Magnepans and dogs


I used to own a pair of Proac Response 3s - loved them, and I still miss them sometimes. But during my listening sessions my dog would soon get up off the couch and head into another room. Recently I bought a pair of Maggie 1.7s. Now my dog stays in the room when I listen. And, she jumps up into the listening chair when I get up. Nothing else in the system changed - electronics are all tubes.

I am guessing this has to do with the fact that dogs are more sensitive to sounds in  high frequency ranges. Did the ProAcs sound shrill to her?

Also, my wife LOVES the Maggies. We both have always enjoyed our listening sessions. But now she hogs the listening chair and stays up late to listen to music. I think she would divorce me if I tried to sell the Maggies (only a mild exaggeration). I have read that females have better hearing than men. Plus, I'm getting up there in the years, and my hearing probably is not what it used to be. I like the Maggies too and am quite satisfied with them, but it appears not to the extent as others in my household. 

Can anyone provide a (semi-) scientific answer to this phenomenon?

PS. I am not a shill for Magnepan, just trying to understand what is going on.

Ag insider logo xs@2xjrsyby

My main listening room was the family room and has a couch as the only sitting space in the room.  Most nights, I have a dog on either side of me, but they are definitely sleeping. 🐾🐾

 

 

Ag insider logo xs@2x

jrsyby OP

8 posts

...but still curious about others’ experience with dogs in their listening rooms.

Our previous dog liked the Martin Logan Montis and my Wilson Audio Sabrina. He wasn’t a fan of the Dynaudios (and neither was I) as he would go out if the room after only a few minutes.
The new dog seems to like the Sabrinas as well. She comes over and just chills on the floor right in front of a left speaker every time (for some reason). She would nap there until I’m done listening. Sometimes if I get up to fiddle with something in the rack she would just take my seat.
And yes, with her in the room I never blast it.

@chenry

You’ve brought up very important points about owning dog and stereo that should NOT be turned loud while dog is near. It can damage their extremely sensitive hearing. Same applies to cats.

I have read that a dog can hear you whispering from 80 feet away. So not only are they capable of hearing (listening, that is another thing) at higher frequencies than humans, but also at lower SPL.

And of course, hearing isn't their most developed sense.

There is some tribal hearsay out there that magneplanars induce more limbic brain activity than regular speakers. It could also be fake news.

I have 2 dogs and 2 cats. When they are in the room I turn the spl levels wayyy down and swap to simpler unplugged strings, solo flute, etc.  They are not fans of complex music, dense orchestra, heavy metal, etc...Huge dynamic swings can be startling, uncomfortable to them. Dogs and cats are similar to human infants in that regard.

I greet strange dogs with "Hi, Killer!"  since one never knows....

99% react favorably, since tone of voice infers I like them.....since I do....

Recently had to put down Sunny after 15+ years, our quiet seldom barking companion....50ish lbs. of Plott/Pitt, always ready for an 'out?' a treat a meal a play.

Bad back knees (both operated upon), hips, gone deaf, bad eyes, blind in the left, walking into a bush and speared it and infection took over.

Even our 2 cats miss her, Klio' esp.

Her big dog buddy.....with similar coats of color...

We still feel her loss....

...just cats for awhile....

@stereo5 I pushed thru this just recently. What you said, almost word for word, reflected what I was saying to everyone.
We finally got a new pup and It took me months to acclimate and build a relationship with her. I still love and miss my old buddy just as I did the day he was gone. But I can tell you that there’s a void that just must be filled.
Go for it man. You will come around and enjoy your new best friend while all the good memories still remain. 

My two dogs
are neither Gog
nor Magog
but my only two gods
🐕🐶
If you spell dog
 the right way
you will walk away
With a loving god

 

Everything reminds me of my dog
The guy in the store reminds me of my dog
Telephones remind me of my dog... yoohoo
Taxicabs remind me of my dog

If you remind me of my dog
We'll probably get along little doggie
Get along get along little doggie get a

Smiling at strangers reminds me of my dog
(Better let them know you're friendly)
The way people dress reminds me too
Pissing on their favourite tree
Sad things remind me of my dog
Cockroaches and other insects
Remind me too, don't eat them
The blank expression of the little boy
With thick glasses who picks
Himself up from the sidewalk
And stands there blinking in the sun
Ho oh!

If you remind me of my dog
We'll probably get along little doggie
Get along get along little doggie get a

Like the man on the subway
Sitting across from me
And every time I looked at him he smiled
And by the time I
I got to the end of the subway line
I'd given him at least... oh... 25 cookies

Guys in bars remind me of my dog
The way it takes you so long
To choose the perfect table
Reminds me of my dog

If you remind me of my dog
We'll probably get along little doggie
Get along get along little doggie get along

Me and my ferocious dog
We're walking down the street
And everyone we meet says
"Ach yer a good doogie!
"Ach yer a good doogie!..."
"Ach yer a good doogie!..."

Except when we go for a walk
To get the Sunday paper
I stand there and read the headlines
He reads the wind
Sometimes he hits a funny smell and laughs
I hate it when he does that I feel so dumb
What? What? I say

Everything reminds me of my dog
Beautiful things remind of my dog
Sunsets remind me of my dog
Gina go to your window
Einstein reminds me of me dog
I want to pat his fluffy head
This whole world reminds me of my dog
My dog reminds me of this whole world
Do I remind you of a dog?
I do?
Skyscrapers remind me of my dog
Sitting in the tall grass waiting for a rabbit
Guys in red cameros too
It's getting to be a habit
Artists remind me of my dog
Staking out their originality on the nearest tree
Old folks remind me of my dog
My dog reminds old folk of their dogs
(Barfy, Ruffo, Beanhead)
Gina says I remind her of my dog
The that way I just did that
Golfers teeing off remind me of my dog
The way he sits by me and shifts on his paws

What is it you want? Look at it
Do you want to go for a walk? Do you want a cookie?
Do you want me to dial the number for you?

Songwriter -- Jane Siberry. For non-commercial use only.

@jrsyby I can't offer a scientific explanation but my two dogs enjoy my maggies as well. I was starting to wonder if they too had an affinity for Jazz. A few nights ago we were listening to Idle Moments by Grant Green and just as Joe Henderson's sax started playing one dog rolled over onto her back, belly up with her paws in the air. And the second dog did the same a moment later. I was tempted to join them.

@stereo5 I understand your loss. My wife and I had to put down our previous dog after 13 years of faithful service and friendship. We didn't think we'd ever get another dog after that -- the grief was just too much. And then a year later we got two rescue puppies that had been given up by previous owners. They needed us as much as we need them. So far it's working out, we tell them they're not as good as our last dog and they just smile. 

I live in quebec...

I dont travel though ....

We have dogs and music in common it seems...

My  very best to you....And thanks for this unusual thread ...

@Mahgister

I live in north NJ, NYC suburbs.

By the way i always owned dogs big and small for the last 45 years...

Now i keep 2 small dogs...One rescued adult from bad owners , the wiser one, a male small beautiful and of mixed races...

The other rescued from abandonment directly from Cuba... A Havana race not recognized officially...A female , very gracious...It is my male one who pick her among others female candidates, not us ... They sleep together and eat together and play together as one...😊

Dogs made my empty house playful even after my children were gone for a long time now...

Someone who mistreat dogs or children is not human for me...

Same thing with cats but i prefer dogs as my guest even if i love cat... or birds especially crows...

 

«Animals are the human part of us...» Anonymus natural scientist

 

 

My dog is very wise but i dont think his relation to some harmonics bundle imitate mine and he certainly does not discern no more than my wife did the difference between tubes and solid state...

But my wife as the dog react favorably to the room controlled acoustic...

I concluded that some dog are better educated in audio than others... 😊😉

Or perhaps my Sansui alpha sound more like tube than S.S. Anyway i owned only 2 tubes amplifiers in the past and the more fluid and meaty sound the more " tubes sound" come with my 2 solid state Sansui...Perhaps it is not the room acoustic my dog spotted but the Sansui alpha ... 😉

We must organize a listening dogs blind test ... Where do you live ? 😁 Perhaps one of us own the next RCA Victor dog ?...

 

My dogs like my system. I have a love seat with my side in the sweet spot. One of my dogs always jumps up and listens. Likes classical, and jazz… but not the crazy frenetic stuff. In the much earlier days when I had solid state stuff other dogs and partner would leave the room. It is a great test of how natural your system sounds.

My dogs like my system. I have a love seat with my side in the sweet spot. One of my dogs always jumps up and listens. Likes classical, and jazz… but not the crazy frenetic stuff. In the much earlier days when I had solid state stuff other dogs and partner would leave the room. It is a great test of how natural your system sounds.

I've got three dogs.One trots into the room and lays in his sweet spot as soon as I turn the tubes on to warm up for a few minutes. He seems to enjoy male vocalists the most,stretches out on his side and chills.Dog number two joins us sometimes if mellow acoustic music is playing.Dog three doesn't care and has never joined us.It seems they may have individual preferences.

 

@roxy54 

My point is that no dog is ever a replacement for a dog that you have loved and lost, but as long as you live, there is another dog out there somewhere that needs your love as much as you need theirs. Take the plunge when you feel up to it. You won’t regret it.

Most beautifully written.

 

...but still curious about others' experience with dogs in their listening rooms.

No apologies necessary. I know how you feel. Dogs become a part of our families.

@stereo5

I have felt the same way as you do now twice, and twice I was wrong. I had a female Dachshund that I loved and lost, and then a male Standard Poodle that I adored and lost suddenly one day and very unexpectedly. I have now had a second male Dachshund for 15 years, and I’m every bit as attached to him.

My point is that no dog is ever a replacement for a dog that you have loved and lost, but as long as you live, there is another dog out there somewhere that needs your love as much as you need theirs. Take the plunge when you feel up to it. You won’t regret it.

Apologies to the OP for hijacking the thread. 

Dogs hearing is very keen in the high frequency’s. I am envious, my dog and best friend died in 2009 after 13 1/2 years of love and devotion to my wife and I. He was the best behaved dog, never got into trouble and always listened. Although my wife and I want another dog badly, we just can’t bring ourselves to take the plunge again. I doubt I could love another dog as much as I loved my deceased best friend. Sorry, this really did not answer your question.