Trading Magnepan 1.7 to Martin Logan Impression 11A worth it?

@bdp24 

Thanks for mentioning those! I would like to hear them. I think there's a dealer in Chicago. When this situation is over I'll audition them.

@thewetdog59 
“That’s too bad. They sure are impressive”

Don’t sweat it, if you’re still thinking about them well then, just pull the trigger! Life is too short.

NO

That’s too bad. They sure are impressive.

NO

We moved and the Maggies were not a good fit for the new room -- too big and also the bipole radiation pattern was a poor fit.

I went to a pair of Spendor SP1/2Es which I really enjoyed but my wife got tired of the 70s box cabinet look. I have a pair of Ohm 1000s now which have been a great fit for my situation.

Misstl - thanks for your input! If I may ask - what did you replace your Maggie 1.6QRs with? Are you glad you did? Is there anything about the Maggies that you miss? Thanks!

I've owned a set of Maggie 1.6QRs in the past and really enjoyed them. They are a very natural sounding speaker in the right room.

As for Martin Logans, I've heard many models over the years and have yet to hear one that has good integration of the woofer and electrostatic panels. This means, for me, the lower midrange has never sounded right. And, I've been told countess time that "with this new model, THIS TIME they've got it right!" Yet, each time I hear the same problem.

Of course, this time it could be different. Or, since ML does have a lot of loyal fans, you may be one of those who doesn't hear what I hear and enjoy their sound. All you can do is listen for yourself.

Thank you all for the input. Mtmug - I think that once you get to a certain level with these speakers, or other components for that matter, it comes down to personal preference more than anything else. Which do you prefer, chocolate or vanilla? They're both delicious! Shosugi - with the WAF, she doesn't think that they don't sound great - it's more the size of the speakers than anything else. She cares less about the SQ than I do, and more about cosmetics. You bring up some interesting points though. One can never say never in this hobby, but for me, for now, I think that my amp and preamp are my end-game components. The Magtech was really calling my name when I was looking to upgrade - Sanders speakers are great too, I'm sure! That amp is always on TAS' recommended components list. There are so many good options out there as far as amps go. After a lot of himming and hawing, I finally came down on the side of Bryston. The primary reason is because Magnepan had a reputation for using Bryston at shows, and you gotta think that a speaker manufacturer would want to show their product in the best light possible. Speaker cable - I'm on my third set of these, and I have noted improvements upon upgrading. I'm using Kimber Kable 8TC. I'm happy with them for now. I'm a bit skeptical about going much better on speaker cable, but I suspect that I might try something in the future, to see if it makes a difference. Room treatments - I did get a couple 2x3 panels to mess with that. Note that to the right side of the room, it's open to the dining room, so minimal reflections on that side. And the left side is a octagon outside wall with windows and curtains. Behind the listening position the room is open to the entrance hallway too. I think it's a pretty sound-friendly room basically. After trying a few positions, I put one of those panels on each side of the equipment rack (which for now must sit on the front wall between the speakers), and it seems to give me a slightly better and more coherent soundstage, but I'm still playing with that - I'm not positive that it's not a placebo effect yet.

My thinking right now is that a speaker upgrade would be the most impactful upgrade, but I appreciate all of your thoughts!

I'll mention here that the sound I've heard that left the biggest impression on me was at Axpona, I think 2-3 years ago, when I heard the MBL Extreme 101's - incredible! I don't recall the piece of music that was playing, but I know that there was tap dancing on the recording, and it sounded like someone was tap dancing, on a hardwood floor, about 3 feet in front of me and six feet to the left - I mean like reach-out-and-touch-me, holographic real! Those speakers are the stuff of fantasy, but it makes me wonder - has anyone heard this effect from any more attainable omni speakers, or planars? Or from any other speaker technology?

Everyone have a great weekend and stay safe!

I own 1.7i.  There are still some WAF things you can try.

1) Different amp.  Your Brystons are pretty darn good.  I switched from Pass Labs to Magtech, and that improved my sound.
2) Speaker cables.  Keep the existing amp, the speaker cables could change things.
3) Amp power cable.  If you are using a stock cable, then something tuned for high current may make an audible difference.
4) Room treatments.  I have a dedicated room, so I use acoustic treatments on the walls and ceiling.  Not sure if you can use this, given your description...

Sitting on the fence seems like a wise decision for now. 
Enjoy the music. BTW that Eric Clapton Live Unplugged sounds great on a lot of systems.

Thanks all! The advise is great food for thought. Last night I put on Eric Clapton "Unplugged", and I was thinking, "How much better can it get?". I suspect that it can get better though, the question for me will be "Is it worth it?". The question also arises: Magnepan's 1.7 has been around for about 10 years now - when will the new generation arrive, and what will it's features be? They may incorporate the true ribbon into a 1.7 - size panel (1.8?). That would be cool. I'd then be able to keep my Mye stands. It looks like they've been messing with dsp-controlled woofers - who knows what they'll come up with? I see that they've been taking some heat on some of the chat forums, for marketing methods or secrecy or other things, but from where I sit, they're giving incredible performance at great value, and they almost deserve for me to wait and see what they come up with. For now - I sit on the fence!

The Absolute Sound reviewer, Paul Seydor, found the 11A’s to be more forward and less forgiving of poor recordings than the Montis, which he seemed to indicate might be very slightly recessed in the midrange. In his opinion, the tonal balance of the Montis was more in service to the music. However, check forums online and you will find the 11A’s described as "dark", "bright", "warm", "lean", and everything in between. To my ears, they are fairly neutral and my experience is that their transparency simply makes them sound like whatever is upstream.
I spent about 9 months shopping for speakers before I settled on the 11A’s and I have had them now for nearly two years with no regrets. I may represent a minority view but, naturally, since I own them I feel motivated to defend them a bit. For me, the stats build an acoustic landscape that I find very appealing while at the same time the woofer modules, using ARC, are able to provide good bass extension and articulation. I think they are fantastic speakers.
I do agree with dougsat that the overall presentation of Magnepans and the Martin Logan hybrids is different enough that you could have a strong preference for the sound of one over the other.

I had the Martin Logan 11A and found them to be bright and forward sounding. Absolute Sound reviewed the speaker and felt the same way. I compared them to 2905 quads which had a much better midrange. I preferred the older Martin Logans model as being more musical and balanced which is also what the review stated

Dougsat - thank you for the response - good advice! While authorized dealers are scarce near me, I will look into an audition. I heard them and was impressed 2-3 years ago, at Axpona, but it’s hard to tell what they’re going to sound like in the home. It is interesting to me that there’s not a chorus of support for a $10,000 speaker vs. a $2,100 speaker - maybe that’s telling. Thanks again... Dave

The ML Should cover the WAF quite nicely.
Magnepan’s and ML are going to sound different,
whether or not you think it is better or worse is entirely subjective.
Plus your SVS subs most likely will provide a better bass punch than the woofers integrated in the ML. Seems like a big change for a system that you already enjoy, but as audiophiles, this is what we do. If it were me I would go audition the ML for an extended period before pulling the trigger.