Price Paid:  $1200.00

Summary:
I've enjoyed reading the many reviews here so I'm going to give back here and rate the cinima speaker that I've been using for a few years. I love the way this speaker looks its design is stunning and definatly is a conversation piece for visitors to my home even when its off.
Now as far as its performance goes it definatly has some flaws and I would not rate it as high as some of the other reviews have. This speaker sounds fantastic if your head is directly in front of it and the room is silent - simply incredible. Unfourtinatly I live in the real world where if you have any one else sitting off to the side or standing too high or sitting to low their not getting anything even close to awsome preformance of one sitting in the "sweet spot" So I am always telling my friends to sit here and check this out. This speaker is also quite the power hog I have to turn it up quite a bit to reach a decent listining level, this isnt a positive or negitive I'd just reccomend you have plenty of power for this baby.
If your looking to do any casual listning this is not the speaker for you, this speaker has trouble cutting through other sounds. ( I know your thinking, what other sounds? - real world noise - people talking, etc) Shut up so i can listen to my martin logan? I just turn up the volume.

In conclusion, if you want to sit in a silent room by yourself and enjoy musical xtasy this is your speaker. If you enjoy having friends over to watch a movie or catch the game look somewhere else.

Strengths:
Superb clarity, awsome style

Weaknesses:
Off axis performance is terrible, does not project volume with authority

Similar Products Used:
polk,jbl,klipsch,vandersteen

Price Paid:  $0.00 from Brett Interior

Summary:
First of all, I would like state the equipment that I partnered with the Martin Logan Cinema. Here it is: Amplifier: Outlaw 770 (7 channel amp) Processor: Rotel RSP 1066 Speakers: Front Left/Right: Martin Logan Ascent Surround: Martin Logan Scenario Subwoofer: Infinity HPS 1000 DVDs: Pioneer Elite DV-C 36 and Sony NC650V CD Player: NAD 541i Interconnect: Nordost Solar Wind TV: Sony 48” TV Power conditioner: Monster HTS-1000 I have heard and owned several Center Channel over the years. The Martin Logan Cinema is definitely in the top 2% or among the best out there. I like it because it is very flexible. It plays movies very well. The dialogues are clearly reproduced and it is dynamic enough for Home Theater application. When it comes to music, it is also musical. I am fond of Jazz music and listen to Artist such as SADE, Diana Krall, Nora Jones and Sinatra and so far the Martin Logan Cinema met and even exceeded my expectation. When I play Nora Jones’ “Come Away With Me” the Martin Logan Cinema along with the Martin Logan Ascent and Scenario captures her emotion through and through. If you are in my media room, you will be seduced to really sit down and listen to her sing. I really enjoy owning this speaker. I have owned Wharfedales, Monsoons and heard B&Ws, Revel, Klipsch, Kef, Magnepans, Definitive Tech, and Sanus Faber. So far, this is the one that I really love listening my CDs to. The only thing that I really like more than this is the Martin Logan Theater I. My friend has it and made a mistake of listening to it, let me tell you it is an excellent speaker for music and movies. I guess considering the price, it should be expected. However, for those of you who do not have $2800 to invest on a Martin Logan Theater I, the Cinema is your ticket. It gets you 85% of the performance of the Theater.

Strengths:
clarity, dynamics, beauty and rare musicality

Weaknesses:
none really.

Similar Products Used:
kef, Magnepan, Sanus Faber, B&W, Wharfedales, Monsoons, Definitive Tech, Infinity, Paradigm

Price Paid:  $2000.00 from Sound Advice

Summary:
Simply awsome. But I have the "Theater" model 4 sale. You think this one is great, hear the Theater. I have bought a wall unit that has integrated center channel speakers so I need to sell mine. Will let go very reasdonable in OEM box. email at chilemp @ bellsouth . net

Strengths:
Clarity.

Weaknesses:
Price ain't cheap.

Similar Products Used:
Too many...

Price Paid:  $0.00

Summary:
Just go listen! Nothing compares. Listening with descent electronics will make your purchasing decision fast and easy. worth every penny. I am using with Krell and Bryston electronics.

Strengths:
Sound Detail Price

Weaknesses:
non-skid pad on the bottom stretches.

Similar Products Used:
B+W, M+K, pinnacle, psb, monitor audio, audio physique, elon, vienna acoustics, sonus faber, linn, wilson, revel, infinity etc...

Price Paid:  $1300.00 from Tweeter

Summary:
Well, we finally broke down after a year of using a smaller ($150) JBL center with our Martin Logan SL3s for our home audio/video system. And I am sorry I waited so long.

I have hesitated posting a review until I was really sure I was happy with the Cinema center channel. And it has taken over a month of patient placement and receiver adjustment to get the performance I had hoped for. But has the effort been worth the work.

The sound quality of the Cinema (once properly placed) is phenomenal. The dialogue is precise and (if recorded well) appropriately placed in the field of the picture frame. The slightest detail is now audible. The blend with my large Martin Logan SL3s is flawless and seamless. An entire wall of sound is now before me as I view dvd's.

The placement caveat has to do with making sure the tweeter is firing at your head. If not, you will perceive the sound coming from the wrong place, perhaps above or below your picture. This placement requirement had me befuddled at first because of lack of placement options I had with the rack I already owned. But the solution was to acquire a pair of feet (the bottom of the speaker is tapped in three places to accept feet) and I tilted the speaker obliquely up toward our ears. It looks a little odd, but the sound is now rock solid in the picture.

The other surprise had to do with the extra volume I had to give the Cinema versus my SL3s. They have to be cranked up +5db compared to the mains. I don't if this is because of efficiency, because the Cinema has so much smaller an electrostatic panel, or because of my placement. All I know is that it takes that much more power to get the seamless sound stage I now enjoy. And that difference was not obvious when I use the built-in noise generator from the receiver. The pink noise test would only indicate I need about a db or a db and half to balance with the mains. However, when I left the volume for the center at such a reduced level, the sound from the Cinema was coming right from it's front and not from the image on the TV (which is above the center speaker). Only after I experimented with the volume with playing various dvd's (and ignoring what the pink noise balance had indicated) did I get the sound to "lock in" where it belonged. The interesting thing about the placement (had to mess with further forward and further back too) is that there was little difference in tone or the apparent source of the sound. Further forward or further back seemed only to affect the volume, not the character of the sound. The two things that locked in the sound were tilting and adding volume from the receiver.

If you have M/L mains, and you cannot afford the Theater (which at almost $3K was beyond my reach), then try the Cinema. Be patient. Use good cables (I use Alpha Core M2 Goertz, see my review elsewhere) and love the sound.

Strengths:
Clarity, definition, precision, soundfield match to my Martin Logan SL3s

Weaknesses:
As with all M/L electrostats, placement can be tricky; can make poorly recorded dvd's sound harsh.

Similar Products Used:
JBL