I was a fan of Maggies for years. My last pair was a set of 3.7's which were used in a room slightly smaller than yours. Since you don't want space heaters, I think Ralph's class D suggestion is well worth considering. I use Atmasphere M-60's in my main rig, but I recently picked up a Lyngdorf for my downstairs rig and really enjoy it. It is not in the same league as my M-60's, but it is really good. I would think the Lyngdorf 3400 would be well within your budget and easily up to the task of driving the Maggies at 2x400 WPC into 4 Ohms. And I would urge you not to discount the DSP (room perfect) which I found to be a game changer in a room with bad acoustics. The Lyngdorf produces almost no heat and can be left on 24/7, but it does come with a full feature remote. Seems like a perfect choice to me. If I went back to Maggies, the Lyngdorf would be the first amp I would try.
Amp Section for New Pair of Magenpan 3.7i
Not long ago I purchased a new pair of Magenpan 3.7i
speakers after listening to them driven by Classe preamp and amp. My uncomfortable truth is the Magenpan speakers
never sounded half as good at home as they did at the dealer which I attribute
to my aged but working 40 year old Yamaha M-2 power amp.
My only source of music is a (lossless files) USB hard drive by way of my Oppo 105D optical drive. I foresee no more tuners, tape drive or vinyl in my future and after my experience with RTA and equalizers I would say I am a straight wire with gain type of person. With my bad knees at least a minimal remote control for off/on & volume control is essential. Stereo music is the critical priority so 5 channel and 7 channel home theater amps are not something I would be interested in. The total budget is less than $10,000. Given the dealers willingness to make deals on demos that would mean perhaps under $15,000 retail price.
One huge reservation I have is that in my experience the Classe amps do double duty as very effective space heaters which is not desired in my modest 15’ by 24’ listening room.
The same dealer also sells AR and PrimaLuna. I assume PrimaLuna is not the same quality as AR and Classe?
Right now using the Oppo 105d I select music from my USB hard drive that I can view on my TV. Is there a more elegant solution I should consider?
Thank you in advance.
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Tommy at Digital Amplifier Company tests his amps on Maggies. Fantastic sounding class D amps that deliver a smooth non fatigued sound with plenty of grunt to drive them. I use a low power STM integrated on my 100db horns with great results. Thinking to sell my SET monos since the DAC amps are that good. 30 day return policy to boot. https://www.cherryamp.com/ |
I have Maggie 1.7i's. They sound superb driven by my Gryphon Diablo 120 and by my Bryston 4B3 using my dac's volume control. Bryston amps have always been considered to be a great match with Maggies. I currently have my Bryston for sale, but I could live with either amp with my Maggies. I am also using a pair of REL subs with the 1.7's. |
- 16 posts total