Subwoofer for Magnepan 1.6?


I have a pair of Magnepan 1.6's on order and am thinking of adding a subwoofer. I'm going to set them up in a small room and my musical taste is skewed more toward vocals and chamber music rather than rock at high levels. I'd appreciate hearing of successes or failures in matching the two.
phil_murphy
I like the Sunfire mk 2 with my MMG's. You just have to point the passive radiator toward the corner (usually it'll be right against one room corner, behind the speakers), turn the volume on the sub way down, adjust phase (takes listening and testing for quite a while), set crossover to about 40 Hz, and you're done. Using it in the 12x15 foot converted bedroom with the Maggies is very fun, and with proper ASC treatment, is better than many speakers costing between $10,000 and $20,000. Cheers...
my local dealer has the vanderstein 2wq sub set up with the 1.6's.they sound wonderful and the way vanderstein does his crossovers for subs[the x-over goes in before the amp-it lowers the set freq's around 10-15 db-the amp then does'nt have produce high volume lower freq's-but the speaker is still playing full range so it reacts totally normal,but is also cleaner for not having to produce hgh volume lower freq's.]then te sub is run speaker level input so it picks up your amp's signature. it matches up seamlessly and with the q control you can adjust near perfect for your room.
hi, it's not an easy thing to do right, unlike dynamic speakers, wich when proper equipment is used can sound quite good and "real"...the ribbon is an extremely fast driver...i have had the 3.5r in the past with a pair of large vmps subs and a bryston xo.....i could get close but never quite like it should....your case would be of greater challenge....simply because you would have to cross slightly higher than i did(40hz@12db)....you might consider a pair of sue subs with a pair of paradim xo30....it's a kicking value......and it has the adjustable phase....the phase adjustment is of extreme importance....well good luck..rehan
A friend has a pair and we recently tried them with the Janis W1 sub, phenomenal!!!, I have also heard them with REL subs.
I own 1.6 Maggies and am using a REL Strata II sub.Downfire design seams well no bass boom or dicernable sub placement direction. I never cared for subs until I heard this one.
I too have a pair of 1.6's and in a small room you might want to consider just using them without a sub for a while, get to know them on their own terms, their bass is surprising good and after the break in period gets even deeper. I too was considering a sub but decided too get to know how they sound fully broken in before investing in a sub. My room is 14'X26' and I don't feel the bass is lacking. I have also heard very good things about the Vandersteen 2wq with the Maggies. The Maggies are so seemless and perfect without the sub, I too am on the fence about messing up a good thing up. Good Luck!
rehan said he dint have much luck w/his larger vmps subs x'd over at 40hz-12db/octave. amazing he even got "close", as he says - 12 db/octave is much too shallow a slope for electrostatics - you need at least 24db/octave. the vmps are great subs - the best at anywhere near the price. i'd suggest their originals, not the larger, for a small room. also, they now have updated drivers, which will be even faster & tighter. also, don't get one, whichever brand you get, you need two for proper imaging & integration for 2-channel stereo.