Thinking of Magnepan ... finally!

Well there is the post I have been waiting for- good stuff @arafiq Wilson Benesch huh? I thought for sure they might have been some style of open baffle.

edit: Ok, just looked up the Wilson Benesch "infrasonic generators"- wow! you must be getting some "real" bass now! 

I don’t find anything mushy or diffused about the image or soundstage at all. I suspect most folks who complain about that are not using adequate power, or current to be more precise. These big boys like current ... like a lot!

Or they don’t take the time to live with them for enough time, and quickly loose the patience necessary to set them up properly.

Bass response also improved quite a bit but I came to the conclusion that panel speakers will simply not give me that deep thumping bass no matter how you slice it.

Yeah, they don’t do that. Again that argument of "what I like vs. what is realistic". What do people define bass to be: Is it what an acoustic bass, live, un-amplified sounds like? Or does bass mean an amplified kick drum played back in a rock concert, where I can remember being on the floor in front of stacks of 15-18 inch woofers and your hair and pants move several inches on each note. I might argue one is realistic and the other not, but I might also argue both are correct, and fine- choose your poison. Maggies do the first part as well as anything I have heard, but the second part, yeah, not so much- rules of physics apply here.

If you can allow me to hijack your thread a bit- I admit after 15 years of 3.6r’s I am enjoying a little "thump" with the Eufrodites. Of course there are songs/albums where I have missed the low frequency growl, areas below 40hz where the 3.6’s start to tail off quickly, but the kick drum always sounded natural to me, and it is not so much the "thump", or even a more impactful "whack" on tom toms. To be honest, I find it grabs my attention and detracts from the drum’s mid-notes resonance, but with more listening I may change my mind. Where I find I am enjoying the "impact" is on leading edges of notes- like bass guitars- you know, the electric amplified ones. I get a little "punch" from the midrange driver that was not so noticeable with the planars. Maybe that isn’t so much a conventional woofer cone vs. planar magnetic difference, maybe that is the difference between my particular speakers? I am not so experienced with various characteristics of speakers.

There are many other differences I won’t list here, but also many similarities- voices are so similar- I enjoy the presentation of both- but then again some perspective: I am used to and comparing maggies with speakers that retailed for over 4x this. Speaks volumes for the quality of sound one can get from Magneplanar for the money- that is what I was told 20 years ago and I suppose it still applies today. Maybe the differences will become more apparent when I get an amplifier that suits the Horning’s better than the one I am using that benefits the lower efficiency Maggies.

: I ordered new stands from Mye Sound

Also, I did find Isoacoustics Gaia II footers under my Mye’s cleaned up the presentation as they have been reported to do on virtually everyone else’s speakers who have tried them- sound became less muddy, less smearing, or also interpreted as better separation of instruments, and bass tightened up. Had thoughts of trying more expensive footers/platforms such as Live Vibe’s, Townshends or Stack Audio’s but I have spent that money on a second set of speakers instead (ha ha). It sure was nice that discover that the Gaia simply unscrewed from the Mye stands and into the bottoms of the Eufrodites using different threaded screws already supplied in the box the Gaia’s came in. And yes, they are providing the same sonic benefits in the Eufrodites as I noticed with the Maggies.

Thanks for follow-up! Let us know how those diffusors affect the soundstage.

Enjoy

Thanks, @lalitk .. your input has always been appreciated and honestly has played a huge role in how my system has evolved over the years.

@mclinnguy All good points! 

Where I find I am enjoying the "impact" is on leading edges of notes- like bass guitars- you know, the electric amplified ones. I get a little "punch" from the midrange driver that was not so noticeable with the planars. 

I'm getting the same results after adding the subs. Another benefit, due to subs, is the midrange has more 'meat on the bones' now. It has added the right level of warmth but without crossing into the syrupy warm territory. However, at the end of the day, planars will never give you the visceral punch in the guts type of slam that a traditional speaker like Wilson Audio will. But that's not why you love Maggies, right? They do so much more that you tend to forget about the shortcomings.

I'm completely with you on the insane value the Maggies, especially the 3.7i, provide. I have owned speakers up to $30K and I can confidently assert that the 3.7i's can take on any of the speakers, and in some ways better them. But they do require some effort.

Regarding your comment about Gaia footers, I was advised by someone whose opinion I value, that the Gaia footers are not the best choice for Maggies. He recommended Auva speaker isolators by Stack Audio for carpeted floors. But I have not tried them so it's neither here nor there.

Regarding your comment about Gaia footers, I was advised by someone whose opinion I value, that the Gaia footers are not the best choice for Maggies. He recommended Auva speaker isolators by Stack Audio for carpeted floors. But I have not tried them so it's neither here nor there.

I am positive the Auva's would be better, the Gaia's provided a positive benefit, and considering the price paid is well worthwhile, but for sure there are better options out there. But, if I were considering spending $1200 US for those Auva 100's I would seriously consider spending a wee bit more and getting Live Vibe's. I am going to guess your pal hasn't tried them.

I own 4 of their platforms but only relatively recently, and I have only put them under components. I love what they do there, and I planned on placing a few of them under the Mye stands but they don't fit without some minor modifications to the stands. I will try them under my Eufrodites eventually once I get familiar enough with the "new" sound and compare them to the Gaia's. 

Both Stack Audio and Live Vibe offer money back guarantee's- man I would love you to try both and provide comparisons,  as long as Robert can provide ones that fit the base of your maggies. If you have lots of time give Robert a call- he is old school and likes to talk for long periods of time 

I am happy your ears/brain are similar to mine and you are enjoying the Maggie sound, and echoing what @lalitk stated above I am enjoying reading your experiences. 

https://livevibeaudio.com/

@mclinnguy Thanks for the Live Vibe rack suggestion. If you look at my virtual system you will see that all my racks are Live Vibe, including the two three-shelf racks and the one underneath my Vitus amp. This was one of the best investments I made in my system. The improvement in sound was obvious the moment I put in the racks, and it was not subtle! This reminds me I need to update my system pics as it's still showing the Harbeth speakers. Need to take some new pics this weekend and update my virtual system ... just been lazy!

At one point, I had asked Robert to build some nice stands for my Harbeth speakers but the cost was prohibitive. Once I get my Mysound stands in, I will contact him again to see what he can do. Thank you for the suggestion.