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Thinking of Magnepan ... finally!

Until recently, most of my amps have been tube-based with the exception of a few great SS integrateds thrown into the mix for fun. That's probably the main reason I have stayed away from Magnepans (or other speakers of its ilk) thus far. Now that I have an Aavik U-280 integrated amp that can do 300 watts @ 8 ohms and doubles to 600 @ 4, I would love to scratch that itch finally. Keep in mind that I do not intend to get rid of my other speakers (Joseph Audio Perspective2 Graphene, Harbeth SHL5+, Fritz Carrera BE) since I love them all for different reasons. The Magnepans will be rotated in the main listening room with Joseph Audio Perspectives. One thing I like about Maggies is that they are relatively lightweight so I can move them to the closet without breaking my back when not in rotation.

Since I've never owned Magnepans before, I have a ton of questions and doubts. So here we go ...

Bass (or the lack thereof) -- I've been told that the Magnepans are very light on bass and definitely require at least on subwoofer. Is this true in all cases? Anyone using them without subs and happy with the performance? TBH, I really would prefer that I don't use subs but not set in stone for sure.

Breathing Room -- my room is 20' x 15' with 12 foot ceilings. The speakers will be placed along the short wall (15'). I can pull them out by about 4.5 feet from the front wall and 3 feet from the side walls. Seating distance will be approximately 8 - 9 feet. Is this good enough or do you think more distance, especially from the front wall, is required to truly enjoy the speakers?

Mods -- I've also heard that the stock components (crossovers, fuses, etc.) and stands are suboptimal. Is this true? If so, what are the minimum requirements to bring the speaker to a higher standard and at what cost? 

Value -- For someone who is just starting out with Maggies, which model is a good entry point? I know that LRS+ is a good value, but my other speakers are very very good, so I want to do justice to the Maggies as well. But at the same time I don't want to spend more than I need to. Where do you think the sweet spot lies, i.e. which model(s)? I will be looking for used only since I've already spent way too much on other speakers.

Imaging -- I've also been told that imaging on Maggies is not that great. I have never heard Maggies before so I have no idea if this assertion is true or not. Your thoughts?

And finally, I want to hear from folks who love their Maggies. What is that you love most about the speakers? What qualities do they bring to the table that no other speaker does? Are there magnetic planar speakers from other brands that I should also be considering? Keep in mind they have to be readily available in the used market. So please don't suggest something that doesn't meet this requirement.

However, to bring some balance to the feedback, I would also love to hear from those who tried Magnepans and moved on to something else. Why? What was it that you didn't like about them? What did you move on to?

Thanks in advance and a sincere request: Please keep it civil ... no need for haters of Magnepan to use this as an opportunity to diss the brand.

128x128arafiq
yyzsantabarbara
4,829 posts
 

GIK did the treatments in my prior larger office. They were perfect with all the speakers I had except the LRS+. With the LRS+ I removed the panels for the first reflections and the sound was better (soundstage). I kept the panels behind the speakers and also behind my seating position. The arbitrator of what stayed was ear fatigue.

This was another reason I got the Mini since the Maggies seem to have less side reflection issues.

pprocter
26 posts
 

I first heard the big Maggies about 35 years ago. They gave the best sound I'd ever heard, but I listened to the naysayers who were naysaying exactly the same things they're naysaying now. So I bought JBL's instead. The sound of the Maggies never left my ears and then I heard another pair a few years late. Sold the JBL's and bought the 3.3r's. Still own the same pair today. My wife claims she'll bury me in them (OK!). They are VERY picky about placement. fractions of an inch and a degree here or there make a difference. It's WORTH spending the time to tweak then, though. You'll want an in-home trial of any electronics. I've heard them with BIG Audio Research tube amp and they sound incredible but I can't afford those nor would I put up with the hassle. They are musical and can be forgiving but will highlight the strengths and weaknesses of your system. I listen in near field, the speakers are about 6 feet apart and 5 feet in front of my head. Dynamics are strong, though nothing beats my old JBL's on the bass drum on Love Over Gold. They were visceral!!!!

p05129
501 posts
 

Why? I have friends that had the 3.7’s and the 20.7’s and they don’t anymore. I never liked the sound. Lean bass and these friends tried to get subwoofers to work with them with no luck. They filled their respective rooms which is probably the best benefit, but box speakers will do a better job.

With the larger 20.7’s, you need a heavy duty amp. 
I did go listen to the 30.7’s while they had their break out tour. Terrible! In separate locations they sounded poor. Not sure if they had issues with something but even my friends didn’t think they sound d any good.

There are so many good speakers out there, you needed to go to some shows or to some dealers to listen to different kinds of speaker systems

secretguy
1,708 posts
 

I've found that people who complain about larger Maggies bass don't know what bass actually sounds like.

northman
251 posts
 

This forum repeatedly manages to cling to two incompatible truths:

1) listening is subjective; trust your ears

2) my equipment is objectively better than your (respected/revered) equipment, which is objectively terrible

These two positions often make discussion/debate possible, but they also make discussion/debate meaningless. 

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