B&W Matrix vs Martin Logan Home Theater


Thanks for reading, and hopefully assiting. I have a pair of Matrix 802's, paired with two HTM's. I am not a big fan of having two center channels, I just have not left them yet. I have listened to the Martin Logan Theater and LOVE it! If I pair this center with the Ari i's, or Quests, my question comes into play. Is there any issues I should be aware of when using electrostats for Home Theater? I am using PSE Studio V (solid state) monoblocks amplifiers for each channel so power, good, clean, and plentiful, should not be a problem. Your thoughts/suggestions. Thanks in advance, Dan
nbt
I worked for a HiFi store that sold both B & W and Martin Logan. I love the Martin Logan system over the B & W. I did two lager installs with the Martins and they both blew me away. There is two issues with the Logans, they are NOT shielded, and they take sometime to get the placement correct.
I have an ML home theater set-up. Monoliths (bi-amped) and Logos center. The theater center is much better than the logos. The ML home theater is probably the most envelloping and lifelike of any home theater I've heard. There are a few things to be aware of: 1. ML (and most electrostatics) are not as dynamic. If you typically watch action movies with a lot of explosions, this probably is not the best set-up for you. 2. Care has to be taken due to the bi-polar nature of the speaker. I have damped the rear wall with curtains for movies--the curtains are open for music. This gives a better soundstage across the front three channels for movies. If I did this for music it would create a "hole" in the center of the soundstage and the soundstage would be collapsed; but this is not the case with 5.1 soundtracks. 3. I agree with previous comment: you will need a sub-woofer. One that is fast and can keep up with the MLs. I am using a genesis sub-woofer. It works well, but there are some newer and perhaps better designs on the market for complementing the MLs
My HT setup includes Logos in center, reQuest for main, and Arius for surround. They sound awesome in both stereo and movie listening.Couple things you need to be aware are an addition sub for shaking and it's kind of physically big if you have a small tivi.
I've heard a ML system with the Prodigys up front and as rears and the new theater as surround being driven by a 70watt Rotel receiver. You don't need a lot of power