Hi, it’s lovely! I would like to have more space between the speakers and the rear wall to open up the sound more, and to try an NDX2/252 combo in place of the Nova. But that’s an unrealistic wish list. All in all I love the setup now, and have a week off work after today to do a lot of listening!
Thanks for asking, all happy your end?
Regards, Carl
Happy with the speakers but in the process of upgrading the Nova. I’ve posted in another thread on this but maybe a NAP 250 and Chord TT2/M-Scaler, I have another demo on Tuesday and hope to home demo after that. All good fun…
@Merlin I see from another thread you have Marten Miles 5 speakers, would you like to share your experience of them in this thread? I have the Duke 2’s which are the standmount version so interested in how the floorstander fares.
Hi Flachead - I love the Miles 5’s! I have a small-ish listening room (5m x 4m) and because of room layout they fire across the room so I listen quite close to them but they literally disappear. I too had the Dukes for an extended demo and was amazed how big they sounded, however the Miles just gave an effortless ‘presence’ to the sound. They did take a fair bit of positioning to ‘tune’ the bass - I have carpet over concrete floor and I replaced their feet with track audio spikes which firmed up bass and the soundstage. I have them 18cm from the back wall with a slight toe-in. They are VERY revealing - good recordings sound wonderful but poor ones are shocking! You may find that with the Dukes too! They convey the correct ‘weight’ and timbre of instruments - the extra size and additional driver gives scale to piano for example - you feel as if you could reach out and touch it! With my system it never lacked detail or ambience but everything was in perspective with the ‘old’ firmware - with the new firmware it’s like the subtleties of the music have been boosted and ‘get in the way’ because they are ‘in your face’ - I don’t know how much that is to do with speakers or the amps I have - there’s not many of us on here with Marten’s! I think I remember you saying how long yours took to run in - mine took about 3 months with a lot of repeat playing of the ‘running in’ track from the demo disc!! Hope this helps!
My room is even smaller approx 3.5x3.5m and I think the floorstanders would be too much for the room. If I move and get a larger listening room, I’d either add a sub or upgrade to something bigger (Marten of course, I’m addicted to the signature).
I too have taken quite some time to find the best position and sitting quite close means small movements can make big changes. I’m happy now that when something isn’t sounding right it’s something else in the chain and that’s where I’m focusing as the upgrade bug bites.
Hi, please update if you have upgraded your Nova to something more substantial for your Marten Duke 2. I was initially searching for a smaller bookshelf to complement my Harbeth Super HL5+ and was looking at the M30.2 40th Anniversary, ATC SCM19 and Dali Epicon 2. I contacted the ATC and Dali dealers to arrange for a demo but ended up committing to a pair of Marten Duke 2 instead. This is the first time I’m going into uncharted territory, spending a lot more than what I’m usually willing to pay for a pair of loudspeakers. Anyway the speakers will now cost closer to my Naim amps, and I’m convinced these will stay in the system for a very long time alongside the Harbeth loudspeakers which I also own.
ETA next weekend. Amplification will be NAC 282, NAP 250DR and Hicap DR.
Wow Ryder, I have been following your other thread, did you order the Marten Duke’s without a home demo?
Yes No-Quarter. Ordered without home demo.
Congratulations, I don’t think you will be disappointed, they tick so many boxes and I expect to have mine for some time to come, they are coming up to their first anniversary this month. Which finish did you go for and what stands?
Regarding the upgrade, I’m still working through the options but almost sure it’s going to be a NAP 250 and TT2 with an M-scaler later in the year.
I bought a Project Stream Ultra to drive the TT2 and I’m currently using it into a Mojo with the Nova for amplification. I’m preferring that arrangement to using the Nova standalone which has convinced me that the Chord DAC approach is more to my liking but I’ll stay with Naim amplification.
Hopefully should have the upgrades by the end of the month and will post another update then.
I’d be interested to hear how you get on with your Duke’s, mine took a while to settle but now I absolutely love everything about them and haven’t seen, heard or read about anything that has tempted me away. Apart from the Mingus 20, but that will have to wait until I have a larger listening room (and a bigger bank account).
I got the piano walnut finish with matching stands.
I am also using a Chord DAC QBD76 which is a fabulous match to the Naim amps. I didn’t try many DACs but it was a massive improvement over the Musical Fidelity M1 DAC that I previously owned.
My smallish room (3.2m x 7m) cannot accommodate larger speakers and the size of the Dukes would be quite appropriate. I currently have the Harbeth SHL5+ and although it sounded good I have a feeling the speakers have not performed to their full potential and overloading the room a little. The Dukes would provide more flexibility in terms of placement apart from giving me a different sound presentation.
Nice, please post some pics when you have them in situ…
Are you using the original Marten stands? If yes, are the stands filled?
When I first fired up the system, I was surprised that it didn’t sound bright. I was expecting the Duke2 to sound detailed, forward and bright but it actually sounded almost the same as my Harbeth SHL5+ with a natural presentation. As a matter of fact I actually thought it sounded almost the same as the Harbeth with a tinge of warmth. After letting the speakers break-in for a while I am beginning to appreciate its strength.
There is not a hint of brightness present in the treble, just a natural warm sound. Tonality of instruments is very good, slightly better than the Harbeth with the tone of piano sounding a bit more realistic - slightly brighter than the duller tone of the Harbeth.
Another trait of the Duke 2 is the absence of grain, hardness or brightness. I thought the Harbeth is already a smooth sounding speaker but the Duke 2 is even smoother. Pin-point sharpness and a lack of grain when compared to the Harbeth SHL5+. Although there is no perceived harshness the treble extension is even better than the Harbeth.
Bass quality is very satisfying and complete for the size. Perhaps it just fits the size of the room.
I agree with your earlier assessment that this speaker doesn’t provide the thrills and excitement when you first listen to the speakers. It doesn’t grab you by the neck and there’s no fireworks but just like the Harbeth speakers, it will reward you with long-term listening sessions.
I’m biased but they look fantastic. They do take a while to settle down, there were times when I questioned whether I had bought the right speakers. Now I have no doubts at all…
I’m using PMC twenty stands and they are filled half way with kiln sand. The original Marten stands didn’t fit in the gap next to the cabinet where I have to tuck them away when the room is (annoyingly) a guest room.
The stands of your speakers are matching well with the finite elemente rack. Very nice.
I would personally just have some fear to imagine that components can slide from the rack.
Is it secure at 100%?
Yes they do look fantastic and most importantly it sounds equally fantastic. It’s a keeper, together with my Harbeth SHL5+ speakers which are currently in another room. Although the Marten has ceramic Accuton drivers which are supposed to provide a detailed sound, fortunately it doesn’t sound too thin or bright at the top. Percussion still sound natural and realistic without being too tinny or bright. The tone is slightly more illuminating than the Harbeth without going overboard.
Frenchrooster, thanks. Yes the components are secure on the rack supported by both rubber feet and Finite Elemente’s Ceraball Spider.
If to keep one pair only, Marten or Harbeth?
Difficult to say because still early days with Marten, and also speakers must fit the room where the Marten does a bit better. But if to pick only one, it would still be the Harbeth. In reality I am keeping both.
A bit more thoughts. I’ll avoid being long-winded and go straight to the point.
As the speakers continue to open up, I now find the Marten to sound quite different from the Harbeth. Having lived with the Harbeth for 11 years I am so used to the house sound by now. Both Duke 2 and SHL5+ are still great sounding speakers in their own right. It is just a matter of preference whether one would prefer the sound quality of the Marten or Harbeth.
Coming to the differences. The Marten is a more precise or accurate sounding speaker with a more clinical sound. The sound of instruments especially acoustic and electric guitars have more energy and sound more like the real thing than the Harbeth. On a particular guitar recording, guitar sound more lit with the Duke 2. On the Harbeth the sound of guitar is noticeably duller. I previously regarded the quality of the recording to be poor but it appears that there is nothing wrong with the recording. Also, the Marten managed to unravel the detail, tone or texture from the guitar previously not heard with the Harbeth.
The Duke 2 produces less amount of bass than the SHL5+. Leaner bass with Marten and fuller bass with Harbeth where I can feel the vibrations from my seat (due to the smallish room). However, the bass of the Duke 2 is punchier, tighter and more forward than the SHL5+. In other words the bass sticks out more with the Dukes although it doesn’t have the full enveloping bass of the SHL5+. The difference in bass quality is expected as the SHL5+ is a significantly larger speaker than the Dukes.
Lastly, listening fatigue is slightly higher with the Marten than the Harbeth. The Harbeth is also better at low volume listening. The Duke 2 sounds a bit lean at low volume levels with a recessed midrange. (low volumes in the range of say 30dB and below). The Duke 2 sound more balanced at moderate volume levels.
With the Harbeth my listening chair is 4.0
metres away from the speakers. With the Dukes I need to sit closer to the speakers for a more balanced presentation, about 2.5 to 3.0 metres.
Although the Marten is more forward and brighter than the Harbeth in general with slightly higher listening fatigue, I find it to be a more accurate speaker than the Harbeth. Still musical with a warm midrange although the treble is more lit and bass more forward and punchy than the Harbeth.
Ohh yes, percussion sounds sharper and more prominent/forward with the Marten than the Harbeth.
That is a very fair and nice summation I think of the Marten versus Harbeth. While I haven’t owned either speaker, have heard them and/or earlier versions of each.
The Marten Duke has really intrigued me off and on over the course of time, almost bought a used pair of the original version several years back. Probably should have. Beautiful looking speakers too! Enjoy!
