Review: Evolution Acoustics MM3 Speaker

Category: Speakers

Initial impressions of Evolution Acoustics MM3 Loudspeaker

I've been fortunate enough to receive my pair of Evolutions Acoustics MM3s this week and wanted to share my initial excitement and impressions.

It can be quite intimidating when 1887 lbs of freight arrive at your door, but in the case of the MM3s is was a welcomed sight. The crating system and speaker setup was actually a pleasure and straight forward- just have some strong friends around. (Thanks Arthur!)

Given the speakers were brand new with no break-in, I was expecting less than stellar sound- actually even a little disappointment. I can’t help to write the superlatives below because that’s what I’m hearing. If it appears too over the top, so be it, but for me it is an accurate description of the speaker’s performance so far.

I placed the MM3s where my trusted Vandersteen 5As sat for quite some time and the sound quality (out of the box,, unspiked, with the factory control settings) is nothing short of revelatory! They are totally disappearing in my room leaving a glorious wide and deep soundstage. There is no hint that the sound is even coming from the speakers- magical given their size. To my amazement, they are disappearing better than my 5As did.

Clarity and detail are the best I have heard period. The bass is amazingly tight and deep. Dynamics are to die for and are downright scary. The DarTZeel’s 100 watts can drive these to ear splitting levels in my 17 x 21 room. The speaker is also wonderfully coherent with a superb blending of the 15” powered woofers, Accuton mids, and ribbon tweeter. Highs are much better than my 5As with no hint of edge or fatigue. I know things will continue to change, but as it is right now, there is not one area where this speaker is not world class and the best I’ve heard. To my ears, they are sounding considerably better than they did at Rocky Mountain Audio Fest. Once you start listening it's hard to break away as they are just so engaging and musical.

The build quality and finish are superb. Each speaker is 6 feet tall and close to 600lbs yet has so many graceful curves and lines it is truly a thing of beauty. They taper to only 9 inches around back. The cabinet is the most inert I know of.

I truly had some reservations about selling my 5As, but there is no question these speakers are in an entirely different league. I’m looking forward to even more improvements as things break-in, final placement and controls are tweaked, and the spikes are installed.

This is going to be fun! Back to the music!


Associated gear
Click to view my Virtual System