So why is it now your belief that you should move away from traditional box speakers? Only because you've "read too many posts by Bonzo" as you say in your opening post?
That’s pretty good, Brad. But the point is that people sell speakers because they no longer like them and that may be because they never set them up properly. I strongly believe that some people sell their systems before they really have a chance to optimize them. This is a challenging hobby.
I learned the lesson of proper placement with Magico’s while I owned them, and I thought they were sounding very good at that point. Had I not made that trip to experience large horn speakers, I might still own those Magico Q3s. They were not the weak link in that system. I had no trouble selling that old system. It was gone in two weeks.
Be wary of Martin Logan until you've heard them in your own listening room. I was considering a move from Uno horns to electrostatics and (after much reading and a convincing showroom demo), I bought a new pair of Expression 13As. Bad move ! They just didn't like my room and by everyone's account sounded for less good than the 17 year old horns. Sold after 6 months at a colossal loss!
The reason they didn't like my room? No wall behind them to harvest any of the 50% of their energy that is projected backwards. Other theories may also apply! The odd thing was that the big Quad 2905s I bought used to test the idea of els speakers sounded remarkably good, but were aesthetically unacceptable due to where they were placed.
If you don't get the placement distance from the front wall right Logans will sound like sh..t ! Big floor to ceiling windows like you have, need a lot of taming too. But they look so good when you get the light and view trough the see trough panels
But the point is that people sell speakers because they no longer like them and that may be because they never set them up properly. I strongly believe that some people sell their systems before they really have a chance to optimize them.
If you don't get the placement distance from the front wall right Logans will sound like sh..t ! Big floor to ceiling windows like you have, need a lot of taming too. But they look so good when you get the light and view trough the see trough panels
It was particularly galling that no one on the ML owners' forum thought to mention the importance of the wall behind the speakers (I call it the back wall) before I bought them.
Yes, it was the semi-transparency of the 13As and their relative slimness (aside from the sound quality) that made these speakers a contender. Here with my original AG Unos that the MLs were bought to replace. I kept the Unos!
It was particularly galling that no one on the ML owners' forum thought to mention the importance of the wall behind the speakers (I call it the back wall) before I bought them.
I heard a smaller pair of Martin Logan speakers set up at a former member’s house. They were toed it to beam at the listener. Behind the left speaker was an open kitchen and behind the right speaker was an open stairwell. The owner explained that he liked having no back wave with plenty of open space behind each panel. He also told me he has no interest in soundstage realism. The sound was quite bright and often fatiguing, but he really liked what he referred to as the incredible resolution.
I heard a smaller pair of Martin Logan speakers set up at a former member’s house. They were toed it to beam at the listener. Behind the left speaker was an open kitchen and behind the right speaker was an open stairwell. The owner explained that he liked having no back wave with plenty of open space behind each panel. He also told me he has no interest in soundstage realism. The sound was quite bright and often fatiguing, but he really liked what he referred to as the incredible resolution.
I wonder if there are any Wilson speaker owners, who have them straight ahead. I was told to move my Sashas closer together and point them straight by a few local audiophiles.
With a 15-30 degree angle to your ears, they play more balanced from 3 kHz with restraint in the presence brilliance range. It is much more important that you keep to the seating height (the ear should be between the tweeter and midrange). A vertical angle greater than 5-10 degrees does strange things according to stereophile measurements. If necessary, adjust the listening distance to reach the window.
