Speaker Asylum: REVIEW: Martin-Logan CLSIIz Speakers by mephistopheles

Model:	CLSIIz
Category:	Speakers
Suggested Retail Price:	$6000
Description:	Single curved electrostatic panel
Manufacturer URL:	Martin-Logan

Review by mephistopheles on October 07, 2009 at 22:56:10
IP Address: 210.246.4.95 Add Your Review
for the CLSIIz

These are the latest panels to grace my room, after a couple of pairs of Quad 57s, one pair of 63s and the M-L Aerius. They were purchased second hand, sight unseen apart from photos and were not listened to first. Apparently they are the CLS2a's and the dealer performed the "Z" upgrade some time ago. I had heard a pair several years ago and had been blown away by how cool they looked and how ethereal they sounded, even on the Pioneer A-400X I had taken along to audition them on, ha ha. So was confident they would be okay, fingers crossed! My pair have the oak frames which I like the best out of the range of finishes. They are very solid, the construction gives you confidence and the woodwork is first class.

After setting them up in my not-so-large room, a few days were spent positioning them and getting the REL Storm to integrate well enough to not draw too much attention to itself.

Most of the music going through them has been popular or female vocals with a bit of rock and some classical. First impressions were that all the typical electrostatic qualities were present. They are not dynamic in the usual sense, no frequency extremes are obvious and the expected lack of bass was there. Still, on the right piece of music they can convey startling depth but in the main, the REL fills in the bottom end nicely.

The real reason for buying panels though, lies in the midrange. Female vocals in particular just sound right, even with older recordings. For example, Nina Simone singing 'Lilac Wine' could be right there, even though it is a 1965 recording. And much more preferable to Jeff Buckley's version! I was lucky enough to hear this recently in Graham's Hi-Fi in London on high-end Linn gear and thought it was a woman as I didn't know who the artist was. Atmospheric pieces such as Enigma's Cross of Changes envelop you and well-recorded works such as Deanna Kirk's Mariana Trench sound very natural with startling depth in places. When you are in the sweet spot, it is so easy to lose track of time... just one more track... At least one evening has passed with the lights dimmed and a glass of red wine makes a most excellent system upgrade :-)

The Rotel amp I bought to drive the MLs I bought mostly on the strength of reviews and the fact they were discounted at the time. 500W per channel of efficient Class D power for less money than the competition was too good to pass up and my hopes were rewarded with a great sounding amp. It replaced the 2 hard-working Arcam 290s I had bridged and run in mono, 1 each channel. The detail, seperation, bottom end and attack improved markedly. This was more like it. So much so I bought a Rotel RC-1082 to replace the Arcam 290 integrated which had been doing pre-amp duty. The Rotel further improved detail, insight and the bass which I always felt was a weak point of the 290, being muddy, lacking extension and lethargic. So now the MLs were sounding quite tasty. Living in New Zealand, you would think that Perreaux or Plinius gear would be much more affordable. So did I. Yeah, the latest Perreaux integrated is a great sounding, flexible and intelligent piece of equipment, but I think I got a bargain with my Rotel combo.

As I mentioned earlier, I made the pilgrimage to Graham's Hi Fi in London after seeing the "probably one of the best 5 hi fi shops in the world" ad many times. Despite not having an appointment, they made time for a chat and a quick demo. I heard the latest Linn digital server/dac combo and I honestly can't remember what pre amp they used. The speakers were fully active 3 way jobs, so I presume no external amp was used. I heard a few unfamiliar tracks, but I think in the truest testimony to my Martin Logans, all I wanted was to put the very tasty front end in front of my CLSes!

Although this review is a bit meandering, I can in all honestly say that if you like panels and find a pair in good order, grab them. ML don't make affordable full-range panels any more, and there is something special about them.

Product Weakness:	Size, demanding of amplification, lacking in bass.
Product Strengths:	Speed, transparency, lack of colouration, imaging, naturalness, cool looks.

Associated Equipment for this Review:

Amplifier: Rotel RB-1092
Preamplifier (or None if Integrated): Rotel RB-1082
Sources (CDP/Turntable): Arcam Alpha 9
Speakers: Martin Logan CLS
Cables/Interconnects: Audioquest
Music Used (Genre/Selections): Pop, classical, rock
Type of Audition/Review: Product Owner

Amplifier:	Rotel RB-1092
Preamplifier (or None if Integrated):	Rotel RB-1082
Sources (CDP/Turntable):	Arcam Alpha 9
Speakers:	Martin Logan CLS
Cables/Interconnects:	Audioquest
Music Used (Genre/Selections):	Pop, classical, rock
Type of Audition/Review:	Product Owner