I have heard all of your choices except for the blade. I feel the Magicos are in a world well above the others. They recommend a minimum of 50 watts so you are in the low end for power. But I have heard most of the Magicos and they always present an incredibly real reproduction of music. I love the Magicos
Alan |
We would recommend that you add the new Paradigm Persona 9H to the mix.
The Personas are extraordinary in many ways, they will work with a low power amplifier, as they are 96db efficient.
They have active room correction to ensure that you get great bass in any size room. They go down to 19hz with powerful tight bass.
They are very holographic and transparent, and are a more exciting sounding speaker then the Magicos which many people find a bit on the laid back side.
If you are on the East Coast, we would love to demo them for you.
Dave and Troy
Audio Doctor
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Sound by Singer is selling his personal pair of Peak Consult speakers. Price is $29,000. Peak consult has always impressed at shows where I’ve heard them. If you are close to New York, might be worth an audition.
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Never was impressed by those Dweller, they are basically nicer versions of Sonus Faber or you could say Veritys because of the use of the same drivers way, way overpriced even at half.
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Audiotroll:
The op said:
"Please do not suggest any other speaker..."
You not only ignore the op's request, but then to add insult to injury, you criticize Dweller's choice of another speaker which IMHO is a better speaker in almost all respects, especially overall musicality, than the Paradigms which are also very fine speakers along with at least a dozen others that the op specifically requested not be mentioned. PLEASE STOP SELLING!
To answer the op's question, I think the op should listen carefully to the Magicos and the Kefs in his system as they are both great speakers with completely different characters. All things being equal, I might lean towards the Kefs for 80s rock and new wave, especially due to their sensitivity. |
Sorry, I didn't see the request for no other suggestions...
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I heard the Magico S3 MKII | Magico S5 MKII | Parasounda Person 5F | KEF Blade 2 all on the same day at the LA Audio Show a few days ago.
I was shocked at how much I liked the Magico S3 MKII. I spent a lot of time with them. So much so that I searched out the S5 MKII at the show. I did not like the S5 MKII as much but that could have been attributed to the VAC electronics | room | or music being played through them. The S5 MKII is likely the better choice for a bigger room. I was never a huge Magico fan in the past even after hearing their more expensive speakers with excellent electronics.
I spent about an hour with the Parasound Persona 5F, mainly by myself. I wanted to get the general idea of the Persona sound since I was interested in the Persona 9H. I did like the sound but I was not enthralled as with the Magicos. Now these 5F Persona's were in a terrible room with electronics I would not have considered. They did have a wide soundstage and disappeared pretty well. The 9H in a better room with good electronics would likely have driven more interest in me.
My favorite speaker at the show was the KEF Blade 2 driven by Hegel electronics. I was lucky again to be able to listen for about a 1.5 hours mostly by myself again (Friday is a good day to go). A few years earlier, I had heard the Blade 1 with the much more expensive top end Chord gear and they sounded better than the Hegel gear. However, even with the Hegel gear the Blade was still my favorite. The soundstage was massive, the speakers totally disappear, with layers of music. The Blades also look awesome to me and the enjoyment factor was through the roof (this last point is the one that matters most). Do not get me wrong the Hegel gear was also very good. I am considering buying the Hegel ROST amp for the bedroom to drive KEF LS50's.
I was also lucky to be able to hear the Luxman C900u preamp and a Luxman 1000f monoblock amp driving the $93K Vivid Spirit speaker. Lucky, because I was considering matching the KEF Blade 2 with the Luxman C900u and M900u (amp). These 2 pieces are $15 MSRP, the 1000f was $60K. After this listen I am confident that the Luxman C900u and the M900u will be a great match for the Blades.
Not sure if this helps but I would be happy with the Magico or Blade 2 for long term
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Thanx for all your inputs/replies. I was at the Magico dealer today to do a preliminary audition prior to a home one as I do not want to waste the dealers time as well as my own. Anyway, the S3's were paired with a Vitus pre and a Vitus 50 watt class A power amplifier and sourced by a Naim streamer ( I'm not sure which models ). I was only able to get a glimpse of how the s3's sound despite the excellent gear that they had as their room is known to be very bass shy ( worse than mine ). Without the bass, the sound was not very coherent. Soundstage was pretty flat and I could here the sound from each individual driver. No speaker disappearing act here. Mids and highs were pretty clean but a bit overwhelming, though not bright. I attribute this to the lack of overall bass for a better and balanced l sound. Home demo for this is a must cause I've heard the smaller S1 mk2 at another dealer and it was quite a treat to listen to ( though with different electronics).
Before I home demo the S3's, I've got an appointment with the VSA dealer tomorrow. I wonder why nobody has said anything about this speaker as it seems to have cult like following in other forums.I guess I have to find out for myself. |
**dealer disclaimer**
With each listening session, the Magico S3 MK II has been impressing me more and more. The precision, the most mesmerizing imaging, the control, they are stunning in every way. Front end is a UDP-205 and Vanguard integrated and they drop jaws and put smiles on the faces of all that have listened. They are hard to find fault with. If you have the opportunity to listen to them, they are hard to stop listening to. Each time they are played, twice as much time is spent as was allotted. It's like hearing your music for the first time. |
I have never heard the Magico but it is a speaker I have always wanted to hear. The best speaker I have heard is the Legacy Aeris and it falls into that price range. The dealer told me it compared to $100k speakers and the only $100 speakers I have ever heard were some of the Wilsons. I actually think the Legacys were better. Sadly, I could not afford them. Has anyone been able to hear the Magicos vs the Aeris? I am wondering how they might compare.
The only speakers on that list I have heard myself are the B&W speakers. I liked them, but I thought they were voiced to emphasize the high end. Lots of pop to them. I actually like them whereas some people do not. I am not sure they are the most accurate, but I enjoyed the listen. I think they may fatigue after a while or with some types of music that already lean towards highs. Not sure that helps a whole lot. |
Bowers Wilkins 800D3 are in totally different league compared to the any brand mentioned here, if.... you know what live music sounds like .... Other models just sound what many audiophile prefer... IMHO of course :) If you live in Europe, or willing to take a chance, the Chario Serendipity are fantastic as well...
Truth be told the B&W 802D3 s are phenomenal as well, especially for the 35 sq m room . The most musical (forgiving to the poor quality recordings) among the new D3 line up is 803D3 model , 15 grand too :). With the B&W the Cardas Golden Crosses in shotgun bi wire mode sound the best. For the amp I would recommend the german Symphonic Line RG4 MK4 monoblocks (much better match than your ARC amp).So if you are a music lover (as most audiophools claim they are of course ;) ) listen to the B&W or Charios...
Heck, for $2500 you can get Eminent -Tech 8bs, which are as good as any here on their own if used with highly refined power amp (such as Symphonic Line rg4 or rg 7, as they need power) , if not MUCH better ..... Add a pair of REL ref (10 inch only) subs with good external crossover and for about 15 grand US you are talking reference system comparable to any system at any price! :) (no kidding). But we all know too well that the pride and ego dominate this hobby :) .... |
Here's my take.
I would go with the Magico as first choice then the B&W 800 D3. However, if you want to save some money and bass is not super important to you, and if you have a normal size room, I have never heard a more beautiful sounding cone speaker than the Harbeth 40.2 Best of luck to you.
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Why waste your money. You already have a great system. Collect more music.
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I owned Harbeth SHL5+ and they are fine speakers. I have now Magico S1Mk2
and I love them. They are a faster speaker than the Harbeth and a bit better rounded. They should be at more than twice the price. My listening room is a small 11x14 foot room. Tweeks like speaker cables further refine the sound to your liking. |
Thanx for all the additional inputs. I currently have the VSA's VR 44's in my room. i don't think they'll be leaving .....period. |
I think B&W's make most music listenable!Even bad recordings are tolerable to me.Unlike my Thiels that suck on bad recordings!
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