MARTINLOGAN MOTION 60 XTI SPEAKER SYSTEM
ASK A CAR GUY to identify any classic American car from the
1950s or 60s, and most would be able to pin it down to the exact year of production. Back then, the auto companies would change up styling every year, even if the mechanical stuff under the sheet metal remained essentially unchanged. The problem with that approach is that tooling up to build new models every year gets really expensive, so these days most cars have a life cycle of a few years before an all-new generation is introduced. To keep these longer-lasting designs looking fresh, at some point in the life cycle they’ll give the car what’s known as a facelift, replacing a few key parts like the grille, taillights, and trim to lend it a new look.
The new “XTI” versions of Martinlogan’s Motion series speakers follow the pattern described above, with freshenedup styling wrapped around the same essential guts of the Motion 60XT system I reviewed back in 2015. In fact, when laying out the specifications box for this review, I found that the only specs that needed revision were the model names and prices; everything else was the same. Comparing prices with the older models revealed an increase of about 19 percent for the new system. Five years of inflation accounts for part of that, while the all-new, improved Dynamo 1600X subwoofer accounts for most of the rest.
Martinlogan’s cosmetic changes for the new Motion “i” series include three finish options instead of the prior two. Gloss black remains, but the old glossy cherry wood finish has been replaced by a more natural-looking red walnut veneer, and a new satin white finish adds a Euro-chic look to widen global appeal. (A friend of mine who exports speakers says that white is the most popular speaker finish in Europe.)
Other visual changes are meant to help soften the line’s look somewhat. There’s a brushed metal band across the front of each speaker with a Martinlogan logo, while the grilles are now covered with fabric instead of the bare perforated metal on the older versions. On the 60XTI towers, that metal band separates the speaker’s front into two sections, with an upper grille covering the midrange driver and tweeter, and a lower grille to cover the woofers. Both are attached magnetically, so no unsightly peg holes will be visible should you opt to run the speakers au naturel without the grilles.
Put all together, the Motion series now includes thirteen individual models, with three tower and two bookshelf speakers along with multiple surround and center channel options for building a home theater setup. Like usual, my goal was to put together a system that would be equally at home serving as a two-channel music system and a multichannel home theater rig for movies. For my 5.1 channel setup I selected the 60XTI towers for the front left and right channels, a 50XTI center speaker, and a pair of the 35XTI bookshelf models pressed into service as the surrounds. Bottom-end grunt was delivered by the Dynamo 1600X.
The flagship Motion 60XTI features dual eight-inch aluminum cone woofers, a six-inch aluminum cone midrange, and the same 1.25 × 2.4-inch Motion XT folded ribbon tweeter used throughout much of the Motion lineup. Along with the cosmetic modifications noted above, the aluminum woofer and midrange cones in the new Motion series have been subtly changed from those in the older model, with a new flattened dust cap in the center that Martinlogan says helps to improve stiffness. These are tall, substantial speakers that make a strong visual statement. A pair of outrigger bars can be attached to the speaker’s base that gives it a wider stance for added stability. I used the bars with the provided carpet piercing spikes, though rubber footers (also included) can be substituted if you have a hard or delicate floor. Twin pairs of binding posts allow for bi-wiring or bi-amping, and the hand-tightened posts themselves are an object lesson in good design. A bass reflex model, the 60XTI features a pair of rear-facing ports positioned below its binding posts.
The 35XTI bookshelf speaker features the same Motion XT folded ribbon tweeter and 6.5-inch aluminum cone driver as the 60XTI tower, although in this case the speaker is a two-way design with a single rear port and 6.5-inch cone doing the woofing. Same goes for the 50XTI, but in this case two 6.5-inch woofers flank the folded ribbon tweeter in a typical center channel configuration.
While it’s not technically a part of the Motion series, the Dynamo 1600X subwoofer is the most changed part of the system with several notable improvements over the Dynamo 1500X I had previously tested. That model could be adjusted to the room using a system called the Perfect Bass
Kit, but I found using it to be pretty clunky and awkward. Martinlogan has fixed that with its new Dynamo X series subs. While the Perfect Bass Kit is still an option, a new Martinlogan Subcontrol App IOS/ Android app works in tandem with ARC room correction from partner company Anthem to provide a comprehensive set of smartphonebased subwoofer tuning and control features.
While having all of that control and tuning capability is great, the Dynamo 1600X also offers flexible connectivity. Along with the standard RCA inputs for left/right and LFE signals, there’s a balanced XLR LFE input if your surround processor supports that. Speakerlevel inputs are provided, and there’s a slot where you can plug in the company’s optional SWT-X wireless module ($200) for a cablefree connection to an A/V receiver or surround sound preamp.
With 900 watts of continuous power (1,800 watts peak) driving a 15-inch woofer in a sealed enclosure, the Dynamo 1600X promises deep and tightly controlled bass, and its output can be further tweaked by choosing to install the sub with the woofer facing forward or downward. Controls provided on the back panel are limited to a volume level knob and various power switching and trigger-on options, but given the comprehensive controls included in the Subcontrol app, that’s hardly a problem.
SETUP
With so many speakers having passed through my home theater room over the years, finding the perfect spot for them has become second nature for me. Since the Motion 60Xtis have a big pair of rear-firing bass ports, I found they liked to be a little further out from the front wall than usual—around four and a half feet. I positioned the 50XTI midway between them, but because the tweeter on the 60XTI is mounted up high on the cabinet, the center speaker had to be noticeably lower to avoid blocking my projection screen. While this placement could have resulted in a discontinuity in movie sound effects that sweep across the front stage, in practice I didn’t hear a problem. The 35XTI surround speakers were positioned slightly behind the listening chair against the side walls, while the sub was in the usual front left corner. I found the 60Xtis to be fairly sensitive to toe in; turning them slightly inwards helped solidify image focus while enhancing soundstage depth. The Dynamo 1600X was tuned using the ARC app in tandem with the Subcontrol app, a process that helped to tame a 65-Hz peak I see in my room with most subs. For surround listening with both movies and music I drove the speakers with a Denon AVR-X8500H receiver, and a Peachtree Audio Nova integrated amp for two-channel listening. Sources included discs played on an Oppo
UDP-203 universal player, video streamed from an Amazon Fire Cube, and music streamed from Qobuz and Tidal.
PERFORMANCE
To kick things off I listened to the Motion 60Xtis running solo. Using the same amp, and even the same recordings, that I used when reviewing the older 60XTS helped me get a handle on whether performance changed along with the cosmetics. Of course, it’s unrealistic to expect to reliably recall the sound of something auditioned over four years ago, but I did have my original review and listening notes to reference.
Cueing up my favorite bass torture track, “Words of Wonder” by Keith Richards, I was struck by the 60Xti’s powerful yet tuneful bass.
With many speakers you can encounter a problem where some deep bass notes ring out loud and clear, while others all but disappear. Maybe I just hit on the perfect position for the speakers, but every note from Charlie Drayton’s bass on this track was present and powerful, even when he dropped down the scale to play really deep stuff.
The 60Xti’s sense of focus and clarity through the mid- and high-frequency ranges was exceptional, with no sense of strain or compression even when the volume was turned up pretty high. Martinlogan says that the Motion series speakers were voiced to have a presentation similar to their electrostatic speakers, and while that’s probably an accurate statement when it comes to tonal balance, there’s really no way that a direct-radiating speaker can deliver the type of huge, room-expanding soundstage you get with dipole speakers. The Motions are more about pinpoint focus and clarity than in busting down a room’s boundaries.
“A Secret Silken World” is the opening track from David Baerwald’s Triage album, and it has a cool and sophisticated vibe to underpin Baerwald’s somewhat cynical lyrics, along with smooth trumpet lines courtesy of Mr. Herb Alpert. Producer Bill Bottrell’s mix captures Baerwald’s vocal articulation beautifully, and later in the song when some unusual vocal double-tracking is added, the 60Xti’s transparency made it easy to hear this kind of subtle contrast in the production.
Switching over to movies, Avengers: Infinity War is a perfect disc to give any surround system a real workout, with a powerful orchestral score by Alan Silvestri underpinning the action scenes. The scene just before the opening credits where Hulk crashlands through the roof of the Sanctum Sanctorum in New York combined many sonic elements that demonstrated the Motion system’s powerful performance, and especially that of the Dynamo 1600X subwoofer. Watching it, the sense of space was huge, and the excellent timbral match between the five speakers created a cohesive, room-filling soundfield. The impact of the Hulk crashing through the