New Martin Logan "Motion" cone/Heil AMT

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic. Read 13825 times.

chrisby

  • Full Member
  • Posts: 772
Re: New Martin Logan "Motion" cone/Heil AMT
« Reply #20 on: 25 Nov 2011, 05:24 pm »
Interesting. That's a compelling price. Here are a few reviews I found:

TONEAudio
The MartinLogan Motion 4
Great sound in a tiny package


Amazon

P.S. I have Horn Shoppe Horns upgraded with ESS Heil AMT and found I love that clear, open sound.

Have you got the AMT's securely attached to the Horns, and ballast filled the lower cavity?  Otherwise I'd think they're a demonstration in center of balance/mass waiting to happen - the AMT must weigh close to an entire stock Horn enclosure?

 

hometheaterdoc

  • Industry Participant
  • Posts: 451
Re: New Martin Logan "Motion" cone/Heil AMT
« Reply #21 on: 25 Nov 2011, 05:25 pm »
The Motion 10 2 way floorstanders are $299.98 a pair including shipping from newegg.com today only with promo code EMCJJHE34.  just in case anyone wants to try them out for minimal cost....

James Romeyn

  • Industry Participant
  • Posts: 3329
  • James Romeyn Music and Audio, LLC
    • James Romeyn Music and Audio, LLC
Re: New Martin Logan "Motion" cone/Heil AMT
« Reply #22 on: 25 Nov 2011, 06:41 pm »
While they are AMT-type tweeters, they are not Heil tweeters.

Look a lot like the Airborne marketed RT4001s to me...I have the RT20021s in my car.

Welcome to our corner gossip site!  And thanks for the links! 

James Romeyn

  • Industry Participant
  • Posts: 3329
  • James Romeyn Music and Audio, LLC
    • James Romeyn Music and Audio, LLC
Re: New Martin Logan "Motion" cone/Heil AMT
« Reply #23 on: 25 Nov 2011, 06:51 pm »
...Martin Logan "Motion 4"...smoothness, natural harmonics, and musical resolution...was similar to the  latest $2200/pr ML "ElectroMotion  EXL" hybrid....

Just to clarify, the later absolutely had a more transparent musical clarity that I think even a non-audiophile would immediately recognize.  It's cool that ML got the former (in such a small box) so close in overall character to the later hybrid true-electrostatic @ 4x the cost. 

wisnon

Re: New Martin Logan "Motion" cone/Heil AMT
« Reply #24 on: 25 Nov 2011, 06:58 pm »
No business relations, just thought this might be of interest.  Mod please can or move as desired.   

At Las Vegas Magnolia AV I recently  heard the new Martin Logan "Motion 4"  monitor ($550/pr, small curved enclosure). 
Beyond the inferior source and receiver, and even worse room filled  with dozens of speakers, the Motion 4 was obviously exceptional.  In maximum SPL  it sounded more like a 6.5" vs. it's 4" midbass.  I'm virtually  certain it's exceptional performance stems primarily from its Heil air-motion tweeter and to a lesser extent its aluminum baffle.   

In smoothness, natural harmonics, and musical resolution it was similar to the  latest $2200/pr ML "ElectroMotion  EXL" hybrid (improved vs. similarly priced ML, my new favorite anywhere near  this price), and several leagues beyond the well-recieved $2500/pr  Definitive Technology active-bass floor-stander (heard all three speakers at the same  time).
   

My program source was Frank Vignola Live playing a Thorell guitar, with which I'm intimately familiar being that I've seen Thorell build guitars (he lives 10 minutes away), I resell and play Thorell guitars, and I saw Frank play live.   
   

Other monitors employing the latest small Heil air motion tweeter include ESS (exclusive Heil license holder) and Golden Ear brand (TAS reviewer heard exactly what I did in the Heil tweeter). 

From my admittedly brief exposure  to this affordable tweeter I'd rate it among the best I've ever heard including  cost no object. 


In Switzerland, the Heil AMT brand has just released a VERY impressive Standmounted speaker called the Aulos bookshelf seen here:
http://www.precide.ch/eng/eheil/eheil.htm

I heard it last night In Geneva alongside the Vienna Acoustics Baby Beethhoven Grand and it was in the same league! The Heil tweeter is still run dipole as there is a large rear port for the Tweeter and front ports for the 7 inch woofer (bass reflex).

It is available in Canada via Tricell, but I am not sure if it is available in the USA.

James Romeyn

  • Industry Participant
  • Posts: 3329
  • James Romeyn Music and Audio, LLC
    • James Romeyn Music and Audio, LLC
Re: New Martin Logan "Motion" cone/Heil AMT
« Reply #25 on: 25 Nov 2011, 07:02 pm »
I bought a pair of these today, breaking them in now.  So far seems a bit thin sounding, but day one that isn't unexpected.

-Tony

Trader, wus up homey?  What do think now after a week or so?

wisnon

Re: New Martin Logan "Motion" cone/Heil AMT
« Reply #26 on: 25 Nov 2011, 07:07 pm »
While they are AMT-type tweeters, they are not Heil tweeters.

Look a lot like the Airborne marketed RT4001s to me...I have the RT20021s in my car.

Also, not all Heil tweeters are created equally. It apparently has to do with the membrane used. The best ones are thinner and more flexible than say Mylar and Kapton and thus perform better!

James Romeyn

  • Industry Participant
  • Posts: 3329
  • James Romeyn Music and Audio, LLC
    • James Romeyn Music and Audio, LLC
Re: New Martin Logan "Motion" cone/Heil AMT
« Reply #27 on: 25 Nov 2011, 07:15 pm »
I forgot to mention, because it was over 30 years ago, I met dear Dr. Oscar Heil and had lunch with him somewhere in the vicinity of San Mateo.  You'd be hard pressed to find such a pleasant chap, even after the original ESS (current owners completely different folks) apparently did not pay him many thousands of dollars in royalties for his wonderful invention, still making music lovers happy today.  IIRC then-Pacific Stereo (long since gone) sold several thousand ESS speakers with Heil's tweeter.  At that time the ESS AMT1 had more force, dynamics, and bass depth/power than any other mass-marketed loudspeaker I can think of (personally, I always thought the big Heil tweeter was crossed over too low in the AMT1s).

An east bay friend/35+ year veteran pro audio engineer (KGO-TV) has several original Heil tweeters for sale.  Just PM me and I'll forward his contact info.  Good reasons to believe prices highly competitive, but that's always relative.         
I met Oscar through an electronics designer/repair person/mutual friend. 

James Romeyn

  • Industry Participant
  • Posts: 3329
  • James Romeyn Music and Audio, LLC
    • James Romeyn Music and Audio, LLC
Re: New Martin Logan "Motion" cone/Heil AMT
« Reply #28 on: 25 Nov 2011, 07:27 pm »
In Switzerland, the Heil AMT brand has just released a VERY impressive Standmounted speaker called the Aulos bookshelf seen here:
http://www.precide.ch/eng/eheil/eheil.htm

I heard it last night In Geneva alongside the Vienna Acoustics Baby Beethhoven Grand and it was in the same league! The Heil tweeter is still run dipole as there is a large rear port for the Tweeter and front ports for the 7 inch woofer (bass reflex).

It is available in Canada via Tricell, but I am not sure if it is available in the USA.

Never heard the Vienna Acoustic Beethoven Baby Grand, but it looks highly promising.  Again, their likely long-discontinued $1500 stand-mount was my very favorite up to its price category, and their latest, costly, super-high-end coax models are top rated.

Lots'o sharp merchandise never makes it to the states.     

wisnon

Re: New Martin Logan "Motion" cone/Heil AMT
« Reply #29 on: 25 Nov 2011, 07:41 pm »
I also heard the Roksan Kandy K2 bookshelf speaker (British) with the isoplanar tweeter.  Very sweet and very decent bass with that 4.5 inch woofer. I heard via Mc tube Pre/power combo, but th dealer sas they sound even better with an all Roksan setup!

THE gentleman that make Heil AMT speakers (used to be called Oskar Heil in the USA) is the executor of Dr. Heil's will and is associated with his grand daughter. They were good friends! It figures that they would make the best Heil tweeter!
« Last Edit: 3 Feb 2012, 09:31 am by wisnon »

TRADERXFAN

  • Full Member
  • Posts: 1093
  • Trillions will vanish... it's a debt blackhole.
    • GALLERY
Re: New Martin Logan "Motion" cone/Heil AMT
« Reply #30 on: 25 Nov 2011, 07:53 pm »
I started to post last night, but deleted it. 

I packed up the 4's to take back. As a monitor, they were too thin in the midbass for me to accept. I compensated for this by setting each above a GR Research open baffle, servo, subs ( bottoms of the v-1/super v speaker basically) That filled in the lower range that was missing from them nicely. So having satisfied that issue, I felt like I listened to a less compromised presentation.

I found that, in comparison to my main speakers, they were a little less transparent, even in the highs, which I really suspected it might have gone the other way.
The cost to add this kind of supplement like an open baffle sub, even non-servo, to the Motion 4s made the price proposition very different. So, I wouldn't be able to recommend them to anyone, except the most budget restricted buyer, who would pair these with a standard home theater type sub that typically runs no higher than 90hz. I tried them first that way with an svs sub in the home theater area before taking them to the listening room.

One caveat is that I didn't give them that much time, so maybe a few hundred hours on them would have changed things in the clarity department.  I really suspect some upgrades to the crossover are probably required to get it into the great category.

Now this Newegg deal on the Motion 10 for $250 off each, sounds like a really good opportunity, as those dual 5.25"ers should fill in the midbass that I wanted.  I have recommended that deal to a friend who has been looking.

-Tony