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MoFi Sourcepoint 888 Speakers

I recently found myself with a little extra money, and after some thought and having read so many positive things, I decided to try a pair of the Sourcepoint 888's. I had actually been set on a pair of JBL HDI 3800's, but I couldn't find a set in my price range as they were closing out remaining stock, and they were all the more expensive black lacquer.

Anyway, the MoFi's seemed to fit the bill. I was looking for a gutsier mid-bass, the one failing of my current speakers (Odyssey Kismet Reference), which are actually wonderful otherwise. Still, mid-bass is responsible for some of the oomph and forward momentum in music, especially rock, so my search began. Besides the reviews having seemed to be a good match for what I was looking for, I had a certain amount of faith in Andrew Jones, knowing that he has designed some very good speakers.

I have only had them in my system for a couple of days, so of course there will be a few months of system adjustment as well as the difficult mental adjustments that take place when you (or at least I) get new speakers. That said, I really think that these are wonderful at reproducing music. They're very full bodied, but not at all slow or sluggish, and voices are a bit larger than past speakers I've owned and very intimate, with a level of detail that I haven't had before, but without any exaggerated treble. 

Bass is as advertised, very good. Solid, deep and impactful. It isn't loose at all, which didn't surprise me since the woofers have rolled surrounds which are pretty stiff, and he came up with a scheme of opposing magnets at the voice coil (no, I don't really understand it) that is supposed to make the movement of the driver much more controlled.

It'll be a good while before I can really know the speakers in and out because it always takes me a while to get the comparative sound of my previous speakers out of my head, but I am really enjoying these. I'm also wondering what other member's experiences with them have been.  

128x128roxy54
roxy54's avatar
roxy54 OP
8,091 posts
 

@helomech  and @deep_333 

I want to be clear in my feelings about the Kismet Reference. I believe that Klaus, and whomever else was responsible for the design, have squeezed every bit of performance from these two fine drivers, and in some ways it is better than any other speakers I have owned.

For instance, I can say at this point that even though the tweeter on the 888 is very well integrated into the voicing of the speaker, it is not the equal of the beryllium Scanspeak in the Kismet. That tweeter is so pure and smooth and had very wide dispersion. I know from experience that some speakers with beryllium tweeters are too bright, so I have to think the design of the crossover has something to do with it too.     

tomic601's avatar
tomic601
13,065 posts
 

My thoughts are the op displays quite a bit of wisdom and discernment about relative merits. Sure Andrew is fantastic but there is no monopoly of engineering talent w ears. i agree 6 months is a good milestone to understand the inchstone nuances of a speaker / room combination… so glad you are enjoying the 888.

helomech
1,737 posts
 

@roxy54 

Yeah that Scanspeak tweeter in the Kismets is widely regarded as one of the best available at any price.

 

Andrew Jones designs some nice speakers for sure. 

phusis's avatar
phusis
1,228 posts
 

@roxy54 --

Interesting speakers, the MoFi’s, though I’ve yet to audition any of their models. A local dealer recently became a distributor of the brand, so I’ll go have a listen to them within shortly to get a bearing on their sound - just out of curiosity. In light of the general price range among hifi/high-end speakers I actually expected the model 888 to be more expensive given its size, appearance and rumored SQ, so was pleasantly surprised to find out they retail for $5k/pair.

What’s interesting about the MoFi’s to me, apart from what I can assess from reviews/feedback on their sonic imprinting in select areas, is that they’re point sources from ~150Hz on up and that Andrew Jones is the mastermind behind the particular design choices made here (I still find the TAD CR1’s to be among, if not the best of the more compact, low efficiency speaker designs out there I’ve heard, but they are very expensive). A point source speaker has a lot going for it, though as always it’s about weighing compromises and whether what can be extracted from them appeals to you.

I’m happy to say that they are fine in my 13 x 11 x 9 room. Occasionally a note may hit the room’s resonant frequency and you’ll hear it, but it’s infrequent and doesn’t bother me. I’d also mention that my room is untreated.

Being point source speakers certainly makes integrating them within shorter listening distances easier.

whitestix
729 posts
 

Great post, I am always delighted to read about a positive speaker upgrade.  I have met Andrew Jones at a few audio show and he is very affable and happy to visit.  His induction into TAS or Stereophile Hall of Fame, I forget which one, was well deserved.  He has made music lovers happy with a range of speakers at all price points.   

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