The Aerius-I, following a prolonged break-in period of 50 or more hours, is a fantastic speaker for the money. The detailed imagery simply is not matched by conventional box speakers. The sound field seems to float three dimensionally in front of the listener. Magneplanars also have this ability, but are quite a bit more intrusive in the room. With proper placement, and using the supplied spikes, the bass is quite satisfactory. For those who want to shake the rafters, a little bass equalization is a small price to pay. Quite frankly, I haven't heard a sub that can really keep up with the M-Ls. Something else that is quite extraordianry is the volume level the listener can use without fatigue, which seems to be present with virtually every sub $2500 box speaker. With the M-Ls, you listen to the music, not the speakers.

The Aerius's glaring discontinuity between the lower mids and the lows is very difficult to ignore. You can't really lose yourself in the music. You're always aware of two separate sound sources when listening to this speaker.

I don't think these speakers sound that good at all. The bass is very weakfor the amount of money being spent. I think a used pair of Energy or
Vandersteen speakers is the way to go for the same money or less. Just my opinion, since I owned a pair for several years.

This speaker is a real mixed bag. On one hand, the quality of the midrange and up are unsurpassed among speakers in this price range. The electrostatic panels really do work. Many of the previous comments about the wide open soundstage, detail and airiness are correct. However, the major flaw with this speaker is getting the attached powered woofer in sync with the electrostatic panel. In short, Martin Logan didn't do a good job with this speaker. The longer I listened to this speaker, the less I listened to the music and the more I tried to detect timing mistakes between the two mismatched sources. Toward the end of my audition of the Aerius, it was readily apparent that the bass notes, in addition to being poorly defined, were occuring a split second after the rest of the signal. It was almost as if the bass drivers were out of phase with the electrostat. In short, the flaws in this speaker make it unlistenable to me.
Oh, and a 5 star speaker shouldn't need a $1,000+ REL subwoofer in order to sound competant.

I used to be an audiophile, but my ears have aged with the rest of me. These speakers have rejuvenated my desire to pursue this particular hobby. I am listening to things my wife likes! (please do not ask what) This may hinge upon her delight with both the appearance, and the sound. This was the easiest sale I have ever made to her. A critical departure from form. These speakers are setting up my path to upgrade since they are revelatory as to the audio chain. This is enough for me to recommend these speakers w/o reservation to all persons requiring a huge WAF co-efficient, and readily percieved value.The above positive posts are accurate, but frankly these speakers are good to go with any old junk. They just make it apparent that it is junk. They can be ruthless, but what the hey, so were the Romans and they did OK.
I am going to flesh out the bass with a sub. I'm already approved by my chairperson to do so.
These babies rock. Especially since I scored them for $1500. I had to add that.
I have no buyer's remorse.

I'm convinced after 5 years with these speakers that the usual complaints about the bass and narrow sweet spot are related to amplification. These are not the easiest load to drive. Get a good SOLID STATE amp to go with 'em, and the Aerius will slash and burn anything in that highly competitive $2-3k range. I know, I've given a close listen to Von Schweikert vr 3, PSB Stratus Gold i, Pro Ac studio 150, and the M-Ls take them all in terms of refinement, midrange, and most of all sheer naturalness of sound. These things will let you hear differences in cable you'd never believe were there with those other models. Truth!

The Martin Logan Aerius is a good speaker but not my personal fave in the $2000price range.I can see where this speaker would appeal to a certain kind of listener.I have always been fond of Martin Logan's larger speakers but,this one
does not do it for me.I really love the Request.In the $2000 price range I definately prefer the B&W 804.I even prefer the B&W 804 over the Theil 2.3 speaker or any Vandersteen design.With Martin Logan speakers,I feel as if you
have to spend big dollars in order to get satisfactory results.Martin Logan
speakers are capable of getting good sound.Not so with the Aerius.This speaker
just leaves a lot to be desired.It is just lacking in many areas.For $2000,the
Aerius should perform better.Room placement and design is very critical to
Martin Logan speakers.Some rooms work with them,some do not.I have heard
Martin Logans sound terrific in some rooms,and god awful in others.There is also
the issue of efficiancy with Martin Logans.Especially the Aerius.If you buy a
pair,whatever you do,don't use an integrated amp to drive them.Classe's CAP150,
Krell's KAV300i,and Conrad Johnson's integrateds fall flat on their face when
attempting to drive them.These speakers are best left being passed by when you
are auditionig speakers.One who is fond of Martin Logan designs should at least listen to the SL-3 and not anything less in Martin Logan's line.The dealer should also have them set-up correctly with the correct electronics.This is the
only way to tell if the Martin Logans are performing the way they were intended.
I really can't reccomend the Aerius.They are lacking in bass and they just don't
have that special mid-range magic that their bigger brothers have.If I was considering an electrostatic design,I would definately buy Magnepans over
Martin Logans.The only problem with Maggies is that they also lack in the bass
dept. and I refuse to use a Subwoofer for music.Subwoofers are wonderful for
home-theatre applications but just don't integrate well for muisic.For $2000,
I think that there are better choices in loudspeakers than the Martin Logan
Aerius.

The Martin Logan is a good speaker not an excellent speaker. The key is in the cables and amplifier. Cardas cables and Bryston offer a good match . Do not use low watt tubes. I tried the Golden Tube 40WPC and the speakers were asleep no life. There is a major jump in sound from the Aerius to the Sl-3. A good dealer should take them back and offer a trade in. The key for me is whether to go to the SL-3 or Magnapan 3.5Any thoughts out there.

The problem with the Aerius is not how much bass there is, but how poorly the bass integrates with thw mids and highs. I've tried the Aerius, SL3 and Quest in my home system. To varying gegrees the all exhibit this flaw. I auditioned all the power amps that I had available, Pass Aleph, Bryston 7BST, Classe 25 etc. The problem was not in my system, it is a flaw in the spealer. A flaw of this magnitude for any speaker in this price range is unforgivable.

I sure would like to know what kind of systems the Aerius's are going into that are garnering such bad reviews. An electrostatic element in a speaker is not the easiest thing in the world to drive. You must take care in assembling a system with the Aerius as a focal point. The best things in life aren't easy, and neither is setting up and driving an electrostatic. The descriptions i'm reading in this website regarding the sound of these speakers leads me to believe that in most cases a great deal of care was not taken to make sure that there was not a weak link in the audio chain upstream. Furthermore, if you bought this speaker expecting to squeeze the bottom octave out of them, then you are missing the point of this fine speaker. The reason Gayle Sanders decided to use just a 8" driver for a sub is that any larger driver would not be able to keep up with the electrostatic panels speed and response. If you want more low end, then it's the SL3 you want to listen to. However in a smallish type room with the