Martin Logan Aeon I Advice Needed

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Hypnotoad

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I am new to this forum.

I got back into vinyl about a year ago and have been collecting some vintage gear. I have no interest in home theater and love classic/soft rock having many albums from the 70's.

In the 80's I heard a pair of Janszen Electrostatics at a high end store, they blew me away with the soundstage, clarity and overall detail of the sound. However they cost as much as a new car back then, way out of my price range or so my wife said.;)

My current main system is:

ProJect Perspective Turntable with Benz Micro Ace

ProJect Tube Box II Phono Preamp with Mullards

Luxman L-430 amp rated conservatively at over 100wpc

Boston Acoustics A150 & A70's stacked, can have either or both running.

Now for what it is this system sounds pretty darn good but I want to take it to the next level.

I don't want a small jump but more of a leap.

I went to Fry's here in Houston and heard some Martin Logan Purity's.

They sounded awful connected to a Denon Surround Sound receiver with a movie playing, the salesman put in a rap Cd and they sounded worse.

The highs were ear piercing the lows boomy, no speaker worth so much would sound like that. I don't know why they try and sell high end stuff if they don't know how to set it up.

I saw a pair of Martin Logan Aeon I's advertised locally as new for less than half new price.

I want warm yet detailed not bright, I don't like bright at all.

Before I go audition the Aeon's is there anything I should know?

Can they give a warm and not dry sound given the right gear?

Do they go well with vinyl?

Any information would be appreciated.
 
I have only heard the Aeon i once. It was at Craig's (a member here) home.
I think he was driving them with either his Art Audio amp or Electrocompaniet? amps directly from his Wadia CDP. They sound amazing, full, rich and a good solid sound stage and nice bass.
This was with a good size Christmas tree between them. It was as though the tree was singing.

I think most speakers never get to show their real potential by not having high quality upstream equipment. By that I mean most would upgrade the Aeon before adding very good amps and CDP to them.

If you can still get a good deal on them and are willing pair them with electronics that bring out their best I think you would be quite happy.

I don't know anything about your Luxman amp so I won't be able to help with that one.

I see no reason a vinyl rig would not work well with the Aeon's.
 
The Aeon i was my first set of Martin Logan speakers -- and all I can say is they are terrific speakers. Made me a ML fan for LIFE -- they are that good.

I initially had them paired with superb vintage Yamaha equipment (CX/MX 2000), and they knocked my socks off. :music:

Naturally, I then had to get a pair of Ascents, then Summits (you know how it goes...)

Best of luck -- you will Love them, I am sure.
 
My humble opinion... first of all depends on your room size - and the kind of music you listen to... you don't want a huge room for the aeon's .. secondly - you say you like 'warm'... To me, the aeon's aren't really warm... I would describe them as detailed - can produce an incredible soundstage when set up properly with the right gear - and I have heard them give some incredible...'singer is in the room' type of results. I later bought Odysseys, but the Aeons that I heard probably gave one of the most surprising and nicest presentations I had ever heard with a demo. If you really crave bass - you might need a sub with them (used descent highly recommended)...and if you go there - I think you get the detail/soundstage & the sub will give you the warm sound you want....for an extremely reasonable price...

bit more info -- the aeon's I heard were hooked to mac gear (their solid state stuff)... before you go - check out used prices on ascents and odysseys as well... the odysseys will give you a huge leap ... ascents will as well, but may be just a touch bass shy in my opinion...of course...(FWIW - Heard ascent/descent combo which was completely awsome)....
 
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I would buy the Aeon I, its a stunning speaker with a small footprint that will amaze you with proper amplification.
If you are looking for warm sound you shouldnt even be looking at Martin Logans...
 
I am new to this forum.



In the 80's I heard a pair of Janszen Electrostatics at a high end store, they blew me away with the soundstage, clarity and overall detail of the sound.



Any information would be appreciated.

Wellcome to the club. There is lot of that 80's experience to be had with Aeon and with very very reasonable price for out of production ML models. Not necessary warm sounding but pretty much every positive quality that comes to my mind. Luxman has produced some really nice amps but if in doubt you could always try to have a look through glass ware :D
 
Hello,
Definitely using a Denon AVR to drive a pair of Martin Logan Electrostats is not the way to experience them. Fry's usually does not use outboard amplifiers to audition Speakers which in the case of ESL's, is grievous.

Regardless, I would rather have Aeon I's than Purity's personally. Aeon's are very nice Speakers and so long as the pair you are looking at are in good condition, are an excellent choice.

That being said, you did not get to audition the Purity's in remotely close to the best possible conditions. Given Fry's return policy, you might want to audition them at home before making a final judgement. There is certainly something to be said for having the 5 Year Warranty.
Cheers,
JJ
 
I've had Aeon-i's for a few months. I just upgraded from an HK receiver to a Classe 100 at 200 WPC. Big difference.

I used to have Maggie 1.6 and also the ML Sequel 2s.

I love the Aeons. Their transparency in the mids and highs is stunning. The only thing it lacks is killer bass. I had stacked Quads many, many years ago and I think the Aeons sound better because of the lack of beaming. They are not warm or cold, they are very neutral. I'm using them with a dynamo sub but I intend to upgrade the sub but have no plans to upgrade from the Aeons and I can easily afford to do so.

You cant go wrong with Aeons IMO but I have the 'i" version with rear ambience tweeter so I can't speak regarding the non "i" version.

Lastly, if you want WARM, I would buy Maggies. Their warmth is awesome. But they are not nearly as fast or as transparent as MLs. Maggies are great but MLs are magic IMO.
 
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