[sphenicstands]

The issues are definitely isolated to below 115

That's good, otherwise I would have suggested avoiding the MR series altogether, as they appear to follow a similar design approach.

If I set the cutoff to 80-100hz and -24, the noise basically stopped but so did the low end bass. But I didn’t buy the MR5 to not use its 5” woofer. Might as well save some money and pick up the MR3 or MR4.

A 100Hz crossover is a bit high but 80Hz is typical for a sub, albeit I have my crossover at 60Hz. So in my case the MR5 5" is being used for 60-155Hz and I'm open to 80-155Hz if that proves better. Is that worth it compared to the MR3 or MR4? Can't tell without measurements but I theorize, correctly on not, that the 5" + 3.75" in the MR5 is going to perform better than the single 3.5" in the MR3, especially for one of my use cases of gaming where I figure dialogue over explosions will more likely to be clear without distortion from the explosions. My decision is easier, though, because the MR5 on its own was already terrific for me so there was no buyers remorse.

I will say, the T5s is a beast. Can’t run it more than 10-15% without it overwhelming everything. I definitely get vibrations from things all around the room when running tones through this.

Yes, I'm still messing around trying to tame vibrations whilst maximizing usable sub bass.

 

[machineglow]

That's good, otherwise I would have suggested avoiding the MR series altogether, as they appear to follow a similar design approach.


A 100Hz crossover is a bit high but 80Hz is typical for a sub, albeit I have my crossover at 60Hz. So in my case the MR5 5" is being used for 60-155Hz and I'm open to 80-155Hz if that proves better. Is that worth it compared to the MR3 or MR4? Can't tell without measurements but I theorize, correctly on not, that the 5" + 3.75" in the MR5 is going to perform better than the single 3.5" in the MR3, especially for one of my use cases of gaming where I figure dialogue over explosions will more likely to be clear without distortion from the explosions. My decision is easier, though, because the MR5 on its own was already terrific for me so there was no buyers remorse.


Yes, I'm still messing around trying to tame vibrations whilst maximizing usable sub bass.

I got offered a promotion price on the MR4.5 that just came out because the MR3 and MR4 are out of stock... since I have T5s subwoofer, what's everyone's opinion on running the 4.5" woofer and a lower sub crossover (probably around 50-60) vs the 3.75 on the MR3 (and a higher cross over)? Am i giving up resolution in the upper spectrum with a bigger gap between the 1" tweeter and the woofer? or is "bigger is better" approach always sound when picking a speaker size? Also keep in mind, the MR4.5 is being priced almost double the MR3 sale pricing....

Or am I just potentially asking for the same problem by relying on the low end woofer of the MR4.5 (and I should just properly set a higher cross over)?

 

[sphenicstands]

Edit: added note about MR4.5 specs.

I got offered a promotion price on the MR4.5 that just came out because the MR3 and MR4 are out of stock... since I have T5s subwoofer, what's everyone's opinion on running the 4.5" woofer and a lower sub crossover (probably around 50-60) vs the 3.75 on the MR3 (and a higher cross over)? Am i giving up resolution in the upper spectrum with a bigger gap between the 1" tweeter and the woofer? or is "bigger is better" approach always sound when picking a speaker size? Also keep in mind, the MR4.5 is being priced almost double the MR3 sale pricing....

Or am I just potentially asking for the same problem by relying on the low end woofer of the MR4.5 (and I should just properly set a higher cross over)?

I don't think the MR4.5 has been measured but the rest of the range has:

• Erin's MR3 review
• Amir's MR4 review
• Erin's MR4 review
• Nuyes's MR5 review in the current thread, of course
• Erin's MR5 review

Amir's tutorial on understanding speaker measurements.

Both MR4 measurements show a dip at about 3kHz, although Amir compensated with EQ. Impossible to tell if MR4.5 will have a similar issue. MR4.5 specs are also strangely stated, listed as "Flat frequency response from 50Hz to 40kHz" but even by their own graph, it's -10dB at 50Hz, bearing in mind every 10dB decrease sounds half as loud. Their graph suggests it's more like 70Hz min.

An excerpt from Erin's MR5 review that might explain the issue you had:

MR5:

• "At 86 dB, harmonic distortion is generally controlled through the midrange, with expected increases in the bass."
• "Distortion rises more quickly than average as frequency decreases, indicating excursion limits at higher playback levels."

Erin's MR3 review excerpt, which may also indicate limited performance for your use case: "Maximum SPL: Reaches about 86 dB, suitable for desktop environments but limited for larger spaces."

The MR range all seem best for near field listening so I suggest to think about whether this matches your environment. Potentially you are seeking higher SPL than these can deliver well. Also worth paying attention to is the directivity measurements which help indicate how much you can expect frequency response to change when listening off-axis.

 

[whazzup]

I got offered a promotion price on the MR4.5 that just came out because the MR3 and MR4 are out of stock... since I have T5s subwoofer, what's everyone's opinion on running the 4.5" woofer and a lower sub crossover (probably around 50-60) vs the 3.75 on the MR3 (and a higher cross over)? Am i giving up resolution in the upper spectrum with a bigger gap between the 1" tweeter and the woofer? or is "bigger is better" approach always sound when picking a speaker size? Also keep in mind, the MR4.5 is being priced almost double the MR3 sale pricing....

Or am I just potentially asking for the same problem by relying on the low end woofer of the MR4.5 (and I should just properly set a higher cross over)?

From your experiences, it sounds like Edifier's attempts to overthrow physics at budget prices are not quite panning out. I think it's the same with their T5s (which I have and posted the measurements earlier), on paper it goes to 35hz, but in reality the SPL is just not there. With the MR5, from your encounters it sounds the same: the specs says it's there, but it's at the limits and all sorts of complications start happening.

I'm guessing MR4.5 may be less complicated and maybe less things can go wrong. But I would also suggest that you try to cross over at around 80-120hz. They (4-5 inchers) are not meant to go lower than 100hz and distortion always picks up. The whole point of a sub is to get higher output, lower distortion, AND relieving your main speakers from having to deal with the lower frequencies.

I've tried to consolidate my own conclusions about integrating the sub as a layman. If you don't have a mic you can still do a relatively good job by ear (mentioned at 3c in post before).

Subwoofer Options - <$800 - Small/Medium Room

You cannot EQ your way out of a physical null, and a second subwoofer is one of the most effective ways to solve this—even for a single listening seat. In this scenario, I would just put the single subwoofer where you put the 2nd one.

www.audiosciencereview.com

You can see my T5s EQ settings in my earlier post on a separate thread. Note though that those values will not be the same for you because your speakers and room are different from mine. Even my current settings have changed since I created that graph.

Anybody here have experience with the Edifier T5s Powered Active Subwoofer?

This is a cheap subwoofer from Edifier, which usually has decent products. My question is has anybody here had any experience with this sub? If so, how does it compare to regular subs like the SVS?

www.audiosciencereview.com

If you're eq-ing by ear, do them one at a time. Start by turning off the T5s' LPF and getting your sub louder than your usual volume and play the youtube sweep. Your speakers should be off also. If you can't hear the 50hz properly you'll need to turn your sub's volume higher. After that go ahead and knock down the 50hz by a large value, say 20db down and play the sweep again. Hear how the audio responds to your eq. After you get used to the process, it'll be pretty straightforward. Generally, you want a more gentle slope up as frequencies get lower rather than the default mountain peak style of the T5s.

And for the crossover to your speakers, what can trip you up is the phase. In my case, I had tried 80hz, 100hz etc, but consistently hear a drop in volume in the region, and also see it in the measurements. Then I remembered the phase control on the T5s and after changing it, the null filled itself out. THEN I continue to tinker with the crossover frequency of both sub and speakers, and changed the Q (steepness) value as well, and got the null again. Switching the phase control back filled the null out again. So my point is they are all related as you trial and error.

 

[HomerIncognito]

Regarding MR4.5 bass output capabilities, it won't match the MR5. Taken from Edifier China site for the MR4BT which is how they named the MR4.5 in the Chinese market.

MR4BT

EDIFIER漫步者是国内领先，国际知名的音频设备企业。专注音频技术研发，产品涵盖多媒体电脑音箱、家用音响、汽车音响、耳机等领域。匠心诚意好声音!

www.edifier.com

 

[LockAndKey]

I’m just buying from Amazon.

The issues are definitely isolated to below 115. If I set the cutoff to 80-100hz and -24, the noise basically stopped but so did the low end bass. But I didn’t buy the MR5 to not use its 5” woofer. Might as well save some money and pick up the MR3 or MR4.

I will say, the T5s is a beast. Can’t run it more than 10-15% without it overwhelming everything. I definitely get vibrations from things all around the room when running tones through this.

If it helps I also encountered the passive speaker rattling issue like you've mentioned, and it's more audible from the bass port.

I ordered a replacement from Amazon and thankfully the second pair doesn't have it. I thought it was just a one of thing but it seems to be not the case .

 

[machineglow]

If it helps I also encountered the passive speaker rattling issue like you've mentioned, and it's more audible from the bass port.

I ordered a replacement from Amazon and thankfully the second pair doesn't have it. I thought it was just a one of thing but it seems to be not the case .

Good to know. In the 2 sets I had, it was always inconsistent between the active speaker and the passive speaker and worse on the passive speaker. I'm currently debating if I should replace with MR4.5 or MR3 since I was able to get their T5s subwoofer at a good price.