Martin logan esl panels in humid countries

[murphys33]

I am writing to air some frustrations with these speakers....

My love for these speakers also resulted in a lot of frustrations.... I live in a tropical country where it is humid all year round. Unfortunately, this results in panel failures after a fairly short 2 / 3 years of usage despire frequent vacumning and placing them in a smoke free, environment. I have used the Oddyssey previously and have since then upgrade to the Summit. I am contemplating upgrading to the Summit X as I love the martin logan sound but cannot quite rationalize having to change panels every 2 or 3 years... the panel just degrade from that period on.

I would to know if there may be any way to clean the panels? I used a cotton bud to poke thought the holes to reach the mylar film - a quick turn shows that the film is dirty.

My options include purchasing a new panel to replace the existing summit or plough in more $$$ to buy a new summit X or to change out of esl forever and go back to a box speaker. Would appreciate constructive thoughts, opinions and views on alternative speakers.

btw, is it possible to change the existing panels and how much would such a change cost?

Many thanks.

 

[amey01]

How clean is your room? How much dust? We've had people here before that said they were in a "smoke free environment", only to later disclose that they smoked in the room next door to their listening room

I live in a humid/tropical region and have no issue. So do many of us.

Sorry to point the finger, but you're doing something else wrong. It is not Singapore that is killing your speakers.

I do not touch the membrane - ever. I only vacuum (once a month) with a high-power vacuum and cup my hands around the nozzle in order to build pressure up against the panel.

I also keep the speakers covered whenever not in use, and only uncover them when the air conditioning is running and stable at setpoint.

 

[murphys33]

my room is smoke free and no one smokes. Essentially this is the second pair of speakers in different rooms that has seen the panel failing

 

[roberto]

my room is smoke free and no one smokes. Essentially this is the second pair of speakers in different rooms that has seen the panel failing

Hola...and what about Costa Rica? we have only 3 months free of rain. Our weather is so humid that tipically is 100% during 8 months of the year. I had a lot of bad panels due to humidity weather, but until early 90s...the new coated adhesive to make the panels conductive, solved the problem. Martin Logan still has a special chamber. This chamber test the coating for high humidity changes and temperature...the new materials and new diaphragms are free of these kind of problems...I do not have panels failure since then...now, when I have a panel problem, what I do is wash them with water from top to bottom and left to right, just the front of the panel, and no detergent, just plain water from the pipe, let then dry for a couple of days, put them back and they become alive again. Usually when I have a customer's panel failure is due to his environment. Try it, this might help you to get your panels back. Also remember that Martin Logan provides a warranty for 5 years. Talk to you dealer regarding this. Also contact Melodie Brouhard at Martin Logan...she could guide you to a different tests and might find the cause of your panels failure. Happy listening,
Roberto.