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New Magneplanar 1.7 owner

Yee-haw!

Since my current speakers are now out of production and replacement parts are rapidly dwindling, I decided to fix them one last time and consign them. This put me on a 2-1/2 month quest for replacement speakers.

After considering the usual ID suspects in my price range (e.g., Salk Soundtowers, Ascend Sierra Towers, LSA 2.1 Towers, etc.) and auditioning what was available in my area, I was so completely captivated by the virtual reality experience of the Magnepans that I came home with a pair of 1.7s today.

Normally the store doesn't stock them but rather takes your order and gets them in in 1-4 wks depending on their availability and production schedule. But lucky me, they had a pair in stock of the color combo I wanted, silver aluminum side rails and black cloth. I'm breaking them in as I write.

They look ridiculously large in my living room, but that's part of the fun of the insanity and joy of this hobby, eh? Meanwhile, even before they're broken in I'm discovering new details in familiar recordings. My little Mirage subwoofers match up well to flatten and extend that bass response down to around 36 Hz. They helped the imaging pop into focus.
johnnyb53

Showing 3 responses by johnnyb53

johnnyb53 OP
3,510 posts
 

11-18-13: Mofimadness
Welcome to the""Maggie Club"! I was a Magnepan dealer for years and your comments are usual after customers brought them home. Of course, they're not for everyone, but are indeed excellent speakers.

Make sure you have lots of power to give them. Also, they really do need time to break in and will sound even better after a few hundred hours.

Thanks, MoFi. I brought them home Saturday afternoon and had them up and running by 6pm connected to a 24/7 feed from our local FM classical station. As of noon Monday they already have 42 hours on them and sound better every time I interrupt the feed to play an LP. Yummy and best of all, engrossing. Transforms listening to a virtual reality experience. My previous speakers (Mirage OMD-15s) also needed that first 100 hours, but continued improving for … I dunno … 1500 hours? I know that about a year later I noticed a more refined and higher resolving presentation than after that first week of 24/7 break-in plus 3 hours daily playing.

Of course, they're not for everyone, but are indeed excellent speakers.
Funny thing about Maggies; it seems that--other than deep bass extension--the primary criticisms are logistic--the scene-stealing frontal area, free space required around them, and power requirements. I so far haven't noticed the sonic bugaboos that dog so many dynamic designs--cabinet resonances, hooty midrange, in-room suckouts at crossover points, and treble marred by tweeter ringing and overshoot. The treble on these--even this early--is exquisite; the frequency extension and delineation is all there without any harshness.

For power I'm currently using a Perrreaux PMF1150 which makes 100/200 into 8/4 ohms and it's a very good match, sweet, clear and smooth. For bass extension I already had a small elegant pair of very fast and easy-to-blend subs that flatten the bass response between 60 and about 36 Hz. As soon as I switched them in, the imaging popped into better focus, so I must have gotten a good blend.
johnnyb53 OP
3,510 posts
 
11-18-13: Brownsfan
Johnnyb, MG 3.7Rs in 3, 2, 1----.
Oh, no doubt Maggies are the crack of audio.

I have an audio buddy who--in about a year's span--started with used 1.6s, upgraded to 1.7s, then to used 3.6s and last I heard was negotiating for some 20's. I wouldn't be surprised if he takes out a 2nd mortgage to get some new 20.7s. What'll he do then?? (well, he could add JL subs…)

I like all kinds of music but my extensive classical LP collection hasn't seen much action because the cone speakers I could afford just couldn't keep all that polyphony sorted out. I just listened to Bruno Walter's 1958 Columbia recording of Eroica on the new Maggies last night. What a trip!
johnnyb53 OP
3,510 posts
 
11-18-13: Secretguy
I'm curious about how you have the sub set up. I've never gotten a sub to sound right with Maggies. Are you using an external Xover? Or does your amp provide bass management?
First, I have very small, very fast subs. They're the now discontinued Mirage MM8s, but the identical unit lives on as the Energy ESW-M8. For speed and clarity, they have aluminum cones, a very supple, linear, and long-excursion surround, and lots of power--360 RMS/1200 peak.

They are line level input only and can accept a stereo or mono signal. I have a pair working left and right, and positioned close to their respective main speakers. This keeps the L-R bass fundamentals in sync with the panel's upper bass and overtones regardless of where your position in the room.

These subs also have a pretty comprehensive set of controls for blending--volume (of course), 0-360 deg. continuous phase control, and continuous crossover control from 50-200 Hz or even bypass.

I don't try to do too much with these subs. They don't go deep or loud; just to about 36 Hz and 106 dB. I don't use a high pass Xover either. Basically I use them to augment the same 40-60Hz range as Magnepan's own DWM, help pressurize larger rooms, and fill in where the Maggies start rolling off so they're flatter in the 36-60 Hz range.

And it's a lot easier to blend an 8" high powered, light-diaphragm sub with 1.7s than trying it with a single 12" or 15" sub reaching down to 20 Hz.
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