What small center will sound good with Maggie MMGs

A great match for the MMGs is the Aura center channel speaker with the Linaeum ribbon tweeter. They are no longer made because Aura decided to concentrate on car audio but they were ridiculously cheap when they were being closed out (as low as $100). I still see them on eBay from time to time. I am not certain of the dimensions of the center but you could also consider one of the small bookshelf speakers laying on its side (I think the models are the LSB-527 & LSB-627). The LSB-527 would definitely fit. I know it is tough to match center channel speakers with other brands of speakers (in this case a completely different type of speaker) but the Aura with the MMGs blended remarkably well - much better than many of the "tonally matched" speaker system available from other manufacturers.

I have not tried the speakers Fishcall suggested, but it sounds like a good idea.

I'm running the Vandersteen VCC-1 which is a phase coherent two way, where the tweeter is mounted in a coax configuration. It disappears between my Soundlabs, creating more fill than would seem possible and has enough dispersion sitting atop my big screen Pioneer RPTV to be believable height and placement for the material routed to the dialogue channel.

I've found the amp is about as important to matching across the front three speakers as the speakers themselves. Since my main speakers are tube powered, I use a tube mono block for the Vandy dialogue.

The fact that this works for Soundlabs makes me think it might be good with Maggies. If you can, borrow a VCC-1 from your local dealer for a demo. It's definitely worth giving a listen.

no vandersteen dealer in my town, but would the vandy fit my dimensions? also, will the arua sound good inside a closed cabinet?

Fishcall, here are the specs on the Vandy, copied and pasted from their website.

CROSSOVER:
3500Hz. First-order, 6dB per octave.

* PHASE:
The woofer and tweeter are both in positive phase.

* IMPEDANCE:
8 ohms nominal.
5 ohms minimum.

* EFFICIENCY:
86dB at 1 meter with a 2.83 volt input.

* RESPONSE:
80Hz to 21kHz  +/- 3dB
Proximity compensation off.
The bass of the VCC-1 is bandpass limited.

* AMPLIFICATION:
30 to 200 watts per channel into 8 ohms.
High current is not required.

* INPUT:
Heavy-duty terminal block.

* SIZE:
12 1/8" wide, 9 1/4" high, 10 1/8" deep.

* WEIGHT:
23 pounds net, 27 pounds gross.

the vandy will not fit in my cabinet which can accept as a maximum 7" x 17" x 10" (HWD). know of any centers this size or smaller that would mate well with Maggie MMG?

Well, the Vandy was there on width and depth, sounds great and reasonably priced. I was hoping the 9 1/4" high (Vandy) would fit where you allocated 7".

Perhaps the suggestion by Timothyjk for the Aura? I found this "RCA" speaker at EBAy that has the Linaeum tweeter. Could this be the same speaker? Current bid is $61.00 with two days left.

You would have to contact the seller to see about dimensions as they are not listed in the ad.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=3082337105&category=14992

The smallest center I ever used was the Boston Acoustics VRM-C. I believe it will fit your size requirements. It was only about 6" high by about 8" deep; I can't remember the length, possibly more than 17" but check their website to see. It's finished in a really nice dark reddish cherry wood, or in "black ash." I found it to be an excellent center channel that matched well with several different fronts I was using, but they were all dynamic box monitors, not Maggies. Another, even smaller center is the ATC SCM-7, very very dynamic and punchy, but again a dynamic monitor not a 'stat. The size is right, though.