Magico A3

You should update the price on here they're no longer 9800 I believe they're like 12,000 US now.

For that price I would rather get the monitor audio Platinum 200 Gen 2 which look about a million times better and sound just as good or better.

I am a fan of A3 too. I'm selling my other gear to finance purchase. Seems the review at Soundstage Ultra mirrors what I heard with a short demo at dealers. The dealer was using Hegel 390. It's weird someone says treble was agressive! I never heard Sopra 2 so I can't comment but I did hear Kanta 2 and from quick listen speaker is leaner and not as coherent and lacks air compared to A3!

Without commenting on the sound, and focusing on buyers preferences, the A3 is outselling everything near its the price point of $9800. By a factor of 6 or 7 to one. We have had customers wait as long as 6 months to get a pair. And we have outsold the supply. Though the supply has begun to catch up and we can now deliver on most sales asap.
This is the buying public speaker with their dollars. 

Hey Steve, small world...  Yes, to be fair the retail price of the Sopra's is 15K.  I went into the demo super excited because I kept hearing the A3's punch well above there price, and unfortunately I just wasn't wow'd.  I walked away underwhelmed, and that's okay because there are a lot of great options out there in the 10 - 15K range.  Now if I had 22K, the Magico S3 MKII would be at the top of my list. Jamie's a good guy and I really wanted to give him the business.  You should go listen to those TAD's he's selling off.  They were impressive, 30K speaker for less than half the price...

isn't the sopra 2 twice as much as the A3? Having had such bad luck buying speakers after being bowled over at the shop to having them fall on their face once home. I demoed the C60 in the same room with the same gear with Jamie helping me select tunes I was smitten with that speaker and he wouldn't let me pursue the purchase! That was feb 2018 and the A3 was due to come out soon and he told me if I was shopping in that range I really needed to wait til the A3 came out b4 I bought any speakers.

Dont know about that, but from what I heard with the A3 I could find no fault at all but of course in this game there is always something better.  Best of luck with the S1mk2 if you decide to go that route.

Funny you should mention the tweeter. That’s exactly what the store owner pointed out. He also reminded me the S series uses an extruded aluminum cabinet and the A3 does not.  I'm sure the crossovers are using different components as well.

Seems like the main difference is the diamond coated beryllium tweeter vs the non coated beryllium tweeter. Hard to believe it would that much difference.

It didn’t help that I listened to the S1 MKII’s after the A3’s and there was no comparison. Even the store owner who sat with me for almost 2 hours agreed the S1’s were much more refined. Granted the S1’s cost more, so it shouldn’t be a surprise. It was hard to go back to the A3’s after that. I wish they had something between the S1 and S3. Knowing myself, I would have bought the A3 and then been looking to upgrade to the the S series in the not so distance future, so probably best I didn’t buy.

I listened to them recently for about an hour at Rhapsody in NYC with an experienced audiophile friend who also does online reviews. Neither of us noted any harshness or edginess in the least. In fact we thought it to be one the smoothest, most transparent speakers we've heard in a long time. What makes them special is that they are able to impart an amazing amount of detail and clarity and sound smooth and extended. A very sophisticated sound.  I'm very seriously considering them for my next speaker.

Unfortunately, I couldn’t audition the Sopra’s on the same equipment in the same room and we know that can make a difference. However, I use Tidal and Roon almost daily and we played tracks I’m very familiar with. Don’t get me wrong, the A3’s were good, they just didn’t win me over. I was ready to buy just based I what I had read. If I had 20K to spend I think I would have a tougher decision between the S3 MKII’s and Sopra 3’s.  I will say they looked a lot better in person than they do online.

Interesting, I think that the Sopra tweeters are much coarser then the A3.
Did you listen to the Sopra on the same equipment? Roon always sound harsh and glossy to me. With such a transparent speaker like the A3 you would hear it clearly. I agree the S1 Mk2 are tempting...

I auditioned the A3’s at my local dealer last week. Maybe I was expecting to much, but I didn’t fall in love with them. It's was to bad because I was ready to buy.  The soundstage, imaging, and placement of instruments were excellent. Unfortunately, the more I listened, I found the mids and highs a little harsh/edgy at times. The A3’s were connected to a Dan D’Agostino Progression amp which has 600w into 4 ohms, so plenty of power. We streamed Tidal through Roon using a Chord DAC (I didn’t catch the model) and the new Chord Hugo M Scaler. After listening to the A3’s we swapped them for the S1 MKII’s and they were much more refined and smooth. The S1’s MKII’s were excellent, but lacked the bass of the A3’s which is expected. The S1’s MKII’s were tempting but I knew I would end up missing the bass and I don’t want to add the sub. I also had a chance to listen to a pair of TAD E1’s and they were impressive, now discontinued so I could score an amazing deal. In the end I purchased the Sopra 2's.

Congrats. In the last 2 years, I also had a kid, a new job (work from home) and I just moved into a new home last month. Since I work from home I am looking for a speaker to fit my small home office. I was checking out the A3 before I knew the room dimensions of my new space.

I have been guided by the wisdom of A’gon users to the following (I have a thread on small room speakers):

1) Harbeth SHL5+ (considering this because it is totally different from MY sound and good for long hours of listening)

2) TAD ME1 (2 dealers who carry both KEF REF1 and TAD ME1 say this is better, also good for long hours of listening)

I am going to demo these 2 next month and likely buy one of these so I can focus on music and work and not audio shopping.

One of the things I need is a system that will sound good at low volumes because I listen and work at odd hours when the baby is sleeping. The Magico A3 does this well, especially with Mark Levinson integrated.  I am not sure if low volume goodness is a function of the speaker or the amp. This is a huge issue for me when I demo the 2 speakers I mentioned above. I cannot enjoy headphones as much as speakers and it is hard to hear the baby with phones on.

Yyzsantabara,

Yes that was me and I remember our conversations. I contacted audiogon about fishing emails I was receiving from their site and they just closed my account with no discussion. That was their version of customer service....

I lost interest in the hobby there for a bit. I had my first kid, a new job and a new house (picked up other new hobbies too) and I am now just getting back into sitting down and really listening to music. I did dabble on headphones for a bit too (related to the new baby...)

I am not sure I will buy anything this time around. I am just kicking the tires at this point but have always admired magico from a distance. My front end and room never seemed good enough to chase the 30k+ speakers as it would be better spend on either of the prior. 

But at $10k I would bit on these. I also play with the idea of buying something used and unheard like Vivid B1, any of the good kefs, or what ever. I like to gamble I guess lol. 

@james633  I think I remember your prior Thiel posts as James63 back in the day. Nice to see your posts again. I was into Thiel when you were shopping around for speakers back then, so I remember paying attention to your posts. 

I was about to buy the A3 this month however, I am running into some room issues (maybe too small). I demoed the A3 with Mark Levinson 585 integrated and it was a fantastic match. It sounded like a much more expensive speaker with great detail, large sound stage and the speakers really disappeared. They also sounded very good at ALL volume levels that I tested at, from very low to semi-loud. The demo room was rather perfect so maybe the speaker does not sound this good in not so perfect rooms.

To that end my dealer has allowed me to demo these speakers for a few days at my home. I will do so sometime in early 2019. I have a feeling the A3 is going to be a little big for that small room but I will not know until I try. 

If you have the space and the funds you may also want to check out the Magico S3MKII. In my opinion, it is better than the A3 but also bigger and more expensive. A KEF Blade (can get used at $15K) would be something I want to do over the A3 and S3MKII if I had even more space. I loved the Thiel CS 3.7 and like the Blade even more.

Ozzy,

the sopras do look nice. I have not heard them but liked the 1037be back when I demoed them. 

Prof,

Mostly it is Upgraditus. I am always looking for more detail. I have had the thiels for awhile (5 years maybe) and I am just board with them now. 

I have not demoed the newest models from the major brands.

Last time I looked around at Sophia 3, 802d, focal 1037b, thiel 3.7s, revel studio 2, and felt like they all had pluses and minuses and after demoing I just added the two subs to the 2.4s (using the internal crossovers at 60hz) due to not thinking the upgrade was worth the cash layout and bought a projector with the “extra” cash. 

I though the magicos might have the details I want in the mids and I am intrigued by the brand. 

A few months ago I auditioned the Magico A3 at a local dealer with the intention that I would probably buy/order a pair. Well, I ended up buying the Focal Sopra 2’s. You can read my journey in this speaker section https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/focal-sopra-2 and in the Members Review section under Sopra 2. https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/my-speaker-journey-and-focal-sopra-2

ozzy

james633
I have the Thiel 2.7, which replaced my bigger Thiel 3.7.
I'm curious:  What are you looking for from the Magicos that you don't get from the Thiels?

Prof,

what thiel do you have? I have a pair of 2.4CS that I pair with two JLE112s and I am looking into the A3. 

Thanks. 

The A3 low bass is incredibly linear and deep, a big improvement over anything else I audition under 20K. Plenty of toe-tapping in my living room ;)
You just need to pair them right, it does take a system to make it all work.

I can't contribute the experience of an A3 owner.  But FWIW from my own audition of the A3 in a dealer's home (purportedly a room that allowed for smooth bass response):  I found the A3 bass to be very deep and not wanting for a subwoofer.  But I also found it a bit bloomy at the very bottom and, though I often sort of dislike the term "pace," it did seem to be a bit lackadaisical in the punch/pace department.  Not a terribly toe-tapping sound vs what I am used to at home (Thiel) and from some other speakers I auditioned.


But...hey...that's just one single long audition.

They are very backordered. Bass performance is excellent and what you would expect from a Magico design, but the smaller bass drivers means less total displacement versus an S3 MkII for example.

After hearing them, I stopped caring about integrating them with a subwoofer. In my experience, other speakers that advertise similar degrees of low frequency extension would often still clearly benefit from a subwoofer during typical music playback.

Can anyone comment further on the bass performance of this speaker?  Also, my dealer in Atlanta can't seem to get his hands on them.  I guess they're seriously backordered with no shipping date given by Magico(?)

Thanks @danzspkrman Yes it’s been far too long. I’ll get there 🙂..

Thanks so much. Hopefully you will enjoy as well agian soon😎🎼🔊

Congratulations on your new speakers @danzspkrman. I had a long audiotion of the A3's on the weekend & was very impressed by them. I agree they are one of the best buys in high end speakers <$10k. Enjoy your new toys in good health! 🙂

Finally here... WORTH the wait!!! SO much detail and finesse. Low end is insane(in a good way) they are easily comparing to KEF reference 3 in terms of extension and I don’t even have 2 hours on these yet. Their soundstage is deep and wide. Wyred for Sound separates with SX 1000’s with a Denon DCD 3910 for a transport. I haven’t even listened to the analog front end yet. These are worth WAY more than the price of admission IMHO. A VPI Prime and Soundsmith Aida will be the front end as well. Morrow cables throughout. And Equi-Core keeps the power liquid clean. The midrange is very open already without a hint of of harshness. I don’t think we are going to sleep tonight....😎😎🎶🎼🎶😎😎

I got to hear the Magico A3 over at Suncoast Audio in Sarasota,Fl and I was very impressed the resolution and balance the speakers have. Very much the Magico sound signature. I have owned the S1Mk2 and now own S3Mk2 and in comparison as you go up the line the sound just gets bigger specially the bass.
The A3 is no slouch and is good entry level into the line. I still like the S1mk2 better aesthetics wise and even sound wise ,but  whether the gains are worth the    Money is debatable now.  
  Under 10K they would be my choice for speaker of an entry level high end system. 

Thank's for sharing your impressions! Where did you hear them? Have you heard the dynaudio contour 60s to compare as well? And/or Persona 3Fs or 5Fs? Thanks!

Sound Innovations, 29400 Kohoutek Way #100
Union City, CA 94587, has a pair Magic A3s for demoing and you can order them there.

Unfortunately, I have not heard dynaudio contours nor the personas. I heard the paradigm prestige 85F about a year ago, but was not impressed (too brassy and underwhemly at the low frequency range) - the  personas are supposed to be much better.

Went to Axpona heard the MAGICO A3 with Constellation amp and preamp they sounded wonderful a great sounding speaker in there price range.Then on Sunday i heard them with Dan Dagostino Progression amp and preamp they sounded even better.These speaker will tell you in a minute if they don't have the best cables and amp and preamp they sounded great with great detail,imaging,bass  weight and detail.Im sure Magico will sell many A3s they are the best value in the Magico line.The show also had many other great sounding as well.

Thank's for sharing your impressions! Where did you hear them? Have you heard the dynaudio contour 60s to compare as well? And/or Persona 3Fs or 5Fs? Thanks!

Dave

I listened last Saturday to a pair of Magico A3 speakers. They were outstanding. The bass extension was surprisingly good, and their high frequency sound was very detailed while smooth, without seeming brassy or fatiguing. In my humble opinion, they were far superior to the Elac Andante AF61s and the Goldenear references, which I also listened to recently, and on par with  a pair of B&W 803D3 that I also listen to recently.

I talked to a couple of dealers this week about them and got no concrete info,made me take a good look at the used market for S3 mk1,but decided to spend my money on 2 different sets of used speakers instead.

Silverline Bolero Supremes
Lawrence Audio Double Bass

I’ve heard the Q3’s powered with pass xp10 and 30.8 and I also took my Lyngdorf 2170 over and we tried that.The Q3’s used If you can find a pair are a little bit above what I want to spend for one pair of speakers.

Kenny.

Anyone hear any news on release date for the US? really curious to hear these (and see how they sound compared to comparably priced Dyn countour 60s, or comparably priced used Salon2s, for example)

@nitewulf 

The source is a PC running ROON  + TIDAL. Bits are delivered by USB-to-Ethernet, using a Sonare microRendu.I have 2 systems connected to this PC in 2 different rooms. I also use a PowerLine adapter for the room that I cannot get a direct Ethernet cable,

@yyzsantabarbara , cool! Hope it turns out well for you, what's the digital source though, PC? CD?

@nitewulf ,

I sort of took your advice and bought the Audience 1+1 crossover less speaker for my office. It is being built now and should be shipped in a week or 2. Not much low end but supposed to sound great outside those frequencies. I have a 30 day trial. The reset of the system will be

Benchmark DAC3L
Benchmark AHB2 amp
Magnum Dynalab 102 Tuner
Audience AU24 SE speaker cables
Audience AU24 and AU24e interconnects
Audience 1+1 speaker

I am currently using the KEF LS50 while the 1+1 is being built and shipped. The system sounds great in my tiny office. The next office will be bigger so I was looking for a bigger sounding speaker.

No A3 for me, though I will be going to hear it sometime in the Spring at a local dealer.

Lets bang on about Magico  dude keep on trucking!!!

Any news? Any reviews? appearing yet in any US showrooms??

Andyz    Did you hear the A3 when at the Magico facility?  If so, what was your impression?

Has anyone heard them yet? If so please chim in.  I'm very interested in the speaks. It looks like Magico is going after a market that they haven't in the past. 

Thanks
Gary

Wow great picture of the Wolf man!!!

Some pretty interesting details from the A3 design and build came out recently and most of the cost reduction come from the cabinet construction being outsourced to a larger shop instead of their own in house tools and using flat walled cabinets over curved. Alon admitted the outsource shop being able to provide better finishing over the house machines.

Alon does go out and say that the target was to exceed the performance of any speaker from any make at this price point. Granted, that is what anyone would say, but the company does have a good reputation at the sharp end of things, so I would certainly take the claim with some weight.

HI MIKE. VITUS 

I recently went on a tour of the Magico factory in Hayward Ca. and it was amazing to see the work that goes into these speakers. The machined aluminum enclosures alone are a piece of art before finishing and populating the driver holes. The tour also included a demonstration of their flagship speakers in their listening room. But still, even the $9500 version is still out of my price range. Maybe in a few years I can get a pair used from this site.