Interesting comments here from someone on another forum who attended the NY show and was blown away by the MBL demo. No surprise wrt his assertion that bass is perhaps a tad more pronounced vs CLX
. Also, I asked him about the Scaena demo, his reply "not my cup of tea". Huh.
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"The MBL's are one of the few speakers that disappear as completely as the CLXes, however I don't think they are as pinpoint accurate. I found them to have a more natural sound though. Where they obliterate the CLXes is in dynamics, particularly the bass. The MBL's were thunderous, on rock and roll they were simply sensational. Another MBL advantage is the lack of a tight "sweet spot". In terms of seating positions, the omnidirectional design is just incredible. Wherever you go in the room, the stage remains in the same spot as it would in a concert hall.
As far as the dynamics are concerned, the demo was being powered by a pair of the insanely large and expensive MBL 9011. So power and thus dynamics not only were not a problem, they were among the best I have ever heard. The concern is how they might fare with an amp that can be more commonly found on earth. (My friend commented that they are each about the size of a BMW V12 engine, and together about the price of a BMW V12 engine with a car wrapped around it!)
Reflecting on my experience, this was among the best systems I have ever heard. They were the only speakers that I heard that I would trade my CLXes for without hesitation."