I recently purchased a partial Mission speaker setup for HT (704s mains, 70c2 centre and 70as 120W active sub) after a lot of listening to these and several other systems (B&W 600 and Mission 77 series in particular). For HT the 704s are great--they're clear, open, have reasonable separation and are VERY powerful. Bass in particular is great--they go very low whilst retaining plenty of control. The sub is still useful, adding a bit of extra warmth to the low base, but having one doesn't make anywhere near the difference it does with, say, a pair of 603s.
For music they have good points and bad ones. The bass power is great for rock, and with well-recorded CDs like Dire Straits' Sultans of Swing they're also very clear and quite detailed (if not as much so as the Mission 774s). However, a bit more separation wouldn't go amiss with more average recordings--they're not a patch on the 774s in this respect. Also, they're hardly neutral speakers. Bass and treble are somewhat forward, and occasionally the treble can be a bit painful (again it's fine with well-recorded stuff though). Hence, they won't suit all partnering gear perfectly--upgrading from my Onkyo 636 receiver to a set of Marantz MA700 monoblock amps improved things somewhat (as well as making the sub almost redundant...) Mid-range performance is good, if not spectacular.

Overall I think the 704s are great speakers for the money, and suit my needs better than anything else in their price range. However, they haven't in any way removed my desire to get a dedicated set of speakers for music at some stage (the B&W P5s and Mission 753 Freedoms are top of my shortlist, and both bring gains in separation and detail which, IMHO, more than make up for the loss of bass weight). Even if you disagree, it's worth having a listen to some more expensive hi-fi speakers like these (and the Mission 774s, for that matter) just to be aware of the weaknesses of the 704s.

Current system:
Mission 704s and 70c2 (driven by 3 Marantz MA700 monoblock amps)
Mission 70as 120W active sub
Sony SSTL-40 floorstanders as rears (driven by my old Onkyo 636 receiver)
Marantz AV-550 preamp/processor
Marantz CD-67 MKII OSE CD player

I purchased a pair of Mission 704's yesterday from 6th Ave. for $397. Great everyday price. So far they sound excellent on my Sony 915 with the exception of a little hiss. I have yet to purchase a Sub and Rear Suround's. If anyone has any recommendations in your review, I would like to hear. I rate the Mission 704's excellect for this price, although they are not video shielded which does not effect my setup.

I was lucky to get them pretty cheep,and they are really great speakers.I have receiver Yamaha RX-V 592 RDS ,and this is great.I don't know what to say more,they are great!!!!!!!

Imaging, highs, mids, plenty of bass, binding posts, bi-wireable, quality, kevlar cones

Hard to find [not for me though ;)]

"I’m so jealous of you” I said when I stepped into my friend’s cousin’s apartment. Besides the impressive Polk setup I saw, I was amazed by the pair or Mission 705s he bought for $271 (the salesman was fired the next day). He told me to go to H.H. Gregg because they were liquidating their Mission product line. I found a ride (it’s hard when you’re at college), and they had one pair left…Mission 704s. They set them up for me, and I didn’t give it a second thought; I bought them immediately. Now it’s been two months and I am very pleased:

1. POWER. These babies can handle up to 250watts. They sound incredible on my Onkyo 575X (see my review). The 8” driver (35Hz) is reason enough not to buy a subwoofer, and the tweeter can crack windows.
2. CONSTRUCTION. Kevlar cones…they’re bullet proof! Solid oak, not too heavy, nice port design, gold plated Bi-Wireable terminals(video-shielded too).
3. ASTHETICS. To some, the 704s are ugly. In my opinion, they’re very handsome—they have that classic black finish all speaker owners know and love. The white on black cones are beautiful.
4. SOUND. The 704s have quick, deep bass. The mids and highs are right on. Imaging is spectacular. I have them bi-wired; it's the difference between night and day!Perfect for movies and music.

The Mission 704s are excellent speakers. Unfortunately they’re hard to come by in the U.S., so get them while they might still be available! I HIGHLY recommend them for all your audio needs.

Similar Products Used:

Mission 701

The best speakers I have ever heard. Incredible, clear, no subwoofer needed. I love them and give them 5 stars.

I picked up a set of these for $650(after quite a bit of effort to talk him down)a few months ago. I decided to go with these after listening to just about every other equivalent speaker made buy AR, B&W, Mirage, etc. I even listened to the Mission 770 series. The 704 had the best overall sound, very clear and very efficent. There were other speakers that had more responsive bass and others that had slightly clearer highs but none did the job of covering everything quite like these. I even listen to some of the more expensive lines offered and was not impressed when I considered how much more money they were. From what I understand mission have never been all that popular in the States becuase they typically have VERY tight bass (like the 770 series did). The 704's did not have this problem and I would recommend them to anyone interested in this range of speaker.

I recently sold my Spica TC-50's (with a Spica sub-woofer), and embarked on a quest to find a pair of floor standing speakers with superior sound (to the Spica's) for under $1000.00. After listening extensively to speakers from Infinity, Boston Acoustics, Energy, Paradigm, Vandersteen, B&W, and several "designer brands" that I was unfamiliar with, I was wishing that I had kept my Spica's. It looked like either I was going to have to spend a lot more money, or lower my standards (and wind up with another set of stand mounted speakers).
I finally thought that I had located what I was looking for in a pair of Energy C-6's, as they really sounded outstanding and fit my budget. I found the best deal on them at Good Guys (of all places). However, after listening to them at home, I found that they sort of overpowered my listening room, and the highs were way too bright for me. I called Good Guys, who were a little unhappy with my evaluation of the Energys, but they told me to go ahead and return them. As an afterthought, the salesman asked me to listen to the Mission 704's that they carried. This speaker sounded like just what I was looking for. It was not too bright on top, had good mid-range, and absolutely had a killer bottom end. (In addition, they were three hundred bucks cheaper than the Energys). I found that the Mission's sounded just as good (or better) when I got them home. I bi-wired them with Audioquest 6 plus wire, and they sounded even better!

My only criticism is that I feel the Mission's are lacking a little range in the upper bass, but the overall sound more than makes up for this. I would really recommend that you listen to these speakers. Nothing that I found came close to them in overall sound quality for the money. Don't but a sub-woofer until you listen to these at home, as I can't imagine that you will feel that one is needed. These speakers are killer---check them out!

So you audiophiles don't complain--here is what I'm running:

NAD 1300 pre-amp Crown D-150a amp Denon DCD 820 CD player B&O 2400 turntable

I would rate the overall sound at 4.5, but when you factor in their cost, I rate them a five.

Sweet Midrange, Strong deep bass, Beautiful Mellow sound with any type of music and Sound Better than most costly speakers! Verry clear with my Marantz SR-18. Great for Home Theater!

I cant find any. I dont pump them load enought to any imperfections. It dosent do good with my MP3's Well at all I hear the Mp3's imperfections. Not easy to get ahold of!

Mission 704's are Amazing Speakers! I dont even have a sub for my home theater I dont need one with them! I listen to alot of Classical and Techno/Trance/ambiant Electronical.
I really feel the Sub Frequencys, Literally. I didnt like the acoustics of them in my Huge Livingroom so I set them up in my small bedroom, the acoustics in my bedroom are ungodly! So are the speakers for that matter. And for the price, I was expecting far from Pro materal, but when I tested them out I was hooked! For anybody thinking of gitting some speakers around the $800/$900! Mission 704 is pro materal, that if you can find them.

For value rating I give them 5 Stars, they are worth every penny! and 5 Stars for Overall rating.

My system:
Marantz SR-18 Receiver.
Sony CDP-XE400 CD Player.

Similar Products Used:

There one of a kind! (actually I never check around)

Amazing Bass, Great Value,Kevlar cones,Very natural sound,Sound better than speakers that cost hundreds more!

None, Make poor recordings sound really poor.

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Similar Products Used:

B&W 603,604