Thinking of Magnepan ... finally!

I have found open baffle speakers to offer a similar imaging magic as a magnet pan, and yet can’t be ever so much less demanding in terms of amplifier choice.

Hello arafiq!  I have owned 3 sets of Maggies and love them dearly. Properly set up, Maggies have bass, but a subwoofer is always a good idea. Cross it over around 80 Hz.  If you think of your walls as mirrorr, you will get the idea: angle the maggies toward the listener, the space between them 8 feet apart in your room.  Try to angle the speakers 30 - 45 degrees to the back wall and about 2 - 3 feet out.  The idea is to bounce the back wave off the back wall and onto the side wall, where it bounces again, lengthening the path of the back wave before it gets to the listener. Also the inevitable cancellation that wil occur around the sides of the speaker is upset by the differing distance from the speaker edges to the back wall, and minimized (due to the angleing of the speaker to the back wal).  I recommend the 1.7i as your first pair.  As a test, I pulled the plug on the subwoofer, and on most music (not pipe organs) there was very little loss of bass, and it was tighter. Use heavy gauge speaker cables as the Maggies love current. Happy Listening!

$.02 maggies a virtually always presented at shows with tube gear powering them

this is incorrect (at least for the last 15-20 years)

maybe maggies have tube amps driving them in some room demo’s, but those would not be in the proper room that wendell demos his maggies as the principal exhibitor

maggie/wendell used to use bryston amps, then more recently switched to pass labs... neither are tube amps

in most recent shows where wendell is showing the little ’secret weapon’ dipole bass thingies....  he is using a schiit vidar to prove his point with a very cost effective amp... but once again, solid state

I own the 3.6 , 1.7 Mgmc1 and the LRS+ . They are all very similar but the LRS+ with the magnariser stands are an amazing value and the one that I recommend for you in that size room. 

You could upgrade the crossovers, but that's just icing on the cake. IMO.

I first heard Magepan in 1973, the Tympani 1A's. I was hooked and blew 70% of the budget on them. Since then I have had SMG's,  IIIA's, and now I use 6 x MMGW plus two DWM's and a Quad 2905 (centre) in the HT. Also I use two DWM's to complement my four modern Quad ESL's in the analogue room, all Magnepan powered by Bryston.

You may infer that I like planars. IMO Magnepan are the most cost effective, and compete with anything - they just sound like MUSIC. Resolving, not fatiguing. 

For heaven's sake don't spend money on cabling. Spend it on a better Magnepan. I've tried a lot in the last 50 years, but Quad ESL's for analogue and Magnepan for digital can't be beat. IMO.

As to bass, Magnepan sells small-fish bass panels to augment the bass, which is usable down to 35Hz in my room. Yes, I miss a two or three notes on every 20th record, but the rest is sublime. I would try used Magnepan 20.7's, if you can find them - your room is big enough to profit.

Good luck!

+1@soix 

I have Herbie Gliders on my Skylan stands that hold up my Fritz Carbon 7's.

It makes moving them around the wood floor so easy and allows my to swap out for my LRS's really without much trouble at all.

I agree with what others have said here...It's definitely worth owning a pair.   Maybe you'll like or  maybe you will pass them on...but they are a unique experience.  My room is not ideal either...and I'm new to Magnepans.  I have enjoyed their more diffuse yet detailed presentation as compared to my box speakers.   Some say they aren't very dynamic, but I think they are , at least for me.  There are moments where the dynamics are startling when listening to well recorded music.   Currently the only amp I have that can drive them well is my 120 watt into 4 Ohm AVA Set 120.  It does a marvelous job but can get hot.  I'd love to jump up to their new Set 500 stereo amp to pair with the LRS's.  

I also don't find them as fussy as some people say they are.  Yes they need room but not a crazy amount.  I essentially place them where I place my Fritz speakers which are about 3' from the wall behind them.  You'll have more interesting results from playing with toe-in.  

Currently using them with Magnarisers "slim line 2" which come with replacement jumpers.  I haven't done anything yet with the fuses.

If I had the room I'd seriously consider getting the 1.7's but as it is, the LRS are a perfect thing to have tucked away that I can pull out when the mood strikes.

Why? So much better out there.

Do you live in Washington?  I have a pair of 3.7 you can try.  Magnepans are awesome, I have always loved them.  You need two good subs, but you have that covered already.  Oh yes, and you need a kick ass amplifier like a Parasound JC5 or similar.

Having owned several , here is  why I had to rebuild them 

junk connectors , fuses = bottlenecks ,Xover well below average in quality ,you would think after 30 years they would build a solid frame that doesnot flex like a sail  which = distortions 

sound labs are much better in every facet , yes they are large and not cheap but Sound labs make the  best sounding stats !!

$.02 maggies a virtually always presented at shows with tube gear powering them.

I’m very jealous you have such a great diversity of wonderful speakers to listen to, and adding the Maggies seems like a no brainer.  This doesn’t pertain to Maggies but more to making your life easier switching them with the awesome Perspectives.  These Herbie’s Gliders not only will make moving the Perspectives much easier, they may actually improve the sound versus using spikes — win win!  And they’re relatively cheap so surely worth a try.  Just an idea FWIW…

https://herbiesaudiolab.com/products/threaded-stud-glider

Hope this helps, and best of luck with the Maggies.  

Everyone should at some point in their lives own a Porsche, preferably a soft top. Any one, doesn't matter. Then, drive it as intended. Use good fuel, don't lug it. It's not a Mustang, not a throbbing V8 Corvette. But until you own one you can't understand the attraction. Magnepans are the same. You have the room, the power, so go for it. Depending on your budget, the 1.7i is the sweet spot in the line. For some, $3k a pair is aspirational, for others, entry level. Nevertheless all Magnepans are capable of things no box speaker can do. And like Porsche owners and boat owners, if you sell them, you will always say "I'm between sets for right now." I've had Magnepans since the mid -70s, and right now have a pair of LRS I cycle in place of my Monitor Audio S300 7G and Kef LS50/Sub setup. My room is not 'Maggie Fiendly' - I can't get them out far enough - but I can still appreciate what can do in that space. Maggies demand more than most speakers, but return it with interest properly set up. But you must find out for yourself.

I'm not a big Maggie fan but I had a friend who was involved in speaker design including the Pipe Dreams speakers who I trusted alot. And he told me he thought the Maggie real ribbon tweeter in the bigger Maggies was as good a tweeter as there was. And he would have liked to have been able to use it in his speakers.

I own a pair of 1.6 Maggies.  Imaging is gorgeous when placement is right.  Spend the time to tweak the placement and you'll be happy.

Bass might be a tad light, but not overly so.  As someone else stated, unless you're looking for that "pistonic" bass, the Maggies are very realistic in the bass.

Mine are powered by a pair of Schiit Vidars in monoblock mode (Freya S preamp, balanced out to the Vidars) and I can get them to levels that are uncomfortable to listen to without problems

3.7s have a tweeter to die for. It's a big panel and can push some air. Sub or no sub they sound great.

I have found replacing the jumpers and fuses to be quite helpful and inexpensive..Magnepan is now offering upgrade stands for some of their models ...

Room treatment makes or breaks any listening room. 

Audio Research Uses Maggies in the room they use to verify all is well with every item they build. See the youtube video where Michael Fremer takes the tour.

Room treatment will allow you to use Maggies.

My room is treated all four walls and the ceiling.

It sounds fabulous. See my pictures.

Tom

@arafiq

despite my often finding @secretguy 's commentary here cynical, spiteful and crass, in this case i agree with everything he is saying about the maggies

as you know, there is much much written here on a-gon about maggies big and small, old and new - i trust you have read through those posts carefully

my short advice is you must try them in your home, as much as share my thoughts here, i would be the first to admit that others’ words cannot convey what these speakers can do, especially when one’s prior reference are speakers such as harbeths fritz's other nice box speakers...

maggies are very very special speakers when given a room environment (and amplification) in which they can shine -- they have a level of beauty, fullness, coherence, wholeness and purity/clarity of sound that is a simply level (or two) above

i would say start with a nice used set of 1.7i, get them on magna riser stands (many used sets are sold with them) outlay is quite reasonable,resale not difficult,  try with and without subs (which i think you already have) - done right current gen maggies do not lack bass... though they don't produce the kind of pistonic woofer midbass in your chest 'punch' that some rock/edm listeners want

... and like pretty much ALL speakers extant, a pair of rels underneath bring them to a significantly higher plane of performance

get the speakers don’t worry about trivia like mods etc etc (those are minor and easy).... you’ve got a good amp for them now, as impassioned as i know you are in this hobby, experiencing maggies is a bucket list thing for you... one which might open a door to a new level of musical pleasure

As a long time Maggie user, I can say that much of what is said about them, at best, exaggerates their supposed "weaknesses". Your room is probably great for them...you have more than enough power.....if you want them that far out in the room, fine, but that's more than necessary.  And imaging? Anyone who claims that to be a weakness has NO idea what they are talking about. The bass issue depends (as always) on placement and also what you listen to. If you want to rock out, a sub or two is great. (The integration issue is also overblown). There is almost no sidewall interaction with planars, so you can use them to your advatnage regarding bass. If you listen to more acoustic music...acoustic bass on Maggies is absolutely superb. Piano also.

I recently changed my room around such that my Maggies didn't work so great, so I boxed them and put in something else. But I am not selling them because I know I will eventually want them back in the system. As much as I like the MUCH more expensive speakers I am currently using, Maggies make an unforgettable imprint on your brain.

As someone else said, listen for yourself.

Good luck!

@arafiq Don't confine yourself to Maggies.  Also Check out the SoundLab speakers.  

https://www.soundlabspeakers.com/

I had some 3.5R's and loved them.  I found them as power sensitive as a rock.  You are right about the power.  As such, there is a definite improvement with these speakers with as good of speaker cable as you can afford. 

Bass - I ran mine with a sub and found them a bit bass light without.  I believe this is a personal opinion. 

Breathing Room - my room was smaller than what you are running yours in.  You have ample space.  The more you can pull them from the back wall the better.  My sweet spot was about 4' from the back wall. 

Mods - I ran their crossovers and found them good enough for me.  The big improvement I found was with heavier/better speaker cables.  These are power hungry speakers that have to be fed. 

Value - have you considered used?  I believe there is a long waiting list for the LRS.  You might find some 3.6 or 3.7.  Even 3.5's if they are mint.  The large wear piece is the ribbon tweeter, that can be replaced.  The ribbon tweeter can take you places that I don't know that the LRS is able. 

Imaging - once positioned correctly, these can take you to places of audiogasm.  You can close your eyes and they can be very 3-D.  They are very exact and play everything.  You can hear people talking in the background of recordings.  Piano becomes a real audio treat.  Of all the speakers I've had the Maggies went to a whole new level with Dire Straits Love Over Gold. 

I sold these speakers about 10 years ago.  I do miss their sound but moved a different direction about as 180 as it gets.  Maggies play everything and I found this can be fatiguing.  All speakers have a certain sound that they do well.  What I now listen to is, low wattage SET with high efficiency Altec Lansing 16 ohm, VOTT's.  These were true NOS as I bought used, but unassembled  in boxes as they sold in 1959, when the person originally bought them.  The enclosed wire, to link the horn tweeters to the crossover was a very light gauge 3 wire.  While I did upgrade from the factory original, I have found that speaker wires play virtually no roll in driving these.  Very opposite from the Maggies. 

I would urge you to listen.  Totally different presentation from conventional speakers.