Emilner
Member
First I wanted to says hello! I have been surfing the site for a few weeks and finally registered.
I heard a pair of Martin Logan's for the first time many years ago at a cocktail party. I will never forget that day. At the time I was selling audio systems at Tops and the best stuff we had was Infinity's Kappa line (they were actually pretty good speakers). When I walked into the room I was drawn to the amazing sound coming out of these two pieces of art. It was like nothing I had heard before, I vowed to get a pair someday. Over the years I slowly downsized my towers from Infinity SM 155s to my current Modulus system. With a wife and kids and other priorities not to mention a lack of a proper space to place them, I have been unable to realize my dream.
Well that changed when we took down the center wall of our house and created a great room. It is a transitional styled room with some space to place the speakers. I slowly started planting the seeds with my wife. It took a few months of transitioning her views from "are you nuts?" to "we will talk about it" and finally "why don't you do it!". I cried. It was finally time.
Then came the research phase. Initially on the list was a pair of Vantages. I have been tracking them for a month or so. It was a little hard to stomach the $4k entry price knowing that was only part of the price. While I waited for a better deal or a gently used set to show up I started considering ESLs or Vistas. Well, that was all finalized when I saw Audioholics sale on the Vistas. For a week I looked at the website, seeing those glorious pieces of art waiting there, gently saying, "ready when you are". I spent a few nights reading hundreds of threads here, pouring over all of your experiences, looking for that last nudge to confirm the go. My wife was worried, I think. She probably thought I was going a little mental, like she missed the fact that I've always been there. One night we were speaking through a few martinis (always the best conversations happen here) and I said I think I'm going to pull the trigger. She looked over with a little excitement and said go for it. I think my excitement rubbed off on her or she might be just trying to move on. I knew then it was done.
The next day I placed the order. That was Wednesday. I was super excited to see an email with tracking numbers the very next morning. Best yet was the tracking numbers said they would be delivered the 28th! Today!! I was so excited. I'm not one to wait well. When I'm a go, instant gratification is what I'm all about. To my horror, well that's harsh, to my dissatisfaction the date was updated to May first. Mild sadness set in. The martini tasted sour. I knew I shouldn't have made a sour apple one. Well, what's a few more days after 2 decades of waiting I said to my self. To top that off I dropped my iPhone and broke the screen. What a day. Hopefully a nice steak tonight at Mark Joseph's with friends will brighten the day. Sorry, where was I?
For those I have not yet put to sleep I do have a few questions.
Which amp should I get?
Just kidding, I could not resist.
Hear is my plan. I do not have the ideal place to put them, but it will do. It is in the den part of the kitchen. They will be on both sides of the fireplace. I can bring them out about 3 feet from the wall. I know not perfect but I will place with wall treatments to compensate. If that doesn't work maybe I'll just knock a wall or two down, lol. I know I need to watch the smoke from the kitchen and fireplace. Hopefully that won't be a problem. I am going to use them 50% for music and 50% TV. Not just movies but regular shows as well. The initial plan is to forgo SS and just stay with classic stereo with possible a Depth I to supplement.
Initially I will power them with a Pioneer Elite SC 27 as a preamp and an Onkyo Integra M504 amp. The amp was bought new in 95. It's pretty solid and is stabile into 2 ohms. It is rated at 165 into 8 ohms but I cannot find the rating into 4 or 2. I'm guessing a minimum of 250. That should give plenty of headroom. One thought I had was to biamp them with the pio powering the stats and the M504 on the woofers. Thoughts? I am using Monoprice 12 gauge wiring and I plan on getting an Oppo 93. for now I have a good Pany BD player and will be using iTunes/Internet etc.
The plan is to see how the system does with the amp/preamp. Eventually I'd love to step up to a Mcintosh, Pass etc. I'm not sure if I would need to go past the Elite on the pre, its a pretty good unit. Plus it has a great multizone set up that is easy to use.
Any thoughts on the setup? I would love if you have any comments regarding my initial setup and placement and if I am overlooking something.
The waiting goes on. It can be said to never wish for the future to come for you will miss all today has to offer. Yeah, and regular exercise and a sensible diet would help me drop that 20 (ok 30). Cocktail anyone?
Ed
I heard a pair of Martin Logan's for the first time many years ago at a cocktail party. I will never forget that day. At the time I was selling audio systems at Tops and the best stuff we had was Infinity's Kappa line (they were actually pretty good speakers). When I walked into the room I was drawn to the amazing sound coming out of these two pieces of art. It was like nothing I had heard before, I vowed to get a pair someday. Over the years I slowly downsized my towers from Infinity SM 155s to my current Modulus system. With a wife and kids and other priorities not to mention a lack of a proper space to place them, I have been unable to realize my dream.
Well that changed when we took down the center wall of our house and created a great room. It is a transitional styled room with some space to place the speakers. I slowly started planting the seeds with my wife. It took a few months of transitioning her views from "are you nuts?" to "we will talk about it" and finally "why don't you do it!". I cried. It was finally time.
Then came the research phase. Initially on the list was a pair of Vantages. I have been tracking them for a month or so. It was a little hard to stomach the $4k entry price knowing that was only part of the price. While I waited for a better deal or a gently used set to show up I started considering ESLs or Vistas. Well, that was all finalized when I saw Audioholics sale on the Vistas. For a week I looked at the website, seeing those glorious pieces of art waiting there, gently saying, "ready when you are". I spent a few nights reading hundreds of threads here, pouring over all of your experiences, looking for that last nudge to confirm the go. My wife was worried, I think. She probably thought I was going a little mental, like she missed the fact that I've always been there. One night we were speaking through a few martinis (always the best conversations happen here) and I said I think I'm going to pull the trigger. She looked over with a little excitement and said go for it. I think my excitement rubbed off on her or she might be just trying to move on. I knew then it was done.
The next day I placed the order. That was Wednesday. I was super excited to see an email with tracking numbers the very next morning. Best yet was the tracking numbers said they would be delivered the 28th! Today!! I was so excited. I'm not one to wait well. When I'm a go, instant gratification is what I'm all about. To my horror, well that's harsh, to my dissatisfaction the date was updated to May first. Mild sadness set in. The martini tasted sour. I knew I shouldn't have made a sour apple one. Well, what's a few more days after 2 decades of waiting I said to my self. To top that off I dropped my iPhone and broke the screen. What a day. Hopefully a nice steak tonight at Mark Joseph's with friends will brighten the day. Sorry, where was I?
For those I have not yet put to sleep I do have a few questions.
Which amp should I get?
Just kidding, I could not resist.
Hear is my plan. I do not have the ideal place to put them, but it will do. It is in the den part of the kitchen. They will be on both sides of the fireplace. I can bring them out about 3 feet from the wall. I know not perfect but I will place with wall treatments to compensate. If that doesn't work maybe I'll just knock a wall or two down, lol. I know I need to watch the smoke from the kitchen and fireplace. Hopefully that won't be a problem. I am going to use them 50% for music and 50% TV. Not just movies but regular shows as well. The initial plan is to forgo SS and just stay with classic stereo with possible a Depth I to supplement.
Initially I will power them with a Pioneer Elite SC 27 as a preamp and an Onkyo Integra M504 amp. The amp was bought new in 95. It's pretty solid and is stabile into 2 ohms. It is rated at 165 into 8 ohms but I cannot find the rating into 4 or 2. I'm guessing a minimum of 250. That should give plenty of headroom. One thought I had was to biamp them with the pio powering the stats and the M504 on the woofers. Thoughts? I am using Monoprice 12 gauge wiring and I plan on getting an Oppo 93. for now I have a good Pany BD player and will be using iTunes/Internet etc.
The plan is to see how the system does with the amp/preamp. Eventually I'd love to step up to a Mcintosh, Pass etc. I'm not sure if I would need to go past the Elite on the pre, its a pretty good unit. Plus it has a great multizone set up that is easy to use.
Any thoughts on the setup? I would love if you have any comments regarding my initial setup and placement and if I am overlooking something.
The waiting goes on. It can be said to never wish for the future to come for you will miss all today has to offer. Yeah, and regular exercise and a sensible diet would help me drop that 20 (ok 30). Cocktail anyone?
Ed
