Amazon.com Product Description
Ideal for small to mid-sized rooms, the Athena Micra-6 home theater speaker system is engineered to provide serious sound quality without taking up excess space. The six-piece system, which includes four satellite speakers, a center channel speaker, and a powered subwoofer, is recognized by its slim profile and high-tech silver finish, which nicely complement most flat-panel plasma and LCD screens. The satellites are also outfitted with versatile mounting brackets that provide a simple, strong solution for any type of installation dilemma. The brackets even rotate to different angles, letting you point the speakers specifically towards the listening area. Users can also purchase customized stands (the MS-STB) designed to suspend the speakers at the ideal listening height.
The compact center channel and satellite speakers take up remarkably little space. |
Audio-wise, each satellite speaker sports a 3.5-inch cone woofer with a huge 9-ounce magnet structure and a rubber surround. The woofer cone is comprised of injection-molded polypropylene that's designed to stay rigid during the most extreme excursion, while still being light enough to enable accurate and tight bass response. The speakers' 0.5-inch textile tweeters, meanwhile, are based on the award-winning Teteron tweeters in the Athena Audition and SCT series. The Teteron driver produces incredibly clear and accurate high frequencies in both two-channel and multichannel modes, giving movie soundtracks the capacity to soar at just the right moment. The satellite speakers are also vented to improve the bass performance.
The Micra-6 system sets up easily and blends beautifully with the subwoofer right out of the box. |
Meanwhile, the MC center channel speaker is made with identical components to the satellites, but with an extra 3.5-inch woofer for added power handling. The drivers make a movie's dialogue--the central purpose of a center channel speaker--sound crisp and legible, ensuring that you never miss a moment of conversation. The magnetically shielded speaker includes its own wall-mount bracket that also doubles as a base for flat surfaces.
The M225 bass-reflex subwoofer features a down-firing 8-inch woofer with a forward-firing bass vent. The sophisticated design includes custom-tuned crossover circuitry that ensures a seamless blend between the sub and satellite speakers--a critical factor in a good-sounding surround system. The Athena engineers incorporated an SCT crossover system, while also custom tuning the subwoofer in the company's anechoic measurement facilities to guarantee perfect results. The end result is a remarkably easy-to-use sub. The M225 has few controls, so all you need to worry about is connecting the cable and adjusting the volume. Everything else comes naturally.
The Micra-6 system delivers an overall frequency response of 30 Hz to 20 kHz and works with amps rated between 20 and 100 watts per channel. Dimensions range from 4.5 by 7 by 4.5 inches (W x H x D) for each satellite to 11.2 by 4.5 by 4.5 inches for the center to 9.4 by 16.7 by 14.2 inches for the sub. Finally, each speaker carries a generous five-year warranty, while the sub's built-in amplifier is backed by a one-year warranty.
What's in the Box
Four satellite speakers, center channel speaker, subwoofer, mounting brackets for satellite and center speakers, user's manual.
Product Description
Power handling: 100 watts rms per channel Powered 225 watt/75 watt rms MOSFET 8" subwoofer -- down-firing, front vented with Athena's SCT technology Four magnetically-shielded satellites and dual center channel woofer Performance injection molded polypropylene woofers with rubber surrounds Includes all wall and ceiling brackets 5 year limited warranty
Customer Reviews:
Great for a small rooms and movies.......2007-01-05
These speakers are awesome for movies! I have a small room off my kitchen that I have turned into a mini home theater; I have paired these speakers with and Onkyo 604 receiver. The surround sound is great; the bass is full and rich and gives a very realistic experience. These speakers are a great value, wall and ceiling mounting is also very easy and simple with the included mounts.
The other day I was watching a movie and in the scene there is an unexpected crash from a tree falling, and the rumble from the bass scared me so much that I nearly fell off my sofa; my heart was racing pretty fast. I have no complaints about the realism and richness of the audio experience.
The only negative things are that occasionally I find the sound has a bit too much treble, and bass but not enough warm mid-range. I find my ears feel "tired" after listening to at higher volumes for more than a few minutes. As great as these are for movies, I feel they lack the mid-range needed for music listening. I won't knock the rating down, because these are not meant to be music/stereo speakers so it's not fair to expect that from these speakers.
Couldn't Ask for More, For the Money..........2007-01-03
Lets see, we paid around $[...] for these speakers. We also paid about $[...] for a Bose system that we have in another room. Guess which performs better? The Athena Micra, hands down. Particularly, the mids and bass are stellar, and literally blow the Bose away. The highs are also crisp and well defined. After doing A TON of research, I settled on these speakers as my choice, and I do not regret it one single bit. I should note, in order to get the best sound out of these, speaker placement is key. The fronts aren't hard to setup, but the rear speakers need to be placed slightly behind the listening area, pointing toward each other (ie: the faces of each speaker are pointed towards each other, each face being perpendicular to the listener's ear and slightly behind), and NOT pointed directly toward the ears of the listener. They also MUST be placed at a height of approximatly 4-6 feet above where the listener's ear will be, and at least 6 feet apart (preferably, the same distance apart as the front speakers). I'm trying to upload a picture that will illustrate this.
Anyhow, you will also need a solid receiver. I HIGHLY recommend a Pioneer unit, due to its very accurate auto calibration system. Unless you are an audio guru, which I doubt if you're shopping in this price range (no offense), then you will need a thorough and precise auto calibration system. Pioneer gets the vote hands down in that department over all other receiver manufactureres. If you're not interested in HDMI, an auto calibration Pioneer will run you about $[...]. An HDMI equipped variant will run about $[...]. The difference in sound is negligable, but new equipment (specifically HD-DVD) require HDMI to work properly.
So, on the low end, we're talking about $[...] for the receiver and the speakers. Add another $[...] if you want stands for these (ie: if you're not wall mounting), and the total gets you to $[...] for the full system...hundreds less than Bose, which pales in comparison, and at least $[...] less than anything that can best it. Don't settle for home theater in a box...for a few hundred more you can have a system that exceeds the expectations of 95% of home theater users. I'm very picky, and I was not dissatisfied.
If I could list one gripe, it would be that the subwoofer is a little on the weak side, but not nearly as ill-winded as the Bose (the Athena sub compared to the Bose sub is no contest...its actually laughable how bad the Bose is in contrast). Just turn the volume knob to about 8 or 9 on the sub to taste (depends on your room), listen for a day or so, adjust speaker placement, listen for a few more days, then have the Pioneer do the auto calibration. You won't be let down.
Works Great.......2006-08-22
I'm very happy with my purchase. I'm using them with a Pioneer receiver and after figuring out where all the cords go, the speakers are fantastic. For their size and price they are outstanding. I ran into a little trouble when I began assembling the stands (also Athena) and found that a few screws and a clamp were not the right size or such. I emailed Athena and they mailed the proper parts out right away (for free).
Great speakers small price.......2006-04-29
After spending about one month researching various audiophile review sites I took the plunge on a very low priced system which includes a Panasonic XR55 Receiver and the Athena Micra speaker package. [...]
Originally I was a little disappointed with the sound (they sounded a little on the bright side) but now after breaking in the speakers and gaining an appreciation for the digital sound produced by the receiver I could not be happier with my minor investment. I think the bang for the buck factor on both of these components is outstanding.
I actually took some time and spoke to a couple of competing Canadian speaker makers. The person at one of the companies had nothing but praise for Athena Micra's and when I mentioned the low price of $329 shipped he was even more complimentary. He compared these to the heavily marketed Bose product, which sells for 2-3 times this price and indicated that I could not go wrong going with the Athena's.
He was right and I am so glad I took his advice and the advice offered in many online reviews. With my savings I was able to purchase a new set of Nike golf clubs and a new golf bag. Life is good - I can golf and come home and chill to great audio and surround sound videos.
Although I am not much of a movie buff, I may become one due to the realism brought on by this small package. The size of the Athena Micras were a major selling point and they received immediate acceptance from my wife.
If you don't want to break the bank yet appreciate good music and strong bass I would highly recommend this setup.
Excellent HT system for small/medium rooms.......2005-12-16
I needed a 5.1 system for my 10' by 20' living room. Since the room isn't large, I wanted small satellite speakers to blend with the rest of the room. I wasn't willing to compromise on quality sound, so I did a lot of research before purchasing the Athena Micra 6 speakers.
The Micra 6 speakers have good build quality and are unobtrusively attractive. The subwoofer is especially handsome. The four satellite speakers and the center channel are heavier than they appear, due to the larger-than-usual magnet structure inside. The only obvious negative is the use of speaker wire clips instead of binding posts.
The sound quality is very good. The treble and mid-range are nicely detailed and natural sounding. The speakers image well, presenting a spacious soundstage with just the left/right sats and the subwoofer. The satellite/subwoofer integration is well done, with no obvious audible cues to draw attention to the subwoofer and away from the music. The sound has a warm quality, so a bright-sounding receiver should be a good match.
While there may be better 5.1 sat/sub speaker systems available, I don't think you'll be able to find one at this price point. In fact, you'd probably have to spend four times as much to get better sound - highly recommended for a small/medium home theater on a budget.
Amazon.com Product Description
The Athena Micra 6 Speaker System is a complete six-piece music and home theater system that is designed to complement your lifestyle, while providing sound quality second to none. This seriously designed system has four identical MS satellites with long throw woofers and a high powered tweeter, each includes a flexible mounting bracket allowing wall and ceiling mounting. The matching MC center channel is timbre matched for the best possible home theater sound. Completing the system is the M225 8" active subwoofer. Designed exclusively for the Micra system, this unique subwoofer will take little floor space while providing huge amounts of clean, distortion free bass response. The Micra system works extremely well in rooms of approximately 400 sq ft or less.
M225 Subwoofer
The M225 is a bass reflex, down firing 8" woofer design, with a forward firing bass vent. This is a seriously designed subwoofer with custom tuned crossover circuitry to provide a perfectly seamless blend between the sub and the MS satellite speaker. The critical factor in a good sounding sub-sat speaker system is the output frequencies of the subwoofer. The athena engineers utilized our SCT system, and have custom tuned the subwoofer in our anechoic measurement facilities to ensure perfect results. The biggest benefit is the set up is easier than ever, due to the sub having fewer controls to set. Simply connect and adjust the volume. A sonic blend between the subwoofer and MS speaker is guaranteed!
MS Satellites
The MS satellite is a 2-way bass reflex design that is magnetically shielded to prevent magnetic interference with your TV. The MS speaker was engineered to provide serious sound quality, not just to provide a small, lifestyle product. The 3-1/2"woofer features a huge 9 oz magnet structure and a rubber surround for high power handling and high excursion. The speaker is vented for added bass response and lower bass extension. The tweeter is based upon the award winning Teteron tweeter in the athena AUDITION and SCT series. It provides incredibly clear and accurate high frequencies, that will accurately recreate music and movie soundtracks, whether in 2 channel or multi channel.
MS Center Channel
The MC was designed to perfectly complement the MS satellite with the identical components, and an added woofer for extra power handling. The included bracket serves both as a wall mount bracket, and a base to keep the speaker oriented properly when placed on an irregular surface. Magnetically shielded, and featuring a removable grille, the MC satellite will clearly reproduce the center channel information in your home theater system
Product Description
A complete 6 piece music and home theater system that is designed to complement your lifestyle, while providing sound quality second to none. This seriously designed system has four identical MS satellites with long throw woofers and a high powered tweeter, each includes a flexible mounting bracket allowing wall and ceiling mounting. The matching MC center channel is timbre matched for the best possible home theater sound. Completing the system is the M225 8" active subwoofer. Designed exclusively for the Micra system, this unique subwoofer will take little floor space while providing huge amounts of clean, distortion free bass response. The Micra system works extremely well in rooms of approximately 400 sq ft or less.The Micra system is the perfect addition to any home theater system using Plasma or LCD type screens as the slim profile and high tech silver finish match most new flat screens. The versatile mounting brackets provide a simple, strong solution to any type of system installation and allow for angled horizontal adjustment to point the speakers towards the listening area.Simple to set up, flexible mounting options and Athena's legendary sound quality is now more affordable than ever.
Customer Reviews:
Great for a small rooms and movies.......2007-01-05
These speakers are awesome for movies! I have a small room off my kitchen that I have turned into a mini home theater; I have paired these speakers with and Onkyo 604 receiver. The surround sound is great; the bass is full and rich and gives a very realistic experience. These speakers are a great value, wall and ceiling mounting is also very easy and simple with the included mounts.
The other day I was watching a movie and in the scene there is an unexpected crash from a tree falling, and the rumble from the bass scared me so much that I nearly fell off my sofa; my heart was racing pretty fast. I have no complaints about the realism and richness of the audio experience.
The only negative things are that occasionally I find the sound has a bit too much treble, and bass but not enough warm mid-range. I find my ears feel "tired" after listening to at higher volumes for more than a few minutes. As great as these are for movies, I feel they lack the mid-range needed for music listening. I won't knock the rating down, because these are not meant to be music/stereo speakers so it's not fair to expect that from these speakers.
Couldn't Ask for More, For the Money..........2007-01-03
Lets see, we paid around $[...] for these speakers. We also paid about $[...] for a Bose system that we have in another room. Guess which performs better? The Athena Micra, hands down. Particularly, the mids and bass are stellar, and literally blow the Bose away. The highs are also crisp and well defined. After doing A TON of research, I settled on these speakers as my choice, and I do not regret it one single bit. I should note, in order to get the best sound out of these, speaker placement is key. The fronts aren't hard to setup, but the rear speakers need to be placed slightly behind the listening area, pointing toward each other (ie: the faces of each speaker are pointed towards each other, each face being perpendicular to the listener's ear and slightly behind), and NOT pointed directly toward the ears of the listener. They also MUST be placed at a height of approximatly 4-6 feet above where the listener's ear will be, and at least 6 feet apart (preferably, the same distance apart as the front speakers). I'm trying to upload a picture that will illustrate this.
Anyhow, you will also need a solid receiver. I HIGHLY recommend a Pioneer unit, due to its very accurate auto calibration system. Unless you are an audio guru, which I doubt if you're shopping in this price range (no offense), then you will need a thorough and precise auto calibration system. Pioneer gets the vote hands down in that department over all other receiver manufactureres. If you're not interested in HDMI, an auto calibration Pioneer will run you about $[...]. An HDMI equipped variant will run about $[...]. The difference in sound is negligable, but new equipment (specifically HD-DVD) require HDMI to work properly.
So, on the low end, we're talking about $[...] for the receiver and the speakers. Add another $[...] if you want stands for these (ie: if you're not wall mounting), and the total gets you to $[...] for the full system...hundreds less than Bose, which pales in comparison, and at least $[...] less than anything that can best it. Don't settle for home theater in a box...for a few hundred more you can have a system that exceeds the expectations of 95% of home theater users. I'm very picky, and I was not dissatisfied.
If I could list one gripe, it would be that the subwoofer is a little on the weak side, but not nearly as ill-winded as the Bose (the Athena sub compared to the Bose sub is no contest...its actually laughable how bad the Bose is in contrast). Just turn the volume knob to about 8 or 9 on the sub to taste (depends on your room), listen for a day or so, adjust speaker placement, listen for a few more days, then have the Pioneer do the auto calibration. You won't be let down.
Works Great.......2006-08-22
I'm very happy with my purchase. I'm using them with a Pioneer receiver and after figuring out where all the cords go, the speakers are fantastic. For their size and price they are outstanding. I ran into a little trouble when I began assembling the stands (also Athena) and found that a few screws and a clamp were not the right size or such. I emailed Athena and they mailed the proper parts out right away (for free).
Great speakers small price.......2006-04-29
After spending about one month researching various audiophile review sites I took the plunge on a very low priced system which includes a Panasonic XR55 Receiver and the Athena Micra speaker package. [...]
Originally I was a little disappointed with the sound (they sounded a little on the bright side) but now after breaking in the speakers and gaining an appreciation for the digital sound produced by the receiver I could not be happier with my minor investment. I think the bang for the buck factor on both of these components is outstanding.
I actually took some time and spoke to a couple of competing Canadian speaker makers. The person at one of the companies had nothing but praise for Athena Micra's and when I mentioned the low price of $329 shipped he was even more complimentary. He compared these to the heavily marketed Bose product, which sells for 2-3 times this price and indicated that I could not go wrong going with the Athena's.
He was right and I am so glad I took his advice and the advice offered in many online reviews. With my savings I was able to purchase a new set of Nike golf clubs and a new golf bag. Life is good - I can golf and come home and chill to great audio and surround sound videos.
Although I am not much of a movie buff, I may become one due to the realism brought on by this small package. The size of the Athena Micras were a major selling point and they received immediate acceptance from my wife.
If you don't want to break the bank yet appreciate good music and strong bass I would highly recommend this setup.
Excellent HT system for small/medium rooms.......2005-12-16
I needed a 5.1 system for my 10' by 20' living room. Since the room isn't large, I wanted small satellite speakers to blend with the rest of the room. I wasn't willing to compromise on quality sound, so I did a lot of research before purchasing the Athena Micra 6 speakers.
The Micra 6 speakers have good build quality and are unobtrusively attractive. The subwoofer is especially handsome. The four satellite speakers and the center channel are heavier than they appear, due to the larger-than-usual magnet structure inside. The only obvious negative is the use of speaker wire clips instead of binding posts.
The sound quality is very good. The treble and mid-range are nicely detailed and natural sounding. The speakers image well, presenting a spacious soundstage with just the left/right sats and the subwoofer. The satellite/subwoofer integration is well done, with no obvious audible cues to draw attention to the subwoofer and away from the music. The sound has a warm quality, so a bright-sounding receiver should be a good match.
While there may be better 5.1 sat/sub speaker systems available, I don't think you'll be able to find one at this price point. In fact, you'd probably have to spend four times as much to get better sound - highly recommended for a small/medium home theater on a budget.
Product Description
Highly-Compact, High-Performance Speaker System
Who says you need a huge, whopping speaker system for great home theater sound? The new Micra system from Athena Technologies is a complete six-piece music and home theater system providing exceptional sound quality at an affordable price. Micra is compact to fit in with your lifestyle and blend nicely with room furnishings.
This seriously designed system has four identical MS satellites with long throw woofers and a high powered tweeter. Each speaker includes a flexible mounting bracket allowing wall and ceiling mounting. The matching MC center channel is timbre matched for the best possible home theater sound. Completing the system is the M225 8" active subwoofer. Designed exclusively for the Micra system, this unique subwoofer will take little floor space while providing huge amounts of clean, distortion free bass response.
The Micra system is the perfect addition to any home theater system using Plasma or LCD type screens as the slim profile and high tech silver finish match most new flat screens. The versatile mounting brackets provide a simple, strong solution to any type of system installation and allow for angled horizontal adjustment to point the speakers towards the listening area.
Compact MS Satellite Has a Big Voice!
The MS satellite is a two-way bass reflex design that is magnetically shielded to prevent magnetic interference with your TV. Though compact, it provides serious sound quality. The 3-1/2"woofer features a huge 9 oz. magnet structure and a rubber surround for high power handling and high excursion. The speaker is vented for added bass response and lower bass extension. The tweeter is based upon the award winning Teteron tweeter in the Athena Audition and SCT speakers. It provides incredibly clear and accurate high frequencies, that will realistically reproduce two-chan
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Electronics
Athena MS-STB Speaker Stands for Micra-6 Satellite Speakers, Silver (Pair)
Panasonic SA-XR55S Home Theater Receiver (Silver)
Monster Cable THXI100-SW16NF Thx Certified Sub Woofer Interconnect
Monster Standard® THX-Certified Speaker Cable (100 Feet)
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Omnimount Speaker Mount (Grey) (STEELGREY)
