Every speaker in the Motion line utilizes the same Folded Motion™ tweeter. This 1×1.4-inch transducer is a 1.75×5.25-inch folded diaphragm that actually compresses and moves (thus the name) the air between the folds and propels it forward, allowing for much higher output from lower excursion than a conventional dome tweeter. These driers are unique in that they offer excellent dispersion as well as allow for very high output with low distortion.

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The smallest model in the lineup is the Motion 2 at just over 11 inches tall, five inches wide and four and a half inches deep and weighing just four pounds. They are rated to handle 50 Watts of power into their four-Ohm load and have an 86 dB efficiency at 2.83 Volts/meter. A three and a half inch cone driver covers the low end. The Motion 2 can reproduce from 110-25,000 Hz +/- 3 dB. The Motion 4 is larger at 12 and a half inches tall by five and a half inches wide and five and a quarter inches deep and weighs six pounds. The Motion 4 uses a four inch cone driver and can handle 75 Watts and sports a 90 dB at 2.83 Volts/meter sensitivity into it's four Ohm load. Frequency response is from 70-25,000 Hz +/- 3 dB with the bottom end helped by a MartinLogan designed Folded-Motion™ bass reflex port. The Motion 8 center channel measures five and a half inches tall by five and a quarter inches deep and 22 and a quarter inches wide. The frequency response is the same as the Motion 4, but it is 89 dB efficient. The Motion 8 utilizes two four-inch paper drivers for the low end. The Motion 12's are the biggest speakers in the lineup and stand just less than 43 inches tall by seven inches wide by 14 inches deep and weigh 36 pounds apiece. The same tweeter is used here too, as well as a five and a quarter inch dipole midrange driver and two six and a half inch bass drivers. The 12's add a rear port for the bass drivers as well allowing low frequency extension to 40 Hz.

The Dynamo 1000 subwoofer reports a frequency response from 22 to 200 Hz +/- 3dB from its 12 inch, high excursion poly cone drive assembly in a sealed cabinet design with a 500-Watt internal amplifier. Weighing in at roughly 34 pounds while measuring 14 inches square, you can mount the subwoofer vertically or remove the feet and horizontally install it into a rack or wall to free up floor space. It accepts stereo or mono single ended line level feeds or can receive wireless transmission with the optional SWT-1 transmitter.

The SWT-1 wireless subwoofer transmitter kit allows you to place the subwoofer anywhere within a reasonable distance in the room, up to 40 feet. The SWT-1 worked very well for me, but once I had the subwoofer placed in my room I hard wired it, as I was able to do so.

The Hookup
MartinLogan was kind enough to run all my speakers through 100 hours of use so they were ready to go out of the box. They were all well packed and covered in cloth sleeves. The look is unique as the bookshelf speakers have a curved front and rear panel that allows them to be wall mounted level or with 20 degrees offset to adapt to your room. All the bookshelf Motion speakers and center channels share the same smooth composite construction with high gloss black and flowing lines. The curved shape seems to flow onto the grill organically. The grill covers the entire front of all the Motion speakers from the model 2 to 8, being flat with a moderate bowing to conform to the cabinet's shape. In the deeper recess of the rear are mounting sites for the included wall mounts and the large spring loaded binding posts.

The floorstanding Motion 12s and sub come with metal spikes as well as rubber feet to work with either carpeted or tiled/wood flooring. I carefully unboxed the speakers and set about placing them into my room. The Motion series all use spring loaded binding posts, which are great for wall mounted speakers as they never loosen up, so unless you pull the wires out, they will always be held in place. The binding posts are set into deep gouges and each post has a large button to depress, to compress the spring inside. The gouge is set up to align the holes for the wire end and worked quite well making connecting the speaker wires quick and easy. For those wanting to use upgraded cables, the caps of each post can be removed to use banana plugs.

These speakers are designed to work with receivers so I set them up with the new Onkyo TX-NR5007 in a standard 5.1 system fed by an Oppo BDP-83SE and Scientific Atlanta 8300HD HD DVR and added the Motion 2s as front height channels for Dolby Pro Logic IIz and Audyssey DSX processing, with the 12s for fronts, the 8 for a center, the 4s as my surrounds and the Dynamo 1000 as the subwoofer. A quick run of my Onkyo receiver's Audyssey Multi EQ XT room correction and I was up and running in under an hour.

Performance
I was lucky enough to have MartinLogan burn these speakers in so once all the wiring was done and the speakers were positioned and leveled I was good to go. I initially used them for television viewing and was pleased with how they sounded. Both male and female voices were clear and concise, making spoken words easily discernable, while the system had plenty of dynamics for powerful events during viewing. The subwoofer helped fill in the low end well even when played back at insane levels.

Read more about the performance of MartinLogan's Motion system on Page 2.