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Maggie 1.7i's lack detail. Ideas?

Hi,
In about 1979 I had a roommate who had a pair of Magnapan's, an amp, pre-amp (at least one of which was NAD, and a fairly high quality turntable.  I was shocked and amazed about the feeling the singers were present in the room with me.   The accuracy and detail of the sound.

Fast forward 40 years and I purchase a barely used 1.7is.   I have a new Marantz NR1200.  A 15 yo BK EX-440 Sonata (350WPC @ 4 ohms), and optical bit stream out Sony DVD player.  I use optical cable between the DVD player and NR1200.   I have fairly high quality cables between the pre-out of the NR1200 and the EX-440.  I have somewhat high gauge copper stranded cable, about 6', between the EX-440 and the speakers.

The sound is not bad but very much lacking the detail and immediacy I remember in the highs and mid-range.  A great disappointment. My question is what the most likely culprit?

Some possibilities:
1. My hearing has declined.
2. I've a romanticized memory of the sound quality.
3. What I was hearing was the mushrooms.
4. The speakers my roommate had were a bit wider.  Maybe more like the 3.7s.  Maybe 40 year old 3.7s are just that much better than current 1.7is.
5. Stranded wire cables.
6. Turntable that much better than CD.
7. ????
 

jros

Showing 2 responses by crustycoot

crustycoot
601 posts
 

37 yrs ago there were MG3s, with the first "true ribbon" tweeter Magnepan made.  I owned a pair, and their palpable realism and detail far exceed the Quasi-ribbons of the 1.7is of today.  So that is a big part of it, but also, using a Marantz NR-1200 as your preamp cannot be helping.  #s 1-3 must also be considered as likely culprits.

If you want to maximize your existing setup, the first thing I'd try is to get a legit preamp and a DAC (or one with an onboard DAC) and switch to a true CD player as transport.  Pro-Ject makes a Pre Box S2 Digital and CD Box S2T you can try for under $1500.00.

crustycoot
601 posts
 

Also, 1.7is only disperse full range treble if your ears are aligned with the middle third of the panel...if you are too close, too high or too low, they drop off drastically, as I'm sure you've noticed.  Make sure you are in the sweet zone!

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