Magnepan 7.0 3.5R x 2 pairs vs Tympani

Hi Jeff,
While working at a hifi store selling Magnepans we experimented a great deal. You should have seen the crazy setups we used to try out after hours on a Friday night.
One of the best setups ever was suggested by Magnepan. This setup did feature two pairs of Magneplanars but in a much different setup than you are trying out. At this time we had Tympanis, MGIIIs, MGIIBs, and MG-I improved in the store. The trick was to set up the front speakers as you would any normal pair of Magneplanars and we were experts at this. The second pair were actually placed behind the front pair, turned sideways facing the side walls. They were lined up with the main speakers with the inside corners being toed in toward the mains so that when looking down on the setup it would look like a classic trapezoid. This setup was suggested by Magnepan in one of the newsletters for their dealers. The sound was incredible when the speakers were tuned up this way. The sound stage became incredibly wide and deep, the imaging pinpoint, the slam and dynamics incredible, and the bass to die for. We tried many combos as we rarely had two pair of MGIIIs open and in stock. Magnepan suggested that using the same exact pair of speakers was preferable, but we had great results with MGIIIs and MG IIbs, MGIIbs and MG1s and many different configurations. One night we did have two pair of MG IIIs in the setup and it easily rivaled the new Tympanis.
The best setup for electronics was the ARC SP-10, two pair of Acoustat TNT-200s biamping both pair of speakers, and the front end featured an Oracle turntable, Fletcher's The Arm, and a Koetsu black. Of course all the guys swore that's what we would own someday and even now I'd sure be willing to bet this setup would trounce many new things out there. Let me know if you need more info. I think the 3.6s would sound great this way!
Good luck,
Steve

Thanks Sgr - should it goes like viewed from top?

a.\_ _/

or

b./_ _\ with the listener at the bottom position when viewed from top.

Should the tweeter be closer to the lister or closer to the front wall(speaker wall).

Thanks and I waiting to try it out.

Jeff

Sorry its been a while. I believe it was A but you might try experimenting. I believe we had the wing speakers up close to the mains too, but we did experiment with that paramenter also. I believe you'll be intrigued by your results. Have fun and keep me posted.
Steve

In mysystem, I am running two pairs of Tympani 4s, with four Classe' monos, with an active crossover. Blows away anything I have ever had.

Hey Coolkane,
Wow what a room you must have. I loved the Tympani 4s! They are an incredible speaker. I'm sure they rival the 20.1s and probably whup them in the bass. I've always wondered why Magnepan has not updated the Tympani line. They are legendary speakers and I'm sure they'd sell quite a few. I'm sure they're size might discourage many buyers though. Do you have any pics of your setup? Which Classe's do you have? Front end?
Steve

I currently have 3.5Rs in combination with 1.6 placed as Steve suggested. I am not running them full range, just the bass panels. They are placed behind the outside corners of the 3.5s at 90 degree angle facing outward. I am running the 3.5s directly off of a Parasound A21 from the balanced outputs of an ARC LS16. The 1.6s are running off the second output of the LS16 through a Burson Audio buffer to a balanced electronic crossover to another power amp dedicated to the 1.6 bass panel. Crossover has a separate sub out going to an Alon Thunderbolt sub. The system had a major 50HZ peak and significant 200 HZ suckout with the 3.5s and sub. The addition of the 1.6 panels flattened out the in room response as anticipated, but also added a significant improvement to recordings where you can hear the acoustic character of the space where the recording took place. It is not present on all recordings, so it is not a psycho-acoustic effect. Live Studio recordings such as Brubeck's Take Five now have the addition of the space where the drum kit is set up, for example. The DWM works on a similar principal and ,as Steve said, Magnepan suggested the idea to their dealers. I too was in the business during the '70s and later. I am a skeptic that has always had to hear it for myself. This experiment truly blew me away!