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I GIVE UP

Need practical advice from practical people, My Martin Logan SL3's are "tear your head off bright". I originally had a parasound line preamp, 2 parasound 125 wpc amps in a horizontal biamp configuration. I was told to try wiring the amps either mono or vertical biamp, try different interconnects, try different speaker cables, and try a different preamp. Well, I spent quite a bit of money and sonically, believe me when I say, there was absolutely no differnce at all. I'm certain, no ear could hear even the slightest differences. I'm not getting into the brands of cables I tried, i'm convinced solving real problems with cables is just BS. I went from the parasound pre to an EAD encore. I have been able to fix the problem, and make my system sound absolutely amazing. The problem is my wife cant deal with the blankets draped over the Martin Logans in our living room. Please help and give real advice. I'm considering giving up on ESL's, however there are many sonic advantages, that I really like about them. Please dont even bother with any ideas about positioning them, they have been everywhere except in the basement.

Thanks, Steve
sfrounds
fletch
61 posts
 
Earplugs maybe ? If you spent all your money on gear, than maybe Q-Tips will work...just remember not to turn on your side !
m_wan
13 posts
 
I have to go with Ed on this one... Try adjusting the positioning of the Speakers. Although the Amp may not be the best match, the positioning is almost as critical...

Toe in and position from rear wall...

Miles
larryken
537 posts
 
I have owned SL3' since 1996 and first concentrated on making the room acoustics right....solid reflecting wall behind the speakers and a mildly absorbing back wall...with these speakers the amp is everything....I use a BAT VK500 solid state which puts out 475 watts at 4 ohms...the nominal impedance of these speakers....these are true high end speakers and any mediocre source components or amp will be revealed for what they are....I found the speakers set up not that challenging and never experienced the bright sound you described...it's tough to make a diagnosis without seeing the room and hearing your gear....good luck...these speakers are proven winners
Regards
jcaudio's avatar
jcaudio
237 posts
 
Martin Logans sound good with fairly large tube amps. Low impedance at 20 khz requires the amps have some guts. We have never heard them sound right with solid state. Try that
slmccaul
15 posts
 
I agree with Larryken. I owned ML Quests for several years and the room acoustics and electronics were critical. I could even tell differences by changing cables. I would recommend a high quality solid state amp like a Pass, BAT, ARC or Plinius. I had matched up the Quests with an ARC 100.2, Plinius SA-100 and a Pass Aleph Os and they all sounded terrific. I have heard ML Quests with a CJ MV-55 and Premier 11a and both of them sounded great also, just not as deep bass as the solid state amps. Be sure your preamp and DAC's are high quality also. A shrill CD Player or DAC will drive you crazy with these speakers also. You can get great sound out of these speakers. Be patient.
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