Magico Mini with REL Stentor Sub can it match?

Sterling Trayle,originally of Sumiko(who was responsibe for the Rel stuff,in the U.S.) was very "against" the use of spikes.He talked me out of using them!

His rational was that since the driver fires downward,the sub requires a "specific" amount of distance from the "bottom" to the floor,for good bass coupling.If you use the spikes,then that geometry is off!...A no,no....Made good sense,the way he described it at the time.

Also,it is rediculous as well,since the sub cannot be moved around much.

You won't have to worry about "that"...since you probably have others lined up to do the work anyway.

You now have all the info you need about the Rel,whether a series II or III.In your room it makes little difference which one is used.

OK EBM,don't ask me why I am posting this,but what the heck....

First off you cannot possibly be crossing over at 47K(that is the "loading" not the crossover point).

The crossover point is in "Hz"!.....You already have a speaker that goes down into the "probably mid 30's" in your room,but I have not been to your home in a long time(no plans on coming anytime soon,but at least you deserve some decent input).

Anyway,aside from the fact that from what I remember you don't need the Rel,you might as well get the most from it...a damn good sub,if you know how to voice it.

First off(and you should have read the Avalon manual, when you owned the Eclipse more carefully,as it had all the necessary info about different bass systems,and how to employ them in specific rooms)....

You MUST set the crossover point "just below" the speaker's roll off.Or you are going to get an overlap(which you probably have,regardless of what you perceive now).This overlap of bass frequencies will kill the subtle inner details and dynamic shadings that the Mini definitely has in abundance....Don't get "so" involved in bass that you forget about this!!

So,from what I know about your room(having been there like a million times)you should be crossing in NO HIGHER tan "maybe" 32 hz!Even 28 hz,or 24hz is not a stretch!

I kept lowering and lowering my crossover point until I settled on 24 hz believe it or not,because I came to realize that the sub should ONLY come into play on rare occassions,and should not make it's presence known....OR you have it set too high!

Next,the "gain setting" must be LOW!!I had mine SO low that it would have been about a 1.5 on a scale of 1-10.

As to "placement"....I hope it is NOT too close to a corner or wall!!!

It works best when it has room to breathe!

In your room,it should be almost touching the "back" of the right channel Mini!...BUT,it should have about 20-24 inches from the side wall,and at least that from the back wall!

Also,without going overboard(you like to do this,but I'll still save you money)...call Paul at the Cable Co and order the dedicated Rel speaker cable from XLO.It costs only 200 bucks and is excellent,You don't need a pricey cable here,but the standard one sucks!

Put a Cardas XLR cap/cover in the XLR hole too,and run the sub on a quiet line,preferrably one with A/C regeneration.

You should be set,now,but don't read any more into this other than an Audiogon post...That's it!

Good luck...and good bye!

Btw,I forgot to mention the "Phase/Invert switch"....

Set this on "Normal",unless the sub is plugged into a conditioner or other device that inverts phase.If that is the case,then switch back an forth between the two settings,to figure which sounds best.This "is" tricky.

This is very important,otherwise the sub will be out of phase with the MINIS bass driver.....I'd suggest you....

Have Sid there,to give you the final OK!...He is a Bass expert,and play some LP's that he is very familiar with,which have alot of low freq content!!

That should do it.

The "big" advantage of the Wilson Benesch Sub over almost any other is the "Larger" driver surface area(I believe it is 15-18 inches,or there-abouts).But it does not stop there...it also has a very "low driver mass"(far lower than a REL),which would make it a far superior match for a bullet fast speaker, like a MINI!!

The low mass driver,is faster/more sensitive than other sub drivers(including the REL...though they are excellent) and from what I remember JV of TAS stating,was "this" was the BEST sub for a MINI!!Check out the back issues of TAS if you doubt my memory or integrity on the matter.

I doubt there will be much feedback on "anyone" mating a REL with a super fast speaker like the MINI,though anything is possible.

I do remember a few folks who had superb sucess with the Wilson Benesch sub on the MINI though....but...

These folks "only" wanted the finest possible match with a Magico MINI in mind(not getting a low price on a sub alternative).

If I were lucky enough to have a superior design like the MINI "is",I'd be more concerned with the tried and true Wilson Benesch.... It's not cheap though!...but..

Imo, the MINI deserves the "BEST"!

Still,who knows?...The REL could work.

Heh,heh,heh....Great post!

You have "SO MUCH" (in life) to be happy for!!

Good luck with your toys.

Btw,there is a bridge in your neighborhood that you might have better luck selling to Audiogon members,than "that" load!...Tsk,Tsk-:)

No,actually these days you are EBM...Peace,and good luck!

Btw,you happen to own a system you should be proud of,without the need for confirmation from others.

I'd think you should have learned this by now.

Me?.....Well I know a good bit about music theory these days,and can play a musical instrument better than my "audio days"....Let's call it a tie...OK?

Be happy.