ML Aerius

[Cantodea]

Hello,

I have the opportunity to buy a pair SH ML Aerius. Don't know the exact age, but the seller claims that they are completely checked and restored.
He asks about €800 ($700). What do you girls and boys think? This would be me first ELS and maybe it is a cheap way for first time experience with ML? Were the Aerius good ELS? If they please me and if they sound good in my room, than, next year I can buy me some new ones (Electromotion X)

Please help me out of this dilemma!

Regards

Cantodea

 

[TomDac]

Aerius were good back in their day.. Launched in 1992, so at worst they are 25 years old. How many owners have they had? How have they been taken care of? Can you see thru the mylar, or is there gunk all over it? Personally, I'd never buy ML's that old unless I knew the history and heard them, or if the panels had been replaced recently. Panels don't last forever and the sound degrades gradually over time. If you don't know what they sounded like when brand new, it could be difficult to determine how close to new they sound and how much degradation they're suffering from.

You could always low-ball him and see where that goes. $500 would be a good price, considering the unknowns. Also, the older ML's are WAY harder to drive, so make sure you have a good amp.. even with the smaller Aerius', driving them properly will make a huge difference.

Good luck and let us know how this pans out!

Tom.

 

[RyanB]

Hi Cantodea,

There should be a sticker somewhere on the back of the panel with the serial number.

Serial number decoder PDF

I just purchased my first pair of ML's (Aerius i) a few weeks ago and my panels are both date coded November of 1999, and to me they sound comparable to the new ones I have heard at the dealers, and some that my friends have. That being said, yes they would be a cheap way to get started, but I would also be nervous to buy speakers this old without hearing them first. If the panels are newer than about 1996, then they must have must have been replaced at some point.

Ryan

 

[Bernard]

I would just save my money until I could afford a new pair.

 

[Cantodea]

Just asked him about the serials.. the deal is off!

@Bernard You're probably right.

 

[Tosh]

the seller claims that they are completely checked and restored.

It would be interesting to know what the seller means by "restored."
A pair of local Aerius was on craigslist a few weeks ago asking $600, and the pics showed replacement panels with clear spars (and thus more reliable than originals), which would have been a pretty good deal.