[Sonnova]

On Thu, 14 Aug 2008 20:09:32 -0700, wrote
(in article ):

Hello, I have acquired a pair of Acoustat tower speakers, they are the
MK-121-B model. I was hoping that someone on this list could let me
know if these are a rare find or just old junk!

Also, any advice for setting them up, or what they would be worth to
the right buyer.

Thanks in advance!

Chad

These are full-range electrostatic speakers made from the late 80's until
sometime in the 90's. When new, they were NOT cheap and were available in
single-panel, double-panel 4-panel, 6-panel, and 8-panel arrays. You don't
say how big they are, but the single panels are about 6-ft tall and skinny
and the double panels are wider and the 8 panels are almost 8 ft tall. The
single panel units are bar far the most plentiful and don't have much in the
way of bass, Even the 8-panel models don't go much below about 40 Hz.

If these speakers work, they can sound very good. They have most of the
electrostatic loudspeaker's advantages (fast, low coloration, di-polar
radiation pattern) and do some things very well. They al;so tend to exhibit
most of the electrostatic's drawbacks (narrow dispersion, limited low-end,
limited playback volume, a tendency to compress sound on loud passages and
funny impedance curves that not all amplifiers like.).

As Acoustat is out of business, you might have trouble getting them repaired
or getting parts for them. Today, Martin-Logan is the main carrier of the
electrostatic speaker "torch" and even modest Martin-Logans are FAR better
than the best Acoustats. But Acoustats still have their champions, and these
speakers are far from junk.

As to value, since I don't know what version you have I can't tell you what
they might be worth. From what I can glean, The MK-121-B designation is not a
model, but rather is a panel type. Models are designated by names such as
1+1, 2, 2+2, 3, 4, 6, and 8. 1+1s are two Mk-121-B panels stacked one atop
the other to make a tall, narrow tower, the 2s are two Mk-121-B panels side
by side and are relatively short and wide (almost square), the 2+2 s are two
Mk-121-B panels wide and two high (total of 4 panels). The 3s are three
Mk-121-B panels side by side etc. The 8's seem to be 4 Mk-121-B panels wide
and two high making them almost 8 ft tall.