HELP - buzzing on Magnepan 3.6R; repair or not?

Are you sure it is the speaker? Perhaps the buzzing is your amp clipping on the loud bass notes.

I used to own Magnepan 3.6rs and I feel there is nothing wrong with your speaker system. Magnepan's frequently "bottom out" or make a slapping sound when playing heavy bass notes with rock and roll or other music at moderatly high levels. This phenomem is also frequency dependent. Most people just live around this problem because the speakers sound so good and refrain from pushing them. Some find it frustrating because first they play so clean it is easy to play them very loudly and not realize how loud they are playing, then you are suddenly rudely reminded by the "slap" sound. Second it is important to use high power, high current amps with a high damping factor to control the panels. The more power the better and some solid state fans use Bryston 7b monoblocks with success. Others like the softer sound of tubes with the high frequencies. A good combo is a tube preamp and solid state amps for the 3.6rs.
Some people advocate using subwoofers in conjunction with the pans but the slapping sound can still occur at high levels unless you use an electronic crossover or a home theater processor to filter out the low bass notes. A problem with this method is trying to find a subwoofer that will blend well with the Maggies which might be getting easier as this technology improves. I would look into the Vandersteen subs or the new Velodyne digital or the Revel B-15s.
I don't know why you'd contact Martin Logan about Maggies maybe you typed in the wrong words in the second paragraph. I'm sure they would tell you to sell the Maggies and keep the Martins.
I have always preferred the Magnepan sound over the Martin Logan sound by a wide margin, because to me, Martin Logan has never successfully integrated their woofer system with their electrostatic panels well.
Magnepan for marketing reasons denies that their speakers need a subwoofer, but they could sell a bunch of dedicated sub panels with the 3.6rs and other models if they developed a system that could incorporate the Tympani bass panels with a special crossover for the audiophile who wants to take this to the limit.
Or, hmm, since Magnepan put Apogee out of business and I believe won the rights to the Apogee technology in the patent lawsuit, why don't they use the Apogee ribbon technology and incorporate this into their speaker systems? I've never heard anyone complain about Apogee bass as long as you had the amps to drive them.

And yes, if your Maggies are in need of repair, they would have to be serviced or adjusted (sometimes the panels can become out of line) by Magnepan.

Also if you are getting "bass slap" beware! You are endangering the ribbon tweeters which seem to blow easily despite being fused. They are user replacable and if not under warranty, I believe sell for around $200-300. They are a pain to replace though.

All previous cautions to the wind, the 3.6r is a wonderful sounding speaker, that do have some limits (The BASS), but what they do well (the mids and high frequencies) is close to are is "state of the art".

If you are a dedicated rock and roll man this may not be the speaker for you.

Hope this info helps,
Steven

Sell them at a deep discount and be done with them. At least the "repair" wouldn't come back to haunt you!

Is it the Maggie buzzing like you state in the title of your thread, or the Logan which you indicate in the last paragraph?

Are you talking about the first track of "Elephant"? If so the buzzing you are hearing is normal, that is how resolving the 3.6s' are I found that magnepan speakers are to revealing to listen to distortion. they play distortion to accurately. Play the same cd in your car and listen closely you will hear the same buzzing sound. Now if yet another cd does the same thing then you have issues. I would suspect that it is something else because if you pushed the speakers to hard the first thing to pop would be the fuse on the tweeter. Try Peter Gabriel's latest release or something else that is Rock but has a clean recording.

I am not saying damage is not possible, I am saying that I think it is unlikely and I have experienced the SAME thing with the SAME disc.

when I typed Martin Logan, I meant Magnepan (also have a pair of Martin Logan Odysseys).

For an amp, I am currently using an OCM 500 (225W+ at 8ohm and near double at 4ohm) so I do not believe the amp is clipping.

I get the buzzing on one speaker but not on the other. I used the Stereophile test CD with the test tones to confirm that the buzzing/vibration was indeed specific to that panel on the one speaker. I get it ising track 27, the 50hz warble from the CD. The other speaker produces this cleanly. It's definitely a buzz/vibration. It's coming from right at or just above the bottom cross bar on the speaker.

Your speaker needs repair. You'll probably find that a wire has separated from the panel (glue melted or failed) and that is what is causing the buzzing sound. If you or your prospective buyer are handy, the repair CAN be DIY. Magnepan sells the glue and the instructions to do it.

Otherwise you can ship it to them and they'll fix it. Turnaround time seems to be about 6-8 weeks.

With Magnepan speakers, the higher quality your electronics have, the better. There are powerful amplifiers that will not control the Magnepans with as much precision as others. Also, try putting "tip-toes" under the speakers. Place (2) point down at both ends of one leg, and (1) point down under the middle of the other leg. I am not familiar with "OCM" electronics. What are the other components in your system? Are the source, pre-amp, cables and AC power screen of similar sophistication? You may in fact need a repair, but they should be quite sellable if you decide not to keep them.

I have owned five pair of mags. I sold two sets to a local guy that will take apart anything. The mag 3's an older pair had a slap with a buzz he took the covering off the speaker and pressed his finger down on a staple and solved the problem, it was a lose staple.
It is a personal choice, I have also set two sets to the factory and had them repaired and, or refurbished, either way the factory has reasonable pricing.

I had the same problem on my old IIa's. I had spilt a coke on the panel, and I believe the mylar coverning the magnets delaminated.

Hi,

Just my two cents on this. I've got the same problem and Magnepan say I need a repair. Due to the excessive shipping charges that would apply when sending them from the UK, they offered me a repair kit for $40+delivery.

Unfortunately they can't ship it from October->April because if it freezes, the glue is ruined (!). So I phoned the Swedish Distributor, who have offered to send me some glue and explained how to repair it over the phone.

I'll update with how the repair process goes if I get a chance.

Regards,

John

Maggies may sound good when done right but I was never able to achieve this, and the many drawbacks prompted me to sell them.

That is not what you were asking about though. I believe your panel may be damaged. If you call up and talk to Wendell (and catch him in a good mood) he may be able to talk you through some rudimentary diagnostic steps.

there are tie wraps holding some stuff in the insides of the 3.6r speakers. Call Magnepan. They are quite nice and should fix it for free if it is really a problem and not clipping or bottoming out of your amp? If they are out of warranty you will have to pay the freight.

Good luck - get them tied down :-)
-John