When The Past Tempts You and Seattle Craigslist

[Mister Pig]

One of the very first electrostatic speakers I ever heard were Martin Logan CLS. When nostalgia hits hard I think it would be so cool to own them. Until they really become available.

Then this happens

Martin logan speakers ( pair ) - electronics - by owner - sale (craigslist.org)

And to make matters worse there is this

Martin Logan reQUEST speakers - electronics - by owner - sale (craigslist.org)

Now the idea of owning it is cool, but the reality of owning a pair of electrostatic speakers that are 40 years old just does not sound like a good idea.

 

[swechsler]

Well, the Requests are only 30 years old (December 1993). But I believe you are correct and caution is warranted. I personally have a pair of SL3s that date to 1999, and haven't had any issues, but supposedly that was made after they approved their panel manufacturing. And replacement panels are not cheap; in general, the cost to replace the panels is higher than the value of the entire speaker.

 

[Mister Pig]

Well, the Requests are only 30 years old (December 1993). But I believe you are correct and caution is warranted. I personally have a pair of SL3s that date to 1999, and haven't had any issues, but supposedly that was made after they approved their panel manufacturing. And replacement panels are not cheap; in general, the cost to replace the panels is higher than the value of the entire speaker.

CLS are 40 years old.

 

[2FarGone]

I was quite enamoured with ML loudspeakers until the day came when I no longer lived in a place that could accommodate my CLS IIZs and I had to sell them. It was then that I found out Sanders had sold the company, and the new owners had doubled the price of replacement panels overnight. I’d call ML to find out the cost of replacement panels before proceeding.

 

[swechsler]

CLS are 40 years old.

Yeah, probably. The serial number lookup chart doesn't go back that far, at least for the electronics serial numbers, and the seller didn't show the serial numbers on the panels.