Magico's M9

I wring my hands. I wring my ears. Or is that my ears ring?

Yeah I can’t decide which to buy the Magico M9 or one of Jeff Joseph speakers. Good to have choices.

I think it was Jay's Audio who once reviewed a pair of Magico speakers and said the tweeter was like $13k... if it blew out and if you crated up one speaker and sent it back to Magico to fix they would email you back when the work was finished and you would have to make arrangements for freight to pick up the speaker at their dock... they don't pay to send it back to you.

Also that particular model did not come with a grill.

Not my kind of brand.

Each to their own !!!

@2psyop 

Also that particular model did not come with a grill.

That's an appalling lack of customer consideration from Magico.

Absolutely appalling.
 

some houses cost that much, it better have a nice view

classic Audiogon clown show stuff. why do i even take the time to look? i know how the posts will read already.

can’t this forum ever consider the performance merits or build quality of an expensive product, why does price get everyone’s panties in a bunch every single time? it’s a hobby site, not the editorial page of the local newspaper. i come here to avoid all that.

sigh.

@mikelavigne 

Thank you Mike! What is the point of the pos? There are more expensive speakers out there, and as always, whether it's $10,000 or $1,000,000,  if you can't sfford them, or think that the price is ridiculous, don't buy them!

why does price get everyone’s panties in a bunch every single time?

Maybe because there are people in this country picking through the trash for food or cans.

@mikelavigne It's a slow day, I think it's fun to poke at some expensive beast, probably not classy but better than punching down. My pet peeve is design and I have a lot to say about expensive speakers that are difficult to look at. 

I read the winner of the Musk/Zukerberg cage fight wins a pair. Or was it grows a pair?  

I guess you cannot afford them.
 

Yes you would pair them with appropriate electronics. Likely costing more than the speakers.

There are people that legitimately make a lot of money. I have worked with many of them. CEOs of large corporations. It is a humbling experience to work with folks this smart and driven. They worked incredibly hard to become the people they are and to guide enormous corporations through changing environments. Most I have worked with have been very good people with integrity and charity… and are ferociously intelligent. The  millions they take home a year is completely worth it for the company,  the people that work for the company and the community they exist in. They contribute to charitable organizations. 
 

While I am compassionate about  people in the street, either they have problems that should be addressed by the government. Like mental health problems, vets… etc.. I was a volunteer at Chicago State Mental Hospital in the ‘60s. These people were turned out to the streets because society decided through voting that this is not the responsibility of government. Or if they are able bodied, they need take. Are of themselves.

I do not criticize folks that have the wherewithal to buy and appreciate top tier audio equipment. I spent on average working 70 hours a week over the last fourth years to create the home and system I own, and I am not going to feel guilty about that. I am not going to criticize those that have achieved greater material wealth, since in doing that they gave up a lot. I have taken off nearly five years to hike, climb, bicycle, raft and travel during my career. We make choices in our lives. 
 

and there are, in many parts of the World, not excluding some in the US, people with such wealth are neither smart nor hard working. They are just criminals. Totally off-topic or maybe not - since the subject is insane wealth, in a way.

Regarding the topic, if you have a large room (mansion) and the money, and the time, buying expensive audio is for sure better than a zillion other hobbies

Compare the engineering that goes into a $250,000 low volume automobile compared to a loudspeaker.

They'll probably sell all they can build, likely to people who care more about the price than how they may sound.

I am eagerly awaiting Jay's Audio Lab review! Just the thing to use with his Transparent $80K speaker cables!

"They'll probably sell all they can build, likely to people who care more about the price than how they may sound."

@mrskeptic  You chose the right screen name.

@roxy54 what? 
 

Thank you Mike! What is the point of the pos?

Why all the grumbling? I bet they sound pretty good and i'd love to hear them.   

I've never heard anything at that level.  

12 Most Expensive Speakers In The World (2023)
https://speakergy.com/most-expensive-speakers/

I'd like to hear them too. hard for me to imagine that speakers could be worth that but money is a relative measure, and if someone has the cash and chooses to spend it this way, good for them. It's not a moral issue. Problem with that point of view is that  a $10,000 set of speakers is far beyond the means of many as well. Most people would never understand why anyone would "need" to spend ten grand on speakers 

it's all relative and a matter of choice for those who have the means. Nothing inherently good or bad about it 

I don’t think anyone need 750k speakers, or even 10k speakers. I am at the point in my life where I could afford $750k speakers with the right electronics, but not without serious sacrifice and that is a choice I am not willing to make since I don’t need these speakers, I am happy with my 50k system.

I’ve been lucky enough to have heard the M9s. 
If I had $750k to spare, I’d consider them. And I’d consider the Pillium monoblocks, too. 
 It was a wonderful experience listening to such a fine system in a dedicated listening room. Having seen how Magico speakers are constructed, the components and care taken to do so, by an army of dedicated, focused people, I was honored to have been invited to the company/factory. 
 Elon is a down to earth, audiophile and gentleman. 

@leadcrew Verity, Nola and YG should be on the list

I don't begrudge rich people spending their money on luxury goods, particularly items that are made in the USA by companies that hire skilled craftsmen, pay them a living wage, and pay US taxes. I would rather they go that than just leave it in the bank.

+1 @8th-note 

Good point! And as far as "people picking through the trash for food" are concerned, we all pay plenty to feed them with our taxes and charitable contributions, especially people like @mikelavigne 

I don’t know if this 750k Speakers can beat those Austin Acoustic Speakers and the system at Axpona in Westin Holel in Chicago before Axpona was move to Renaissance Hotel ... I go to Axpona I have never heard a system even close to that Austin Acoustic set up total 750k.

How about Trickle down ?  When a manufacturer of Speakers or Amplifiers or Cables they use what they learn from building the ultimate and incorporate that knowledge into equipment that 99.99% of us can afford .  The rich are therefore subsidizing the R & D that ends up reaching us all .   

Talk about diminishing returns!

But I would be very interested in hearing the M9s in a well set up system.

Believe such a system exists at the Magico factory in Hayward, CA.

Does anyone know the details of this system?

I don’t know of any amp at that price point. But, surely, the entire system, not to mention the room, should add up to more than the speakers.

However, it is also clear that price is only indirectly tied to quality.

You could trade down to the KEF Muon’s for @$225.000.

+1 @mikelavigne 

My advice is: always pay your electricity bill first. I mean it. Stop agonizing on stuff you cannot afford without putting yourself in big trouble (I.e debt in this case). If it helps, keep posting on audio forums “proof” why something at 1% if the price sounds just as good. It’s normal nowadays 

oy vey

inconsequential, non substantive drivel

Having heard the Magico A5 only, is was not worth the ask.

@brianlucey A5 is entry level and at 25k there’s only about $5000 left to build the speakers in terms of manufacturing. There’s just not enough meat of the bones.

Jay’s audio puts forward all this extremely expensive gear and doesn’t really talk about it. What makes it so great? He doesn’t seem to have any technical expertise or willingness to share it. The continual sound comparisons and teasing is difficult to comprehend. No one can hear her a difference it’s ridiculous

Personally I’d like to learn about this gear, but his website doesn’t come through.

Clearly all this ultra high end gear is extremely overpriced. And only serves to elevate pricing of lower tier gear which is a strategy.

Audio gear sales our way down, surprising audio research has made it this far.

I know everyone is sick of hearing about this

But you made a post about it anyway. Was that useful, you think?

FWIW, I heard the Magico M6 ($172,000/pair) at AXPONA last year. They sounded absolutely stellar — best sound of the show, along with the Avantgarde Trio G3 horns and the Focal Maestros.

That kind of quality costs money. Never heard the M9s but I have no problem believing their performance is a level or two above that of the M6s. It’s worth it to some of us. So what? Why do you care? If the price of a product offends you, don’t buy it.

I mean, I’d love to drive a Bugatti but I won’t/can’t plunk down a million dollars for it. Doesn’t mean I’ll go complain about its price on an automotive forum.

For me, a Bugatti isn’t in the cards, but I’m glad supercars exist, pushing the performance envelope. So it is with the M9s. If the M9s aren’t for you (based on price alone), fair enough, but why would that matter to us — or to Magico — in the slightest? It’s not interesting and it’s not relevant.

@emergingsoul 

"Jay’s audio puts forward all this extremely expensive gear and doesn’t really talk about it. What makes it so great? He doesn’t seem to have any technical expertise or willingness to share it. The continual sound comparisons and teasing is difficult to comprehend. No one can hear her a difference it’s ridiculous"

Well said! He's not an audio guru, he's an entrepreneur.

roxy54

... He's not an audio guru, he's an entrepreneur.

I think that's true of almost all of the YouTube crowd. They seek to be "influencers." Jay had a really aggressive, promotional thread on A'gon, which he shut down after he attracted critics, which he just could not abide. There's a thread now where the guy who runs ASR is vigorously defending himself. He has to work really hard at it and it isn't a pretty sight.

If only they had a influencer like Jay who offered technical expertise. And maybe some critical commentary comparing gear. This would be a GameChanger. No one really does this very well.

Do any of these influencers really make much money? Or is it just for the joy of doing something. Are they really paying for these mega speakers they put in front of them? Doubtful

Lets see. The Magico M9 is $750k. I will admit I am a blue collar guy so I am going to spend all this money assuming I have already put investments aside. I live in Ohio so I can get a very nice home for $400k and I can have a dedicated room for another $50k. That leaves me around $300k for the speakers and an updated HiFi system. If I can find a decent set of speakers for $100k I still have $200k for all the electronics. Digital $15K TT $15k Two mono amps $20k Preamp $15k Cables $10k. I still have money leftover for a decent Truck and buy the wife a new car. Maybe a Ford or GMC or Toyota Truck and get the wife her Prius. Now I look like a hero.

It’s all a matter of zeros.  As I am retired, I think about net worth, but the same could be said about salary.   
 

if an audiophile has a net worth of $1m, and has a system that he spent $10k on, it is no stretch to think that if he was worth $10m, he could easily have a $100k system, or if he was worth $50m, he could have a $500k system. And considering that the more money you have, your % of disposable income actually increases, that $50m guy could easily afford $750k speakers (and appropriate electronics) as easily as the $1m guy can spend $10k on his system.

I am not a wine guy, but this logic was used by a friend in reply to me pondering “who regularly drinks $1000 bottles of wine?”  

@pennfootball71 what you’re saying is that they chose to make a speaker for $25,000 that’s not very good because the cabinet cost 20,000, but they didn’t choose to make one for 30 or 35,000 instead that would’ve actually been good? None of this makes logical sense, they put their name on a bad speaker and perhaps you’re making excuses for them?

1. for $25,000 we can get a really nice pair of speakers, and the Magico 5 was not a really nice pair of speakers. Not even close. I wouldn’t pay 10k for those

2. Seemingly the next level for them is 180,000. My thought is that if you can’t make something good for 25,000 you can’t make something for 180,000.

And where’s the in between / 75k model ?

So much hype around the construction of the cabinet

Making a nice cabinet does not mean that we know how to make a great speaker

Speaker shaped jewelry is a thing

The new Evolution Acoustics offering is in the $350-$400,000 range, I can’t imagine that anything could be better

They look ugly...which is the final nail in the coffin for this speaker...If it looked better, i know guys who would buy it. 

I really wish that probably everyone else here does, that I could afford these beautiful speakers and ancillaries to go with them and do them justice. I would certainly be a very happy man and count my blessings but not to be. That means I would love to have them without resorting to jealous tirades about the speakers and the lucky people who can afford them . I would also love an Aston Martin but I have Toyota Auris Hybrid pockets but I can say the Auris gives me at least 4 times the miles to the gallon that an Aston would give me, doesn't mean I wouldn't like one. Remember also the trickle down factor and thank the expensive speaker manufacturer's for that. 

Let the world turn. Or better yet, get that crowbar out of the garage and get the world to stop.

Why begrudge the speakers and the people who can afford them. If I were a multi-millionaire and had a room to do them justice, I would certainly entertain the idea of having a magnificent hifi. It’s disposable income to someone of those means. Personally I’d love Air Tight or VAC electronics and Magico, Wilson or MBL speakers. 

@jim204 I certainly DO NOT wish i can afford this eye sore.  I know they are selling diddly on this model in spite of all the ferocious marketing. Alon needs to admit he effed up making a speaker look like a overpriced giant whale phallus and move on in life, lol.

the 'look'? the 'price'? yawn. double yawn. thanks for nothing.

not much brain power needed for those sorts of flippant comments.

i do appreciate any comments on the performance. thank you. and thank you to Magico for the efforts to build such a speaker. hopefully someday i can hear it myself.