Magnapan vs. Von Schweikert

You are comparing apples to mangos. These are two completely different kinds of speakers, not only in construction but also in sound. Anyone who's read my threads before knows I am a maggie fan but the vons are good also. Do you prefer acoustic music, voices, jazz classical, blues etc? The maggies work great for this but if your tastes are closer to a lot of Zeppelin and Hendrix type of R & R a planar might not be the best choice for you. Finally, The 3.6 is an amazing speaker especially at its price point.I also dissagree with the perception that Magnepans don't do bass, they have kick ass bass, it isn't bloated so some people think its weak. It's not weak it's accurate.

You should try Mango Daiquiris. Good for you and gooood for you.
From your musical list I see nothing that won't sound good with the maggies, I also am from the NE so I understand your tastes. Magnepan is a very friendly company, if you contact them and explain your geographical problem they may be able to help you audition the speakers.
Another speaker you may want to consider if you decide against maggies are Avalon Radian HCs(available used). These were some of the best imaging speakers I ever heard, They were the only things that even came close to luring me away from my maggies.