Summit X upgrade

[babydoc]

I have heard that there is an X upgrade for the original Summit. It involves a new crossover. Any news on this? Can it be done at home? It would certainly be easier than replacing the Summits with the next model.

 

[theWB]

Dealer told me it is a crossover upgrade, rumored retail is $1,500.
I've been told it's something the owner can do at home.

 

[marck]

Dealer told me it is a crossover upgrade, rumored retail is $1,500.
I've been told it's something the owner can do at home.

Strange, I was told that it is a crossover and panel upgrade and would need to be sent back to ML. Also the cost would be at least $2000. So that would mean at £2k in the UK.

 

[tonepub]

Nothing absolute from ML yet, but they told me at CEDIA that it was going to be more than a crossover upgrade...

 

[babydoc]

I received an email from M-L support. At present, it seems that an upgrade is in the works but not a real product as yet. The new X series will not be released before 2009. At that time an upgrade package may become available.

 

[Len44]

As the old story goes...

"Know how to keep a ******* in suspense?"

"NO?"

"I'll tell you later..."

 

[FISH_MAN]

I am suprised

has martin logan offered these upgrades in the past?
why would they do this its like saying we did not get it the first time
now you should spend another $2k on top of the $11k already for something
I have heard is in the spire wich is $8.5k if this is so I think this should not go over well.I have a feeling that this is wrong info and they are just working on a new product line.

 

[sleepysurf]

In the past, ML just offered "new and improved" models, e.g. CLSII, Aerius i, etc. Those improvements did not offer any revenue stream from prior sales, unless previous buyers SOLD their ML's and bought the latest and greatest new models. In today's economy, and declining audiophile market, it makes sense to offer previous buyers (especially the high-end line) an upgrade path to the new technology. ML will make some $$ off prior sales, while also selling to NEW customers. I think it's a GREAT idea, and will likely buy the upgrade IF the sonic improvement proves worth the $$. Heck, it's a lot easier than trying to sell my Summits!

has martin logan offered these upgrades in the past?
why would they do this its like saying we did not get it the first time
now you should spend another $2k on top of the $11k already for something
I have heard is in the spire wich is $8.5k if this is so I think this should not go over well.I have a feeling that this is wrong info and they are just working on a new product line.

 

[FISH_MAN]

I think you are wrong !

an upgraded part for up to 20% of the original retail price is an insult.
they should leave things alone the summits are fine speakers
the way they are.this will not be good for their reputation and further hurt
the used market value which reflects on a companies integrity and perceived stability as a whole!

 

[robertawillisjr]

Upgrades are always painful decisions. You have already invested thousands of dollars (if you are like me the investment was painful) and now you are asked to put some serious percentage of your original investment back into the product.

Well what I do is try to determine the benefit to expense ratio. Most of the time I don't update if I am happy with the product. Granted, a bit of upgraditis always exists but we have to be practical.

Companies usually don't profit much from upgrades (particularly owner installed. Owners make many mistakes, or don't read, etc.) So it is always a crap shoot for them. Really high end companies are not giants and any R&D time and planning spent on upgrades comes at the expense of other products.

If what I hear about this upgrade is correct, someone at the company saw a way to leverage newer technology into the Summit with minor work. Sounds good to me.

You Summit owners have a decision to make. If the price is too high, don't blame ML they have to make money and their prices are usually moderate considering the quality delivered.

 

[tonepub]

an upgraded part for up to 20% of the original retail price is an insult.
they should leave things alone the summits are fine speakers
the way they are.this will not be good for their reputation and further hurt
the used market value which reflects on a companies integrity and perceived stability as a whole!

How can you make a comment like this when you don't know if this is a real commodity yet or what it involves.

Of course the Summit is a fine speaker. However all companies do ongoing research and development. Usually what they learn in their flagship product translates into others further down the totem pole. This is pretty normal in anything from speakers to cars to whatever.

There are always a handful of audiophiles that want the latest/greatest, no matter what and if the folks at ML are kind enough to offer that as an upgrade, 20% is a bargain. Even if they did not raise the price of the Summit X at all, it would still be much more expensive to sell your current Summits (for 50-65 cents on the dollar) and then go buy a new pair of Summit X.

Not to mention shipping on those babies.

If you have a pair of Summits, you can upgrade the rest of your system a long way before you run out of resolution. And just because the new version will be somewhat improved, no one is putting a gun to your head to buy it....

 

[MotorToad]

... and their prices are usually moderate considering the quality delivered.

This is so true. I'm not in the market for speakers, but just for fun I've been looking around at what's on the market. I see a lot of "decent" run-of-the-mill cones in boxes that are more expensive than Vistas or even Vantages. I haven't heard Thiels in many years, but if they're anything like they used to be I can't imagine paying $14,000 a pair for them! I saw some Jamos that are $7k and they don't even have a box!

I probably shouldn't say this here since it'll just give ML and excuse to jack their prices up!