Mirage OMNI 550 CH Single Omnipolar floorstanding speaker

The next generation

Way back in 2002, Mirage introduced the first generation of OMNI Series speakers. This was the first traditional box speaker series that featured Omnipolar technology. The OMNI Series set the standard in manufacturing quality, reliability, and affordability. Now, Mirage is introducing a second generation that boasts the same hallmarks as the first. The OMNI 550, the flagship floorstanding speaker in the series, offers the perfect combination of cabinet size, advanced speaker technology and affordability — guaranteeing that this speaker will impress at the highest level.

How Omnipolar speakers work

Mirage's superior loudspeaker technology can be voiced in a single word — Omnipolar. Research shows that in live musical environments, about 30% of what we hear is direct sound while 70% is reflected sound from walls, ceilings, and floors that reaches our ears a few milliseconds after the direct sound. The brain uses direct sound for identification and to establish location, but uses the reflected sound to determine musicality and spaciousness, as well as direction. Conventional direct-radiating speakers with front-mounted drivers produce the opposite ratio of direct to reflected sound, or 70% direct to 30% reflected.

What makes it "flagship"

The OMNI 550 features two 6.5" multi-layered fiberglass composite drivers and a 1" aluminum dome tweeter mounted in a cleverly designed rear ported curved speaker cabinet. One of the 6.5" drivers is used as a woofer that reproduces bass frequencies up to a crossover point of 700Hz. The other 6.5" driver is mounted in a precisely aligned angle on top of the cabinet. It acts as a midbass driver, reproducing all bass and midrange frequencies to the tweeter crossover point of 2.2 kHz. The 6.5" mid-bass driver and the 1" aluminum dome tweeter are mounted in Mirage's exclusive OMNIGUIDE array. OMNIGUIDE allows the speaker to distribute sound in a spherical 360° pattern, the same way sound is created in nature, so your music will sound realistic and life-like. The other key benefit of OMNIPOLAR speakers is that the uniform dispersion pattern fills out the entire listening room, not just a single seat in the sweet spot. So invite your friends and family and share the experience. Home theater is not just about watching a movie; with OMNIPOLAR technology, you will experience it.

A sight for sore ears

So many speakers on the market today are housed in bulky, unattractive boxes. It's hard to put together a home theater system that looks as good as it sounds. But the OMNI 550 lets you do exactly that. The flawlessly finished curved cabinet of the OMNI 550 elegantly floats over a high gloss black base, which further increases the overall visual appeal of this unique loudspeaker.

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Mirage Omni 550 (August 11, 2009)

Ease of Use		(5/5.0)
Value		(5/5.0)
Performance		(5/5.0)
Overall Rating		(5/5.0)

Reviewed By: Craig V. - Hugo, Minnesota

More than any other piece of equipment, changing speakers andor their configuration makes the biggest impact in an audio setup. Some people have a preference for reproduction of stereo music, and something different for home theater surround sound. Many people are limited by space or budget and try to buy speakers that will fit both bills. This can be difficult because many people perceive the sounds produced in movies as being different than a studio recording of music. Indeed, the way each is recorded and engineered is quite different, but the goal of the system reproducing the sound should be the same a faithful recreation of what was recorded. And as we all know, how a speaker operates can have a great impact on how this is achieved. Direct radiating, bi-polar, di-polar, drivers pointed in varied directionsnot to mention size of drivers, how many drivers, size & shape of cabinet, crossovers there are many different combinations to choose from. Each person has their own idea what makes for good & bad sound, so there is no right or wrong, just a difference in taste and budget.

The designers and engineers at the Mirage speaker company recognized early on the sound does not radiate in one direction, as reproduced by direct radiating front firing speakers. Rather, sound radiates from a given source, then reflects from the boundaries near it the floor or ground, walls, furniture, windows etc. Its the combination of these direct & reflected sounds which give information on location and size relative to the subject being recorded. This is how our ears hear and our brains perceive, but not always how the subject is being recorded. Most of us are familiar with the sound of an acoustical instrument, like a piano, acoustic guitar or drums & cymbals. Some of us have been fortunate enough to hear this music being played live, but likely we dont put our head right inside the piano, or right next to the drum. This though is typically the location for the microphones used for recording these instruments. In reading reviews of speakers you may see where the reviewer commenting on how the speaker solidly placed the voiceinstrument in its proper place in space although it was not recorded that way.

By introducing the first bi-polar speaker, Mirage added the depth & breadth that was lacking from many speakers, and re-introduced sound radiation in a more natural way. The speakers were heralded for opening a door long closed by conventional designs, and highly regarded in the audio community. Not willing to rest on their laurels, Andrew Welker set about measuring sound in a way that would reveal how sounds are produced. After extensive research, he concluded that for the most part the sounds reaching our ears are 30 direct & 70 reflected. This was a departure from the 5050 approach of the bi-polar speaker and the result was a speaker that employed what the company called the Omni-polar design. The easiest way to visualize how this differs from traditional design is to look up a picture of one of their offerings. The first thing you notice is the top of the cabinet is slanted. The next thing is that little UFO looking thing sitting atop the driver in the slanted baffle. This houses the tweeter, and employs what is called a wave guide. This helps the sound reproduced by the speaker emanate in a 360 degree pattern, with 30 directed to the front of the speaker and 70 to the areas surrounding the speaker.

Enter the Omni 550 & 150 speakers. They are second generation speakers from Mirage which have popped up on several vendors web sites Vanns, Amazon at a great discount. At the price, I just had to give them a try, and Im glad I did. When they were first offered, the 550 was the flagship of the line, with the 150 doing a wonderful job in its place as a surround speaker. Ive gone the Phantom center route for several years now because I like to have all the sound pan cleanly across the screen, and the 550s make a center practically non essential. Whether playing music or soundtracks, the speakers melt into the wide, deep & tall soundscape and disappear. Every note and every sound is produced with ease, even tonality and bass which belies the speakers size. Indeed, when I first hooked them up, I had unplugged my subwoofer to get at the speaker cables, and forgot to plug it back in. I watched Watchmen in its entirety and never felt like I was missing out on any of the bass information. True, the LFE effects werent there, but as this was the first time I watched the film, I didnt feel I was missing anything. But bass extension is only part of the goodness these speakers offer. As you might expect, the soundstage is spacious, with a rich, lush sound absent in so many speakers. Everything from 2 channel music to the most intensely engineered surround soundtrack is presented in a manner which envelops the listener, making them feel as though they are part of whatever action is taking place. Voices, sound effects, instrumentsnothing gets lost no matter what you throw at them. A real testament to the speakers capabilities is the move Knowing on Blu-ray. The plane crash scene with its screaming engines, explosions, fire & panicked passengers literally produced goose bumps, and made the hair on the back of my neck stand on end something Ive never experienced in my personal HT before. Bits and pieces that were flying all around were palpable to the point where I felt as though I were standing in the field next to the wreckage. Wanting to experience this again, I re-watched this scene the next day while the rest of my family was out of the house. I turned up the volume and leter rip and WOW! With 4 8 ohm speakers, my Emotiva XPA-5 is cranking out 230 watts, and the speakers never gave any sign of being distressed. Indeed, the sound was so real it was frightening.

Music is also presented in a manner in which the listener is part of the recording session, and not just subject to the end product of the engineers whims. Vocals, instruments its all there in 3D with as much realism as you could ask for, and sounds glorious.
I cant recommend these speakers enough, regardless of your budget. For the current asking price, theyre a downright steal. Brand new, they carry the full 5 year warranty from an authorized dealer They look great, sound even better and would put a smile on your face as you blend in with the incredible sound they produce.

Panasonic BD80 Blu-ray player
B&K reference 50 pre-amp
Emotiva XPA-5
Mirage Omni 550 & 150
Audioquest cables

omni 550 (August 07, 2009)

Ease of Use		(5/5.0)
Value		(5/5.0)
Performance		(5/5.0)
Overall Rating		(5/5.0)

Reviewed By: chris - Rock Springs, Wyoming

Just got them the other day. They sound great so far.

I have been running the omni 150s with them. I used to have a set of nanosats. I also liked them. I just wanted something to hit the lower ranges at 80hz for the crossover at the THX standards.

I got the 550s so I could get more bass from the front for when I listen to music. They seem to be doing the job so far.

I am running these with an Onkyo 705 and a playstation 3.

Mirage Omni 550 (July 23, 2009)

Ease of Use		(5/5.0)
Value		(5/5.0)
Performance		(5/5.0)
Overall Rating		(5/5.0)

Reviewed By: Paul G. Demko - Sugarloaf, PA

Bought these speakers to use with my 10yr old Technics stereo receiver. I was amazed by the sound. The clarity was crystal clear and the lows are awesome. The best feature of these speakers is the dispersion of the mid-range and highs with the 360 degree radial setup of the top speakers. I have never heard speakers that can do what these do. I would recommend these to anyone looking for new speakers for either a music system or a home theater system. I was also very pleased with the prompt service from Vanns. Delivery was quick and free shipping a big bonus. Thank you Vanns for a fantastic deal.

excellent deal (July 22, 2009)

Ease of Use		(5/5.0)
Value		(5/5.0)
Performance		(5/5.0)
Overall Rating		(5/5.0)

Reviewed By: matt w. - bozeman, mt

I bought a pair of these on sale to go with my onkyo reciever.. The clarity and depth of sound from these speakers is excellent, and just the two of them really does fill the entire room..