That's certainly an interesting one, and a name I'm not familiar with. They'd obviously work well with 70w of OTL too, eh?
Magnepan MG 3.x
Magnepan MG 20.1 or 20.7
Review after review, and very big cult following, over decades, say so!
Back in my early audiophile days (when I used to pop out to my local dealer wearing my school uniform) I heard the Martin Logan CLS IIz (I think) and I was blown away at the time. There wasn't much bass, but there was massive scale nonetheless and the most open sound I'd ever heard. 25 years later, I have no idea whether they were really that good, but I've always fancied them. I nearly picked up a used pair for buttons a year ago until I discovered the panels were completely fubared and would require replacement too costly for me to amuse my nostalgia. Since I've never heard a Martin Logan (or any other panel) that I REALLY liked since, I was starting to think maybe I misremembered how good it was.
Anyway, the whole point of this is that I'd love to hear that CLX ART!
That's certainly an interesting one, and a name I'm not familiar with. They'd obviously work well with 70w of OTL too, eh?
I found the bass in CLS a problem. I owned Martin Logan Summits and liked them better. I want to hear the CLX ART with Balanced Force Subs. The other planars I like are Apogees and Analysis Audio.
I run a BalancedForce 210 sub supplementing Magneplanar 3.7i speakers which together provide excellent full range performance.
One price paid though is that larger SS amps tend to sound bright on the speaker (however that is a common problem with ESLs and solid state).
Back in my early audiophile days (when I used to pop out to my local dealer wearing my school uniform) I heard the Martin Logan CLS IIz (I think) and I was blown away at the time. There wasn't much bass, but there was massive scale nonetheless and the most open sound I'd ever heard. 25 years later, I have no idea whether they were really that good, but I've always fancied them. I nearly picked up a used pair for buttons a year ago until I discovered the panels were completely fubared and would require replacement too costly for me to amuse my nostalgia. Since I've never heard a Martin Logan (or any other panel) that I REALLY liked since, I was starting to think maybe I misremembered how good it was.
Anyway, the whole point of this is that I'd love to hear that CLX ART!
IMO the question is too vague and as such facilitated responses running the gamut. Giant at new price vs to giant killer used price? New $ to new $? With what level electronics? Source, amps, cables at a budget commensurate of the giant killers? Or?
My experience tells me 2 key points:
1) Most speakers that we refer to as "giants" which are large, ultra revealing ultra high quality speakers require matching quality source(s), amps and cables in a large, well-treated room to leverage their full potential. Because many (maybe most?) setups in hi-fi shops and shows are not ideal (gear + room + power), I would wager you are hearing a lower % of what the giants are capable of vs a moderate sized speakers.
Net - Highly revealing, physically imposing speakers require very high quality associated electronics (usually high $), large rooms and careful setup to yield ultimate sonic benefits.
2) Speaker quality in general has improved significantly in the past ~decade due to computer aide xover and cabinet design SW, the advent of exotic stiffer lighter materials, improvements in mfr. techniques and availability of lower cost overseas manufacturing. As such, $ for $ speakers in general provide a higher sonic value vs the previous millennium. As such, the gap between giants and non-giants has closed somewhat (wherever that arbitrary line may be). However, specific to lower frequencies I believe it's true that there is no replacement for displacement (as the saying goes). One may argue that moderate sized speakers can deliver as much low bass in a moderately sized room vs a giant speaker in a large room, but physics simply won't allow it (room modes, more excursion vs benefits of displacement, etc.).
Net - While the gap has closed wrt giants vs giant killers, audio cannot escape the laws of physics and limits placed on smaller cabinets/drivers wrt low frequency to deliver true full range audio reproduction.