Magicos are chesty

@shadorne

I just realized I misread this:

My guess is you are hearing the sound of the polypropylene plastic bucket that houses the midrange. 

My apologies, I thought you meant the driver basket. I had forgotten all about the bucket!

Yes, but as @sciencecop points out, this isn't present in the S1.

Assuming the same issue is in both, I'd say it's a crossover tuning issue.

But that doesn't mean that the S1 and S3 don't have different causes of the same issue.

Best,
E

What took sciencecop so long to show up and browbeat anyone dissing Magico?

I spent few hours on Saturday listening to the S1 Mk2 on a full Spectral system. Truly was a treat, I couldn’t fault it on anything but full orchestral pieces (and the price, very expensive setup). It was amazing, the liquidity off these speakers is unmatched by anything I heard. Here is a link to a very good review by a very “snobbish” German reviewer ( https://www.magico.net/reviews/PDF/Magico_S1MkII_3-18.pdf ). Will not do a full translate but he basically concluded with that:

"With her farewell from the listening room, the Magico S1 Mk2 I was unhappy. No wonder, because those who have heard the entire musical spectrum with these transducers in a clarity and bandwidth that can only be described as unbelievable, meets the blow when reactivating to familiar loudspeakers…”

@mheinze
Honestly, there was a lot I liked more about the S1 than the S3.
The S1, except for the congestion noted in my original post, has a glass smooth midrange to treble, and truly impressive dynamic range along with a very wide listening angle.

The S3 I heard was not as smooth, and honestly a little strident as things got loud. (this may be dealer electronics, or acoustics but it was something I heard elsewhere in the showroom).

The S1 remains a weird thing to me. It requires a lot of space, a lot of power, and ultimately sounds better at low listening volumes. I mean, it has the dynamic range, but the tonal balance is a bit cool, and encourages more late night quiet listening than R&R at full volume. And damn, it is inefficient. I really had hoped to hear that the S3 fixed everything, but honestly, in the short presentation I heard, if those were my only two choices in speakers, the S1 was far better.
Again, I have no idea what contributed. It could have been the room, or cables. No idea. Just based on my 2 auditions, hands down the S1 wins.

@erik_squires 

The S1 I listen to was in a small room with the Spectral Stereo DMA 240, hardly a monster. I don't understand why you conclude that they need a big space and a big amp. I only heard the S3 in Munich show couple of years ago, it was a very impressive presentation, also with Spectral, I believe.