Maggies on my mind.

I agree with Jafox. I've owned the 3.3Rs & now own Apogee
Mini Grands. The true ribbon tweeter is just better than anything else - as long as you can dedicate the room & the gear it deserves.

Hi RLB61,

I own the Maggie 1.6qr's. I heard them in several "showrooms" before I purchased them. If I would have depended on how they sounded in the various "showrooms" I never would have purchased them. Most audio "salons" do not know how to set up the audio gear they demonstrate...that is simply a fact of life we audio enthusiasts must learn to tolerate if we "must" go to audio salons at all.

Instead, I took the advice of a few reviewers and audiogon members and purchased them.

I cannot begin to tell you the musical bliss they are capable of delivering! Of course no speaker is "perfect." But the Maggie 1.6's allow the music to flow into the "air" with the same delicate and dynamic sensation that l"ive" music has. The music penitrates you with its mysterious presence...everything is there to make you feel connected to the musical idease...the profound feelings.

I am certain there are other speakers that can also recreate music with the same magic...and perhaps a bit more of this or that thrown in...especially if you read the many positive reviews in this forum.

But that is not the point...is it? The Maggie 1.6's bring most of what you need to feel emotionally attund to the music with a plethora of "detail" that is musically "natural" and a never ending delight to experience. The electronics must be synergistic and it is worth checking out the feedback here and in AA.

I am currently listening with a 7 watt sep(entoid) amp and it sounds heavenly...rich and liquide. I am waiting for a Carver Professional ZR1600 to arrive tomorrow and an Axiom "passive" pre-amp (attenuator). I'll let you know how it sounds after it is broken in.

Best of luck to you-Richard

I've owned serval pairs of Magnepan. I've heard the 1.6s sound great and I've heard them sound thin (bad). Magnepans LOVE current....not watts, but current. The more current, the more open and transparent they sound.

There is nothing else quite like them. But I'm telling you the 1.6s are much better than the 1.5s. And what your experience PROVES is that matching components to speakers is a MUST!

If you want the best that Magnepans can offer, I suggest a tube front end and a huge SS amp with plenty of current. This is by far how the Maggys sound best.

Steven

Living with and without several Maggies througout the last 20 years I can wholeheartedly agree with what I have read here EXCEPT, for driving any Maggie with a 7 watt amp!! The richness you hear might be the tubes adding some nice 3rd order harmonics from being overdriven!

A high current amp with a tube front end does work very well. Make sure you have clean electronics. It is definitely about lots of current (Bryston SST amps are awesome with Maggies), and a reasonable size room for them to breathe in. You will spend a lot of time rearranging your room if you are to arrive at what these babies can do.

The other comment I read which puzzles me is the Home Theatre applications issue. I have had very good experience with Maggies in a HT enviornment. Once again it is a matter of patience and the wife's willingness to accomodate the room for the sound first and all other consideration next.

If your Maggies are in good working order and they are not involving or does not image well, you can be sure it is NOT the speakers. The current generation of Maggies are transparent enough to easily show the differences in wires and certainly electronics. So you maybe hearing/not hearing due to something else.

Models owned: MGIIB, MG3A, MG1.6QR, MG3.6R (I am saving up for the 20.1s. This is my equivalent of going to heaven.)

Had owned AR9s, Klipch, Infinity, before buying the MGIIB and then the 3As. Then I made the mistake of listening to a pair of KEF 107/2s. The bass was better than anything I had heard at that time. And image depth was almost as good as the Maggies. For several years the 3As were the surround channels while the 107/2s were the main speakers. Sold the 3As, regretted it, tried Apogees, Carvers, Accoustats, MLs, The big Allisons, Celestions, but nothing and I mean NOTHING has the combination of coherency, imaging, accuracy, speed and involment in each of the Maggies' price points. Don't judge them in an enviornment that you didn't have any control in setting them up, eg. dealer's showroom. You simply will not get it!

Yes,I have Maggies on my mind, and with good reason since they are in my soul too and I will never part with them again.