@ryder can you let me know where you sourced your Solid Tech stands for the Duke 2s? Also can you confirm the height and number of columns. How do they compare to other stands with the Duke 2s?
I’ve seen the Solid Tech 2/3 stands but they look different to your stands (different base and top plate, and column layout).
I’m using Solid Steel SS-6 which are good but not ideal as the top plate is too small for the Dukes.
Bongoman, the stands are original Marten stands for the Duke 2 and not Solid Tech. They are 3-pillars and measure slightly less than 29 inches from bottom of spikes to top of plate.
Have not heard the Duke2 but I’ve had the Miles5 for a year, then the Getz2 for 3 months and currently using the Bird2. The Getz was the hardest to drive and has a totally different bass signature to the Miles and Bird. Ive also heard the Mingus Quintet at a mate’s place so not in my room so its not fair to comment but the fit and finish is amazing. The Parker line is not replacing the Heritage line, its just a new line that sits between the Heritage and Mingus.
I just switched from Luxman L-590AXII to the Sonneteer Orton to reassess the performance of the Orton/Duke2 since I have made few changes lately which brought a massive improvement to the system (wall outlet and power cord). I wanted to give the Sonneteer and perhaps the Naim 282/250DR another chance to redeem themselves.
After listening to the Sonneteer Orton with the Dukes for about 2 hours, I don’t think I’ll need to try the Naim anymore. There is a rather severe downgrade in sound quality going from the Luxman L-590AXII to the Sonneteer Orton as the magic is lost. In very brief words, music doesn’t have the palpable feel anymore as the overall presentation sounds slightly leaner, brighter and 2-dimensional(flatter) with reduced space between instruments. There is also reduced punch and slam in the bass.
The Sonneteer Orton is still a good amp when matched with the Duke 2. However, when compared to the Luxman it is surely outclassed. The Marten Duke 2 surely benefits from a high quality Class A amp. From my experience as well as others here, I would suggest any potential owners of the Marten to explore suitable amps if the speakers don’t sound good with existing amps. The amp truly plays a pivotal role in getting the Marten to sound very special, or mediocre/poor.
Accuton drivers love speed and attack (PRAT), matching components with good PRAT really make the Accutons shine, I’ve tried a good 8,10 amps and dac combination and have found decent power - 200W or moreclass a/b such as Vitus, Audia Flight, Boulders with Chord and Esoteric dacs work great, Japanese amps such as Accuphase, Luxman, Denon, Marantz seems to have more smooth and lazy voicing which doesn’t make Accuton drivers show their strength.
Hi Kenn, useful information and I partly agree with the Marten requiring decent power to shine. I think the lacklustre sound I’m getting with the Sonneteer Orton is partly due to the low output (30W @ 8 ohm ; 50W @ 4 ohm). The Luxman L-590AXII drives the Duke 2 a lot better. The Luxman is 30W @ 8 ohm and 60W @ 4 ohm but tested output is much higher (95W @ 8 ohm ; 165W @ 4 ohm).
On Japanese amps having a smooth and lazy voicing which doesn’t bring out the best in Accuton drivers, I don’t have experience with larger Class AB amps from other makes such as Vitus. However, I have compared the Sonneteer Orton and Naim 282 / 250DR with the Luxman on Marten Duke 2 and the Class A Luxman sounds best with the Marten. Although it’s a Class A, the sound still packs a punch and sounds dynamic. I believe Class A gives an organic feel to voices and a sense of 3-dimensional space to the sound. The cables particularly power cord, interconnects and Furutech NCF boosters also help shape the sound by providing a solid and robust presentation.
I just spent several hours with the Sonneteer Orton today before switching to the Luxman. The Sonneteer sounds soft and lacks the visceral punch and dynamics of the Luxman. The overall presentation is slightly restrained as the bass and percussion are slightly held back or subdued which contributed to a laidback or lacklustre sound. The detail and refinement of the Orton are also slightly inferior to the Luxman. There is a missing sparkle as the leading edges are smoothened which contributed to a more rounded presentation.
I have compared the Naim to the Sonneteer before and the latter actually sounded better than the Naim which is surprising. Music sounds forced and slightly unnatural when driven by the Naim, in my case 282/250DR. So far the 552 is the only Naim that gives great results with the Marten.
May I ask which amp are you using with your Marten Bird 2?
On a side note, the comparison between the Sonneteer Orton and Luxman L-590AXII may be slightly unfair as I was using a pair of cheaper single-ended interconnects to connect the Orton to the DAC while a higher quality balanced interconnect was used to connect the Luxman to the same DAC. I was told that the Chord DAC performs better with balanced cables.
Also, I didn’t use the Acrolink Mexcel cord on the Sonneteer Orton as the cord is too short to connect to the amp (this cord greatly improves anything that’s connected to it).
Hi Ryder, for what it seems the Duke2 is most similar to the Getz2 in terms of sensitivity, impedance and impedance drop. But being a ported cabinet the Duke2 should be a little easier to drive especially at lower volume. I’ve had Accuphase pre/power class A running the Miles5 before and I agree with you that they’re great in creating 3-dimensional holographic sounds as it pushes the vocals forward and wraps it around you which makes you it feel like the singer is in your room, whereas other class AB I mentioned transports you to the venue (which Id preferred) as sound stage gets pushed back deeper and wider. And recently I tested it again with Accuphase pre/power class AB, less of holographic feel but still does not bring the dynamic of the Accutons. Have not experienced with Luxman but for what it seems theyre very similar to Accuphase in term of voicing.
I am currently running Vitus RI-100 with my Bird2, at 6Ohms it should be drawing circa 450W per channel, the Getz2 are now at my mate’s place running with Boulder 865. FYI the Getz2 was the hardest to get dynamic and balance out at low volume so somewhat relates to Duke2?
I wont go into cabling as its a sensitive topic which could open a can of worms here.
Hi Kenn, thanks for the prompt response. I did look at the Vitus prior to getting the Luxman in an attempt to salvage the Marten (it sounded poor with Naim, better but not great with Sonneteer). However, it’s not the Class AB RI-100 or 101 but the SIA-025 mk2. The brightness or harshness in the upper registers I experienced with the Marten caused me to investigate Class A amps. I settled with the Luxman as the SIA-025 mk2 is not within my budget.
Your positive experience with the Vitus Class AB and Marten is encouraging. The Luxman (and Naim 282/250DR) is supposed to be my final amp but the RI-101 mk2 may have caught my interest, if I intend to make a change in the distant future.
By the way, I don’t have experience with Accuphase or any other Class A amps other than a big Plinius Class A power amp many years ago. The Luxman L-590AXII Class A doesn’t sound too much like a Class A especially when matched with the Marten. Perhaps the Accuton drivers of the Marten are so transparent that they may have nullified the slightly smooth sound of the Luxman / Accuphase. The sound I’m getting is still quick and agile with plenty of punch and dynamics even with rock and dynamic music. Perhaps I haven’t heard something better as I do not have those amps for comparison. Nevertheless I am currently very happy with the sound quality of my system, no complaints.
Cant say for myself with Luxman as I haven’t experienced with them. I did heard the big Plinius with Accutons which produced great results. I also think you made a great choice by pairing them with the Chord dac, they’re one of the best with Accutons so far in my experience. I might have a Vitus RI101 soon to compare with the RI100, not expecting to pass a blind test but we’ll see.
As far as DAC goes, I haven’t experienced many quality DACs but I don’t think I’ll ever swap my Chord QBD76 for anything else. It’s just that good. I’ve upgraded a lot of things in my system for the past 2 to 3 years from amplifier to cables and speakers, and the only component that has remained so far is the Chord DAC. It’s not a DAVE but it’s a quality reference DAC to me. The QBD76 used to be the top-of-the range before the introduction of the DAVE.
It would be interesting to compare the RI101 to the RI100. Do keep us posted, whether the difference in sound quality is marked.
Since the Dali Mentor Menuet have been unused for a considerable period collecting dust, I dragged the speakers out and briefly listened to them in the main system. They surely sound a lot better in this system which is extensively optimised in comparison to the previous setups(the power cord costs 3 times more than the speakers). Nevertheless, I realised why the Martens are so special after listening to the Dalis.
Although the Dalis show a lot of poise and refinement in the system, the degradation in sound quality is obvious. The verve and dynamics are all good. Great tempo and an upbeat sound but the refinement takes a plunge. There is a slight coarse or rough quality in the treble and voices. In some tracks the percussion and electronic sound produced by synthesisers sound spitty, not good. In comparison everything sounds smooth, refined and pleasant with the Marten, sounding more like the real thing.
With piano recordings the differences are closer ie. Dali doesn’t sound as bad, actually rather good. The extension in the treble and tonality of the notes are all good. However, there is still a lack air and refinement especially when the percussion and drums come up.
Lastly, listening fatigue is higher with Dalis. After just about an hour of listening, I am back with the Marten. Not exactly a fair comparison since the Marten costs a lot higher than the Mentor Menuet (£900). Nevertheless, I now appreciate the Martens more than ever after this short comparison. It’s truly a high calibre speaker. Next up will be Harbeth SHL5+, perhaps next year when I feel like making the switch although I don’t think it will last long before I’m back with the Marten.
Right, now I’m back with Dukes. The Dali Mentor Menuet is an overall brighter speaker than the Marten Duke 2 in the treble. The tone of the piano sounds less lit with the Marten than Dali. The Dali has a more enthusiastic treble than the Marten as the notes show more energy which in turn cause a higher listening fatigue with its piercing sound. Everything sounds smoother on the Marten and most importantly balanced with nothing sticking out like a sore thumb. The treble, midrange and bass all sound uniform ie. on the same plane. With the Dali it appears that the treble is pushed out more as the midrange and bass are recessed.
Let’s put it this way, with the Marten I keep turning up the volume and it all sounds great. Sustained listening at higher volumes without issues. With the Dali, after listening at high volumes for a short period I just want to switch it all off as I start to get a mild headache.
I am supposed to have reached the final destination with my existing speakers. Having said that, will keep the Tannoy Eatons in mind. As the saying goes, never say never. I’m glad they had proven to be an improvement over Harbeth SHL5+.
Hi Ryder. Could you tell me what speaker cables are you using? I just bought Marten Duke and Sonneteer Orton will pair them up, and I’m looking for speaker cable reccomendations.
Kind regards
Matt
Hi Matt, I’m using Chord Signature XL speaker cables with the Marten Duke 2. I haven’t experimented a lot with speaker cables but the Marten will reveal any change you make in the system unlike some speakers which will still sound more or less the same with those changes. It’s a good thing you have the Sonneteer Orton as it’s a reasonably good match with the Duke 2.