Martin Logan Aerius problem

You could have a bad panel -- but did you check the continuity of the internal fuse with a meter or simply look at it? I've had blown fuses that didn't look blown...

Is this from a single speaker in which case the problem likely is with the speaker itself, or from both speakers, which implies the problem could be with some other part of your system?

I'm an Aerius owner but you must enunciate your problem. Geeez. What the hell are electrostatic posts?

Hi All,

Thanks for your interest and help. To answer your questions:

Plato: I checked the continuity of the fuse and it was OK.

Rmrobinson1957: The problem is from both of the speakers. They were connected to a quad 33/303 pre/power amp and I always thought that the poor sound was because the amp under powered (45 WPC)and could not drive the electrstatic panels. I have just upgraded to a Primare A30.1 and the complete lack of mid range and treble was unchanged with the upgrade.

willhitx: Sorry for the confusion. I am not sure of the correct terminology. by the elctrostatic posts I am referring to the speaker input connections to the electrostatic panel.

I have also checked that the AC supply was reaching the internals (it is) but when doing this I noticed that there is a red LED on the printed circuit board which illiminates for about 30 seconds and then goes out. I am not sure if this is normal. I have had other feedback which suggests that the panels are only good for about 8 years and then need replacing and so far this seems to be the most likely cause. I have lodged a call to ML service department for their advise.

Regards

Paul

Did you vacuum the panels? Dust accumulated in the holes and on the panels will cause this to happen to some extent. Be careful and use the brush attachment when doing so.

Mlogan,

The red LED lights up when the circutry detects an input
signal. It sounds like you've got a bad connection or a
blown component somewhere.

The red LED should light up and stay lit if the speaker is
receiving a signal of sufficient level.

Dr. Gregory Greenman
Physicist / Audiophile

LjGj is right on. Your panels may getting too old and need replacing but vacuum them first to see if that's the problem. Get the strongest shop vac you can find (seriously. as recommended by Jim Powers at ML). It brought my panels back to attention. Be sure to unplug the panels at least 12 hours before the vacuum job so the static charge can dissipate. sp? hehe

Good luck

Thanks for the extra suggestions. I have tried the vacuum cleaner but I am not sure if it is powerful enough. The panels look remarkably clean but there is still no sound. Given that the panel is dead I am tempted to try the shower trick but I wanted to confirm that they are unsalvagable before I try this. I have done some more checking and have found that one panel is dead (not both as first thought)and the other is very faint. To confirm if it was the power supply or the panels I swapped them over with the same result from the different power supply. I am feeling gutted by this because by the time I convert from US dollars to New Zealand dollars the new panels will cost more than I paid for the speakers. All of the reviews and the feedback suggests that these speakers are great performers and worth the effort so I guess I will purchase the new panels.

It amazes me that the panels only have a life of 8 years and I hope that the life of the new panels has extended beyond this. My previous speakers were a set of Quad ELS 57 and they were 30 years old when they finally arced thru.