Magnepan 1.6 vs. B&W 805N

Thank you everyone for the advise very helpful.. I decided to keep the magnepan I just moved in to a bigger place where the maggies can live as well. I like it better now more room to breathe for the maggies, same gears different room gave my maggies the sound I want.. Im going to a better power amp my next on the list an ARC D240. Have you guys tried using magnepan with high powered T amp monos? around 40w a piece..

More important than watts per channel is the current the amp can deliver.If you can go with a class a power amp? Mono amps even better.Some note worthy suggestions are Threshold,Monarchy,Odessey,and there are some great tube amps as well.

You mention 'the room'.....always a sticking point with panels. IF your room is not panel friendly you'll end up with some dynamic solution.

IF you can stick with panels and like the W4S solution, you can shop across the B&W ICE line. Many manufacturers source these modules so these amps have a LOT in common....perhaps more than big differences. For example, Bel Canto uses these same modules. My PSAudio makes good use of these modules, as well. The 'Gain Cell' technology changes the character a little.

Source First....cables last.

Panel setup is sometimes.....tedious. Space from the front wall must be 3 feet or more. Sometimes, in a very large space, much more. I toe my speakers in exactly 11 degrees so being about 65" apart...inside edges....they cross maybe 8 feet behind me.
Also, as a test, just rotate them in place. Listening to the mylar side is a drag. The pole piece side....the way Magnepan sold them until the mid-90s, is much better sounding to my ears. Better image and less strident highs. I was tempted to install that darn resistor for a while. I swapped the Chrome plated steel jumpers for some hand whittled #6 copper at about .41$/ foot.

What drew you to these in the first place? Try to reconstruct what you listened to and why you liked it.

Dump the Adcom. And don't consider Rotel, either, except perhaps at the very highest levels.

I recently tried a crusty old Perreaux PMF2000 SB which is about 30 years old and it blew a Rotel 1090 into the weeds!!! My 1.6's have never sounded so good and fantastic bass. I am going to try Xindak monos in the New Year. Keep the maggies they are stellar.

If you do go with the B&W 805's then be SURE to at least get into the 805S's which is the last one that were produced before the recent swap to all diamond tweeters for the 800 series. The 805S's are superb speakers and in some ways can give the Maggies a run for their money especially
with a new amp that you are suggesting. Sometimes you just need to try things yourself to satisfy curiousity. You may end up coming back to the Maggies but at least you will have tried something else.

PS. The 804S's are even better and an often overlooked speaker in that line. They have to be the latest S version though, the older ones didn't cut it.

I've owned several models of Magnepans,with the correct amplification they are stellar.Keep em.

If I were you I would keep the Maggies and upgrade your amp. I owned an adcom 555II 20 years ago. It drove my rear McIntosh ML1s in my first home theater complete with Laser Disc. When you upgrade you will be astonished as to the difference the change in amps will make. I have BW 801 and I am going to sell mine. Don’t buy the 805s the Maggies will be a better speaker.

Wyred 4 sound has some pretty good amps out these days with 30 day trials... no harm in trying one.

Never heard them with Magnepans though.

I think you will be fine with the Classe. I imagine it puts out plenty of current which is what Maggies will want.

Do you guys think classe model ten will do the job for the 1.6? It puts out 250 wpc at 4 I guess... I know bryston 4B ST is good but I need to stretch the budget a bit. I've heard a 1.6 driven by a red dragon monos and it sounds REALLY good! But I cant reach that far... :) the adcom sounds ok on some areas but Im still finding the high end sound I cant get from it.

When I had the 1.6's and bought an Innersound ESL amp, I couldn't believe the sound. The bass that came out of those speakers was just astounding, comparatively.

Upgrade your amp before you change speakers. There is a reason that Maggies are almost universally revered, they are great speakers.

Having used 1.6qr's in the past with 545 & 555 Adcom amps, I can speak from experience. Those amps are SO not letting you hear what the Maggies are capable of. When you get a chance to hear what a compatible, higher quality amp brings to the party, you might very well forget the desire for another speaker. That said, it is going to put a dent in the budget buying an amp that really let the Maggies sing sweetly. In the end, that pickiness about partnered amplification was one of the reasons I switched to dynamic speakers.

As Jallen mentioned,more power will open up the maggies with high quality power. I've added a Classe CA400 to my MG3.6r's and couldn't believe what I was missing.

Not sure on your room dimensions but make sure there is ample space behind/around them if possible.

To get the best of your maggies you will need more than tha Adcom will deliver. I have liked the sound of them with Quicksilver Silver monos, Bryston 4BSST, and Eico HF89. They need clean power, and good cables. Do not underestimate how good those speakers can sound. Jallen