In this review, we will be comparing two different types of speakers by MartinLogan. MartinLogan Motion® F10 is a Floor-standing speaker whereas the Motion B10 is a Bookshelf speaker.
Let's have a brief look at the main features
of MartinLogan Motion F10 and MartinLogan Motion B10 first before getting into our more
detailed comparison.
| Key Specs | MartinLogan Motion F10 | MartinLogan Motion B10 |
|---|
| Design | 3-way | 2-way |
|---|
| Tweeter | 1.0 x 1.4" Folded Motion Ribbon | 1.0 x 1.4" Folded Motion Ribbon |
|---|
| Midrange | 5.5" | — |
|---|
| Woofer | 2 x 5.5" Aluminum | 5.25" Woven Fiberglass |
|---|
| Frequency response | 38-25k Hz | 56-25k Hz |
|---|
| Sensitivity | 92 dB | 92 dB |
|---|
| Impedance | 4 ohms | 5 ohms |
|---|
| Power range | 20-250 watts | 20-200 watts |
|---|
| Weight | 22.90kg / 50.4lbs | 6.60kg / 14.5lbs |
|---|
| Dimensions (H x W x D) | 38-1/4" x 11-1/4" x 13-1/4"
971 x 286 x 336mm | 12-1/2" x 7" x 9-3/4"
318 x 178 x 248mm |
|---|
Motion F10 and Motion B10 are members of MartinLogan's Motion(4th Gen) series of speakers. Below you can find the loudspeakers from this series.
MartinLogan Motion(4th Gen) Series
History
What size room are the MartinLogan Motion F10 and MartinLogan Motion B10 speakers good for?
The size of the room in which you are planning to use these loudspeakers is an important decision
factor. Here we have compared their suitability to various sizes of environments considering their size
and max power parameters:
| Listening Environment* |
MartinLogan Motion F10 |
MartinLogan Motion B10 |
| Near-field |
Bad |
Poor |
| Small Room |
Poor |
Average |
| Mid-size Room |
Average |
Good |
| Large Room |
Good |
Average |
| Very Large Room |
Average |
Poor |
(* Approximate Room sizes: Small < 100sq. ft / 9 m2,
Mid-size: 100-220 sq. ft / 9-20 m2, Large 220-400 sq. ft / 20-36 m2, Very Large: >
400 sq. ft / 36 m2.
Average Floor Height: 9" / 2.7m. Typical room sizes differ from country to country, and the actual
listening experience changes depending on floor height, room shape, surface materials, listening
position, speaker locations, etc.)
The sections below take each area in turn: drivers, frequency response, physical size and what you get in the box.
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Drivers
One of the fundamental differences between these two speakers is that Motion F10 is a 3-way design whereas the Motion B10 is a 2-way speaker. 3-way designs utilize a midrange driver in addition to the tweeter and woofer on 2-way designs. Designing a crossover for a 3-way speaker is a complicated process and generally increases the overall cost of the speaker.
MartinLogan Motion F10MartinLogan Motion B10
MidrangeWoofer
Front view, drawn to scale - cabinets and drivers share one scale, so sizes are directly comparable. Hover a driver for its size.
| Driver |
MartinLogan Motion F10 |
MartinLogan Motion B10 |
|
Driver Setup
|
3-way
|
2-way
|
|
Tweeter
|
1.0 x 1.4-inch
|
1.0 x 1.4-inch
|
|
Midrange
|
1 x 5.5-inch |
- |
|
Woofer
|
2 x 5.5-inch
|
1 x 5.25-inch
|
Motion F10 features a 1.0 x 1.4" Folded Motion Ribbon Tweeter, a 5.5" Midrange and 2 x 5.5" Aluminum Woofer with a Crossover frequency at 280Hz and 3000Hz. On the other hand, the Motion B10 features a 1.0 x 1.4" Folded Motion Ribbon Tweeter and 1 x 5.25" Woven Fiberglass Woofer with a Crossover frequency at 2370Hz.
Frequency Response
Motion F10 has a frequency range of 38-25k Hz whereas Motion B10 has a frequency range of 56-25k Hz. With a minimum frequency of 38Hz, the Motion F10 can go significantly deeper on the low side and provide stronger bass compared to the Motion B10's min frequency of 56Hz.
The graph below depicts how these two speakers compare with the max, min and average Low Frequency values of other speakers in the Floor-standing class in our database.
Low Frequency
Floor-standing Speakers
Neither pair reaches down to 20Hz, the usual definition of full-range, which is normal for speakers of this size. If you want the bottom octave for movies or bass-heavy music, add a subwoofer to whichever you choose. Visit our Powered Subwoofers section to find out more about the available options.
Impedance and Sensitivity
Motion F10 is a 4 ohms speaker compared to the Motion B10 which has a nominal impedance of 5 ohms. Lower impedance speakers, especially the ones that are rated at 4 ohms may put more pressure on the amplifier unit especially when played at high volume levels, so make sure the amp you pair with the Motion F10 can provide this impedance level.
On the other hand, they have the same sensitivity of 92 dBdB.
Sensitivity
Floor-standing Speakers
Power Range
Power
range is the range of input power in watts RMS that a loudspeaker is designed to handle. Staying
within that range gives nominal performance; driving the speaker beyond its maximum wattage can damage it.
Motion F10 can handle a max power of 250 watts RMS, whereas Motion B10 has a max power handling value of 200 watts RMS, 50 watts less than the Motion F10.
Note that higher power handling does not make a speaker louder: that depends mainly on
sensitivity and impedance. The calculator below shows how loud each of these actually plays
on a real amplifier.
Which plays louder on your amplifier?
Starting with a popular amplifier — change it to the one you own, or any you are
considering, and watch both numbers move.
Input Type and Bi-Amping / Bi-Wiring
Motion F10 features Custom 5-way bi-wire tool-less binding posts posts which make bi-amping or bi-wiring possible. Motion B10 has a Custom 5-way binding posts which doesn't feature bi-amping/bi-wiring.
MartinLogan Motion F10's Custom 5-way bi-wire tool-less binding posts terminals allows Bi-amping or bi-wiring
MartinLogan Motion B10's Custom 5-way binding posts terminals
Cabinet Type and Port Position
Motion F10 has a bottom firing port whereas Motion B10 has a rear firing ports. MartinLogan Motion F10's bottom-firing port gives more flexibility in placement in regards to proximity to walls compared to MartinLogan Motion B10 with its rear-firing port.
New
Physical Specs
The size of a speaker can sometimes be an important decision factor due to space constraints or in some cases purely for esthetic reasons. In this section, we are going to compare MartinLogan Motion F10's and MartinLogan Motion B10's external dimensions. MartinLogan Motion F10 has external dimensions of 971 x 286 x 336mm (38-1/4inch x 11-1/4inch x 13-1/4inch) whereas MartinLogan Motion B10 has external dimensions of 318 x 178 x 248mm (12-1/2inch x 7inch x 9-3/4inch).
MartinLogan Motion F10 is clearly the larger of the two speakers. Its body is 108mm wider, 653mm taller and 88mm deeper than MartinLogan Motion B10.
Below you can see the front view size comparison of MartinLogan Motion F10 and MartinLogan Motion B10 in scale.
Comparison image of MartinLogan Motion F10 and MartinLogan Motion B10 Size and External Dimensions
Base Surface Area Comparison
Base surface area of a loudspeaker may become a determining factor when the space in your room or desk is limited.
The base surface area of the MartinLogan Motion F10 is approximately 961.0cm2 / 149.0inch2 and base area of the MartinLogan Motion B10 is approximately 441.4cm2 / 68.4inch2. The Motion F10 requires 118% more surface area than the Motion B10 which gives it a small disadvantage on placement in tight spaces.