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  #21  
Old 03-07-2014, 03:28 AM
bzr bzr is offline
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Originally Posted by Bodhisattva View Post
+ 1. Big congrats on the Coltrane Tenors Paul! I used to own Coltrane Alto's and can fully appreciate their purity, electrostatic-like speed and imaging accuracy. And the Coltrane Tenors are a level or two up on the Alto's. I'll be curious to hear your view also. What amps/front end are you pairing them with? Btw, Jorma cables match well with the Coltranes as they are internally wired with Jorma.

Cheers,
Hi David, I am interested very much with your comment highlighted above, what electrostats or panels have you owned? Can't say I've heard the coherency of the same but then I've only lived with a few panels & heard a couple of Martens in a home environment on a more repetitive experience, just trying to get a base from that opinion.
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  #22  
Old 03-07-2014, 05:51 AM
Bodhisattva
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Hi Bzr, I haven't owned any electrostats, but Secher Audio used to regularly have Martin Logan & Essence ESL's which I got to listen to. Of those, actually a relatively humble ML CLS IIz was the most coherent of panels I heard. I have also owned Infinity Renaissance 90's which used High Energy Emit & Emim drivers, so i've had good references. The Coltrane's make good use of the Accuton drivers & Leif spends a lot of time tuning them to get the sound he wants. That said, ultimately I fell in love with the Magico/Vitus combo though. Kind of best of both worlds.
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  #23  
Old 03-08-2014, 04:27 AM
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jazzhead jazzhead is offline
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Originally Posted by shaizada View Post
Thanks!

Robert Levi is my neighbour...I keep checking the latest greatest tunes at his place all the time I almost hear every single item he reviews before it get's published.

I use a bunch of Holger Stein stuff...Stein Harmonizers cubes (x4), E-Pads, Stein Signature Speaker Matches, and all versions of the Stein Feet.

My ESS Rack is the one right before the latest skeletal version. I just can't be without proper shelves
Ha :-) , should have guessed looking at your line up , keen to know your take on the Stein Speaker Match , have you bi-wired your birds ?
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  #24  
Old 03-08-2014, 02:47 PM
shaizada shaizada is offline
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Ha :-) , should have guessed looking at your line up , keen to know your take on the Stein Speaker Match , have you bi-wired your birds ?
The Bird 2 speakers don't have a biwire setup anymore. Leif figured out a much higher quality crossover design by simplifying and using fewer, better quality parts. So now it's only a single wire

All of the Stein stuff has to be experimented with in your system. When working right, you get a larger soundstage, more textural information and just a beautiful listening presentation. The speakers just seem to work better. The fundamental character of the system remains. Very weird, but effective products.
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Analog: Ear Discmaster, Redpoint Model D, VPI TNT 6 Hot Rod, Townshend Rock 7, EAR 324, VDH Grasshopper III GLA, Dynavector XV-1T, Dynavector XV-1S, Jorma Prime/Origo, Jan Allaerts, Einstein Turntables Choice, Digital: EAR Acute IV / Dac IV Preamp: EAR 912, Ray Samuels B-52 Amplifiers: EAR 890 Monoblocks, Concert Fidelity ZL-120V2SE, Almarro 318B Accessories: Stillpoints ESS Rack, Sistrum, KS Emotion Cables Speakers: Marten Coltrane Tenor
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  #25  
Old 03-08-2014, 05:23 PM
Bodhisattva
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Shaiz, I recall asking Leif about the Bird 2's when they were released. Regarding the crossover, Leif he told me "The crossover components is very similar to Coltrane series."

And on moving to single wire connections for the Bird 2, leif said "We have changed at the Heritage series because its more easy and cheaper for the customer to buy a good singe wire cable compared to a bi-wire cable. Many customers experimenting with different cable brands and types between the mid/high and low and that is not good. Still is a good bi-wiring cable in bi-wiring system a bit better so we kept it for the Coltrane series."

By the way, the Bird 2's are internally wired with Jorma No 2 cable.

Last edited by Bodhisattva; 03-08-2014 at 05:27 PM.
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  #26  
Old 03-08-2014, 07:36 PM
shaizada shaizada is offline
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Hey David,

Thanks for chiming in! We have a few versions of Marten Bird speakers in my local audio group. Bob Levi has Bird 1 with the Bi Wire setup, another friend has Bird 1.5 (Same drivers as the new Bird 2, but Bi Wired Crossover and also rewired internally with Jorma Prime. Basically has the older crossover and newer drivers). Out of all 3, the Bird 2 sounds slightly more natural and cohesive. Also, the Bird 2 is the only one with the Bass Control knob between our 3 Bird speakers. The EAR USA distributor agreed with me and explained the more simplified and updated crossover as the reason per Leif.

Good to know about the Bird 2 being wired with Jorma No.2 cables. The crossover, the Bird 2 speaker everything has been tweaked and designed for a complete package as per Leif's ears. I'm thinking that is probably why my Birds sound the way they do despite the Bird 1.5 using Jorma Prime. Probably the crossover components have been designed with the sound of the Jorma 2 cable. The speakers just worked amazingly well for me in my room. It's been fun!
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Analog: Ear Discmaster, Redpoint Model D, VPI TNT 6 Hot Rod, Townshend Rock 7, EAR 324, VDH Grasshopper III GLA, Dynavector XV-1T, Dynavector XV-1S, Jorma Prime/Origo, Jan Allaerts, Einstein Turntables Choice, Digital: EAR Acute IV / Dac IV Preamp: EAR 912, Ray Samuels B-52 Amplifiers: EAR 890 Monoblocks, Concert Fidelity ZL-120V2SE, Almarro 318B Accessories: Stillpoints ESS Rack, Sistrum, KS Emotion Cables Speakers: Marten Coltrane Tenor
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  #27  
Old 03-08-2014, 08:18 PM
Bodhisattva
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YW Shaizada, you've got some esteemed company in your Audio group. Bob L knows his stuff. Leif spends a lot of time tuning his speakers to get the sound he wants, and so to me there is no point in upgrading the internal wiring for example. Theoretically using the same wire internally as your speaker wire & ic's would improve coherency, but might upset the overall balance of the speaker which as you said, would have been tuned using Jorma No.2 in this case. Good show!
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  #28  
Old 03-09-2014, 04:00 AM
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jazzhead jazzhead is offline
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Originally Posted by shaizada View Post
Hey David,

Thanks for chiming in! We have a few versions of Marten Bird speakers in my local audio group. Bob Levi has Bird 1 with the Bi Wire setup, another friend has Bird 1.5 (Same drivers as the new Bird 2, but Bi Wired Crossover and also rewired internally with Jorma Prime. Basically has the older crossover and newer drivers). Out of all 3, the Bird 2 sounds slightly more natural and cohesive. Also, the Bird 2 is the only one with the Bass Control knob between our 3 Bird speakers. The EAR USA distributor agreed with me and explained the more simplified and updated crossover as the reason per Leif.

Good to know about the Bird 2 being wired with Jorma No.2 cables. The crossover, the Bird 2 speaker everything has been tweaked and designed for a complete package as per Leif's ears. I'm thinking that is probably why my Birds sound the way they do despite the Bird 1.5 using Jorma Prime. Probably the crossover components have been designed with the sound of the Jorma 2 cable. The speakers just worked amazingly well for me in my room. It's been fun!
Hard to believe that the Bird 1.5 is wired with Prime , when the higher Coltrane with No.1 . I consulted Leif about the change to Prime in my Coltrane2 from No.1 and he mentioned it to be be a worthwhile upgrade . As it is factory installed , they must be tweaking the x-over if need be to optimise . It is a 10k move , so am sure there will be no half measures .

Last edited by jazzhead; 03-09-2014 at 04:07 AM.
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  #29  
Old 03-09-2014, 04:45 AM
shaizada shaizada is offline
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Originally Posted by jazzhead View Post
Hard to believe that the Bird 1.5 is wired with Prime , when the higher Coltrane with No.1 . I consulted Leif about the change to Prime in my Coltrane2 from No.1 and he mentioned it to be be a worthwhile upgrade . As it is factory installed , they must be tweaking the x-over if need be to optimise . It is a 10k move , so am sure there will be no half measures .
Bird 1.5 was a developmental model while designing the Bird 2. The Jorma Prime internal wire was a custom upgrade and is definitely not standard.

The 10k move is most likely pure wiring cost. The crossover would definitely need to be tweaked to compensate for any frequency anomalies so probably it is best to confirm with Leif on that

Jorma No.1 was basically the same as Jorma No.2 but with Bybees in the signal path. With Jorma No.1 discontinued, we now have the Jorma Unity which takes its place.
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Analog: Ear Discmaster, Redpoint Model D, VPI TNT 6 Hot Rod, Townshend Rock 7, EAR 324, VDH Grasshopper III GLA, Dynavector XV-1T, Dynavector XV-1S, Jorma Prime/Origo, Jan Allaerts, Einstein Turntables Choice, Digital: EAR Acute IV / Dac IV Preamp: EAR 912, Ray Samuels B-52 Amplifiers: EAR 890 Monoblocks, Concert Fidelity ZL-120V2SE, Almarro 318B Accessories: Stillpoints ESS Rack, Sistrum, KS Emotion Cables Speakers: Marten Coltrane Tenor
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  #30  
Old 03-11-2014, 01:54 PM
tom_hankins tom_hankins is offline
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Originally Posted by shaizada View Post
Hey Tom!

Are you referring to Chuck Bruce, Casper or Art Womack?
The only other people I am aware of with that system.

The Steinmusic cartridge is excellent and one I like a lot I hear it all the time on the EAR Discmaster turntable at Bob Levi's place.

It has a full, warm and inviting sound! Totally musical on those Helius Omega arms.



What are your thoughts on the sounds of the system? I know you love BAT gear which I have great respect for...so really hoping to hear your opinion.
It would be Chuck. . Chucks system is great. I think his Coltranes are a step above my Kipods. Equal but different to the YG Anats. I prefer the BAT gear I have to his EAR gear. But I have no doubt he likes his EAR gear better. We are both lovers of the BENZ cartridges in one form or another. He has the Ruby3 rebuilt with S class, and the steinmusic. I have the LPS and Gullwing.
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