ML Vista rebuild to 220v 50hz

[fuzzywolf]

I really do sympathise with your predicament.

But you shouldn't blame Martin logan for your problems.
Basically you tried to save money by going around the normal process and it has backfired on you.

Martin logan has absolutely no obligation to help you.

I bought theese used, from another person in my country, i didnt import from the states.
I didnt try to save money by going around the normal process, i bought these
used from that guy because the price was in range of my ecconomy, it was later that i found out that the speakers didnt work on the powergrid.

The problem is that i feel like ive done something wrong here!
Isnt a Martin Logan a Martin Logan? and should i then get help from Martin Logan as any other customer?
Espesially when the importer in my country has this kind of attitude?

 

[fuzzywolf]

.

I just emailed Jim, and he mailed me a replacement 220v power board for the speakers.

I emailed him to, but i couldt get em because of the agreement they have with my importer.

And this i understand, but i dont think it is fair when they take the price
200$ and multipli it with 6x
Punishing me for buying a couple of speakers that for a long time ago (about 1 year) came from USA.

 

[Tosh]

You need one like this (but one that runs on 220VAC). power supply

Then you'll need an inverter, something like this, to give you 120VAC 60Hz:
inverter

 

[Scumurculum]

I bought theese used, from another person in my country, i didnt import from the states.
I didnt try to save money by going around the normal process, i bought these
used from that guy because the price was in range of my ecconomy, it was later that i found out that the speakers didnt work on the powergrid.

The problem is that i feel like ive done something wrong here!
Isnt a Martin Logan a Martin Logan? and should i then get help from Martin Logan as any other customer?
Espesially when the importer in my country has this kind of attitude?

Did the seller warn you of this? if not, I think you have reasonable grounds to either get your money back or pursue legal action.

Also, you did not buy the speaker from ML or one of their representatives. Therefore you are NOT their customer and they have absolutely NO obligation to assist you.

 

[fuzzywolf]

Did the seller warn you of this? if not, I think you have reasonable grounds to either get your money back or pursue legal action.

its said in the ad that this speakers was US edition and that they needed 110v 60hz,
so i figured that what the hell, ill just by an convert (found them for around 100$, where it said 220v - 110v 50/60hz) but of course these do not change the frequency and i didnt know that martin logan required this...

I feel its not his fault, i didnt think that frequency would be a issue.
It was an expencive experience...

 

[fuzzywolf]

Also, you did not buy the speaker from ML or one of their representatives. Therefore you are NOT their customer and they have absolutely NO obligation to assist you.

i dont know how much i agree in this,
Arent theese speakers produced by ML?
And havent they been bought from an representative/ML
In my country its not the owner that has the waranty etc, but the product that has been produced....

 

[fuzzywolf]

You need one like this (but one that runs on 220VAC). power supply

Then you'll need an inverter, something like this, to give you 120VAC 60Hz:
inverter

will check out,
maybe ill se if its possible to rebuild the original power supply

 

[Scumurculum]

i dont know how much i agree in this,
Arent theese speakers produced by ML?
And havent they been bought from an representative/ML
In my country its not the owner that has the waranty etc, but the product that has been produced....

However I think you will find that if the speakers were not bought in Norway, that provision does not apply.

 

[fuzzywolf]

However I think you will find that if the speakers were not bought in Norway, that provision does not apply.

i understand that i can not expect that norwegian laws applies to a product not bought in norway.

Sorry for the outburst, im just frustrated...

Have to blame someone, and i dont like beeing blamed=P

 

[fuzzywolf]

which of these should i buy?

300w
positive:
-It has two outlet

negative:
it has a fan (nothing better than hearing a fan in the background...)
http://www.parts-express.com/pe/pshowdetl.cfm?&DID=7&Partnumber=125-205&ctab=3#Tabs

150w
positive:
-fanless

negative:
-only one outlet...
http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=125-200

Will these devices make a "humming" sound?

 

[Scumurculum]

Thats fine mate I can really understand how mind numbingly frustrating it would be, I have been in a similar boat recently with a second hand amp I bought.

However, I think with a bit of time and research you will find a solution that matches your budget.

Best of luck

 

[fuzzywolf]

Thats fine mate I can really understand how mind numbingly frustrating it would be, I have been in a similar boat recently with a second hand amp I bought.

However, I think with a bit of time and research you will find a solution that matches your budget.

Best of luck

do hope so,
I think ill try the 220v 50hz - 12v - 110v 60hz method, if this work i at least can enjoy my speakers in the mean time, while i try to find a better solution=)

 

[fuzzywolf]

can anyone confirm how much power the Vistas need?
do they really just need 5w? under usage?

 

[Tosh]

which of these should i buy?

300w
positive:
-It has two outlet

negative:
it has a fan (nothing better than hearing a fan in the background...)
http://www.parts-express.com/pe/pshowdetl.cfm?&DID=7&Partnumber=125-205&ctab=3#Tabs

150w
positive:
-fanless

negative:
-only one outlet...
http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=125-200

Will these devices make a "humming" sound?

You'll have to remember to buy a US-style outlet doubler or power strip to get more outlets. If you buy a US duplex outlet and cover plate, you could build everything into one box.

 

[Burke]

can anyone confirm how much power the Vistas need?
do they really just need 5w? under usage?

I searched the Vista manual and web page but a electrical usage was not given. What the Vista manual does say is "The AC power rating applicable to a particular unit is specified both on the packing carton and on the serial number plate attached to the speaker."

So check the speaker.

 

[patlad]

look at this thread. This is the same problem you face (although it was with a Summit):

http://www.martinloganowners.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1020

As for the price of ML parts in Europe: This is a real rip off indeed. It costed me around 800 euros to get new power supply boards for my Ascent when I moved to France from Canada. And I had to wait at least 2 months!!

Personnaly I don't like the idea of protecting markets. Everybody prone global market is good for the economy but when you want to apply that to your own purchase it is another story! And at the moment with the change euro/dollar we don't see prices of ML products going down in Europe...

 

[roberto]

can anyone confirm how much power the Vistas need?
do they really just need 5w? under usage?

Yes, that's all they need. Only 5 Watts, so I will choose P-125 model, rated from 12 V.DC to 120V/60Hz. I think this will solve your problem with the specific frequency. Again, from 220V/50Hz you go down to 12V/DC then from here to 120V/60Hz. Hope this might help and will not brake your budget...I wish you a very happy listening,
Roberto.

 

[Craig]

These speakers don't require very much power except for models with an internal amplifier. Most of the newer ML electrostat models use an external wall wart instead of an IEC power cord.

 

[JonFo]

which of these should i buy?

300w
positive:
-It has two outlet

negative:
it has a fan (nothing better than hearing a fan in the background...)
http://www.parts-express.com/pe/pshowdetl.cfm?&DID=7&Partnumber=125-205&ctab=3#Tabs

150w
positive:
-fanless

negative:
-only one outlet...
http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=125-200

Will these devices make a "humming" sound?

Get the 150w version and use a three-way plug or other splitter to get the two 120v plugs needed for the speakers.

150w is plenty, as they speakers really only pull a few milliamps.

The inverter probably will buzz a bit, as it's likely a triac with some capacitors after it to smooth out the square wave. For $31 I'd not expect anything too fancy. So maybe as much noise as a triac based light dimmer.

So you might need to find a place to stash it where the noise is minimzed. It's high frequency so should be easy to absorb with some foam or other materials. Just remember to leave plnety of airflow around it, it will get warm (or hot).

There is store dedicated to inverters: www.theinverterstore.com

I'd recommend this one as being sufficient for your needs:

http://www.theinverterstore.com/the-inverter-store-product.php?model=pwrinv150w-front-rgb


Also, since you are in Norway, home of many Solar and Wind generation companies, don't foget that the alternative energy crowd sells plenty of inverters, so look and see what's available locally from companies who install wind/solar systems.

as long as it goes from 12VDC to 110AC 60hz, then just get a basic 220v to 12vDC power supply (of matching wattage) and you're set.

 

[TomDac]

When you get them up and running, you're gonna be saying, "THAT was SO worth it!".

:music: