Martin Logan is at Huppin’s/OneCall!!!
April 14th, 2009 by Chris R
As most of you may know, the MartinLogan speaker brand is totally new to almost all of us at Huppin’s/OneCall. Right off the bat, if you are looking for a wonderful sounding speaker that isn’t too high end for your budget, this is it.
Having several pairs and systems setup in our retail store here in Spokane, WA, I have had the oppertunity to sit, listen and critique these speakers throughout their break-in process and have witnessed some amazing results. If you really look through the Martin Logan line, you will notice that in their two designations (ESL Series and Design Series) you actually find that there are four styles of speaker (based on the size of the stator panel) that are made to fit different sized rooms for their dispersion. Both of the Design Series speakers, the Source and Purity, are made for smaller rooms. The entry ESL Series speakers, the Vista and Vantage are made for medium sized rooms. The higher end ESL Series speakers, the Spire, Summit X and CLX, are made for large rooms.
In the store, we display almost all of the speakers up to the Vantage models, which have a retail price of $5695 for the pair of Left and Right speakers. I have to tell you, these are some of the best sounding speakers I have ever heard. The full range speakers are all a two way design that crossover around 400hz with the woofer(s) taking over the midbass and low end. The key to MartinLogan electrostatic speakers and their amazing sound is in the stator panel itself. Very few moving, very lightweight parts that produce the sound.
Now, I have to say, that MartinLogan speakers are a little picky about the electronics and cables that you pair with them. Some people may tell you otherwise, but I have heard the difference in electronics first hand. For instance, when we paired the Vantage speakers with a Vantage speakers. Recently we have substituted the Marantz for the Musical Fidelity A5.5 (which is also a new piece to us here) and it sings on the Vantage due to its laid back high end reproduction. Another great example for a good amp would be some of the higher end Denon receivers. We have the Vista speakers in a private theater in a surround sound setup along with Motifs for center and sides all powered by the AVR4308CI. It sounds phenominal. In the surround sound array with the MartinLogan speakers, it is EXTREMELY difficult to tell which speaker the sound is coming from. I should say that the Vista speakers work best on the AVR4308CI when the EQ is turned off. After the Audyssey calibration is run, simply switch the EQ mode to off and that is truely a wonderful pair.
If you’re local, semi-local or going to visit us in Spokane, be sure to drop by and audition a pair of these or a whole system. You won’t be disappointed.
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