AudioGeek Posted June 13, 2020 Share Posted June 13, 2020 Its a mini Martin Logan! If it surpasses previous speakers from Mr Lenehan, who cares what it looks like. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Volunteer sir sanders zingmore Posted June 13, 2020 Volunteer Share Posted June 13, 2020 39 minutes ago, AudioGeek said: Its a mini Martin Logan! If it surpasses previous speakers from Mr Lenehan, who cares what it looks like. I always wondered what ML stood for Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted June 13, 2020 Share Posted June 13, 2020 Looks to me are irrelevant (just ask my mirror) - I buy speakers for the sound they produce. I am also lucky my wife’s WAF is extremely accomodating. I can imagine Mike’s latest creation in a nice finish and would happily have them in my system if they sound good - history tells me they will. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ray4410 Posted June 14, 2020 Share Posted June 14, 2020 can the foam be black as that would highlight the copper used in the drivers,the black foam and a nice timber veneer and I reckon they would look pretty darn good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RankStranger Posted June 14, 2020 Share Posted June 14, 2020 Interesting range of reactions. My two cents is that a no-compromise design is a no-compromise design. It looks like a prototype and when it’s finished, I figure it will look unconventional but not outrageous compared to some of the speakers I’ve seen on here that people seem to love but I find hideous (not naming any names). I do like to see unconventional speaker designs but my beloved Amphions are a pretty minimalist rectangular boxes i hadn’t seen foam on a speaker before and that was surprising but the finished ones in the photos linked looked fine. I’d worry about the durability of the bit sticking up but, again, they’re not the only high-end design with some delicate element. The copper accents look damn cool and I’m looking forward to seeing them on a finished design. I’ve only heard Mike’s speakers once at a show and to say I was impressed would be an understatement but with the likely cost, I won’t be the market for this design. Just thought I’d share my initial reaction 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davewantsmoore Posted June 14, 2020 Share Posted June 14, 2020 On 14/03/2020 at 3:57 PM, Lenehan Audio said: I will be using the new Seas W19NX-001 Graphene Magnesium woofer Yeah, but $$$$$ HDS nomex so good... I hope they never go. I have cartons of 832873 to keep me going. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
parrasaw Posted June 15, 2020 Share Posted June 15, 2020 Yes, a "different" look for sure, but the outer appearance/shell I'm sure could be modified to look more "conventional" for those who require such (if the speaker goes into wider production). This is a speaker which has been designed with premium sound as it's first, and most important, objective (which would seem to be stating the obvious, if it weren't for reports that marketing gurus in some larger companies overseas, in the past, have apparently asked for appearance changes aimed at supposedly improving marketability, which would have compromised the sound signature had the speaker designers not stuck to their guns). With premium sound as the absolute, key objective, this is a speaker which I am very keen to hear once it gets to the auditioning stage (along with the ML5s and ML2s) once the borders open up and interstate travel is happening again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
parrasaw Posted June 15, 2020 Share Posted June 15, 2020 This speaker design (with the underlying design philosophy and objectives), with the components which have been used, has the potential to be a real cracker, and I'm really looking forward to hearing it. Quick double-check....... yep OK......left out "it's", "its", and any variations of such, so safe this time. Nearly let one slip in at one point (you can easily work out where). LOL Cheers, Paul. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
awayward Posted June 15, 2020 Share Posted June 15, 2020 1 hour ago, parrasaw said: Yes, a "different" look for sure, but the outer appearance/shell I'm sure could be modified to look more "conventional" for those who require such (if the speaker goes into wider production). This is a speaker which has been designed with premium sound as it's first, and most important, objective (which would seem to be stating the obvious, if it weren't for reports that marketing gurus in some larger companies overseas, in the past, have apparently asked for appearance changes aimed at supposedly improving marketability, which would have compromised the sound signature had the speaker designers not stuck to their guns). With premium sound as the absolute, key objective, this is a speaker which I am very keen to hear once it gets to the auditioning stage (along with the ML5s and ML2s) once the borders open up and interstate travel is happening again. Hi Paul, I live in the Port Macquarie area and own ML2 Ltds, if you are ever in the area you are welcome to drop in for a listen, bloody good speakers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
parrasaw Posted June 15, 2020 Share Posted June 15, 2020 Thank you awayward - that's a really nice offer. That is a terrific system which you have, and one day I'd love to have the chance to have a listen. I would like to make a similar offer back to you, for the future. My system, which has worked well for 30 odd years, is showing signs of its age (like the owner!!), so just before the C-19 landed on our shores, I was making plans for a couple of trips out of town, to listen to a few different systems to decide what will become our last system. When C-19 hit, my plan increasingly became " look to buy as much Australian made as possible", which would have been part of the planned trips before, but is now a real focus. With flying being somewhat less "inviting" and also restricted at this stage, I will still undertake a drive up north when the border re-opens, because I can then listen to, not only some ML2s (which I have heard are brilliant), but also the ML5s (which I think would really suit my living/listening room) and also hopefully Mike's interesting new prototype. Plus some Gieseler DACs etc etc. Enough of that - back to the thread. Putting aside the appearance for the moment, the new speakers, with their design intent and philosophy, and Mike's choice of components, are something I am keen to hear. Really keen. I gather from other comments on this thread, that I am not Robinson Caruso in that respect. Thanks again for your offer, Paul. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bhobba Posted June 17, 2020 Share Posted June 17, 2020 On 12/06/2020 at 9:32 PM, Lenehan Audio said: My experiences with Bill initial Magnesium 2way speaker showed me that at last I had found a Midbass driver that was significantly superior to the Peerless Nomex devices . People may be wondering, since this is a well known high quality driver, why Mike didn't try it before. The issue is taming the breakup in the crossover and it not having audible effects. Seas recommends a devilishly clever fairly simple crossover in their DIY designs eg: https://www.madisoundspeakerstore.com/mtm-speaker-kits/new-thor-kit-pair/ It's a crossover and trap to tame the resonance all in one. But other high quality speaker designers like George Short claimed he could always, doesn't matter how hard he tried, hear the trap - and traps tend to 'drift' after a while, making the situation worse. It took George years to design a crossover he was happy with, and the same with Mike when building my speakers. Massive amount of R&D. But Mike has done it now so its time to make use of his research. Thanks Bill 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bhobba Posted June 17, 2020 Share Posted June 17, 2020 Hi Again all. Just chatting to Mike to see how close they are to hearing. Not quite yet. But he explained the difficulty with the crossover was ensuring the breakup was tamed and it remained phase coherent through the crossover. Traps muck about with the phase. You often hear how phase coherent speakers sound better - Mike has checked that many years ago and the critical thing is phase coherence throughout the crossover - outside the crossover its not so important. Thanks Bill Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bhobba Posted July 7, 2020 Share Posted July 7, 2020 Hi All Just chatting to Mike again about the state of the new speakers. It's all progressing well. But he found something interesting. He is optimising the shape of the foam baffle. But found with changing the shape, the crossover needed to be tweaked. So it's now a process of iterating the foam shape and crossover design, hence it will take a bit longer than first thought. Thanks Bill Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
awayward Posted July 7, 2020 Share Posted July 7, 2020 12 minutes ago, bhobba said: Hi All Just chatting to Mike again about the state of the new speakers. It's all progressing well. But he found something interesting. He is optimising the shape of the foam baffle. But found with changing the shape, the crossover needed to be tweaked. So it's now a process of iterating the foam shape and crossover design, hence it will take a bit longer than first thought. Thanks Bill Thanks for the update Bill. It will take as long as it takes for Mike to be happy with his design and the sound, and then we will all be happy 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John0001 Posted July 7, 2020 Share Posted July 7, 2020 I think they could look pretty cool, but I like radical "sound first" design when its done really well with AAA fit/finish. Like the Krix Esoterix which look pretty cool/odd: Look forward to seeing how the design progresses.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lenehan Audio Posted July 8, 2020 Author Share Posted July 8, 2020 Hi Guys sorry for the lack of interaction on SNA ! OK the new speaker is going well , I'm only getting around 15 hours per week on the new Magnesiums at the moment because we are flat out with FoilFlex cable orders. This covid thing has bumped up our orders on FoilFlex and Curious USB cables quite significantly ! who would have thought hey ? ! Ok the Xover changes quite significantly in respect of any change at all in the shape of the front foam baffle and even the enclosure energy storage tuning ( by this I mean absolute minimising of energy storage . ) I'm determined to make this enclosure have less impact on the sound than any other speaker on the market today . I also want this speaker to be THE BEST available regardless of cost . Yeah I know Thats a BIG statement mate !!! Well this is my aim and if the sound is better than Bills initial Magnesium two ways (which is the best speaker so far I have ever heard) So I guess we should have a GTG so you guys can get a handle on whether this project is worth following ? The Covid thing will limit us a bit I guess but I'm sure if we were carefull we could handle say 4/5 people . Then perhaps the participants could report back on what was heard . Maybe within 2 to 4 weeks time Saturday or Sunday is fine with me . Let me know who may be interested ? Cheers Lads Mike Lenehan 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cammyboy0_0 Posted July 8, 2020 Share Posted July 8, 2020 13 minutes ago, Lenehan Audio said: Hi Guys sorry for the lack of interaction on SNA ! OK the new speaker is going well , I'm only getting around 15 hours per week on the new Magnesiums at the moment because we are flat out with FoilFlex cable orders. This covid thing has bumped up our orders on FoilFlex and Curious USB cables quite significantly ! who would have thought hey ? ! Ok the Xover changes quite significantly in respect of any change at all in the shape of the front foam baffle and even the enclosure energy storage tuning ( by this I mean absolute minimising of energy storage . ) I'm determined to make this enclosure have less impact on the sound than any other speaker on the market today . I also want this speaker to be THE BEST available regardless of cost . Yeah I know Thats a BIG statement mate !!! Well this is my aim and if the sound is better than Bills initial Magnesium two ways (which is the best speaker so far I have ever heard) So I guess we should have a GTG so you guys can get a handle on whether this project is worth following ? The Covid thing will limit us a bit I guess but I'm sure if we were carefull we could handle say 4/5 people . Then perhaps the participants could report back on what was heard . Maybe within 2 to 4 weeks time Saturday or Sunday is fine with me . Let me know who may be interested ? Cheers Lads Mike Lenehan Hi Mike, count me in cheers Cameron Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lenehan Audio Posted July 8, 2020 Author Share Posted July 8, 2020 4 minutes ago, Cammyboy0_0 said: Hi Mike, count me in cheers Cameron HI CAMERON OK mate making a list on my phone now . Cheers Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bhobba Posted July 17, 2020 Share Posted July 17, 2020 (edited) Of course I will be there - the magnesium's they will be compared with are mine after all. I trust Mike who firmly believes they will be a significant step above those again. We will see. I will make sure my Chord and M-Scaler is there as well and will see how well they go driving the new speaker directly - my current magnesiums are too insensitive for the 18w they produce. It works with the ML5's and these new speakers are nearly as sensitive. Thanks Bill Edited July 25, 2020 by bhobba Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cafad Posted July 18, 2020 Share Posted July 18, 2020 I'd like to be present at one of these as well (I assume there will be more than one) if I can work it in. Put me down as an interested party please Mike. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lenehan Audio Posted July 28, 2020 Author Share Posted July 28, 2020 Hi Guys just a quick update ! I've spent another 34hours on the Xover design since my last post and yes they are devils no doubt . Having everything burnt in is critical before making any changes as things change very slightly after run in . This is where much of the time in Xover design lies . One must apply a new idea then let the thing burn in before making any critical decision. I hope to have a listener within another week or two . Cheers Mike Lenehan 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cardiiiii Posted October 9, 2020 Share Posted October 9, 2020 Have we got any exciting updates? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Southie Adam Posted October 11, 2020 Share Posted October 11, 2020 Agreed Cardiiii!!! @Lenehan Audio would love to see some current photos of the speaker! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lenehan Audio Posted October 15, 2020 Author Share Posted October 15, 2020 Hi Lads. Ok there is another prototype! More conventional looking , similar to an ML2 but 15% more volume . The original prototype is still viable but requires a lot more design work !! So the ML2 type enclosure is proven to have very low energy storage and low waveform refractive distortion from the baffle . they should be running in about 1 week check out the pic. Cheers Mike Lenehan 14 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Southie Adam Posted October 15, 2020 Share Posted October 15, 2020 Love it! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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