MartinLogan The Quest Speaker System User Manual
User's Manual
The Quest Speaker System
THE ELECTROSTATIC TECHNOLOGY
Important
Contents
Your Quest
Limited 90 Day Warranty coverage.
You have the option, at no additional charge, to receive
Limited 3 Year Warranty coverage. To obtain Limited 3
Year Warranty coverage you need only complete and
return the Certificate of Registration that was included
with your speakers to Martin-Logan, within 30 days of
purchase.
Martin-Logan may not honor warranty serviceMartin-Logan may not honor warranty service
Martin-Logan may not honor warranty service
Martin-Logan may not honor warranty serviceMartin-Logan may not honor warranty service
claims unless we have a completed Warrantyclaims unless we have a completed Warranty
claims unless we have a completed Warranty
claims unless we have a completed Warrantyclaims unless we have a completed Warranty
Registration card on file!Registration card on file!
Registration card on file!
Registration card on file!Registration card on file!
Should you be using your Martin-Logan product in a
country other than the one in which it was originally
purchased, we ask that you note the following:
1) The appointed Martin-Logan distributor for any given
country is responsible for warranty servicing only on
units distributed by or through it in that country in
accordance with its applicable warranty.
2) Should a Martin-Logan product require servicing in a
country other than the one in which it was originally
purchased, the end user may seek to have repairs
performed by the nearest Martin-Logan distributor,
subject to that distributor's local servicing policies,
but all cost of repairs (parts, labor, transportation)
must be born by the owner of the Martin-Logan
product.
If you did not receive a Certificate of Registration with
your Quest
received new units. If this is the case, please contact
your Authorized Martin-Logan dealer.
speakers are provided with an automatic
speakers you cannot be assured of having
Introduction 3
Installation in Brief 4
The Electrostatic Concept 5
History 6
Martin-Logan Exclusives 8
Operation 1 0
Room Acoustics 1 4
Placement 1 8
Questions 2 1
Troubleshooting 2 2
Recommended Music 23
Page 2
Glossary 2 4
Quest Specifications 2 6
Notes 27
Quest User's Manual
Introduction
Congratulations, you have invested in one of the world’s
premier loudspeaker systems!
The result of cumulative technology gleaned from eight
previous Research and Development projects, the Quest
represents the latest developments in Electrostatic and
Hybrid loudspeaker technology.
Combining our proprietary curvilinear electrostatic transducer with a compact, but powerful subwoofer, we have
designed a product, in one package, that reproduces music
with uncompromised electrostatic clarity and deep extended bass, yet takes up little more than one square foot of
floor space.
All materials in your new Quest speakers are of the highest
quality to provide years of enduring enjoyment and deepening respect. All trim pieces are constructed from selected
hardwoods. They are then grain and color matched and
finally hand finished. The cabinetry is constructed from a
special high-density hardwood powderboard for structural
integrity and is finished with a durable and attractive matte
surface finish.
Through rigorous testing, the curvilinear electrostatic panel
has proven itself to be one of the most durable and reliable
transducers available today. Fabricated from a specially
tooled, high-grade steel, the panel is then coated with a
special high dielectric compound that is applied via a
proprietary electrostatic deposition process. This panel
assembly houses a membrane 0.0005 of an inch thick!
Ruggedly constructed and insulated, as much as 200 watts
of continuous power has driven the Quest’s energized
diaphragm into massive excursions with no deleterious
effects.
We know you are anxious to listen to your new speakers.
So, to speed you along, we have provided an
in Briefin Brief
in Brief
section ahead of the detailed descriptive informa-
in Briefin Brief
tion contained in this manual.
Please read and follow these instructions as you initially
connect your Quest
instructions are important and will prevent you from
experiencing any delay, frustration, or system damage
which might occur in a trial-and-error procedure.
The other sections of your
detail the operation of your Quest
philosophy applied to their design. A clear understanding of
your speakers will insure that you obtain maximum performance and pleasure from this most exacting transducer.
Happy Listening!
speakers into your system. These
User’s Manual User’s Manual
User’s Manual will explain in
User’s Manual User’s Manual
speakers and the
InstallationInstallation
Installation
InstallationInstallation
Quest User's Manual
Page 3
Installation in Brief
We know you are eager to hear your
new Quest loudspeakers, so this
section is provided to allow fast and
easy set up. Once you have them
operational, please take the time to
read, in depth, the rest of the information in this manual. It will give you
perspective on how to obtain the best
possible performance from your
system.
If you should experience any difficulties in the set-up or operation of your
Quest speakers please refer to the
Room Acoustics, PlacementRoom Acoustics, Placement
Room Acoustics, Placement or
Room Acoustics, PlacementRoom Acoustics, Placement
OperationOperation
Operation section of this manual.
OperationOperation
Should you encounter a persistent
problem that cannot be resolved,
please contact your Authorized
Martin-Logan dealer. He will provide
you with the appropriate technical
analysis to alleviate the situation.
Step 1: UnpackingStep 1: Unpacking
Step 1: Unpacking
Step 1: UnpackingStep 1: Unpacking
Remove your new Quest
Step 2: PlacementStep 2: Placement
Step 2: Placement
Step 2: PlacementStep 2: Placement
Place each Quest
your listening area. This is a good place to start. Please see the
section of this manual for more details.
Step 3: PStep 3: P
Step 3: P
Step 3: PStep 3: P
Martin-Logan speakers require AC power to energize their electrostatic cells.
Using the AC power cords provided, plug them in, making sure that you have
made a firm connection, first to the AC power receptacle on the rear panel of the
speaker and then to the wall outlet. Extension cords may be used, if necessary,
since the power requirement of the Quest is extremely small.
Step 4: Signal ConnectionStep 4: Signal Connection
Step 4: Signal Connection
Step 4: Signal ConnectionStep 4: Signal Connection
ower Connection (Aower Connection (A
ower Connection (A
ower Connection (Aower Connection (A
speakers from their packing.
at least two feet from any wall and angle them slightly toward
PlacementPlacement
Placement
PlacementPlacement
C)C)
C)
C)C)
Page 4
WARNING !WARNING !
WARNING !
WARNING !WARNING !
Turn your amplifier off before making or breaking any signal
connections! The chassis is earth grounded and can present a
short circuit to your amplifier if contact is made!
Use the best speaker cables you can! Higher quality cables, available from your
specialty dealer, are recommended and will give you superior performance!
Spade connectors are suggested for optimum contact and ease of installation.
Attach your speaker cables to the
High-Pass Signal Input High-Pass Signal Input
High-Pass Signal Input section on the rear panel of each Quest. Be consis-
High-Pass Signal Input High-Pass Signal Input
tent when connecting speaker leads to the terminals on the back of the Quest:
take great care to assign the same color to the (+) terminal on both the left and
right channels. If bass is nonexistent and you cannot discern a tight, coherent
image, you may need to reverse the (+) and (-) leads on one side to bring the
system into proper polarity. For Bi-Wiring/Bi-amping instructions, turn to the
OperationsOperations
Operations section of this manual for proper set-up of the Quest
OperationsOperations
Step 5: Listen and Enjoy!Step 5: Listen and Enjoy!
Step 5: Listen and Enjoy!
Step 5: Listen and Enjoy!Step 5: Listen and Enjoy!
AMPLIFIER CONNECTIONS Full-Range/AMPLIFIER CONNECTIONS Full-Range/
AMPLIFIER CONNECTIONS Full-Range/
AMPLIFIER CONNECTIONS Full-Range/AMPLIFIER CONNECTIONS Full-Range/
system.
Quest User's Manual
The Electrostatic Concept
How can sound be reproduced by something that you are
able to see through? Electrostatic energy makes this
possible.
Where the world of traditional loudspeaker technology
deals with cones, domes, diaphragms and ribbons that are
moved with magnetism, the world of electrostatic loudspeakers deals with charged electrons attracting and
repelling each other.
To fully understand the electrostatic concept, some background information will be helpful. Remember when you
learned, in a science or physics class, that like charges
repel each other and opposite
charges attract each other?
Well, this principle is the
An Electrostatic TransducerAn Electrostatic Transducer
An Electrostatic Transducer
An Electrostatic TransducerAn Electrostatic Transducer
foundation of the electrostatic
concept.
An electrostatic transducer
Diaphragm
consists of three pieces: the
stators, the diaphragm and the
spacers.
See Figure 1
. The
Spacer
diaphragm is what actually
moves to excite the air and
create music. The stator's job is
to remain stationary, hence the
word stator, to provide a
Figure 1Figure 1
Figure 1. Cut away view of an electrostatic transducer.
reference point for the moving
diaphragm. The spacers
Figure 1Figure 1
Notice the simplicity due to minimal parts usage.
provide the diaphragm with a
fixed distance in which to move
between the stators.
An Electromagnetic TransducerAn Electromagnetic Transducer
An Electromagnetic Transducer
An Electromagnetic TransducerAn Electromagnetic Transducer
As your amplifier sends music
signals to an electrostatic
Surround Cone
speaker, these signals are
changed into two high-voltage
signals that are equal in
strength but opposite in
polarity. These high voltage
signals are then applied to the
stators. The resulting electrostatic field, created by the
opposing high voltage on the
stators, works simultaneously
with and against the diaphragm, consequently moving
Basket Assembly
Magnet
Figure 2.Figure 2.
Figure 2. Cut away view of a typical moving coil driver.
Figure 2.Figure 2.
Notice the complexity due to the high number of parts.
it back and forth, producing
music. This technique is known as push-pull operation and
is a major contributor to the sonic purity of the electrostatic
concept due to its exceptional linearity and low distortion.
Since the diaphragm of an electrostatic speaker is uniformly driven over its entire area, it can be extremely light
and flexible. This allows it to be very responsive to transients, thus perfectly tracing the music signal. As a result,
great delicacy, nuance and clarity is possible. When you
look at the problems of traditional electromagnetic drivers,
you can easily see why this is so beneficial. The cones and
domes which are used in traditional electromagnetic
drivers cannot be driven uniformly because of their design.
Cones are driven only at the
apex. Domes are driven at
their perimeter. As a result,
the rest of the cone or dome
is just "along for the ride". The
very concept of these drivers
require that the cone or dome
be perfectly rigid, damped
and massless. Unfortunately
Stator
these conditions are not
available in our world today.
To make these cones and
domes move, all electromagnetic drivers must use voice
coils wound on formers,
spider assemblies, and
surrounds to keep the cone
or dome in position.
Figure 2.
These pieces, when
See
combined with the high mass
Dust Cap
Voice Coil Former
of the cone or dome materials
used, make it an extremely
complex unit with many
weaknesses and potential for
failure. These faults contrib-
Spider
ute to the high distortion
products found in these
drivers and is a tremendous
disadvantage when you are
Magnet Assembly
Magnetic GapVoice Coil
trying to change motion as
quickly and as accurately as
a loudspeaker must (40,000
times per second!).
Quest User's Manual
Page 5
History
In the late 1800’s, any loudspeaker was considered exotic.
Today, most of us take the wonders of sound reproduction
for granted.
It was 1880 before Thomas Edison had invented the first
phonograph. This was a horn-loaded diaphragm that was
excited by a playback stylus. In 1898, Sir Oliver Lodge
invented a cone loudspeaker, which he referred to as a
“bellowing telephone”, that was very similar to the
conventional cone loudspeaker drivers that we know today.
However, Lodge had no intention for his device to reproduce music, because in 1898 there was no way to amplify
an electrical signal! As a result, his speaker had nothing to
offer over the acoustical gramophones of the period. It was
not until 1906 that Dr. Lee DeForrest invented the triode
vacuum tube. Before this, an electrical signal could not be
amplified. The loudspeaker, as we know it today, should
have ensued then, but it did not. Amazingly, it was almost
twenty years before this would occur.
In 1921, the electrically cut phonograph record became a
reality. This method of recording was far superior to the
mechanically cut record and possessed almost 30 dB of
dynamic range. The acoustical gramophone couldn't begin
to reproduce all of the information on this new disc. As a
result, further developments in loudspeakers were needed
to cope with this amazing new recording medium.
By 1923, Bell Telephone Laboratories made the decision to
develop a complete musical playback system consisting of
an electronic phonograph and loudspeaker to take advantage of the new recording medium. Bell Labs assigned the
project to two young engineers, C.W. Rice and E.W.
Kellogg.
Rice and Kellogg had a well equipped laboratory at their
disposal. This lab possessed a vacuum tube amplifier with
an unheard of 200 watts, a large selection of the new
electrically cut phonograph records and a variety of
loudspeaker prototypes that Bell Labs had been collecting
over the past decade. Among these were Lodge’s cone, a
speaker that used compressed air, a corona discharge
(plasma) speaker, and an electrostatic speaker.
After a short time, Rice and Kellogg had narrowed the field
of "contestants" down to the cone and the electrostat. The
outcome would dictate the way that future generations
would refer to loudspeakers as being either "conventional",
or "exotic".
Bell Laboratory’s electrostat was something to behold. This
enormous bipolar speaker was as big as a door. The
diaphragm, which was beginning to rot, was made of the
membrane of a pigs intestine that was covered with fine
gold leaf to conduct the audio signal.
When Rice and Kellogg began playing the new electrically
cut records through the electrostat, they were shocked and
impressed. The electrostat performed splendidly. They had
never heard instrumental timbres reproduced with such
realism. This system sounded like real music rather than the
honking, squawking rendition of the acoustic gramophone.
Immediately, they knew they were on to something big. The
acoustic gramophone was destined to become obsolete.
Due to Rice and Kelloggs enthusiasm, they devoted a
considerable amount of time researching the electrostatic
design. However, they soon encountered the same
difficulties that even present designers face; planar speakers require a very large surface area to reproduce the lower
frequencies of the audio spectrum. Because the management at Bell Labs considered large speakers unacceptable,
Rice and Kelloggs work on electrostatics would never be
put to use for a commercial product. Reluctantly, they
advised the Bell management to go with the cone. For the
next thirty years the electrostatic design lay dormant.
During the Great Depression of the 1930's, consumer audio
almost died. The new electrically amplified loudspeaker
never gained acceptance, as most people continued to use
their old Victrola-style acoustic gramophones. Prior to the
end of World War II, consumer audio saw little, if any,
progress. However, during the late 1940's, audio experienced a great rebirth. Suddenly there was tremendous
interest in audio products and with that, a great demand for
improved audio components. No sooner had the cone
become established than it was challenged by products
developed during this new rebirth.
In 1947, Arthur Janszen, a young Naval engineer, took part
in a research project for the Navy. The Navy was interested
in developing a better instrument for testing microphone
Page 6
Quest User's Manual
arrays. The test instrument needed an extremely accurate
speaker, but Janszen found that the cone speakers of the
period were too nonlinear in phase and amplitude response to meet his criteria. Janszen believed that
electrostats were inherently more linear than cones, so he
built a model using a thin plastic diaphragm treated with a
conductive coating. This model confirmed Janszen's beliefs,
for it exhibited remarkable phase and amplitude linearity.
Janszen was so excited with the results that he continued
research on the electrostatic speaker on his own time. He
soon thought of insulating the stators to prevent the
destructive effects of arcing. By 1952 he had an electrostatic
tweeter element ready for commercial production. This new
tweeter soon created a sensation among American audio
hobbyists. Since Janszen's tweeter element was limited to
high frequency reproduction, it often found itself used in
conjunction with woofers, most notably, woofers from
Acoustic Research. These systems were highly regarded by
all audio enthusiasts.
In the early 1960's Arthur Janszen joined forces with the
KLH loudspeaker company and together they introduced
the KLH 9. Due to the large size of the KLH 9, it did not have
as many limitations as the Quad. The KLH 9 could play
markedly louder and lower in frequency than the Quad ESL.
Thus a rivalry was born.
Janszen continued to develop electrostatic designs. He was
instrumental in the design of the Koss Model One, the
Acoustech, and the Dennesen speakers. Roger West, the
chief designer of the JansZen Corporation became the
president of Sound Lab. When JansZen Corporation was
sold, the RTR loudspeaker company bought half of the
production tooling. This tooling was used to make the
electrostatic panels for the Servostatic, a hybrid electrostatic
system that was Infinity's first speaker product. Other
companies soon followed; each with their own unique
applications of the technology. These include Acoustat,
Audiostatic, Beverage, Dayton Wright, Sound Lab, and Stax
to name a few.
As good as these systems were, they would soon be
surpassed by another electrostatic speaker.
In 1955, Peter Walker published three articles on electrostatic loudspeaker design in
Wireless World
, a British
electronics magazine. In these articles Walker demonstrated the benefits of the electrostatic loudspeaker. He
explained that electrostatics permit the use of diaphragms
that are low in mass, large in area, and uniformly driven
over their surfaces by electrostatic forces. Due to these
characteristics, electrostats have the inherent ability to
produce a wide bandwidth, flat frequency response with
distortion products being no greater than the electronics
driving them.
By 1956 Walker backed up his articles by introducing a
consumer product, the now famous Quad ESL. This
speaker immediately set a standard of performance for the
audio industry due to its incredible accuracy. However, in
actual use the Quad had a few problems. It could not play
very loud, it had poor bass performance, it presented a
difficult load that some amplifiers did not like, its dispersion
was very directional, and its power handling was limited to
around 70 watts. As a result, many people continued to use
box speakers with cones.
Electrostatic speakers have progressed and prospered
because they actually do what Peter Walker claimed they
would. The limitations and problems experienced in the
past were not inherent to the electrostatic concept. They
were related to the applications of these concepts.
Today, these limitations have been addressed. Advancements in materials due to the U.S. space program give
designers the ability to harness the superiority of the
electrostatic principle. Today's electrostats use advanced
insulation techniques or provide protection circuitry. The
poor dispersion properties of early models have been
addressed by using delay lines, acoustical lenses, multiple
panel arrays or, as in our own products, by curving the
diaphragm. Power handling and sensitivity have been
increased.
These developments allow the consumer the opportunity to
own the highest performance loudspeaker products ever
built. It's too bad Rice and Kellogg were never able to see
just how far the technology would be taken.
Quest User's Manual
Page 7
Martin-Logan Exclusives
Full Range OperationFull Range Operation
Full Range Operation
Full Range OperationFull Range Operation
The most significant advantage of Martin-Logan's
exclusive transducer technology reveals itself when you
compare to examples of other loudspeaker products on
the market today.
The Quest uses no crossover networks above 150 Hz
because they are not needed. It consists of a single,
seamless electrostatic membrane reproducing all
frequencies above 150 Hz simultaneously. How is this
possible?
First, it is important to understand that music is not
composed of separate high,
mid and low frequency
pieces. In fact, music is
comprised of a single
complex waveform with all
frequencies interacting
simultaneously.
The electrostatic transducer
of the Quest essentially acts
as an exact opposite of the
microphones used to record
the original event. A
microphone, which is a
single working element,
transforms acoustic energy
into an electrical signal that
can be amplified or preserved by some type of
storage media. The Quest's
electrostatic transducer
transforms electrical energy
from your amplifier into
acoustical energy with a
single membrane.
Upon looking carefully at a
traditional magnetic driver
(i.e. dynamic, ribbon,
induction), no single unit can
reproduce the full range of
frequencies. Instead, these
drivers must be designed to
operate within narrow areas
Figure 1. Figure 1.
Figure 1. Illustrates how a conventional speaker system
Figure 1. Figure 1.
must use a crossover network that has negative affects
on the musical performance, unlike the Quest which
needs no crossover networks in the "critical zone".
Conventional Loudspeaker
TweeterTweeter
Tweeter
TweeterTweeter
MidrangeMidrange
Midrange
MidrangeMidrange
WooferWoofer
Woofer
WooferWoofer
Martin-Logan
QuestQuest
Quest
QuestQuest
ElectrostaticElectrostatic
Electrostatic
ElectrostaticElectrostatic
TransducerTransducer
Transducer
TransducerTransducer
WooferWoofer
Woofer
WooferWoofer
of music and then combined electrically so that the sum of
the parts equals the total signal. While this sounds nice in
theory, a different story unfolds in real-world conditions.
In order to use multiple drivers, a crossover network is
enlisted to divide the complex musical signal into the
separate parts (usually highs, mids, and lows) that each
specific driver was designed to handle. Unfortunately,
due to the phase relationships that occur within all
crossover networks and during the acoustical recombination process, nonlinearities and severe degradation of the
music signal takes place in the ear's most "critical zone".
Critical ZoneCritical Zone
Critical Zone
Critical ZoneCritical Zone
250 - 20kHz250 - 20kHz
250 - 20kHz
250 - 20kHz250 - 20kHz
QuestQuest
Quest Loudspeaker
QuestQuest
Critical ZoneCritical Zone
Critical Zone
Critical ZoneCritical Zone
250 - 20kHz250 - 20kHz
250 - 20kHz
250 - 20kHz250 - 20kHz
See Figure 1
So, music in the "critical
zone" becomes delayed in
time. These delays can be
picked-up by your ear and
result in poor imaging and
ambience cues.
The Quest's electro-The Quest's electro-
The Quest's electro-
The Quest's electro-The Quest's electrostatic transducer canstatic transducer can
static transducer can
static transducer canstatic transducer can
single-handedly repro-single-handedly repro-
single-handedly repro-
single-handedly repro-single-handedly reproduce all frequenciesduce all frequencies
duce all frequencies
duce all frequenciesduce all frequencies
above 150 Hz simulta-above 150 Hz simulta-
above 150 Hz simulta-
above 150 Hz simulta-above 150 Hz simultaneously.neously.
neously.
neously.neously.
The crossover phase
discontinuities that are
associated with traditional
tweeter, midrange, and
woofer systems are eliminated in the Quest. This
results in a
improvement in imagingimprovement in imaging
improvement in imaging
improvement in imagingimprovement in imaging
and staging perform-and staging perform-
and staging perform-
and staging perform-and staging performance due to the mi-ance due to the mi-
ance due to the mi-
ance due to the mi-ance due to the minutely accurate phasenutely accurate phase
nutely accurate phase
nutely accurate phasenutely accurate phase
relationship of the full-relationship of the full-
relationship of the full-
relationship of the full-relationship of the fullrange panel waverange panel wave
range panel wave
range panel waverange panel wave
launch.launch.
launch.
launch.launch.
.
dramaticdramatic
dramatic
dramaticdramatic
Page 8
Quest User's Manual
Vapor Deposited FilmVapor Deposited Film
Vapor Deposited Film
Vapor Deposited FilmVapor Deposited Film
Curvilinear Line SourceCurvilinear Line Source
Curvilinear Line Source
Curvilinear Line SourceCurvilinear Line Source
The diaphragm material used in all Martin-Logan speakers
employs an extremely sophisticated vapor deposited conductive polymer surface. A proprietary conductive compound is
vaporized then electrostatically driven into the surface of the
polymer film in a vacuum chamber. This process allows an
optically transparent membrane, adds no mass to the diaphragm and is extremely uniform in its surface resistivity
characteristics. This uniform surface resistivity controls the
electrostatic charge on the diaphragm surface and regulates
its migration. As a result, no discharging or “arcing” can
occur.
Transducer IntegrityTransducer Integrity
Transducer Integrity
Transducer IntegrityTransducer Integrity
All Martin-Logan transducers begin with two pieces of high
grade, cold rolled steel. These steel pieces are then custom
perforated and insulated with an exotic composite coating.
This proprietary coating insulates the stator to 3 times its
actual needed working voltage and gives the Quest a wide
margin of safe operation. In addition to the electrical insulation
properties, this coating also provides the Quest with a
durable, attractive finish that dampens the steel to prevent
ringing. The finished metal plates are then sandwiched with
our exclusive vapor deposited diaphragm and spacers into a
curved geometry and bonded together with aerospace
adhesives whose strength exceeds that of welding.
The result of these advanced technologies is a transducer that
is attractive, durable, highly rigid, well dampened, and neutral.
Since the beginning of Audio, achieving smooth full
range dispersion has long been a problem for all
loudspeaker designers. Large panel transducers present
even more of a challenge because the larger the panel,
the more directional the dispersion pattern becomes.
Full range electrostats have always been one of the most
complex transducers because they attain their full range
capabilities via a large surface area. It looked as if they
were in direct conflict to smooth dispersion and almost
every attempt to correct this resulted in either poor
dispersion or a serious compromise in sound quality.
After extensive research, Martin-Logan engineers
discovered an elegantly simple solution to achieve a
smooth pattern of dispersion without degrading sound
quality. By curving the horizontal plane of the electrostatic
transducer, a controlled horizontal dispersion pattern
could be achieved, yet the purity of the almost massless
electrostatic diaphragm remained uncompromised. After
creating this technology, we developed the production
capability to bring this technology out of the laboratory
and into the market place.
You will find this proprietary Martin-Logan technology
used in all of our products. It is one of the many reasons
behind our reputation for high quality sound with practical
usability. This is also why you see the unique "see
through" cylindrical shape of all Martin-Logan products.
Quest User's Manual
Page 9
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