Mission upgrades its  LX loudspeaker range with many improvements, including technology trickled down from the QX Series

Mission’s LX Series of loudspeakers launched in 2016 four years on and Mission is ready to unleash a new, improved LX range – the LX MkII Series.

The new line-up utilises design elements evolved from the upmarket QX Series to build on the formula of the first-generation LX speakers, sporting a range of improvements that span the drive units, crossover and cabinet.

Mission LX MkII Series full range of speakers

More Models

The first thing to note is that the range has been extended. Whereas the original LX Series consisted of six models – two standmount speakers, three floorstanders and a centre speaker for home cinema systems – the LX MkII range comprises nine. There is an additional standmount model, a choice of two centre speakers instead of one, and a dedicated surround speaker that can be wall mounted or sited on top of the floorstanding models as an upward-firing effects speaker.

Mission LX MkII Series surround loudspeaker

Mission LX MkII Series

Mission says that every speaker within the LX MkII Series is carefully designed to deliver “maximum sonic expression with minimum compromise, despite the ‘budget’ price tags”.

High Frequency

For the LX MkII Series, Mission has designed a tweeter with a neodymium magnet, selected for maximum magnetic force in a small space, and a 25mm microfibre dome, chosen for its lightweight and consistency in manufacture.

Bass And Mids

The LX MkII Series features a new version of Mission’s DiaDrive bass/midrange drive unit, where the usual cone and dust cap arrangement is replaced by a seamless curvilinear diaphragm. This is directly driven by a secondary sub-cone connected to the voice coil, improving the efficiency of drive and providing better control of the smoothly dished diaphragm.

The diaphragm itself is fashioned from an advanced dual-layer fibre formulation, selected for its reduced susceptibility to hygroscopy as well as being very stiff for its mass with excellent self-damping.

A high-strength ferrite magnet ensures that the magnetic field is directed precisely within the area of voice coil excursion, enabling an ultra-linear performance and excellent transient response.

The Mission LX MkII series floorstanders in black

Comb Teeth

One of the critical areas highlighted by the development of Mission’s upmarket QX speakers is the use of ‘comb-tooth’ serrations in the driver surrounds to help scatter interfering reflections from localised surfaces to the bass/mid cones. The LX MkII Series incorporates similar serrations in the main driver surrounds, as well as indentations around the tweeter, adding further finesse to the drive unit outputs and providing a smoother frequency response than the previous generation of LX speakers.

Crossover

With minor perturbations in the driver response ironed out, each model’s crossover network has been optimised to take advantage of the improved performance. The LX MkII Series uses a 4th order (24dB per octave acoustic) Linkwitz-Riley network, developed with advanced computer modelling and many hours of listening tests, to knit the drivers together seamlessly. It is particularly notable for its ability to balance excellent off-axis performance with a flatter on-axis result.

Living room interior with a blue sofa and an armchair standing near a white coffee table. There is a tv set near a wooden wall. 3d rendering, mock up.

DiaDrive

The three standmount models in the range feature DiaDrive units positioned according to Mission’s Inverted Driver Geometry (IDG), with the bass/mid driver sited above the treble unit rather than below to aid time-alignment – a Mission trademark since the 1980s. Placing the bass/mid driver closer to ear level with the treble unit positioned beneath helps to equalise the path lengths from the two drivers’ acoustic centres, so that the sound waves coincide at the listener’s head height.

Cabinet

The cabinet is as critical as the drive units and crossover to the overall performance of any loudspeaker system. Designing an effective low-cost box is tricky, as budget dictates that the designer cannot use expensive materials or high mass to create an inert structure.

With the help of 3D Computer-Aided

Mission LX MkII centre speaker for home cinema

Design, finite element analysis and laser interferometry, coupled with a great deal of experience, a budget cabinet can be designed that delivers better rigidity with lower radiated noise than many would believe achievable at such low material cost. As part of the critical fine tuning of the new models, judicious placement of extra internal damping fibre inside the rear-ported cabinet has reduced the level of midrange coloration and improved the bass transient attack.

Peter Comeau

“Mission loudspeakers have been thrilling music lovers with powers of communication that far exceed their affordable prices for more than 40 years,” said peter Comeau, Mission’s Director of Acoustic Design. “I’m proud to have been involved in the design of many of these speakers since my first association with Mission in 1999. We’ve won many awards over the years, but nothing Mission has produced can eclipse the sheer value-for-money offered by the LX MkII Series – we’ve worked tirelessly to improve upon the already excellent LX Series, ensuring these speakers reward the modest investment required to own a pair with a thoroughly engrossing musical experience.”

Price

The Mission LX MkII Series is available in September in a choice of soft-touch matt black or white, or walnut for those who prefer a wood-style finish.

Standmount: LX-1 MkII – £189 per pair, LX-2 MkII – £229 per pair LX-3 MkII – £279 per pair

Floorstander: LX-4 MkII – £399 per pair, LX-5 MkII – £499 per pair,  LX-6 MkII – £599 per pair

Home Cinema: LX-3D MkII – surround speaker – £249 per pair, LX-C1 MkII – centre speaker – £199, LX-C2 MkII – centre speaker – £249

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