Heres a real man's speakers :)

[lucas]

<A HREF="http://www.absolutesound.co.za/reviews_statement.htm">http://www.absolutesound.co.za/reviews_statement.htm</A>

<A HREF="http://www.audioexcellence.co.th/brand/martinlogan_statementE2.shtml">http://www.audioexcellence.co.th/brand/martinlogan_statementE2.shtml</A>

[Dirk]

>
> <A HREF="http://www.absolutesound.co.za/reviews_statement.htm">http://www.absolutesound.co.za/reviews_statement.htm</A>
>
> <A HREF="http://www.audioexcellence.co.th/brand/martinlogan_statementE2.shtml">http://www.audioexcellence.co.th/brand/martinlogan_statementE2.shtml</A>

I heard the Ascent i model at a Magnolia. It was good, but it really didn't bring a tear to my eye or give me the shivers. I've heard better designs. Designs that didn't require ones amplifier to double as an arc welder...

Don't get me wrong. They *did* sound good. The soundstage was very wide, but the imaging just wasn't very coherent.

[AJ]

> Designs that didn't require
> ones amplifier to double as an arc welder...

Come on dude, space heaters... i mean, 600w tube amps are completely needed to produce an accurate reproduction of the source. Bahahaha...

Let the flames begin :)

[blair]

Heck,
I'm building a 60 watt per channel tube amp, and I'm sweating my A** off. Those things would be like setting the carpet on fire!

Plus, they probably cost as much as a Range Rover, and get worse gas mileage.

OTOH, the MLs are good speakers, but I agree that they do not image as well as other speakers. Kind of a fat sound stage if you will IMO. I'll stick with my current system, and can't wait to build my next.

Blair

[AJ]

> Heck,
> I'm building a 60 watt per channel tube amp,
> and I'm sweating my A** off. Those things
> would be like setting the carpet on fire!

Not to mention they probably weigh 200lbs each... The power and output transformers probably take up the whole inside of that case.

[blair]

Yeah, I didn't think of that, but you're right. I wonder what the cap bank in that thing looks like.

Blair

[natediggidy]

> Not to mention they probably weigh 200lbs
> each...

Yeah, but that kinda makes 'em burgler resistant =^] .

[dthomas]

> Come on dude, space heaters... i mean, 600w
> tube amps are completely needed to produce
> an accurate reproduction of the source.
> Bahahaha...

> Let the flames begin :)

Why do you think high wattage ss amps have fans? Because they are forced air space heaters ;). My 140 watt KT88 amp runs no warmer than my Pioneer Elite HT reciever, they both get warm. Granted tubes have filaments but in order to generate that kind of power you got to dissipate heat whether it is solid state or tubes.

Man those amps are gorgeous. I would gladly turn the AC down a notch to live with those.

Dave

[AJ]

http://www.hifidelityaudio.co.uk/images/pass_labs_amplifier_xa160_lrg.jpg


My 350w and 150w haflers run warm to the touch, not hot.

THIS is a space heater! 160w Class A Monoblock.

[nick29498141]

> My 350w and 150w haflers run warm to the
> touch, not hot.

> THIS is a space heater! 160w Class A
> Monoblock.

Pssh

Pass once made something called the XA1000

That's a 1,000 watt monobloc.

Wanna talk heat?

:)

NK

[savantstrike]

Sounds extremely theft resistant.. Nobody needs to bolt it to the floor, you need a forklift to get it in the house...

> Pssh

> Pass once made something called the XA1000

> That's a 1,000 watt monobloc.

> Wanna talk heat?

> :)

> NK

[nick29498141]

Provided Link: Check it (http://www.passlabs.com/amplifiers/x1000.htm)


> Sounds extremely theft resistant.. Nobody
> needs to bolt it to the floor, you need a
> forklift to get it in the house...

Tell me about it. Nelson Pass is the man.

[johnastockman]

On my last trip to "high-end row" in Seattle I heard what the other poster referred to...sounds OK, decent detail but imaging wasn't up to what I have in my home right now, which is some different varieties of DIY designs. For me, a real man's speaker is some that I made myself that sounds better than high-dollar retail units. My annual visit to the high-end dealers helps me to keep my perspective...I really want to be impressed, but it hasn't happened yet.

John A.

[savantstrike]

Is that beast passive???

Sweet!

> Tell me about it. Nelson Pass is the man.

[wingnut]

They're made practically in my backyard, having just moved into some brand new facilities (Plymouth, MN). Cool little company, Audio Research. I recruit and place engineers locally and they never even need to run ads for design and development engineers, much less use a 3rd-party. I suppose if you're into high-end HiFi working someplace like that would be an absolute dream job. They go way over the top for their customers too. They stock parts for and service every single product they've ever produced since the company started 33 years ago.

<A HREF="http://www.audioresearch.com/message.html">http://www.audioresearch.com/message.html</A>

> Man those amps are gorgeous. I would gladly
> turn the AC down a notch to live with those.

> Dave

[dthomas]

> They're made practically in my backyard,
> having just moved into some brand new
> facilities (Plymouth, MN). Cool little
> company, Audio Research. I recruit and place
> engineers locally and they never even need
> to run ads for design and development
> engineers, much less use a 3rd-party. I
> suppose if you're into high-end HiFi working
> someplace like that would be an absolute
> dream job. They go way over the top for
> their customers too. They stock parts for
> and service every single product they've
> ever produced since the company started 33
> years ago.

> <A HREF="http://www.audioresearch.com/message.html">http://www.audioresearch.com/message.html</A>

Yeah... they are an investment but a guy could enjoy those for many years to come. Plus they are just so darn gorgeous.

Hard to beat quality products and service to beat. So much you buy today is obsolete in just a few years. It is the way business is done these days. Nice to know some companies ignore the trends and do things the right way. Of course you have to pay the price.

Great amps... lots of overkill but that is not the point when you buy something like this. You just enjoy it.
Dave