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MartinLogan Motion 4i Review (bookshelf speaker)

martijn86

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Well it really needs a 200 hz crossover. :(
It would've been better if it was advertised as a specialty surround (effects) speaker. The way it's meant to be wall mounted and the fact that it's only effective at frequencies that you can locate. That wouldn't be as bad. You could at least conclude that it is built for a specific purpose.

Selling this as if you get the high end electrostatic MartinLogan sound at a low cost is just false advertising. You're just shipping a 'white van speaker' to someone that probably doesn't know what a good speaker is supposed to sound like. That's terrible for a company like MartinLogan.
 
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FeddyLost

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Fashion satellite as it is.
No other real value in these speakers, i suppose.
Ultra compact 4" bookshelf speaker should be little more balanced allover if it's not just satellite. Maybe at cost of 82 db sensitivity, but more linear below 200.
 

tuga

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This speaker would perform better if measured in 2pi space.

It would be interesting to see even a simple REW measurement with the speaker against the wall.

This is in line with many people's criticism of how speakers are evaluated in Harman's speaker shuffler room...
It makes absolutely no sense to position/measure a wall-mount speaker away from the wall if it wasn't designed for such placement.
 

RayDunzl

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No comments, presume MLs are revered in the US I suppose

I've had a pair of reQuest for 23 years.

They're my mains.

1609069136777.png


(not my picture, but, same thing)
 
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andreasmaaan

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It would be interesting to see even a simple REW measurement with the speaker against the wall.

This is in line with many people's criticism of how speakers are evaluated in Harman's speaker shuffler room...
It makes absolutely no sense to position/measure a wall-mount speaker away from the wall if it wasn't designed for such placement.

Exactly. Only thing here is that ML markets it as an on-wall or standmount speaker. ML therefore has only themselves to blame IMO when it is judged it as such...
 

uwotm8

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Gosh, what were they thinking with that tilting up response? Sounding good in a showroom?
Excuse me Amir, but these are the most obvious satellite speakers you've tested. Previous NHTs at least have "bookshelf"-like look:)
Sure you can buy them and use even as a floorstanders but in real life these are just cheap multichannel satellites.
I also suspect that they're designed to be used rather off-axis.

Their electrostatic models sound amazing despite poor measurements, they are lightyears ahead of typical pair of boring $2-3k "traditional" speakers IMO. Yep sure, the sound is not flawless, it's a bit specific but very exciting.

I also suspect that AMT-based Logans are something like Emotiva, an "optimal price" Chinish designs.
 
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YSC

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Exactly. Only thing here is that ML markets it as an on-wall or standmount speaker. ML therefore has only themselves to blame IMO when it is judged it as such...
it is, but didn't you feel it would be interesting if measured against the wall to see what it can achieve? I am not sure how much extra effort this will take Amirm, but if it's not too troublesome as a 100% geek I would be interest to see such measurements to be done.
 

MZKM

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Sure you can buy them and use even as a floorstanders but in real life these are just cheap multichannel satellites.
Satellites means all speakers in a surround setup, I presume you mean surrounds. The thing is, ML markets them as both, not just in writing but in photos too:
Martin%20Logan%20Motion%208%20System%202-750x750.jpg

and I know on the home theater subreddit I have seen a user or two ask about them for their mains.
 

andreasmaaan

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it is, but didn't you feel it would be interesting if measured against the wall to see what it can achieve? I am not sure how much extra effort this will take Amirm, but if it's not too troublesome as a 100% geek I would be interest to see such measurements to be done.

Absolutely.

FWIW, I’m sure we’d see a flatter overall response, although with a depth of about 14.5cm, this speaker is not quite wide enough to properly mitigate the cancellation that will be caused by the reflection off the wall it’s mounted on, which will occur at about 600Hz (as a rule of thumb, an on-wall speaker should be at least 150% as wide/tall as it is deep).
 

Robbo99999

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Well, if I'm being positive I'd say that because this speaker has good directivity and the frequency response looks quite EQ'able, then this speaker could be ok if you're not particularly interested in bass (because it doesn't really have any) or loud playback levels due to the distortion. I'm guessing it could be used quite effectively EQ'd as a surround speaker in home theatre use, although the high distortion at loud volumes could be an issue as it seems to encroach above normal non-locateable sub crossover levels. $188 for one speaker, perhaps there's better options out there. Good directivity has got to be it's best feature.
 
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YSC

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Absolutely.

FWIW, I’m sure we’d see a flatter overall response, although with a depth of about 14.5cm, this speaker is not quite wide enough to properly mitigate the cancellation that will be caused by the reflection off the wall it’s mounted on, which will occur at about 600Hz (as a rule of thumb, an on-wall speaker should be at least 150% as wide/tall as it is deep).
I can’t be sure about the reflection but ain’t the reflection be only applicable to bass frequency and the mid to high frequency be more directional?
 

andreasmaaan

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I can’t be sure about the reflection but ain’t the reflection be only applicable to bass frequency and the mid to high frequency be more directional?

The primary cancellation will occur at approximately the frequency of wavelength 4x the distance from the front of the baffle to the wall (i.e. because at this frequency the reflection will be perfectly out of phase with the direct sound).

4 * 14.5cm = 58cm, which is the wavelength of frequency of approx. 600Hz.

A flat baffle will control directivity down to approximately 140/w (in Hz, where w = baffle width in metres).*

As you can see, as baffle width approaches 1.5 * baffle depth, directivity control approaches the frequency of the primary cancellation.

Following from this, in order to properly mitigate this cancellation, baffle width should be >1.5 * baffle depth.

In the case of this ML, baffle width and depth are approximately equal. You can see from the polar response plots that the baffle provides some degree of directivity control down to 600Hz, but not quite enough to prevent significant cancellation from occurring. If the baffle were 50% wider, or the box 33% shallower, directivity control would be (close to) sufficient to prevent significant cancellation.

*This is actually a special case of Keele's formula for rectangular CD horns, which states that: F = K/(a*w), where K = 25,306, a = coverage angle (degrees), and w = baffle width (metres).
 

Joachim Herbert

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I've had a pair of reQuest for 23 years.

They're my mains.

I had the pleasure to own a pair of these for five years or so. Plus a pair of cls2, which were a little bass shy but great speakers once liftet 15 inches above ground. Great speakers both. But the company has been sold since then.
 

uwotm8

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I presume you mean surrounds
I mean they are obviously designed to work a sub, not separately. For that purpose such no bass/LF slope can be actually a good thing.
Off-axis FR seem better, so... look at instruction pics posted before. That's just cinema pack for non-audiophile use.
 

Helicopter

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Thanks Amir! Now I know what to avoid if I decide to try an inexpensive AMT for some variety. What an utter failure.

The port is a clever idea, though they didn't actually implement it properly, and I don't see an advantage over a U-shaped or otherwise bent port.
 

RayDunzl

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I had the pleasure to own a pair of these for five years or so. Plus a pair of cls2, which were a little bass shy but great speakers once lifted 15 inches above ground. Great speakers both. But the company has been sold since then.

They don't disappoint me, even after a visit to the yearly Audio Show.

My Audio buddy has a pair of CLS. He has them a little off the floor, flanked with a pair of Rythmiks.

As for the current product line, they've priced themselves beyond what I'd be willing to pay for what would probably be mostly a sideways move.

If I blow them up, which I haven't been able to, yet, I'll get something different, I think.
 

Tks

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Even one keeps saying it at least looks good. I'm sorry but I can't tell what part exactly looks good here? Those front screws being accentuated like that (and so many) and that weird thing on the bottom.

Doesn't really look all that good to me at all really.
 
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