Magnepan Owners - Need Your Thoughts Please


Spent some time recently auditioning the Magenpan 12's and 1.6's; I was very impressed with the sound, especially when you consider their modest cost.

I've always had highly sensitive horn speakers so a Magnepan is a totally new direction for me. I will keep my Khorns and consider adding the Magnepans for even more fun! Here are some questions that I need help with. Of course, I will bring them home for a personal in-house listen before I buy but any thoughts that you Maggie owners could add will be greatly appreciated! Questions:

(1)Will a pair of 125 watt VTL monoblocks (EL-34's) be enough juice to drive the Magnepans to reasonable listening levels in my large room (17.5w x 26L x 9h). By reasonable levels I mean 85db - 90db (at the most). I don't want to 'blow-up' the VTL's! They are rated at 130 watts in Tetrode mode into 4 ohms.

(2)I assume that the larger panels of the 1.6's would be harder to drive overall than the smaller 12's?

(3) Setup advice: where do I start on placement? How far from the front wall and how far from the sidewalls? How far apart? Also, are Magnepans designed to be faced straight-ahead or with some toe-in? And, what about the ribbons, placed on the outside or inside?

(4) What are the appropriate listening distances? How far do you sit back from the panels?

Would love to hear Magnepan owners' comments and advice on these questions or any other Maggie issues that I am not thinking about. Thanks!
stickman451

Showing 3 responses by philjolet

funny thing, my Manley Stingray with 40 watts drove my Maggie 1.6 in a livlier fashion than my Rogue M120 with 120 watts - go figure. Your VTL may do well, it is hard to say but I usually recommend 500 watts with tons of current for Maggies.

in case you have not done this - search the archives as this question has come up many times.
fwiw my 1.6s were fine in my 13 x 22 x 8 room and I really liked the cardas method to which I followed to the letter and did not move them after. I aimed them at my shoulders and it was nice.

I think your room may be a bit big for them but (on the other hand) the size of your room could cut down on high frequency reflections and you may get better low end response than I did so you may be quite happy.

good luck
Stickman

sorry to hear you need more power, I feel your pain (or used to anyway). I often look back fondly on the pair I owned. So darn good for the money.

I think most owners would be better off with a big SS amp like the Innersound ESL. You would not believe how those speakers can rock with 1,000 watts!

keep on truckin and happy holidays...