A Question of Balance

Alexandre Desplat’s orchestral score for the film Birth, recorded at Abbey Road studios, was a treat. String tone was effortlessly natural and clear, if lacking just a wee bit of upper treble detail. Then again, that’ll probably be an asset when the MCS 130 gets teamed up with inexpensive A/V receivers, some of which sound a little too “thin” and bright for their own good. I was also pleased with the sats’ wide-open sound; they didn’t exhibit even a hint of the claustrophobic, closed-in quality I hear from so many pint-sized sats. With the lights turned low I didn’t think about the system’s size.

Conclusion

Clearly, the MCS 130’s good looks didn’t adversely impact the little system’s sonics, since this Boston package shines on both music and movies. That’s a rare feat among $800 sat/sub systems, and it’s rarer still to find one I could recommend to my audiophile pals. The Boston MCS 130 sounds a lot prettier than it looks, and that’s a compliment!