Magnepan LRS+ resistors on the tweeters… which?


I have a pair of LRS+ and after playing with the set-up positioning for a while I have finally found the spot where everything aspect of the sound is right apart from the treble: it is simply too high, and is tiresome after a couple of records.

But Magnepan knows it and fit a pair of sockets to allow the user to play with 10W resistors, ranged from 1 to 2 Ohm.

The resistors that come with the speakers are not the best and some users refer that they affect the sound too much.

So I wonder, what are the best resistors to fit in the LRS+ ?

audiofilo123

@gbmcleod my LRS+ have about 250 hours on them.
Regarding the treble high level, in my experience, like I have mentioned in the previous post, that kind of thing is more a characteristic of the design and not something that can be fix with break in. The quality yes, the high level I don’t think so.

Of course, there are some (many?) users that don’t share my experience about the speaker’s balance / treble high level. Perhaps they are less sensitive, perhaps they already had a suitable high current/ power amp, perhaps a bigger room, etc. 

But what is clear to me is that if that tuning of the treble is included in the design, then it must be a real thing, addressed in the design process.

@toddalin I thought that we must stick to 10W resistors!
Anyway, I can’t find the Mills in Europe and I am not willing to pay $60+ on shipping and customs alone if I buy abroad. Here I have available the mentioned Mundorf, Duelund, Path Audio, Ohmite, Jantzen, Amtrans… but still is difficult to get a 10W 1 to 2 Ohm resistor in most brands, usually not in stock.

@yyzsantabarbara  Thanks! I cancelled my order for the Risers after discovering that I had much better integration with my subwoofer with the LRS+ on the floor. I tried to buy the jumpers after cancelling, but he wouldn't sell.

@yyzsantabarbara @audiofilo123  Again, I am really surprised that you both find the LRS+ to be hot in the treble. I haven't tried other amps with them but my AGD amp with my Backert line stage (PSVANE Horizon 12au7 AT) is absolutely sublime. Detailed, yes! Hard treble? Not at all. And like many of you I am very sensitive to too much energy in the upper mid on up. The only thing I have done to the LRS+ is replace the fuse with a ceramic fuse, and tilt them forward by about an inch. 

The LRS+ was slightly bright. A bit more than the KEF LS50 Meta that it replaced. Nothing that really bothered me, but I used a warm DAC with it.

The Schitt Yggi+ Less Is More DAC goes extremely well with the LRS+.

 

 

 

You can ALWAYS use resistors of a higher wattage value here. Just don’t go for a lower wattage. A higher wattage resistor will better dissipate the heat.

The downside it that you typically pay more and if the extra "capacity" is not necessary, why pay for it? They can also be larger.

The Mills 12-watters are just their "better" version of most everyone else’s 10-watter. It’s too bad you can’t get them for reasonable coin in your parts.

Something else to think about...,

If you can find resistors that have a bit of inductance, they will change the "character" of the highs, and you may like the results. I use modified Heil AMTs with Mills resistors, but at one point I came across a pair of 20 ohm, 1% TRW 7.5 watt resistors. I wanted to increase the volume of the Heil by ~1/2 dB and had 3.2 ohms in series. The TRW resistors reduced this to 2.75 ohms and I picked up the ~1/2 dB. But the Heils lost some of their "edge/graininess".

When I checked the TRWs, I found they had 0.007mH of inductance which seems to tame this edge, at least to some extent.

BTW, one would think that changing the value of the resistors would also change the slope of the crossover.  However, in the case of a 2nd order, or higher, crossover, resistors placed before the "initial" capacitor will change the volume with negligible effect on the crossover point or slope.  I actually take advantage of this phenomenon in my crossovers.