Heard them several times at the Newport Beach Audio Show.
The smaller 116s in a small room were nothing remarkable.
The 101s, however, are perhaps the best-sounding speaker I have ever heard by a long shot. They were set up in a double hotel room, driven by big mbl amps and the presence and soundstaging were nothing short of astonishing. As I changed places in the room the soundstage perspective of the performers simply changed and the soundstage did not collapse as it does virtually every other speaker I have heard. Detail and transparency was terrific.
I also heard the big Master References in a big room also driven by big mbl amps and using a digital front end. MBL was only allowing people to stay for one session, so I was sorely disappointed to hear MBL play some joker's Michael Jackson CD, but even then the sound had the most lifelike dynamics, transparency, and speed I have ever witnessed, even if the soundstage was a little diffuse. I am not a big fan of pinpoint imaging that one rarely hears live and IMO is a studio artifact anyway. Luckily some other music was played and I heard several that I then bought.
Summary: If the sound of the two big mbl systems was an A, every other system I have ever heard started at B-.
The smaller 116s in a small room were nothing remarkable.
The 101s, however, are perhaps the best-sounding speaker I have ever heard by a long shot. They were set up in a double hotel room, driven by big mbl amps and the presence and soundstaging were nothing short of astonishing. As I changed places in the room the soundstage perspective of the performers simply changed and the soundstage did not collapse as it does virtually every other speaker I have heard. Detail and transparency was terrific.
I also heard the big Master References in a big room also driven by big mbl amps and using a digital front end. MBL was only allowing people to stay for one session, so I was sorely disappointed to hear MBL play some joker's Michael Jackson CD, but even then the sound had the most lifelike dynamics, transparency, and speed I have ever witnessed, even if the soundstage was a little diffuse. I am not a big fan of pinpoint imaging that one rarely hears live and IMO is a studio artifact anyway. Luckily some other music was played and I heard several that I then bought.
Summary: If the sound of the two big mbl systems was an A, every other system I have ever heard started at B-.