Daniel J SaitThe extensive range of Custom Installation products from Martin Logan come to the UK installer market, bringing high-performance solutions for distributed audio, video and home cinema projects, thanks to exclusive distributor, PMC Distribution UK.
Martin Logan, considered to be one of the ‘greats’ of loudspeaker design, and best known for its electrostatic panel designs, has an enviable reputation for its custom installation or ‘Architectural’ products, of which it has five ranges. They are popular with installers in its USA home market and around the world and now, thanks to the recent distribution deal with PMC Distribution UK, they are available to the UK installer base.
Masterpiece CI, as the name suggests is designed to be the pinnacle of discreet in-wall and in-ceiling loudspeaker design. The flagship model in this range, the Statement 40XW boasts 16 x Folded Motion XT Obsidian tweeters, 16 x 3.5in carbon fibre midrange drivers and eight 6.5in carbon fibre woofers, all housed in a 2.1m tall enclosure that fits between wall studs for a virtually invisible installation.
The Masterpiece series also features three smaller in-wall products and the Sistine 4XC in-ceiling speaker with its 8in carbon fibre woofer, twin 3.5in carbon midrange drivers and a Folded Motion tweeter, making it the ultimate in-ceiling design.
The price versus performance benchmark is set by the three strong ElectroMotion Series. The two in-ceiling models, ElectroMotion R and ElectroMotion IC boast an 8in and 6.5in aluminium woofer respectively, coupled to a FoldedMotion tweeter. They are complemented by the in-wall variant, the ElectroMotion IW, with the same 6.5in woofer and tweeter units.
Aluminium cone woofers form the heart of the Helos Series. These two in-ceiling speakers, the Helos 12 and Helos 22 both use a 6.5in woofer. The Helos 12 is a high-performance single driver for use in multiple unit configurations in medium and small rooms, such as an in-ceiling 5.1 or 7.1 system. The Helos 22 is a dual voice coil design and is coupled to twin 1in soft dome tweeters for use as a single-point stereo speaker –suitable for use in small rooms such as en-suite bathrooms.
Other options
For installations where budget constrains apply, the Installer Series provides Martin Logan quality at an affordable price. The nine strong product line includes two in-wall speakers, the IW5-LCR and IW6 and seven in-ceiling models. As with all Martin Logan products, innovations are key to the differentiation of the products, with models like the IC6-HT in-ceiling home theatre speaker with its 30-degree angled woofer and tweeter assembly to enable the sound to be angled towards the listening position. The range also features two ‘all-weather’ models for use in high humidity areas.
The loudspeaker models are all supported by the Martin Logan MDA Series, audio matrix distribution amplifiers. The MDA16 includes 16 channels for use in up to eight zones, eight analogue and four digital audio inputs. The smaller MDA8 powers up to four zones and eight channels.
Both products benefit from web-based set up, automation drivers for the most popular control solutions, dedicated subwoofer outputs and advanced Anthem Room Correction (ARC Genesis).
Announcing the launch, Ian Sutton, PMC Distribution UK’s director says, “We are delighted to bring the entire Martin Logan custom installation range to the UK for the first time. These products are real game changers, with no other brand able to offer such breadth and variety in its range of CI speakers. Whether the project is a whole house distributed background audio system or a fully-fledged dedicated high-end home cinema installation, there is a Martin Logan install speaker for the job.”