Magnepan 3.7

Mn2hifi, congrats on 3.7s. I love mine. They come into their own at about 300 hours. Especially the bass. Drastic change there where it is like subwoofers turn on. I tried different jumpers and best to my ears are emperical designs custom tweeter and midrange jumpers for maggies. I also use supreme hi-fi tuning fuses and those helped too.

I own a pair of infiinty renaissance 90 speakers as well as b&w nautilus and magnepan mmg's. I must say the infinitys have continued to amaze me. They continue to sound better and better as i've improved the system around them and it makes me wonder what their ceiling is. I've auditioned the magnepan 1.7 that I thought sounded beautiful but they were a tad bright and lean in the bass. The infinitys are incredibly dynamic with tight deep bass, beautiful mids and natural highs, musical and non-fatiguing. Their best quality however is their ability to disapear wth 3D soundstage and great spaciousness, but again they need enough power, top source equipment, cables and proper setup. The comment about them having less resolution than the maggies may be because of their more laid back presentation. The maggies and especially the b&w's tend to be more forward especially on the top end.

Hi Bimmer 8

I own also a pair of Renaissance 90 and I agree on almost all the points with you. But I was shocked the day I heard the Magnepan 1,7 by a dealer with my Cds and almost the same set-up I have home for the Infinitys. The 1,7 are without any doubt much more resolving, I could for example hear the space in which the recording sessions of my Cds had taken place ...

I would consider magnepan down the road due to the infinity's age and difficulty to find parts. They seem to be very good for the price, but I would miss the dynamics especially the low end frequency. I know this can be handled by a good sub but i dont want to deal with that in my stereo setup. The rens are a very balanced speaker but very dependant on the equipment and room placement. They also are very non-fatiguing and sound dull with poor recordings and come to incredible life with great recordings. The maggie 1.7 are an upgrade to the 1.6 because of the full range quasi-ribbon and super-tweeter for more detail and coherancy. I've heard some say they can become fatiguing with extended listening.

Bimmer, if you can swing it, the 3.7 or 20.7 should do better in the dynamics department. If you want more than that and have the space, you can do what I did and get a used pair of Tympanis.