MARTEN DUKE 2 + STANDS

Type: Bookshelf Speakers
Brand: MARTEN
Model and options: DUKE 2 Piano Black + MARTEN STANDS
Selling price: 4500€
Department where the goods are visible: LOIRET, France.
Expedition possibility: No, because of the stands
Amount of shipping costs: Delivery possible within a radius of 200km at actual cost.
Condition of goods: Very good
First hand: second
New price: approximately €10,000 with the stands
Invoice available: no
Date, country and place of purchase: Belgium 2015
Warranty and expiration date: no
Serial number: on request
Original packaging retained: Yes for the speakers.

Links:
https://www.noir-et-blanc.com/blog/marten-duke-2-review/
https://www.marten.se/media-content/brochures/marten_heritage_duke_2.pdf
https://the-ear.net/review-hardware/marten-heritage-duke-2-standmount-loudspeaker/

I'm parting with my favorite bookshelf speakers that have been on my second system since 2015. Still in the Marten catalog without changes until the end of 2022, they bear witness to a form of achievement that the brand has not called into question except when a complete change in the Heritage range. The replacements, the Parker Duo, are priced at €14,500 with their feet at equivalent performance. In terms of performance, they are part of the Heritage range, equipped with the best ceramic transducers from Accuton, Jorma Design internal wiring, and high-end filter components, as well as speaker connectors.

I separate from it not to find better, but to keep a versatility on my second system, which I try to make work as much with 250 watts of transistor as 3 watts of tube, in this context I will keep only my DIY Albedo speakers from LA MAISON DU HAUT PARLEUR with their 98db efficiency, and therefore reduced the airfoil on the speaker range side at the same time to refocus a little on the main system.

Those who appreciate the Dukes generally do not part with them, and as for me, I would choose to keep them rather than sell them off, considering them to be the best libraries to have at home. The ceramic tweeter used is considered close to a diamond in terms of performance, the low midrange ensures control and expressiveness with high power handling, low distortion, an expansive sound image even in large spaces with lots of air , breathing at the top of the spectrum, if the rest follows of course. Ideal in a small treated room or an average room with a thoughtful positioning to help them a little in the low bass.

They carefully avoid a bad extension in the bass with a descending response below 70hz, do not try to do what they cannot do, which gives them a balanced rendering with wide bandwidth including in the low end of the spectrum in spaces with sheeting back to the wall. In a large room, a positioning that frees up the sound space that they are capable of giving would require additional extreme bass to avoid any frustration on large ensembles and tracks loaded with energy in the bass, but for the rest they have everything large, without the excess of opulence in the bass that can be seen in the big Martens in general, nor the excess of clarity without matter that one often finds in “clear” French loudspeakers. But with a positioning closer to the rear wall a balance can be found without complement in extreme bass in many situations of large spaces.

Some traces of use on the stands, speakers without noticeable trace, except that the piano black requires a little regular polishing given the visual sensitivity to fingerprints.
But that's the price to pay for piano black lacquer, the most beautiful effect.

These are rare speakers in France, which will give great pleasure to those who know how to appreciate them, associated with rich and expressive elements. I acquired them second-hand from the designer of the 432Evo audio servers, who after listening to most of the high-end bookshelf speakers of the time, had chosen them for use as a standard during the year of designing his server, far ahead of the other contenders.

Feel free to ask any question.