Folded Motion - Video
Parts of a Folded Motion Transducer
- A) Folded Motion Diaphragm
- B) Neodymium Super Magnets
- C) Rigid Steel Housing
Folded Motion Transducer at Work
Opposite charges attract. Like charges repel. The neodymium magnets hold constant, opposite charges. The circuit traces on the diaphragm are given a charge that is constantly reversed with the music, causing the diaphragm to "squeeze" air like an accordion.
Our exotic tweeter is similar to other tweeter technologies found on ultra-high-end speakers and helps gives Motion® speakers their fantastically realistic highs. Lightning fast transient response, combined with a large surface area (8 to 10-times that of a typical 1-inch dome tweeter) creates clear, highly dynamic and precise sound.
The Folded Motion Tweeter works by moving air (which creates sound) perpendicular to the folded ridges of the diaphragm, similar to how an accordion works. This extremely low mass diaphragm "squeezes" air and requires almost 90% less excursion than the typical 1-inch dome tweeter, which drastically minimizes distortion while providing a lightning fast response time. The increased surface area also provides a wide, yet controlled sound dispersion to create a realistic and carefully etched sound stage.
High Magnetic Field Strength for Superb Control and Efficiency
Folded Motion transducers incorporate neodymium iron boron (NIB) rare-earth magnets, which can maintain field strengths almost 20 times those of same-size conventional magnets. Combining such a powerful magnetic motor system with an extremely lightweight Folded Motion™ diaphragm yields an outstanding force-to-mass ratio. Like a sports car's high power-to-weight ratio, this characteristic allows extraordinary acceleration. Fast in the straight-aways, quick and nimble in the curves, Folded Motion drivers are very efficient and always under perfect control. The sound that results is pure MartinLogan, with super-low distortion, astonishing clarity, and absolute precision.
Hybrid Designs
Although our Folded Motion technology enables speakers to operate to lower frequencies, they cannot reproduce deep bass as effectively as a conventional speaker of similar size. Our solution is to reproduce the lowest frequencies with a very high-quality dynamic woofer. Other companies who have made such hybrids have often exhibited something of a Napoleon complex, overemphasizing the output from the woofer in an apparent effort to prove their loudspeaker manhood. The result of that misguided strategy is invariably thick, turgid bass that obscures midrange detail, thereby obliterating one of the main reasons for building a thin-film speaker to begin with. We don't do that. Instead, our speakers incorporate extremely high-performance woofers, crossed over the Folded Motion transducers via carefully tailored, precisely calculated networks made with top-quality components. Low crossover frequencies, phase- and amplitude-optimized crossovers, and critically damped woofers ensure a seamless transition between the two types of drivers, yielding speakers that really do offer the best of both worlds.