New here, not (yet) an owner. Couple of questions, too.

WERA689 · Sep 20, 2017

Hey guys. Thanks for bringing me aboard! I'm a 60 year old man, who has been into hifi since the middle 70s. In the early to mid 80s I sold audio at the now extinct Stereo Village in Atlanta, and later at HiFiBuys here. I've got several systems, most based on equipment from that era...Belles Research preamps and amps; several H/K Citation amps and a 730 receiver; a pair of Perreaux PMF-2150b's bridged to mono (which will drive any M-Ls I might buy...keep reading

); and several pairs of ADS speakers, from L500's up to L1290s. The 1290s are my main speakers in my living room home theater/2 channel system. I bought the 1290s new in 85, and that purchase led to my going to work at HiFiBuys as a salesman. I've loved loved LOVED these speakers ever since. The only thing I've considered replacing them (or upgrading them) for is a pair of electrostatics...namely M-L.

Now for the questions. First, here's the ad I'm interested in. The guy is about 10 miles from me, and I'm going to check them out tonight, with one of my Perreauxs in tow.

Seeling my SL3 Martin Logan speakers. I don't have an amp strong enough to push them. Previous owner said they have a short in the panels and kept popping his amp. Martin Logan said clean them, maybe try the "shower" cleaning, or the screens need replacing. The subs are both new. Make offer my wife hates then. I'm in Marietta GA just north of Atlanta!

I've chatted with him briefly, and I get the impression that he hasn't had any kind of high-current capable amp to drive them, and the "issues" he's reporting have more to do with weak amps, and less to do with an actually damaged panel.....but I don't have enough experience with electrostatics, or ML in general, to know if that's possible. He does say that he has heard them make sound, but that his amp shuts down. Is it possible that the problem is simply that the amps he and the previous owner used just couldn't drive the relatively difficult load posed by the SL3? If not, what should I expect to hear (or see) if the panels actually DO need replacing? Should they play at all, above the bass module's range? Or, if they're truly "shorted", how would it manifest? He's already told me that replacements from M-L run about $600 each...so I will likely pass if they're indeed damaged, unless I can get them incredibly cheap--which may be possible given how much he says his wife hates them!

Any advice from you veterans of M-L?

Thanks in advance
Neil

Gordon Gray · Sep 21, 2017

Neil,

I'd look at some newer models and "used" prices.

I had the SL3 (and three other models) and it was a good speaker but new tech has allowed for better panel / woofer blending amongst other improvements such as powered woofers, etc.

Main questions are room size and budget.

Gordon

WERA689 · Sep 21, 2017

Thanks, Gordon. I'm likely to drop this particular purchase, as the guy failed to contact me last night as we had agreed. I've always got an eye out for unexpected listings like this one, so I'll keep looking for now.

twich54 · Sep 21, 2017

Neil,

I agree with Gordon's recommendation as well.

Jazzman53 · Jul 8, 2023

"The previous owner said there was a short in the panels that kept popping his amp" is a red flag that shouldn't be ignored.

I can envision three possibilities here: Either the previous owner's amp was flat out incapable of driving those ESL's, or there's a short in a panel, or a short in the transformer.

I would not purchase those speakers without first verifying they can play without issues with your amplifier.

A flashover in a transformer would be permanent damage which the amp would see as dead short and shut down or self destruct.

My guess is that one of the panels suffered a burn thru of the stator(s) coating from arcing, which tripped the previous owner's amp's protection circuitry.

Arcing can occur between a stator and diaphragm or from stator-to-stator. Stator-to-diaphragm arcing makes a "snap" sound but would not typically draw enough current across the [high-resistance] diaphragm to shut down the amp, unless accompanied by a burn thru of a stator coating.

Dust, moisture, or even a bug flying between a stator and diaphragm can cause an arc event. Probably most ESLs experience an occasional arc event without suffering a burn thru or permanent damage.

Stator-to-stator arcing is a rare but serious and damaging, and would indicate a burn-thru of the stator coating (most likely along a stator edge). It can shut an amp down or damage the amp, and it's a death spiral for the panel.

Whenever I hear that a panel shuts down an amp, I assume the worst (stator-to-stator arcing / burn-thru) because I've experienced it first hand (although it wasn't on a ML speaker).

Take my advice and either avoid those speakers entirely or check them out thoroughly before buying them.