. I still don’t understand why ML discontinued these and for years after the introduction of their latest hybrid models like 5 years ago completely abandoned all advertising and never played them at audio shows.
It seems that, from the get-go, Sanders and Sutherland believed that hybrid was the way to go. They never actively plugged the full range line. The CLS was introduced a few years after the Monolith, evolved through II, IIa, IIz, then was discontinued. The CLX started at a much higher price point. The one time I heard them was at a show in NYC. Dennis was there, and made a point that the criticism of no bass was greatly exaggerated.
I ended up getting a pair of Ascents, but never cared for the bass. Eventually I found a pair of CLS II's, and have never looked back. I think the latest generation of hybrids could sway my thinking about full range, but at this point I'm so enthralled with the CLS II's (and the money for either the Masterpiece series or used CLX's is beyond my practical means, and could be better spent somewhere else) that I'm by no means actively looking.
I'm not sure how much, if any, involvement, in the company Sanders has now, but I think there's a corporate philosophy favoring hybrids.