ML Monolith IIIp Noob

ML Monolith-III

Just got a good deal a set of Martin Logan Monolith IIIp speakers today and would like to find out the production date when they were manufactured. Also would like to know the actual cost for the piano black lacquer finish upgrade option.

I currently have a pair of black ReQuest and some Script speakers in a surround setup. I'm thinking about switching them around with the ReQuests for the rear channels and the use the two Script wall mounted speakers for a dual front center channel.

Also would like to find out if they're any tweaks available for these Monolith IIIp speakers and any links or information would be real helpful.

Regards,
Chris

did you consider this - using more than one speaker for center channel pretty much eliminates the benefit of having a center channel, might as well go phantom
just my 2 cents

Welcome to the club Chris!

Here is the ML Serial Number decoder thread: http://www.martinloganowners.com/forum/showthread.php?p=57870

I've seen some people use dual centers on the top and bottom of the television but never placed on either side. Previously had an 80-inch big screen with two eight inch woofers mounted on the bottom section on either side with a single tweeter on the top and it worked well for a center channel speaker.

I have used the phantom center channel in the past and it just gave me headaches from the non directional sound. May just have to sell the Scripts and try to find a decent ML center channel speaker.

churchill said:

Welcome to the club Chris!

Here is the ML Serial Number decoder thread: http://www.martinloganowners.com/forum/showthread.php?p=57870

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Thanks!

It appears like I've found a later production matching pair and was worried about these speakers being years older than the my ReQuests.

Welcome

Welcome to the asylum, it's always good to see someone else whose lost their way.

Congrats on the acquisition of the big beasts.

First tip. Well, perhaps it's not so much a tip as it is a quick affordable DIY cleanup.

That gentle fabric covering the woofers removes easily. Snaps right off by grabbing ahold of the sides in fact and pops right back in place on all corners.

To remove any stains, fingerprints, or orgasmic matter, hey what can i say these things are just an orgasm waitin' to happen just gawkin' at them...buy a simple bottle of Resolve carpet cleaner at your local store. Perhaps most carpet cleaners will work but Resolve is the only one I've used...spray it on the fabric, let set a couple minutes, then use a barely wet sponge to dampen away all the finger prints, grease, or whatever else you or anyone else inadvertently attached to the fabric. That trick will get any speaker cover fabric looking like brand new again. I tried it on my M III's and it worked like a charm. How'd I discover it? It came to me in a dream whilst tryin' to figure out how to clean up the only part of the speaker that didn't appear as new.

Also for the ebony piano finish rails I use Mequire's #7 car polish. Coats them perfectly and leaves a nice luster polish finish. That's an old piano store trick as all high gloss piano finishes receive that treatment on them. Okay, now that I've saved you a bundle in time it's you who gets to go to work. Oh, and BTW, it's probably not a good idea to cheat by attempting to clean the fabric panels while they're still attached and covering the woofers. Who knows what havoc overspray could wreak on the woofers...best to remove them and not tempt fate. Hopefully none of that other O material didn't seep through either...just teasin.

Nice Samsung btw...I was about to buy that one before opting for the Panasonic plasma.

#ZERO said:

Just got a good deal a set of Martin Logan Monolith IIIp speakers today

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Well Chris, I forgot to mention there's good deals and then there's giveaways. The MIIIa's I displayed earlier I bought from the original owner, an attorney who apparently didn't have any time to listen to or use them, were found on AG located in the good 'ole state of NC for get this: $1100

And that wasn't the best part. They were as mint as could be for 10 year old speakers. I had to ship them to WA, which set me back another $350, but hey that was a no brainer. After enjoying them for 5 months, then later moving to a much smaller home and listening room I moved the MIII's for $3k locally. Hey, what can I say a guys got to pay for his audio habit somehow. That allowed me to bring in a pair of Vista's, which too have now since moved on. Currently I've got a lowly pair of Aerius I's on hand with the OB (open baffles), which frankly give the ML's a serious run for their money, whilst waiting for a pair of CLS's to arrive. Life in the hood ain't so bad for you either so I see. Enjoy!

WOW! That's a real nice looking system you have and my way is not quite lost yet but I'm still working on it.

I've just been powering my speakers with a Denon AVR-5803 surround receiver which is rated at 170-watts at 8-ohms but will need to find some decent stereo amps with an active crossover in the near future.

I removed the woofer panels to check out the speakers before they were purchased but have yet to clean them with anything and thanks for the tips. Also accidently scratched a bottom area of the piano black finish in a real small spot when loading them onto a furniture dolly trying to get these monsters inside the house. I'll need to find some light duty rubbing compound and see if the spot will come off before waxing them.

Almost went with the larger 65-inch television myself but found the smaller 55-inch Samsung LED units seem to have the best picture quality and contrast ratio.

That's quite a deal you got on those speakers and I was lucky to find these Monoliths only a few miles from the house so they didn't have to be shipped.

Speakeritus...

#ZERO said:

WOW! That's a real nice looking system you have and my way is not quite lost yet but I'm still working on it.

I've just been powering my speakers with a Denon AVR-5803 surround receiver which is rated at 170-watts at 8-ohms but will need to find some decent stereo amps with an active crossover in the near future.

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Thanks, if it's my system it's always a work in progress for if my system had a name it would be SAMPLES R US! For some of us it's pointless to put up a system photo since things are always changin'. Well, whomever it was that said 'variety is the spice of life' musta had someone like me in mind.


But actually, since moving to a much smaller room than I've ever had for listening for some strange reason I find myself listening a heck of a lot more than I've done in recent memory. I was most impressed with the Vista's, especially since they had a tough act to follow right after the M3's. I've driven them with as little as a 10 watt 300b SET integrated, seen on the floor amp stand. And that was without biamping them. Don't ask me how that's possible, but they produced all the volume I ever needed. Perhaps someone here can extrapolate how the newer Xstat technology makes that possible, but all I know is they were the easiest ML to drive that I've ever owned, and that's been at least a dozen different models over the past decade. Frankly I've lost count. Notice I said were...yep, they went by way of FedEx y'day. I had to make room for a pair of iiz's, which will be the second pair of iiz's I've owned. Well, one of these days I'll just have to stop doin' a knee jerk reaction to good deals that pop up and let something settle in. The OB's in this photo have been around longer than anything else I've had in this system for a long time. I've owned them since April. Ha, has anyone here gone through a dozen pair of speakers in the past year?...well, there's no shame in sampling...that's my way of saying I'm in denial that I have an audio bug.

Anyways, congrats on the great score on the M3's. You'll have fun finding just the right amps to power them. I used a pair of BAT VK1000 mono's, but they didn't need that much power to really make them sing. Best of luck finding an amp that brings you the most joy.

#ZERO said:

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I've just been powering my speakers with a Denon AVR-5803 surround receiver which is rated at 170-watts at 8-ohms but will need to find some decent stereo amps with an active crossover in the near future.
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Yes, absolutely find a good amp for these. Any used Sunfire will be a big step up.

Get a 5ch model and use two of the amps to bi-amp using an active crossover.

Please see my system and various threads I've posted about Monoliths and mods on this site.

Check this one out on setting up a DriveRack 260 as the the crossover.

And this thread on the woofer and panel updates I did four years ago.

Also, don't ignore the physical setup. From you pic, the speakers are way to close to the wall for optimum performance.

I suggest putting a RealTraps Minitrap HF on the wall behind each panel. This will clean up reflections that right now are muddying up your midrange and highs.

We have plenty of threads here on that topic as well.

Actually I was thinking about upgrading my Denon AVR-5803 to the newer AVP-A1HDci because it has the HDMI & XLR connections and use a 7-channel amplifier.

That DBX DriveRack-260 looks like the hot setup for a crossover equalizer combo and you have some great threads on it.

So far the panels & woofers are working perfectly with no issues and hopefully will never need replacement. The previous owner had them hooked up with some radio shack 18-gauge zip chord after the crossover boxes with loose spade terminal crimp connections; so I'm sure they never had some serious power through them yet.

I plan on removing the old carpet this winter and replace it with a nice marble or travertine floor because this piano black finish attracts the dust like a magnet.

I'll look into getting some acoustic panels to mount behind the speakers and will try them repositioning them a couple feet away from the walls.