Magico S5 vs Tannoy Westminster Royal SE

'You can like what you (think) you like, but it has already been proven that in a control environment, tested blind, most people prefer a better engineered loudspeaker'

Untrue.

It has been proven, for example, in controlled studies, and this is well known to speaker designers, that more accurate speaker alignments are NOT preferred. A QTC of .5 is the most accurate, being called transient perfect. But most people find it lean and anaemic - its the most accurate - but most designers - yes even your beloved Magico - shy away from it using an alignment of .6 or .65 because people like it better.

But even aside from that accuracy involves many parameters. Which is the most important? For example, early transistor amps had extremely low distortion - so low it was hard to even measure. This was achieved by HUGE amounts of global feedback - yet they sounded like the life was sucked out of the music. Why? I don't think anyone conclusively found out but it was recognised that there is a lag between when distortion occurred and feedback corrected it and that was likely an issue. So transient response became important to reduce that lag. So what is it that determines how an amp will sound - distortion measurements or transient response? BTW most amp designers now use feedback very judiciously and concentrate on its application locally.

The interaction between measurement and what people prefer is a very complex one not accounted for by simplistic platitudes such as accuracy is better.

One must ALWAYS listen to gear - that is the only measure.

But even aside from that exactly what your beef is has me beat. All myself and others are saying is listen to both and make your own mind up. If Magico is so obviously superior then the outcome is not in doubt.

Thanks
Bill

Charles wrote:
'People have test driven(heard) the Magico and were not impressed.They don't impress me, but so what, just my opinion. I totally get the point that you and usermanual find the Magico to be your Porsche standard, others simply do not. It doesn't matter, the Magico S5 suits your needs and desires so other's opinions have no bearing on your satisfaction. I say congratulations to you for finding a sucessful speaker for your system. I hope you enjoy them for a very long time. I feel the same toward those who've gone in another direction as well. Tannoy for instance. In truth, just be happy with your choices and ignore the criticism of others.'

Spot on Charles. Its self evident really. I am scratching my head why there is any debate.

Thanks
Bill

A QTC of .5 is the most accurate...

QTC is not a scale for determining how good a speaker is, it is simply an indicator of how the speaker behaves at its resonant frequency. A 0.5 QTC is not more or less “accurate” then a QTC of 0.6 or 0.7 (In general high quality accurate audio loudspeakers Qtc are around 0.707). Frankly, your arguments are senseless. You don’t really know what you are talking about, although you think you do, and if, according to you and Charles, it is all subjective anyway, why bother to have a discussion. If you wish to drive your Subaru, and convince yourself that it is better than Porsche, it is fine by me but it still does not change the fact that in reality it is not. And yes, there is such a place call reality.

Usermanual,
Your comments and disposition are the epitome of immaturity. You insult anyone who disagrees with your childish defensive behavior and narrow viewpoints.You're right and everyone else with alternative perspective is wrong. The persistent and redundant need to wave the Magico flag is overtly pathetic. People here are mature adults and can accept contrary points of view, that's simply life. People here accept your choice of Magico, yet you can't find it in you to return the same degree of common respect. We're only discussing audio speakers and yes it's absolutely a subjective undertaking(you"listen" and decide). Usermanuel some listeners do find your beloved Magico to be the Subaru(or worse) in your chosen analogy. You seem to have much self esteem invested in this Brand ownership. This fragility is actually glaringly sad. All of this from you over mere speakers?

People here are mature adults and can accept contrary points of view, that's simply life

I must have missed something, but what king of “views” are we talking about? I “like/dislike” is a view more suitable to a 5 year old.

Sorry if I offended you (or made you sad), but I get ticked off when people insist of displaying ill-informed ideas over and over again. This is not about Magico, it is about making well informed choices and sharing real useful information with others, not just feeling. But I guess this is too much to ask for...