Aprica, can you provide dimensions in meters of your room and describe the layout (ie: dedicated lounge room or open living/dining) & what type of music you listen to? That will enable us to advise you which speakers would likely best suit you. |
03-30-13: Akg_ca
+ 1 for the TANNOYs ...hands down! You're making that recommendation without knowing the OP's room dimensions or taste in music? There is no such think as 'one size fits all'. |
I would recommend the S5's in your room with the Hegel amp. Imho the big Tannoy's need a large room to fully open up. Your medium sized room is better suited to the S5's imho. That said, these are completely different speakers, so that has to be weighed as well. |
04-01-13: Mulveling
I also think that the Prestige models are more coherent sounding from top to bottom than the S5. The Tannoy bass is better integrated into the music, in my opinion Mulveling, I can see you are a big Tannoy fan, but I am perplexed by your answer as the S5's are perfectly phase and time coherent. May I ask if the S5's you auditioned were fully, or mostly run in, what accompanying components you heard them with & the approximate size of the room? |
03-29-13: Bhobba
Magico is of the accuracy detail type and, to some like me, can come across as perhaps a bit brittle, dry and uninvolving, but due to the very low resonance fast, very uncolored, and articulate. I am not sure which amps you heard those S5's with? however the S5's are best matched with warm, tube-like solid state amps and then they sound magical. I've heard the S5's with both Vitus and Dartzeel which both have excellent synergy. Anecodotally Hegel and Constellation also work well, though I haven't heard those combo's. In general, with warm, musical sounding amps like Dart, the S5's sound more relaxed, musical and flowing. You could also try cables like Jorma Prime which are very well balanced, natural sounding, harmonically rich & have a liquid flow which I think would compliment the S5's very well. Siltech Royal Sig series also work well with Magico. As always, it is a matter of synergy. |
Charles, I mostly agree with your comments, however in this case it's as pointless as comparing a softball team to a baseball team. In both, you hit a ball but you're talking about two completely different games and teams. I don't doubt AG is chocker block full of such threads, but that doesn't mean they have any or much intrinsic value. |
04-15-13: Aprica88
Any Final thought? will be purchasing this week. I thought I would interupt the Tannoy love-in and suggest another option you may not have considered; the new Avalon Compas which retails at the same price. Avalon have always sounded natural, coherent & had great imaging and sound staging, however the Compas embodies Avalon's latest thinking, including driver technology directly filtered down from their flagship $300k Tesseract, new crossover technology and a more sophisticated cabinet design. The Compas is very dynamic, transparent and rythmic. It also has faster and better bass than the Eidolon Diamond. A polite speaker this is not! In fact it is a very well balanced speaker & worthy of consideration. |
This is such a pointless thread which predictably became a Tannoy love-in, then derailed into side discussions. These are two completely different speakers. The Tannoy fans will swear black and blue the Westminsters kill the Magico's in every metric, the Magico fans will say the Tannoys don't touch the S5's. Pointless, pointless, pointless. |
Charles, I disagree with your synopsis of my comments. I have no problem with comparison threads where there is SOME crossover, some area to argue one way or the other. But this thread is completely pointless. If posting in a void is your thing, break a leg, but i'm not retracting my comment. |
Charles, If you review this thread, 99% of the comments are about Tannoy. I've noticed audiophiles who find gear which gets them off the merry go round do not post endlessly about their gear on forums. It's only really 'aspirational' audiophiles who do that. I did that with Ayon and sold my CD-5, then CD-5s within 2 years. I counted the number of Tannoy speakers up for sale on the 'Gon (21) vs Magico (5). That tells you something. |
Good point Charles about sales volumes. It just gets a bit exasperating when comparison threads get disproportionate commentary purely because one manufacturer has been around longer and gained more supporters. In a sense, now I can understand why "Brand names" like Nike get such a large market share. Bigger doesn't always mean better however. But to be clear I think Tannoy make some great speakers. The Westminster Royal SE are tremeandous speakers, but are extremely large and for many audiophiles impractical. Magico speakers are so transparent to source, they demand a lot of upstream equipment and on owners achieving system synergy. That is not for everyone. No doubt Tannoy are more forgiving. There are pro's and con's to both approaches. |
I think you may have missed my point Kiddman, I was simply saying the S5's are transparent and revealing of upstream equipment, therefore time should be taken auditioning different amps to see what has good synergy to your ears. Obviously most good ESL's, ribbon or quasi ribbon speakers would have an edge in transparency over a dynamic speaker, but that is only one aspect of it's sound. Tone, timbre, smoothness, balance/coherency, imaging & the ability to scale and realistically convey the full impact of an orchestra (without the need for a sub) are important considerations also.
In general, fast, smooth, tube-like amps sound best with Magico imho. I've had great success running a Vitus amp in Class a which suits my tastes. |
Another point to add is, whilst the S5 is transparent sounding. It is also a bit forgiving (certainly more so than the Q3) of less than reference sources and recordings which is a plus. If anything, running high end ribbons or ESL's would demand even more of your upstream equipment. |
Goodness Mulveling, you weren't the only one to pile on the S5's. That was a group punch on! Moving forward, i'm pleased you gave this series a second chance. As I said in an earlier post "I am not sure which amps you heard those S5's with? however the S5's are best matched with warm, tube-like solid state amps and then they sound magical. I've heard the S5's with both Vitus and Dartzeel which both have excellent synergy. You could also try cables like Jorma Prime which are very well balanced, natural sounding, harmonically rich & have a liquid flow which I think would compliment the S5's very well. Siltech Royal Sig series also work well with Magico. As always, it is a matter of synergy."
Fyi, I asked Jon Baker from Magico if he felt the S5's bass was as well integrated as the S1 and received this reply -
"Both the S1 and S5 bass are equally integrated. The difference between the two is really more of a function of ones acoustic environment.". You need to keep in mind the S5 has BIG 10" long throw bass drivers which require a long time to play in and open up. Most owners report they need a MINIMUM of 250hrs to play in, and i've heard a couple of other owners report like the Q3's the S5's continue to improve right up to 1000hrs. All i'm saying is, consider if your earlier audition of the S5's was optimal before judging those speakers. |
07-28-14: Usermanual
Arent you the guy from audio shark who keeps changing speakers like I change socks? So you discover the high-efficacy, SET world? It has been around for some time you know, and yes, it has its charm and can work well as an office system. You are listening to a setup that has about 50% less resolution then the S5 and you call it more musical?
What is next Bose 901? I give you 3 months with these, keep us posted (-; Yes he is. This guy flips gear not in the pursuit of finding the right synergy for his taste and room, but in the pursuit of more publicity for his website. That's all it is. That's why be buys new gear every few months, tells the audiophile world it is the greatest thing since sliced bread then suddenly has a change of heart & flips his gear. Remember the endless sermons over his beloved Alexia's? Now they're so great they're on the 'Gon for sale. So take his comments on the S5's with a *big* grain of salt... |
07-29-14: mbovaird
Usermanual/Melbguy1 - I like to change gear and try different things in my room. Isn't that the best way to really know if something works or not? Since I don't have any dealers within 200 miles of me, I have to buy, try and move on. It sure isn't fun moving hundreds of pounds of gear, most times losing money, dealing with shipping hassles, etc. But this is the only way to get real - in home - experience. And remember, this is a hobby. Relax. That's very smooth. Were you once a door to door Insurance salesman? Don't waste your time on us...we've heard this traveling snake oil show of your turn up on on numerous audio forums. It's getting to be a yawn.. |
07-31-14: Apdoc2004
Usermanual and Melbguy,
I do not know what Mike (Mbovaird) did/said to light up a fuse under your collective a...s. This is a case of judging comments on face value vs a wide experiential viewpoint & genuine vs disingenuous. At the end of the day, people hear only what they want to hear.. |
Charles, no argument about this being a free and open forum, that's why members like Usermanual and I are free to express our opinion, right? I only object to members who promote products for the express purpose of attracting more readers to their website. This guy then talks up his latest acquisition until interest wains, then flips his rhetoric around 180 degrees before dumping said product. I take if you're reasonably intelligent? This member has considerable form in the audiophile world. I appreciate genuine, considered and unbiased comments. I don't appreciate disingenuous comments from a member with obvious bias motivated by self interest. |
Never underestimate the power of denial.. |
Charles, no sensitivity regarding Magico, but I for one get frustrated by members like you who act like self-appointed Defense Barristers without taking the time to know the facts. That would take a lot of time and objectivity, two commodities you clearly lack. |
Al, In a nutshell I'm suggesting Mbovaird's recent comments about his ill-fated S5's are disingenuous based on his long history of flipping gear to promote his own interests, and that Charles blind defense of his comments is at best uninformed. Instead of considering that I might have a considered opinion, members here instead went on the attack suggesting I have an ulterior motive and am speaking out of ignorance. Anyway, this thread has become a Tannoy love-in and has long-since ceased being a balanced discussion. There are other forums which offer objective and constructive discussion on the S5's. This is not one of them. |
Interesting Charles that you claim "I'm just as entitled to a viewpoint as you" then proceed to attempt to discredit me by rubbishing my comments. It sais a lot that other participants in this thread support your comments. |
07-28-14: Usermanual
Like I said, I give him 3 months, maybe less
+ 1 |
Good to see you on the forum Bill. Even though we differ in our preference in this instance, I know where you're coming from & respect your viewpoint.
Putting the above aside for a moment, the S5's are the most transparent and resolving of speakers, and are very coherent. As such, they will faithfully reproduce what is fed to them without editorializing. To me, although the S5's are a bit more laid back in presentation & warm sounding than the Q3's, and are easier to place than the Alexia's for example, they still require patience and careful setup to extract their full potential. I have heard Magico speakers sound haunting with Vitus Signature Series & Siltech Royal Sig series cables, and lean and unmusical with the old Soulution amps (have heard the new series are better). Another factor previously discussed is run-in time which is long (atleast 1000hrs).
As one member eluded to above, you could walk into a Dealer's showroom and hear a not-yet-fully run in pair of S5's with something like Spectral, Boulder or Soulution and completely dismiss these speakers. Yet if you take the time to get it right (ie: built your system around the speakers and fully optimize your setup), the S5's are capable of stunning sound. |
Bill, I agree with your view measurements should only be used as a guide & not determinate of what sounds good to your ears, and so conversely disagree with how Usermanual framed up his above comment. As you said listening is the ultimate lipmus test. That said lol I was wondering when your commentary was going to turn into an advertisement for DIY and aLenehan speakers :D. You, like Mbovaird have a long history of evangelizing about your beloved Lenehans on SNA and other forums & being in the DIY camp. Everyone has a natural bias toward thier own gear. Nothing wrong with that until it practically becomes a religion. One form of dogmatism is not cured by another. |
Bill, equally go back and re-read my comments. I agreed with some of what you said. I further acknowledge you have a lot of experience in audio & enjoy many of your contributions, but when your posts inevitably return to how Lenehan speakers are equal to, if not the best sounding speakers in the world, and that tubes and diy gear beats $30 and $40k Vitus, Dartzeel etc, I lose interest and walk away. Its like cars..you can get a top engineer and modify a Subaru as much as you want..it will never be a Porsche. It will just be a very good Subaru. I pointed to a familiar theme in most, if not all of your posts going back several years promoting Lenehan. Here are some examples on a quick skim through.. Its all in how you react to what you hear. Check out the following review of exactly the same speaker to see what I mean:
www.stereomojo BTW they were my personal speakers that were reviewed and I obviously side with the speaker builder. Just as an aside those speakers are quite famous here in Australia, with many like me liking them a lot. But it wasn't until that review was published quite a few people came out of the woodwork saying they sided with the Audio Engineer, but were intimidated by the loyal following it had and were afraid to say anything. |
Bill, to be fair I haven't heard your speakers & so I don't know why you have such big wraps on them, so i'll make you a deal. I'll make a time to drop over & hear them with some familiar music (easy to do if you live in Victoria, otherwise i'll have to wait until probably early next year if you live interstate when I can free up some funds to take a flight). Good cheer promised. Then atleast I could understand why they invoke such passion. And if you have an open mind to the Devil (Magico) you're also welcome to drop over any time & hear my system.
Rgds,
Bodhi |
Bill, I see some people never change. Enjoy those backyard speakers & DIY gear. Yeah I have a chip..it's in my pack of Smiths crisps. Now, time to enjoy some glorious music & stop wasting my time with your dross! |
Charles, I respectfully disagree with you. Step into a Subaru, it's just a Subaru. Step into a Porsche and the level of quality, engineering and ultimate performance are just so far ahead it's not funny. And i've driven both. If you look at the level of CAD design, innovation, design talent, obsession with perfection & quality assurance of Magico, i'm sorry but no name brands like Lenehan don't hold up. That's not to say Lenehan aren't good speakers. I mean Subaru is a good car, but in my books there are differences you can both see AND hear with Magico if your accompanying gear and setup are up to scratch. I do agree however with your comment that in the end it's horses for courses. Re: your last comment; in my books a slap in face earns a condescending insult. All the best. |
Charles, your comment above is likely true I suspect, though I usually find those who dislike the Magico S5's tend to like euphoric sounding gear, and a degree of coloration. They also tent to be those who either a/ can't afford the level of system required to do justice to the S5's, or b/ seem clueless about the importance of carefully matching upstream gear for best synergy. Btw, Myles B Astor was impressed with the S5's & recently posted this video review - http://www.avshowrooms.com/Magico_S5_Speaker.html |
Correction: I meant to say "euphonic" not euphoric sounding gear above, but no edit posts option in this thread. |
Charles, I find your childish and passive aggressive put downs of anyone who expresses a positive viewpoint about Magico are the epitome of immaturity and rather pathetic. I also find your statement "You're right and everyone with an alternative viewpoint is wrong" ironic when you attack anyone who espouses a preference for Magico. No one on this forum should be subjected to such a depraved and personal attack as your attack on Usermanual, and I advise I have taken action to report your post to the Forum administrators. |
08-05-14: Apdoc2004
informed choices and sharing real useful information with others, not just feeling"
Usermanual,
You are probably too obtuse to understand this concept but in a subjective hobby like audio it is a lot about personal "feeling". For a lot of enthusiasts, objective parameters plan second fiddle. Apdoc, Usermanual clearly stated above "not just feeling" so he in no way excluded that element of musicality. |
