Note that this is a discontinued product. You may want to visit the brand's page here to browse their newer products.
What reviewers think
Bloggers and YouTubers have tried this product—so we've summarized their strongest opinions below. Links to full reviews follow.
Product Strengths
- Transparent and detailed sound reproduction allows listeners to hear new aspects of familiar music
- Excellent bass performance, with powerful, textured, and accurate bass response down to low frequencies (22Hz)
- Good synergy with various amplifiers due to the hybrid design and built-in amplification for the woofers
- Anthem Room Correction (ARC) system helps adapt the speakers to different room acoustics and listening positions
- Sleek design and aesthetic appeal with transparent electrostatic panels and customizable finish options
Product Considerations
- The 'sweet spot' for optimal imaging is narrow, and the soundstage collapses when the listener is outside this area
- Large size (almost 6 feet tall) presents logistical challenges related to moving and setting up the speakers
- Highly transparent nature can reveal flaws in the rest of the audio system
- Signal-sensing power supply can cause a slight delay when music starts playing
- Some reviewers found the treble to be not as airy or spacious as some other speakers
Comparisons (according to reviewers)
- Vs Martin Logan ESL 11A—ESL 15A improves on bass integration with the electrostatic panel and has a more realistic sound
Takeaway: The Renaissance ESL 15A is a high-performing speaker with incredible bass that integrates seamlessly with the electrostatic panel, and the ARC room correction ensures an optimized listening experience. The speaker reveals the beauty in music and encourages more attentive listening.
All
Renaissance ESL 15A
reviews
Manufacturer details
- Frequency Response: 22–21,000 Hz ±3dB
- Recommended Amplifier Power: 20—700 watts per channel
- Horizontal Dispersion: 30°
- Vertical Dispersion: 46" (116.9cm) line source
- Sensitivity: 92 dB/2.83 volts/meter
- Impedance: 4 Ohms, 0.5 at 20kHz
- Crossover Frequency: 300Hz
- High Frequency Transducer: XStat™ CLS™ electrostatic transducer
- Panel Dimensions: 46" x 15" (117 x 38cm)
- Radiating Area: 690 in² (4,446 cm²)
- Low Frequency Transducer: Two 12" (30.5 cm) PoweredForce Forward™ woofers
- Amplifier: 2 x 500 watts/channel (4 ohms), 2 x 1,000 watts peak
- Weight: 140 lbs. (63.5 kg)
- Dimensions: 69.8" x 15.75" x 28.9" (177.3cm x 40cm x 63.3cm)
Brand highlights
Taking a step back to look at reviewers' thoughts of the brand's entire lineup—not just this product—what stands out most is the following:
- MartinLogan's defining CLS (Curvilinear Line Source) electrostatic panel technology provides exceptionally wide horizontal high-frequency dispersion, exceeding that of traditional flat panels and offering a more immersive soundstage.
- The brand uniquely integrates powered dynamic woofers with its electrostatic panels, employing custom DSP engines and advanced crossover designs to achieve seamless blending and extended, well-defined bass response.
- MartinLogan's commitment to full-range sound reproduction, even in smaller models, results in a "large" sound that defies the speaker's physical size, projecting height and scale often unmatched by comparably sized speakers.
- They provide Anthem Room Correction (ARC) as an option, allowing users to tailor the bass response to their specific listening environment and achieve optimal integration between the speakers and the room's acoustics.
Select products
Motion Series
- Positioning: The entry-level lineup, offering a balance of performance and affordability.
- Description: Uses the Gen2 Folded Motion Tweeter, which provides clear and detailed sound. Compared to the Motion XT Series, it uses Woven Fiberglass midrange drivers, making it more budget-friendly while still delivering quality sound for small to medium-sized rooms.
Motion XT Series
- Positioning: A step up from the Motion Series, offering enhanced performance and features.
- Description: Stands out with its high-performance Nomex-Reinforced Kevlar midrange drivers and Gen2 Folded Motion XT Tweeter, delivering more detail and power than the standard Motion Series.
ElectroMotion Series
- Positioning: Positioned as a mid-range option, combining advanced technologies for a superior audio experience.
- Description: Features advanced thin film transducer technologies, including electrostatic and Folded Motion designs, offering greater accuracy and style compared to the Motion XT Series.
Masterpiece Series
- Positioning: The flagship lineup, representing the pinnacle of MartinLogan's electrostatic loudspeaker design.
- Description: Renowned for its groundbreaking electrostatic loudspeakers, which provide the most immersive and detailed sound experience in the lineup. It surpasses the ElectroMotion Series with its larger soundstage and advanced engineering.
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Used
Martin Logan
What if you spend more?
The SCM50 ASL (active) and SCM50 SL (passive) are designed to perform at their best in the recording studio or at home with the finest quality hi-fi equipment. The monitors' ability to reproduce music and speech with phenomenal accuracy, transparency and dynamics lies mainly in the SM75-150S soft dome midrange driver. However, recent modifications that include the new ATC SH25-76S tweeter and enhanced port profile have brought about further improvements to all performance parameters.
Each drive unit in the active model has its own dedicated and individually matched MOS-FET amplifier, while the 234mm/9″ bass driver incorporates ATC's unique Super Linear Magnet technology. Our active crossover network consists of a wide band-width, electronically balanced input stage with high common mode rejection and very low distortion. Like the HF, mid and bass drivers, all electronics are designed and manufactured in-house to create a no-compromise active system.
In passive form, the SCM50 SL provides broad and symmetrical dispersion, excellent amplitude and phase characteristics throughout the frequency range. Speakers are supplied with stands and fabric wrapped grills.
Available Finishes
Standard Veneers – Cherry, Walnut, Oak & Black Ash.
Standard Paints – Satin Black, Satin White
Premium Veneers (up-charge applies) – Rosewood, European Crown Cut Walnut, Pippy Oak, Burr Magnolia, Burr Poplar.
High Gloss (up-charge applies) – Clear High Glossed Veneer, Piano Black, Piano White
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Our summary
Product Strengths
- ATC designs and builds every drive unit in-house, including voice coils, crossovers, and active amplification, allowing for complete control over every loudspeaker design decision
- In the active version, a more clearly defined soundstage has clearer, more well-defined individual elements, where everything pops out more from the background
- The active version has more energy, drive, and a more vivid overall presentation, resulting in a more tactile, energetic, and higher resolution sound
- The SCM50's woofer has an enviable ability to resolve textures and timbral colors, capably rendering the skins of bass drums, the flutter of tom-toms, or the dark voicing of orchestral bass viols as bows are dragged across their strings
- The SCM50 has an almost eerie immediacy that seems to glean the intent of the musician before their bow touches the string or a note escapes their lips, making piano reproduction breathtaking
- Connectivity is limited to a single XLR input, which may require adapters for single-ended sources
Product Considerations
- The active version is heavier than the passive version
- The owner must manually turn each speaker on and off, as there is no trigger or auto startup circuit
- The active version may pose challenges for owners of subwoofers needing high-level wiring connections, although workarounds exist
- Careful attention must be paid to positioning a pair of SCM50s, as the full-bandwidth—ported design means that placing them too close to a boundary wall will result in bass bloom
Comparisons (according to reviewers)
- SCM50 wins hands down over PureAudioProject Duet 15s for resolution, clarity, and dynamic shading
- The active version excels over the passive in solidity of soundstage, neutrality, and ultimate detail retrieval
Takeaway: The ATC SCM50 offers exceptional sound quality, whether in its active or passive configuration, thanks to ATC's engineering and in-house design. The ATC SCM50 is a choice that will bring musical joy for years to come.
Video review
Our take on the brand
Product Strengths
- Improved phase or timing enhances stereo imaging and creates a clearer overall picture
- The active version removes a 'filter' between the listener and the original source, making music more intense, energetic—and vivid—resulting in higher resolution audio
- Vocals are presented bigger, taller, grander in scale, with more detail and insight—most impressively—how natural they sound
- Dynamics and micro-detail are impressive, expressed in ambient noises, breaths of singers—and fingernails of guitarists
- ATC monitors are designed to provide the best from both areas: detailed and accurate with limited dynamic range, and professional monitors with great dynamic range and fidelity
Product Considerations
- ATC speakers like to be played loudly, like the original event, and live music isn't created at volume levels for going to sleep; if you like to be lulled by your audio system, look elsewhere
- The speakers get quite a bit heavier with the amplifier packs in them
- You have to manually turn each speaker on and off, as there is no trigger system designed into them
- System organisation and cabling has to be considered because it might be quite different to how you have things wired now in a passive system, and this could mean extra cost on top
- If you don't have an amplifier to connect your high level wiring to, you would need to either use a preamplifier with an output you can use, or maybe use a splitter on the balanced cable
Comparisons (according to reviewers)
- Vs ATC SCM50 PSL (Passive): The active SCM50 ASL is more vivid overall, while the passive is more 'cuddly'
- Vs ATC SCM20: The 50s are more like the same person—only bigger
Takeaway: The SCM50 ASL offers a technically better and more vivid listening experience due to its active design, bringing listeners closer to the original sound. If one wants a speaker for serious listening and appreciate high-resolution audio, this could be a great choice.
Video review
Our take on the brand
Product Strengths
- Houses everything needed to play digital music
- Equipped with DSP and room correction for a seamless room-filling fit
- Reproduces music with superb control and an expansive sound image
- Offers finely textured and richly saturated sound
Product Considerations
- Speakers that don't look like every other speaker can be polarizing
Takeaway: The Pearl Pelegrina is a wireless active loudspeaker that houses everything needed to play digital music, offering a seamless room-filling fit with superb control and finely textured sound. It could be worth buying for those seeking an all-in-one speaker solution with a unique design.
Video review
Our take on the brand
Standard finish is black dyed okoume with your choice of black or silver machined aluminum trim. Blemish-free matched natural okoume incurs a bit of a premium, as do the blue, blue-teal and red dyed okoume. Our gloss finishes represent show-level hotrod quality and require about two months of labor and curing—there is no way to speed this process up or make it less costly with out compromising quality.
Since it's been well over a decade since the first deliveries of Definition 4, let's cover what' familiar: The classic Definition form factor. The ongoing Definition proposition is to deliver the maximum musical performance possible in about 1 square foot of floor space, per speaker. Hence, Definition Six retain the just under 13" x 13" [33 cm] square footprint of prior Definitions, but it's a little taller—54" [137 cm] without feet, instead of the older speaker's 49" [125 cm] height. Definition Six still features the dual Zu full-range drivers separated by a supertweeter.
And that's pretty much where the similarities end. We've made many improvements to our full-range driver since Definition Four debuted. Version Six uses full-range drivers derived from the new Soul 6 driver and we've selected a new supertweeter that's more extended and consistent than the Radian 850 that found first use at Zu in Definition Four. The Eminence LAB-12 bass driver returns to duty in the powered subwoofer section, but now as a front-facing element instead of the downfire arrangement in Definition Four. The subwoofer amplifier is updated and is mounted to the cabinet via a suspension to further reduce noise.
Completely new are the cabinet construction and first application of the Griewe driver-to-room acoustic impedance adaptive scheme in a Definition loudspeaker. Cabinet construction will borrow from the engineering investment in Soul Six, using a stiff, relatively lightweight internal superstructure to manage energy dissipation and thwart cabinet talk with less bulk than in Definitions past. Definition Six is significantly lighter than Definition Four due to the all-okoume cabinet.
All prior Definitions have been sealed box speakers, with powered subwoofer sections. The subwoofer reappears, of course, but for the first time, a version of the Griewe scheme used in every other Zu floor-standing speaker will be applied to each of the two full-range drivers in Definition Six. We've engineered an innovative new way to implement Griewe so that the acoustic impedance adaptive interface is via the rear of the speaker, rather than floor-facing. And we've incorporated an internal "Griewe Gap" adjustment. Incorporating Griewe in Definition Six means that the Zu full-range drivers will have useful response down to 35 Hz, so the subwoofer can more precisely be assigned its true, specialty task.
Our summary
Product Strengths
- Very dynamic presentation, with quick stop and start speeds that leave little off the table
- Natural and even-handed tones from the wide array of drivers
- Cohesive structure with plenty of low-end support
- High efficiency (101 dB), allowing them to be driven by tubes
Product Considerations
- Build times are around 8 weeks
Takeaway: The Zu Audio Definition 6 offers a very dynamic and realistic listening experience with natural tones. They are also high efficiency, making them a great option for use with tubes.
Video review
Our take on the brand
What competes at this price?
Our Summary
Product Strengths
- The Focus 50 offers a unique proposition by bridging the gap between audiophiles and Sonos customers, offering a solution for both
- A pleasing mixture of being quiet, easy going and relaxed, but also with very good timing, clarity and information
- The Dynaudio app is simple and easy to use; it lets users adjust the frequency balance of the speakers sound between dark, neutral and bright
- The Focus 50 delivers a lot of bass output with fantastic extension, tightness, control, grace, and smoothness if placed correctly in the room
- The sealed cabinet design likely makes the Focus 50 more flexible for placement
Product Considerations
- The most important connectivity option missing is HDMI, which is a big omission
- Sometimes, the overall sonic resolution could be higher
- The treble can be a little too smooth at times
- Although wireless connection is possible, the Focus 50s sound noticeably better if the two speakers are connected together with a cable
Comparisons (according to reviewers)
- Compared to the Evoke 50 paired with $5,500 worth of gear, the Focus 50's performance could not be matched
Takeaway: The Focus 50 provides excellent sound quality combined with flexibility and ease of use, making it a great choice for those with limited space but who still desire stellar sound. It fits different needs and offers high end sound that can be very impressive.
Video review
Our take on the brand
Our Summary
Product Strengths
- The DSP5200 Special Edition introduces a newly designed, short-horn-loaded beryllium dome tweeter that is lightning fast and significantly extends the frequency range
- The speakers produce a ton of rich bass with resolution and detail
- Setup is startlingly simple using Meridian's SpeakerLink
- The striking design has a very modern aesthetic
- The beryllium tweeter does a magnificent job of oozing detail, space, and air into the room
Product Considerations
- Pricey
- Limited connection possibilities
- Maximum 96kHz
- Going beyond stereo requires suite of Meridian electronics
Takeaway: The Meridian DSP5200SE loudspeakers sound terrific and have simple setup. They will be magnificent additions to any home lucky enough to have them.
Video review
Our take on the brand
Our Summary
Product Strengths
- Elegant design with slim aluminum housings
- High-quality transducer technology
- Remarkable flexibility in feed options, including wireless
- Precise and controlled reproduction with highest impulse fidelity due to closed construction and DSP linearisation
- Room calibration ensures detailed, dynamically balanced, and natural sound even with imperfect room acoustics
Takeaway: The Piega Premium Wireless Series Gen2 offers a simple way to create a modern, premium hifi system. It provides high sound quality without sacrificing much space, offering all the functions expected from a modern hifi setup.
Video review
Our take on the brand
Our Summary
Product Strengths
- Combining a high-efficiency unfiltered 5' widebander with adjustable active bass is a golden ticket for flea-watt amps
- Ripol subs are faster and better tuned than any other available subs
- The Hagen in the Alberich2 system has been modified to strengthen the 100-300Hz response
- The woofer has been upgraded to a paper-cone neodymium woofer mounted to a 6mm steel plate for optimal silence
- Offers adjustable frequency, level, and phase
Product Considerations
- A client complaint about the cost of the subs when combined with the Hagen2 speakers
- The design and concept are unconventional and not for the mainstream
Takeaway: The Alberich2 is an exciting product due to its bandwidth, LF control, and cosmetic footprint advantages over competitors. It offers physical separation of bass bin from the main driver, plus bass volume control for tonal balance
Video review
Our take on the brand
Our Summary
Product Strengths
- Wide soundstage with evident front-to-back depth
- Clear and detailed midrange response with good separation of instruments such as guitars and pianos
- Balanced low-end response allowing for clearer definitions in bass notes
- Precise time alignment contributes to accuracy, focus, and a uniform dispersion pattern
- Detailed and airy top-end combined with a reach-out-and-touch-it three-dimensional width and imaging in the midrange
Product Considerations
- Not an inexpensive monitor
- At 41kg, it is also very heavy
- At the large end of the nearfield monitoring spectrum—it's a midfield, really
- Lacks DSP (Digital Signal Processing) found in many modern monitors, relying on traditional electro-acoustic design
Comparisons (according to reviewers)
- Vs ATC SCM25A: Maintains a more balanced low-end response, while ATC SCM25A exhibited a slight bump in the lower mids
Takeaway: The Amphion One25A is an accurate and revealing mix tool with a perfect tonal balance, making it a good investment for professional use. Its low-end provides an utterly secure foundation for everything above, and it retains its dimension and punch at normal, moderate listening levels.
Video review
Our take on the brand
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