MMGs

I recently upgraded from MMG's to a pair of Spatial Audio Hologram M4's.
To me they have more of the good things I liked about the Maggies. I use a sub from Rythmik taking care of everything below 50hz.
I was curious about Maggies so I bought a used pair. I like them. Did the half razor mod on them. Seemed to tighten up the bass. I still have them.
I was intrigued about the open baffle thing. Spatial Audio seemed to be mentioned a lot. I bought a pair used off of this site. These are keepers. Easier to drive with a larger selection of affordable amps. Although I did use a few different amps with the Maggies and none of them broke a sweat. Even the 12 year old Integra AVR I keep as a backup.

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To characterize the difference between the .7 and 1.7 I would have to first mention the increased size of the drivers themselves - you get a much larger radiating surface with the 1.7's, ergo, a "fuller" sound. To my ears the increased mid/low range response seemed to soften the highs somewhat, and I felt the soundstage/overall sonics were more detailed from the .7's. Again, a highly subjective impression but one from an individual who truly loves Maggies. 

Until I came across Thiel, Maggies were my reference point for loudspeakers in terms of sonics. The first time I played the MMG's I was quite literally astounded. $599 for a pair of speakers that sounded like THAT?  I was patting myself on the back for a good amount of time after that. On vocals and jazz they were/are truly exceptional, eclipsing my current Thiels in some respect. (CS 3.6)

Both of these brands have an undeserved reputation for being "power hungry" loads on amplifiers, but in my case it's been decades since I've listened to Led Zeppelin I at a level that would make my liver and other internal organs quiver. On the other hand, Thiel, like Maggies, "reveal" - they are as revealing of good electronics as they are to lesser ones, an aspect which often finds one on a quest to find amps/preamps to make them sound their best. 

Again, I suggested a REL sub to complement the .7's because I found the bass panel, and its connections, to be less than desirable sonically and esthetically.  I used a small 8" REL in my 14X24 room with a ceiling that slopes from 8 feet to 17 feet at the apex. My listening level is VERY conservative, and that setup fit the bill for a while.  However, becoming a member here a little while ago has inflicted me with a serious case of audiostupidiosity, an incurable malady many of us share, even revel in. 

I bought my MMG's new, direct from Magnepan. I bought a pair of MGIIIa's used from a gent 80 miles away, and my pair of .7's used from another gent in NYC, about 60 miles away. In my experience I find that peeps who own "good" stuff tend to care for it during ownership and I've yet to encounter an instance buying on Audiogon which could challenge that. 
In all the instances I picked them up personally. I'd have some reservation about having a Maggie shipped for obvious reasons. 

I believe the OP can find a very happy space with the addition of a good sub at a nominal increase in outlay. The MMG's are remarkably fine loudspeakers to begin with!

Adding a good sub is a great suggestion and a good place to start if you're liking what you hear from the MMG's. I have the high pass filter from HSU Reasearch. I can crossover at 50hz or 80hz. I chose 50 because that's where the MMG's roll off.

fr8dog, in most rooms you will do better at about a hundred or 120, but even 80 is better ,
mids , which is Maggies wheelhouse, sound better when bass has less work to do.
Try it, and try means at least a week . Month is better, brain needs time to adjust fully .
Fifty is when they drop off a cliff, been rolling off since 300  easy

oblgyn , great post !

I have a pair of Rega RS-1 that showed what a 100K of Lamm electronics could do and my uber-rich buddy finally admitted it could .
And his speakers are Magico 5 ’s .
Just yesterday I went to pick up a cheap SACD player on craigslist, for the few I own.
The house I pulled up to was a mini-mansion in one of the best Mpls. burbs
which is saying a lot.
The guy was very friendly and showed me his system .
Has a 500, 000 $$$$ system , 4 custom made 9 ft tall JBL horn based speakers, which he controls by remote , five or six JBL subs , a dozen amps all XLR etc etc etc etc, Had many thousands of ripped recordings on computer at his elbow .. Played some Opera for me with picture on must have been 80 inch Sony TV . Sounded more like a heavy- metal rock concert than an Opera and singers were among best in the world and the Met Band ain’t bad.
Was glad to get home to my modest system in modest condo to listen to some music .
Was nice guy though .