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magneplanar and sanders

Hello,

I've owned several versions of Maggies and have been thrilled with them.
Aside from the high sound quality, they are so durable - my very set is still owned by a grandchild and it still sounds great.
I've been planning to upgrade my speakers to the Maggie 20.1 - and have asked here about the appropiate amps to use (and received very helpful information).
But suddenly I'm not sure - perhaps the Sanders electro-static might be superior?
Luckily I have two dealers here - one who does Maggies and the other that does Sanders. So I can bring my own CD and compare -
though likely there are some differences in room size and electronics and all the like (volume differences I can do out - I don't understand some stereo but I do play music seriously and can tell the difference between loud and good)
Has anyone here had any experience comparing these two sources? It does seem like I'm in a "win-win" situation - either choice can't lead to horror.

Best wishes
Nottop
nottop

Showing 2 responses by peter_s

peter_s
1,320 posts
 
They are both great speakers. The 20.1's need a lot of room to breath - I had them in a 14x19 room (11' high) and that was too small. Also, they need quite a bit of amplification. If you buy them, I would consider the Sanders amp, as well as others (Classe Omega, VTL, Pass). Personally, for listening pleasure, I would like prefer the Sanders, as a more exciting speaker. However - when I listened to them last (3 years ago) they had a fairly narrow sweet spot, so I don't think they are the best for group listening. That may have changed by now, but it's definitely something to consider.

Let us know your impressions after you do your listening.

Peter
peter_s
1,320 posts
 
I would agree that the Maggies likely need more accutriments than the Sanders. Everything I did helped: biamping, a high quality external crossover, Mye stands - so include all that in your budget if you want to feel you're getting the most out of these speakers. And it is also true that I haven't heard the Sanders speakers in a larger room, so I don't know how they soundstage under such conditions.
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