Полочная акустика — Mordaunt-Short M10

The M10 is a very small passive two-way bookshelf speaker sold in pairs under the Mordaunt-Short name. The brand dates back to 1967, when Norman Mordaunt and Rodney Short began making loudspeakers together, and in 1999 it became part of Audio Partnership. The M10 sits at the budget end of the catalogue and is offered in a single black, charcoal-toned finish, with the intended uses listed as stereo, surround sound, single-room and multi-room installations.

Key specs that matter

The enclosure is fully sealed, an infinite baffle design with no reflex port. Mordaunt-Short gives a frequency response of 90 Hz to 20 kHz, a nominal impedance of 8 ohm and a sensitivity of 86 dB, and each speaker carries a power rating of 80 W. The cabinet is 130 mm wide, 168 mm deep and 215 mm tall, and a single unit weighs 2 kg. A soft dome tweeter handles the upper range, while a long-throw woofer with a lightweight cone covers everything below the crossover point.

Engineering and use context

Rather than the cheaper chipboard often found in speakers at this price, the cabinet is made from heavy-duty MDF, which gives the small box more stiffness and less panel movement. The tweeter mount has its lower section cut away, so the dome can be positioned lower on the baffle and its acoustic centre moves closer to that of the woofer. With the two drivers radiating from points that are nearer together, their outputs combine more evenly as the listener moves up or down relative to the cabinet. Neither drive unit shows visible screws or fixings on the front, which leaves a clean baffle. The limited bass extension shows that the M10 is not meant to reproduce the deepest octaves on its own, even with a long-throw cone. With no vent at all, the sealed cabinet produces no port noise, and it can be placed inside a bookcase or right against a wall because there is no opening at the back that has to stay clear.

Pairing

The easy load suits almost any stereo amplifier, AV receiver or compact streaming amplifier, while the modest sensitivity calls for a little more amplifier power than an efficient speaker would need to reach the same level. Because the bass rolls off early, the M10 works best as a satellite with a subwoofer taking over the low bass, as a surround or rear speaker in a cinema system, or as a small speaker for a second room in a multi-room setup.

Alternatives

The Mordaunt-Short Aviano 1 is a larger ported bookshelf model with a 5.25 inch CPC aluminium mid/bass driver that extends down to 55 Hz.