Micca MB42X G2 Budget Speaker Review

[RickS]

Was pondering replacing my rear surrounds and needed something small (but preferably white). For $100, is not worth my time to build but kept wondering why the woofer looked familiar.

Then I realized why as I built these for Amir to test...

These are (NLA) Carmody S2000s. I stained them, and they have been deployed in my woodshop. If they used the same Denovo woofer, the Micca's would be a steal. Here is pic from my build...



The Micca's are flatter on the top end than the S2000s, but that could just be the tweeter and/or its padding.

@amirm any chance we get a closer peek at the Micca woofer?

P.S. also would be interested to know if any internal damping was used at this price point.

 

[GD Fan]

Voted 'not terrible.' Because that's what it is and because there's no option of 'great for the price.'

 

[Ajax]

Oviously insane price, however, IMO active speakers still provide a better solution at the budget end of the market for desk tops e.g. JBL305 or Adam TV5.

They are both around $400 a pair, which is a similar price (and less clutter) after you add and amp to the Micca unless, however, you have an old integrated or AV receiver gathering dust and want somthing for your garage or bedroom.

Anyway, amazing little speaker when you consider it is 12 years old.

 

[a4eaudio]

...If they used the same Denovo woofer, the Micca's would be a steal. ...

The Denovo woofer is cast frame while the Micca is stamped. The Denovo says 4-1/2" and Micca says 4" but nominal sizes don't mean much, so not clear if the Denovo is actually bigger.

 

[TNT]

5-way binding posts ;-D

//

 

[Adaboy4z]

If I didn't have several pairs of Optimus/Realistic 7's this would be a good desktop speaker paired with a small sub.

 

[SMc]

Oviously insane price, however, IMO active speakers still provide a better solution at the budget end of the market for desk tops e.g. JBL305 or Adam TV5.

They are both around $400 a pair, which is a similar price (and less clutter) after you add and amp to the Micca unless, however, you have an old integrated or AV receiver gathering dust and want somthing for your garage or bedroom.

Anyway, amazing little speaker when you consider it is 12 years old.

The noaudiophile review is of a powered model, the PB42x, that should be equivalent.

 

[phoenixdogfan]

Looks like an amazing bargain, especially if willing to EQ. Only thing preventing it from being a tape measure home run is the midrange directivity error.

Thanks for a great review, Amir.

 

[mrick39]

Amazon UK have them. Prices seem to be a bit silly though, unless I've found the wrong item.

But then, everything here in the UK is more expensive for some strange reason.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Micca-MB42X-Bookshelf-Speakers-Tweeter/dp/B00E7H8GG2?th=1

Not the same speaker. That's the older version.

 

[a4eaudio]

...
Given the relatively close sizes of the drivers, I expected directivity error to be smaller. This is likely to letting the woofer go up a bit too high, causing it to beam relative to the wide dispersion of tweeter at those frequencies (2 to 3 KHz). This results in fair amount of off-axis error:

I wonder if the crossover can be diy corrected, just like mentioned in the JBL A180 thread

I was wondering the same about the crossover. There was a recent thread in the DIY section about Dennis Murphy's Affordable Accuracy Monitor, which was a crossover mod for a budget Pioneer speaker, and whether there was a "new candidate" for such a DIY mod.

In this case, I wonder if the flat on-axis yet dip in power response is just the standard 3db power dip from using Linkwitz-Riley crossovers. The specs state they are LR2 but not where they are crossed, although I'd think a 4" mid would be crossed closer to 3kHz than 2kHz. If you fix the power dip, then you are changing some combination of on-axis, off-axis and phase, so it is not clear that they would sound "better" even if the squiggly lines measured better. In fact, we would expect the relatively flat on-axis response to be more important than the power response from Toole, Olive, etc.

 

[tw 2022]

I hope nobody is surprised by a cheap(er) speaker sounding really good... Everybody remember the Philharmonic AA monitor that Amir reviewed a while back?...

 

[audiotron]

Pretty impressive! Thanks for the review.

 

[ROOSKIE]

Voted 'not terrible.' Because that's what it is and because there's no option of 'great for the price.'

I always factor in price at least a bit.
I can't see how it doesn't work best that way.
Just my honest opinion. 2cents worth of it.

I am easier on inexpensive gear and harsh with expensive gear.
I know others vote without regard to price and I can see that viewpoint but ultimately think price is a huge factor in hifi with bonkers pricing galore.

 

[AdrianusG]

Interesting, in Amazon Spain they cost 322 euro per pair.

Of course they are, "we Europeans" are so rich, we can easily pay more than double than, well almost anybody else right?

 

[AudioSceptic]

This was *my* first ever record player, a Dansette Popular obtained for me by hard-saved 'Green Shield Stamps' which maybe one or two UK based oldies might remember The speaker was mounted half under the BSR turntable, NOT on the front. The twin-valve amp likewise alongside the speaker. The TC8H crystal cartridge couldn't track well at all and of course was mono records only.

A hundred quid my backside

Dansette Popular 4 Speed Record Player Vintage 1962 Red Velum Case Rare | eBay

Red velum case with carry handle and feet for stability.

www.ebay.co.uk

View attachment 427830

If you think that's crazy, see <https://www.dansette.com/shop>!

 

[restorer-john]

If I didn't have several pairs of Optimus/Realistic 7's this would be a good desktop speaker paired with a small sub.

Everyone has a pile of Minimus 7s loitering around doing nothing. Throw them out and buy a pair of these little miccas.

 

[eddantes]

I am intrigued by that crossover photo: 3 coils 3 caps 3 resistors. Looks like 3rd order on both drivers (unless using cheaper parts to gang). Lpad will have two resistors; where's the third? I suppose - at the front of the tweet circuit.

 

[JDS]

This is a review, listening tests and detailed measurements of the Micca MB42X G2 low cost 2-way bookshelf speaker. It is on kind loan from a member and costs US $100 for a pair, shipping included.
View attachment 427630
I expected thin, cheap plywood construction but instead, found a robust composite enclosure that actually manages to look like a professional monitor. You could sell them for $400 and I would not complain about the case being too cheap. Likewise, the woofer gives a feeling of quality. Whether it delivers on that, will be seen in the measurements.

Please note that there are multiple models in this series with very close sounding names. This is the latest "generation 2" version and company does a good job of showing the contrast with older design:

If you are not familiar with my speaker measurements, please watch this video tutorial:

Micca MB42X G2 Speaker Measurements
Let's start with our anechoic measurements:
View attachment 427632

I must say, this is quite a bit better than I expected! At high level, the response is pretty flat. There are minor variations but those tend to not be very audible. There is a slight bias toward low frequencies which is the opposite of what we typically see ("anti-showroom sound"). That lends to bass that extends pretty low for the class.

Given the relatively close sizes of the drivers, I expected directivity error to be smaller. This is likely to letting the woofer go up a bit too high, causing it to beam relative to the wide dispersion of tweeter at those frequencies (2 to 3 KHz). This results in fair amount of off-axis error:
View attachment 427633
As result, the predicted in-room response has a hole in it:
View attachment 427634

Measuring close to the port, we see a cabinet/port resonance that is responsible for some of the fine frequency response errors:

View attachment 427635

I started to measure the speaker at 86 dBSPL, expecting to hear a lot of distortion but could hardly detect any. Even at 90 dBSPL, response was very controlled:

View attachment 427636
View attachment 427637

Only when I went to 96 dBSPL (not shown) did hear a metallic ringing sound from the port. The high frequencies are especially clean here.

Impedance dips quite low which when combined with low sensitivity, calls for robust and high power amplifier:
View attachment 427638

Dispersion is wide which should make for a spacious, pleasing soundstage:
View attachment 427639
View attachment 427640

Vertical as always narrow but better than many due to smaller woofer:
View attachment 427642

Waterfall as usual shows some resonances:
View attachment 427643

Finally here is the step response for fans of that:
View attachment 427644

Micca MB42X G2 Listening Tests
I had a good feeling about this speaker and it delivered in listening tests. The slightly boosted bass and deep response in that region provided wonderful warmth. Distortion was kept impressively low, allowing me to pump a bunch of watts into this little speaker. Highs were impeccable at times due to spacious nature of them and their clarity. Yes, occasionally the bass got a bit tubby and that is to be expected given lack of equalization for room response.

I dialed in a quick boost in the 2 kHz range but didn't like the results. The sound became brighter than I liked. I have very thick carpet so likely the hole is not as bad in my situation.

At times, unbelievably, the MB42X G2 sounded like a quality studio monitor. I sat there listening to long list of my reference tracks. About 70% sounded wonderful which is far higher percentage than I expect from a speaker anywhere close to this cost.

Conclusions
It seems that micca has really made forward progress in their budget speaker here. Performance, objectively and especially subjectively, is all you can ask for at this price and then some. The small woofer does wonders for bass response despite its size. The only "cost" is low sensitivity which in this day and age, is not a problem at all with amplification being so cheap.

I am going to recommend the Micca MB42X G2 speaker. I am told it goes on sale for even less than $100. If so, be sure to pick up a pair.
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As always, questions, comments, recommendations, etc. are welcome.

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My first speakers were the "Smaller Advents" which cost $139/pair in 1976. (That's more than $750, inflation-adjusted.) These give up a bit in the bass by comparison, I assume, but seem better in every other way. Pair them with the $89 DAC just reviewed and any of the decent $100 Class D amps out there and you have a great little system for less, even without adjusting for inflation, than an inferior "good old days" rig would have cost.

Nostalgia ain't what it used to be.

 

[RickS]

I am intrigued by that crossover photo: 3 coils 3 caps 3 resistors. Looks like 3rd order on both drivers (unless using cheaper parts to gang). Lpad will have two resistors; where's the third? I suppose - at the front of the tweet circuit.

The specs claim a 2nd order crossover. So either there is some impedance comp or notch filter or the pic is of the older crossover.

Given the price point, am betting on the latter.

 

[eddantes]

The specs claim 2nd order. So either there is some impedance comp or notch filter or the pic is of the older crossover.

Given the price point, am betting on the latter.

I was just thinking what that crossover would cost in DIY land (along with the drivers) and I can't believe they can make money selling these things. I realize the difference between - but still.