Martin Logan-any opinions? (1 Viewer)

[Tim L]

I was currently browsing around looking at speakers (listening I should say) and came across some martin logans but unfortunately they were not hooked up- but those at the store kept raving about the sound- I couldn't stick around ( maybe another time) but I was curious if anyone here owns them or has had any experience with them- I would most likely use them for a home theater mostly- maybe some music, thanks
Tim

 

[keir]

a search should turn up a lot of results. i have heard about ML's pretty often.

 

[Chu Gai]

they need to be sized appropriately to the room they're in...high frequency impedence dips in the vicinity of 1 ohm can be problematical for many amplifiers especially when driving them to louder volumes resulting in amps overheating (possibly due to oscillation) or shutting down. placement can be tricky and expect to invest in some room treatments for the wall behind the speakers to improve their sound. Do I like them...sure, why not? Generally mentioning the word ML invokes a bit of a debate from the pure electrostatic crowd, but hey everyone's got to defend their own turf, right??

 

[Rob Rodier]

I assume that you have good amplification.

The MLs are fabulous. The only ones that you would need to worry about are the cls IIz, they are rated at 86 db sensativity. Even those are usually ok.

Any high quality speaker needs to be placed properly and have good power supplying them. Dont get intimidated!

Dont try to run them off of an a/v receiver, but if you have good amps than they can be killer.


-rob

 

[Chris Tsutsui]

I heard some Aeons on a Denon 5803 that sounded pretty good. I also heard some Odysseys powered by 600w Krell monoblocks that were better.

They are beautiful to look at but as much as the good electrostatic speakers amazed me, I still prefer the sound of high end drivers. I also don't care that the MLs arn't very sensitive and are a bit power hungry.

I don't know what it was, maybe because I was listening in a showroom that the sound just didn't "click".

 

[John Royster]

I own a pair of reQuest. I absolutely love them. If setup right and given enough power music sounds so real its mind blowing.

BUT - placement is picky, they need a strong amp able to handle sub 2 ohm loads, sweet spot is rather small.

Also as posted above, they are planar speakers. Just like other speaker designs such as horns or cones everybody has different likes/dislikes.

That being said...I'l never own another box speaker again.

 

[Mike Veroukis]

Well, just to chime in here, I had the pleasure to listen to a pair of Martin Logans on a couple of occasions. I don't think I've ever been blown away like that before. Very nice and crisp sound. The buddy I was with agreed, although his only concern was that the bass driver sounded a bit week and perhaps needed a sub. I disagreed as I was left drooling. My advice to anyone is find a ML dealer and go for a listen. Bring some great tunes with you, and when the music hits close your eyes and let it take you away.

Now if only I could afford the damn things! And yes, you'd be nuts to match up a multi-thousand dollar speaker with a A/V receiver. I'm thinking Anthem, Classe, etc....

- Mike

 

[Mike Veroukis]

Also as posted above, they are planar speakers. Just like other speaker designs such as horns or cones everybody has different likes/dislikes.

I suppose but they should never be mistaken for magna-planars as they use a slightly different technology. Also ML's have a curved front end for wider dispersion. Also, unlike magna-planars they have an actual bass cone for a driver so they are truely a full range speaker. I've heard magnaplanars and found them to be lacking in the low end.
I also have to admit, when it comes to looks ML is pretty darn sharp. Check out their center channel.

- Mike

 

[John Royster]

Mike,

As to the bass of MLs, well that is going to depend on the model. Mine have 12" woofers so there is no need whatsoever for a sub.

Another con for martin logans is trying to integrate a cone woofer with a ESL panel. This is always brought up when talking about MLs but it RARELY bothers me and I am very picky. Maybe because my panel is crossed over at 180 hz which is pretty deep into the midbass.

But all this talk of woofer integration, room and source/amplification points out how uncannily detailed these speakers are. spooky real.

You just have to make sure you're ready to take on such a speaker. Do stay away from the lower ML lines though as they are very weak in the bass department and are crossed over too high.

Worth a listen for sure. But they DO need external amplification.