Magico Q1 versus ...

Best I've ever heard, regardless of price or size. Yes, they are limited below 40hz. But the entire rest of the range they reproduce, where ALL the music lives, is exactly what I've been hoping to find for the last 15 years ... and had almost given up that it didn't exist.

If you need that last octave, add a sub. What they do better than anything else however, you can't add to another speaker in any way.

As a Vapor Cirrus owner, I was going to recommend them. Close to a year of ownership now and I still very strongly believe they're the best speaker I've ever heard. There's so much layering of harmonics, so much more insight into the recording, that it's truly revelatory. But what's most exciting about them is that they can reveal so much detail in the music, but do it in a way that's incredibly relaxing and refined.

Xti - interesting you mention the C1 Sigs. My neighbor about 4 houses down has a pair, and we do a lot of listening in each others rooms. Right now he has his C1's up for sale so that he can buy a pair of Cirrus. On their own the C1 Sigs are great speakers, but A/B them against the Cirrus as we've done a couple times, and it's like flipping a switch. The Cirrus make the C1's sound like something is broken.

I had Focal Diablo Utopia Be's before, and in direct comparision they were more revealing than the neighbors Dyn C1's ... but I don't think I'd say they were any better. The Focals were always just a bit edgy sounding, never relaxed or refined. Made it hard to just listen and chill. At least with the Dyn's you can just chill out and listen.

I do like the neighbors C1 Sigs. They're just so slow sounding and so much less resolving that in direct comparision with the Cirrus they are really boring (for lack of a better word).

Drumiha, that's pretty much the same boat I was in ... wanted the romance of music, and still hear every detail in an immersive soundstage. The Utopia Be, looking back on it was a worse speaker than I thought while owning it. Maybe I liked it because it was a contrast with the Harbeths that I also had. But no, I'd have to say the Focal never really connected with me personally.

I bet the Cayin would be a nice match. I currently have an Ayon Triton II, previously had an Orion but wanted a bit more oomph in Triode mode. Both were a fantastic match with the Cirrus. Even with only 30wpc the Cirrus gets moving pretty good.

Hey Drumiha, your English is excellent ... I'd say you type more coherently than most Americans :)

Yes, the Triton II has Ayon branded Black Treasures. They are excellent tubes, very sweet and refined sounding. I also have a set of Psvane's which I find a bit more engaging, more lively. Between the two of them, they make for a nice contrast. I've thought about KT-120's, but the Cirrus doesn't need any more power. With my old Utopia Be's though there were many times I thought it could use a bit more drive.

My problem with the Focals wasn't tonal balance problems, just that it never felt refined. I always knew I was listening to a speaker, never felt like real music. And with the Harbeth SHL5's they were just too slow, like maple syrup on a cold day. And there was a tonal balance issue with the Harbeth's, at least for my taste, just too much mid bass emphasis.

My opinion, the MicroOne's having heard them at 2 shows now - they want to be like the Cirrus. They're somewhere inbetween the Cirrus and the Utopia Be's. They're a bit more refined than the Be's, but nowhere near as resolving or able to completely disappear like the Cirrus can. For the price if it ever actually ships the MicroOne should be a good buy. But then again I haven't heard the Vapor Breeze, but from what Ryan tells me about it, I bet it would match or beat the Micro's for a lot less money still.

Oh, and my Cirrus has Clarity MR caps, Dueland resistors, and Amorphous core RAAL tweeter.