![]() The question is, how does Martin Logan’s (ML) take on the sound bar stack up against its premium pals, and does it earn the extra grand it asks for in comparison to budget bars? We found out. MartinLogan is joined by the likes of Bowers and Wilkins, Yamaha and Definitive Technology, all of which have put some considerable engineering efforts toward making bars that sound so big, you won’t miss all those clunky components and rat’s nest of wires. That all sounds great to us, but $1,500 for a sound bar? Is the woo of a high performance, single-cabinet solution so strong that one would forego a proper home theater rig? You know, $1,500 can net you a respectable 5.1 speaker system and an A/V receiver these days.Īpparently, the answer to our rhetorical question is: yes. The MartinLogan Motion Vision sound bar fits into the latter category, offering high-quality construction, sleek design, ample power, MartinLogan’s custom “Folded Motion” tweeters, lots of DSP and surround sound processing and, according to its maker, some pretty robust bass. Now that sound bars have caught on in a big way, the market has opened up to a more diverse set of options, with prices and features reaching out to both the low-end and high-end extremes. On-shelf EQ preset results in chesty bassīoth sound bar and wireless sub solutions are pricey Nevertheless, PS2 owners hankering for a bit of next-gen control on a last-gen console will have fun experiencing their older games with a new controller. Obviously, however, the Motion FX adds no new real features to these titles, and we believe the true utility of tilt sensitivity will be discovered in PS3 games that compliment traditional analog control with tilting, such as FPS titles in which tilt will lean a character out from behind cover. In games that work well with such a control scheme, like WipeoutXL, flight simulators, and some driving games, the accessory adds a new dynamic to last-generation titles. Split Fish's Motion FX is highly successful in adding SIXAXIS-style tilt sensitivity to the venerable DualShock 2. Unfortunately, the Motion FX cannot control both sticks, which means it does not work for games like Katamari Damacy. Though the Motion FX is automatically set to emulate the movement of the left analog stick, it can be set to control the right stick instead. Level (the position of the controller when it registers neutral tilt) can be set by pressing the black tab at the base of the "T," which can also be used to turn the Motion FX on or off while in use. Sensitivity can be adjusted by holding Select and either X or Triangle. ![]() ![]() The Motion FX is also adjustable in many aspects. It's a useful feature in that it aids the process of becoming familiar with the device's range of motion and easily indicates when the controller is at a neutral level position. A crosshairs of LEDs is centrally positioned in the middle of the device and lights up to illustrate the direction and extent of tilt detected. SplitFish made a number of good design decisions in building the Motion FX. At no time did we sense that lag was being introduced, and within minutes of getting started we were tearing through the rally courses of GT4 just as we do in MotorStorm. For all intents and purposes (other than a bit of added weight that makes the DualShock slightly top heavy) we may as well have been using a SIXAXIS. In play we were entirely impressed with the Motion FX's ability to emulate analog stick input via tilt sensing. SplitFish includes small wire clips with the Motion FX to prevent the two wires from tangling excessively, which is a nice touch. Installation was as simple as snapping the device onto the DualShock and making the obvious wire connections. As such, the Motion FX is compatible with the complete PS2 library, though naturally some games lend themselves to tilt-based control more than others.įor our testing purposes we put the MotionFX to work with Gran Turismo 4 and Wipeout XL. ![]() The dongle manages the task of interpolating the Motion FX's tilt as analog stick movement, which makes the apparatus entirely invisible from the PS2's point of view. The Motion FX, and the controller it's attached to, both plug into an included dongle that then connects to the PS2's controller port. The device itself is a stylishly curving "T" that snaps onto the DualShock with an included plastic clip. ![]() Somewhat humorously, vibration feedback remains intact, rather directly invalidating Sony's previous claims that tilt sensitivity and vibration feedback can't coexist. The company's new Motion FX adapter for the PlayStation 2 retrofits the classic DualShock 2 with a clip-on unit that adds exactly the same tilt sensing abilities as those found in the PS3's SIXAXIS. Happily, SplitFish Gameware has made this entirely possible. ![]()
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