New Member From Los Osos, CA

[MikeJ]

I am getting ready to upgrade my system with ML's.
So far the foum has provided me with great information.

 

[roberto]

Welcome Mike...tell us what are you are planning to do...there are a lot of options, and all are great!. Just keep in mind that the overall sound it is a matter of liking. Let your ears decide what you really want. Trust in them, there is no other better tool like them! What type of music do you like most? Are you going to do a HT? or Stereo only?

 

[MikeJ]

For my system I am looking at the following possibilities:
System 1
ESL fronts
Feature Center
EM R's in ceiling for rears
Dynomo 700 Sub

System 2:
60XT Fronts
50XT center
35XT rears
Dynomo 700 Sub

System 3:
Inwall
Edge L/R
Axis center
EM R's in ceiling side and rears

One last option I have is a set of Clarity that are basicly new
Any suggestions to the options above would be appriciated.

I have listened to almost all except the edge, axis, and em r's

I find that for certain things the electro statics sound great and for certain things the floor standing speakers sound better.

I need to find the mix that gives me the clarity, mids, and lows.

I will be using a Yamaha RX-A3030, and will be using the system for movies and music.

Sorry to be so long winded.
Any suggestion would be helpful.

Thanks

 

[topofroc]

a few more questions:
1. Is this system going in a dedicated room, or a shared use space (living room, den, etc.)?
2. How much freedom do you have with placement (any WAF to address)?
3. How big is this room (X by Y, cubic feet)? Is it a sealed space, or is it open to adjoining rooms (open floor plan)?
4. What's the split when it comes to music vs. home theater with this new system?

 

[MikeJ]

a few more questions:
1. Is this system going in a dedicated room, or a shared use space (living room, den, etc.)?
2. How much freedom do you have with placement (any WAF to address)?
3. How big is this room (X by Y, cubic feet)? Is it a sealed space, or is it open to adjoining rooms (open floor plan)?
4. What's the split when it comes to music vs. home theater with this new system?

1. This is in family room
2. Since the room is rectangular, we would be placing the main speakers on the narrow wall.
3. Listening area is about 13' wide X 20' long. Ceiling is about 10'. At this point there is an open doorway to the living room and then the room extends back another 15'.
4. More TV/Movies than Music...About 75/25.

Thanks

 

[topofroc]

Thanks MikeJ - That additional information is helpful...
Based on the options you listed, I would recommend you go with System #2. Here's why:

1. I wouldn't go with System #3, because in-wall speakers come with too many compromises when it comes to sound quality. I would only go with this system if it was your only option.

2. It's tough for me to say, but given your circumstances I would also pass on System #3. The ESLs are great, and sound fantastic, but they really need certain things in order to sound their best.
- First off, I'm firmly in the camp that says electrostatic speakers need external amps as opposed to receivers. I know there are more than a few people who run ESLs with receivers and are happy, but my experiences tell me different. Each time I've heard those kind of setups, the music was thin and the sound stuck to the speakers (very narrow soundstage). At the very least, listen to an ESL/Feature set-up running from an AVR before you pull the trigger. Trust YOUR ears.
- ESLs also have particular needs when it comes to placement. At the barest of minimums, they need to be place 2.5 feet off the back wall. This is to take advantage of the rear-firing sound wave of the electrostatic panel. Ideally, you would like to speakers to placed 4 feet from the back wall. This kind of placement is tough to do in a shared space. Much easier in a dedicated room.

System #2 will work well with the receiver you have and offers you a bit more flexibility in speaker placement. While the sound quality might not be on par with ESLs, the folded tweeter design does a great job at stereo imaging and will give you plenty of audio enjoyment.

As far as subs go, I wouldn't go with Dynamo 700. It's too small to provide deep movie bass for your 2600 cu ft room. If you can manage it space-wise, I would look at Rythmik Audio's LV12 sub. It's got a larger driver and its servo- controlled, which will keep you bass articulate and not boomy. If you still want to stick with ML for you sub, you might want to hunt for a ML Grotto i, which is also servo-controlled. It's discontinued, but I still see them once in a while online.

Again - these are just my thoughts based on what I listened to in the past. As roberto always says - trust your ears!!!

 

[MikeJ]

Thanks MikeJ - That additional information is helpful...
Based on the options you listed, I would recommend you go with System #2. Here's why:

1. I wouldn't go with System #3, because in-wall speakers come with too many compromises when it comes to sound quality. I would only go with this system if it was your only option.

2. It's tough for me to say, but given your circumstances I would also pass on System #3. The ESLs are great, and sound fantastic, but they really need certain things in order to sound their best.
- First off, I'm firmly in the camp that says electrostatic speakers need external amps as opposed to receivers. I know there are more than a few people who run ESLs with receivers and are happy, but my experiences tell me different. Each time I've heard those kind of setups, the music was thin and the sound stuck to the speakers (very narrow soundstage). At the very least, listen to an ESL/Feature set-up running from an AVR before you pull the trigger. Trust YOUR ears.
- ESLs also have particular needs when it comes to placement. At the barest of minimums, they need to be place 2.5 feet off the back wall. This is to take advantage of the rear-firing sound wave of the electrostatic panel. Ideally, you would like to speakers to placed 4 feet from the back wall. This kind of placement is tough to do in a shared space. Much easier in a dedicated room.

System #2 will work well with the receiver you have and offers you a bit more flexibility in speaker placement. While the sound quality might not be on par with ESLs, the folded tweeter design does a great job at stereo imaging and will give you plenty of audio enjoyment.

As far as subs go, I wouldn't go with Dynamo 700. It's too small to provide deep movie bass for your 2600 cu ft room. If you can manage it space-wise, I would look at Rythmik Audio's LV12 sub. It's got a larger driver and its servo- controlled, which will keep you bass articulate and not boomy. If you still want to stick with ML for you sub, you might want to hunt for a ML Grotto i, which is also servo-controlled. It's discontinued, but I still see them once in a while online.

Again - these are just my thoughts based on what I listened to in the past. As roberto always says - trust your ears!!!

I do have some hard choices to make.
I will say that doing an A-B compare of the ESL and A set of 40XT's running on a Yamaha RX-A3040 at the area Magnolia store was an eye opener. That was what me make the comment that both sound great and will work good...just to bad you couldn't get the mix of both of the speaker sounds. I wasn't sure of which B&W I compared along with the ML's, but they didn't even come close to sounding as good as the 40XT (they were in the same price range as the 40's).

Apparently there is a Magnolia design center about 3 hours away from me that has the high end edge and axis in-wall speakers mounted and ready to listen too. I am planning on taking a listen this weekend to do a compare of those as well.

Any other suggestions would be appreciated.

Thank You so much for the input.


UPDATE:

Well i have purchased a set of 60XT, 20XT, 50XT center, and two Dynamo 700's.
The complete package sounds great.
As soon as our small remodel is complete and the speakers are placed properly, I will fine tune and bi-amp the two fronts.
Very happy with the sound.