Magnepan Owners & Discussion Thread

[Sir Triode]

http://www.hifiplus.com/articles/meet-your-maker-hi-fi-visits-magnepan/?utm_campaign=Hi-Fi%2B+Weekly+Emails&utm_medium=email&utm_source=email-106

[vmhf]

That was a good read mate. Thanks for sharing the link.

 

I have an even deeper appreciation of my humble Maggie MMG now

[aechmea]

Yes thanks Triode.

[O.Sydney]

that's one of the more comprehensive photographic reports on the factory I've seen. And the elevated platform for the workers safety

[Guest Gary janezic]

Hi I am interested in magnapan speakers and like to know how they compare in sound quality to my klipschorns that I have.i love these but am looking for something with a much better quality sound hence my interest in magnapan 20,7 or 30,7 speakers. I know Magnepan won’t be as dynamic or as easy to drive but if they were of much higher sound quality I would buy a pair and have 2 different systems.any one out there who has herd both, I would appreciate feedback. Thanks 

[andyr]

29 minutes ago, Gary janezic said:

Hi I am interested in magnapan speakers and like to know how they compare in sound quality to my klipschorns that I have.i love these but am looking for something with a much better quality sound hence my interest in magnapan 20,7 or 30,7 speakers. I know Magnepan won’t be as dynamic or as easy to drive but if they were of much higher sound quality I would buy a pair and have 2 different systems.any one out there who has herd both, I would appreciate feedback. Thanks 

 

Welcome, Gary,

 

You won't be able to hear any 30.7s - I don't think there are any in the country yet.  However, Peter ( @GroovyGuru , in inner Melbourne, south) has a great-sounding pair of 20.7s.  Then there's also:

• David ( @djb , in inner Melbourne, north) with a pair of restored Tympani 1-Ds
• and moi - with my 3-way Frankenpans ... basically, Tympani IVas with only 1 bass panel (so I have a pair of 15" cone subs to compensate).  Also in inner Melbourne, south.

Listening to any one of these systems will give you a very good idea of what Maggie sound is all about.

 

The only point I would make though, is that to get the best out of these bigger Maggies ... you need to:

• either have a powerful amp
• or you actively bi- or tri- amp.

So what you're using with your Klipschorns will probably not be much good with Maggies.

Andy

 

[Guest Gary janezic]

Hi Andy thanks very much for info. I am using McIntosh 452 power amp 450 Watts rms per channel.i bought this for my old pair of proac speakers now have klipschorns.i like the klipsch but looking for something different. Thanks gary 

[WorkinClassAudio]

The 30.7 will not be available in Australia until next year.  I will have a 20.7 to sell when the 30.7 is available. 

[andyr]

3 hours ago, Gary janezic said:

Hi Andy thanks very much for info. I am using McIntosh 452 power amp 450 Watts rms per channel.

 

Should be very nice with some Maggies! 

 

Andy

 

[Guest Gary janezic]

Hi Andy it Should work good with Maggie’s . My room is 15 feet wide buy 25 deep hope it’s big enough for 30.7s. Gary

 

[Ittaku]

4 hours ago, Gary janezic said:

Hi Andy thanks very much for info. I am using McIntosh 452 power amp 450 Watts rms per channel.

Should be a reasonably nice match for the maggies. It's my understanding the Maggies go down to 1 ohm in the treble range and the 452 is pretty good at delivering current and rated to 2ohm with their use of autoformers.

[Guest Gary janezic]

Thanks Andy.do you think a room 15 feet wide and 25 deep would work with 30.7s going from what I read it’s fine.

[mrbuzzardstubble]

9 minutes ago, Gary janezic said:

Thanks Andy.do you think a room 15 feet wide and 25 deep would work with 30.7s going from what I read it’s fine.

https://www.magnepan.com/model_MG_30.7

[andyr]

1 hour ago, Gary janezic said:

Thanks Andy.do you think a room 15 feet wide and 25 deep would work with 30.7s going from what I read it’s fine.

 

Yes - as long as you understand there can be quite a bit of difference in SQ between "works with" and "sounds its best with". 

 

25' long is great - it's the 15' wide which could be a problem.    Although if you look at the 3rd pic down in the link above - that's only a 15' wide room (so the article says) ... and the bass panels against the wall with the ribbons on the inside would certainly "work". 

 

The other approach is to have the 30.7s on the long wall - in which case you would have the ribbons on the outside.  This would give you a much wider sound stage ... the penalty is that you couldn't have them as far off the front wall.  (I have mine arranged this way - and my room is only 12' "deep".)

 

Andy

 

[Guest Gary janezic]

I am to thinking 15 feet could be abit to narrow only if I had 2 more feet I would be very happy.anyway it will have to do.i am gonna listen to Peters 20,7s soon and decide from there which of the 2 models to get. Thanks Gary 

[Wimbo]

Put them on the wide wall mate and well apart. The only problem with this is to-in but experience will overcome that.

If you cant do that, don't bother. Get a pair of LS3/5A's.

Edited November 24, 2018 by Wimbo

[ghost4man]

Gary, 

 

I have 4 pairs of Maggies - Tympani 1Ds, MMGs, IIIAS and MGMCIs so if you are ever up on the Central Coast of NSW come and pop in. Incidentally I am 5 minutes away from Bill McLean's shop where you would purchase. 

 

I have heard Maggie's which sound unbelievable as well as one's which were very disappointing. Maggie's have a sound signature which once you fall in love with it, it is very difficult to go back to box speakers. 

 

You're amplifier should be good enough. The better the amplifier the better they sound. They are extremely room and position sensitive. 

 

Ozzie 

[Guest Gary janezic]

Hi Ozzie thanks for the invite. Bill will set these up for me should I buy a pair.i am using klipschorns and lascalas in your opinion would the new Maggie’s 20.7 30.7 offer higher quality sound.i know they are very different speakers but that aside would Maggie’s be of a much higher quality sound.i will still keep the klipsch but want something different.gary.

 

 

 

[Big Dog RJ]

Maggie's are ribbon transducers, Klipsch are horns and some are horn loaded. Two different planets! 

 

With Maggie's it's all about stable current capabilimy, not so much watts. Power doesn't mean anything. I've tried numerous high powered amps that ran out of juice, simply because they cannot deliver stable current drive across the impedence curves of panels, such as ribbons and stats.

 

The MC452 is an excellent amplifier and will drive any of the Magneplanars well. I've personally heard the very same combination, MC452 driving a pair of MG20's, and it was quite marvelous indeed!

 

What you will get out of ribbon transducers are as follows:

1. Greater speed

2. Articulation in the bass, speed and agility in bass lines. 

3. Transparency and inner detail 

4. Extended highs, the tweeter ribbons are capable of exceeding 40kHz.

5. Added depth and dimensional spacing in the soundstage. This will probably be the most profound attribute, where the height, weight and scale is of "the absolute Sound".

 

These are the main 5 attributes you will receive with the Maggie's. Remember that after a while (few years, typically 3-5) the tweeter ribbon elements requires replacing simply because the speed and agility at which the ribbon moves is so great, at one point in time it will give way. 

 

You can easily purchase tweeter ribbon kits available from your Magnepan dealer or you can order through Magnepan direct.

I do know of a few people who have had there ribbons last for quite a while before replacing, and others who have replaced tweeters within a couple years. I had many iterations of Maggie's, starting with:

MGIIIa, MG3.3/r, MG3.5/r, MG3.6/r & the MG20. This was just before we acquired the Apogee Diva's. These Maggie's were all driven with CJ monoblocks, Premier 8A with the ART preamp. The other brand of monoblocks I used were the big Manley 350 reference series, all tube designed and we're superb driving ribbons. All of the Maggie's tweeters were replaced around the same time, other than the MG3.6 & MG20, because they were sold off before any replacement was required. 

It also depends on how loud you listen and extended periods, and how hard you drive the speakers. If you're careful enough, you can get many years of trouble free operation with the tweeters.

 

It's truly amazing to observe the tweeter ribbon element moving in free space according to the audio signal, that speed is marvelous!

 

Maggie's are also superb in musicality and the higher up the model, the greater the resolution. They also offer the greatest value for money that you can have from a panel type speaker. They can very easily compete with the best out there and once you're hooked, I sincerely don't think you would retain the Klipsch... Just my 50cts. 

Hope that helps a bit.

Cheers, RJ 

Edited November 24, 2018 by Big Dog RJ

[djb]

You need to arrange to listen to a set of Maggie’s before you proceed. Contact s member of the flat panel society to arrange an audience.

Given you large room @GroovyGuru might be the best option 

I too expect the wide wall would be the best placement.

 

@andyr and I @djb have large older speakers in small rooms utilizing active minidsp cross overs.I suspect you will eventually want 2 powerful amps in a room that size. 

The tymphany 1-D from the late 60s early 70s has 6 panels.

I am currently enhancing the bass panels with Heil air motion tweeters avoiding the fragility of true ribbons .solots of variations.

Many ppl walk away after listening to Maggie’s as they cant/won’t give up the dynamic range they currently have in place

[andyr]

22 hours ago, Wimbo said:

Put them on the wide wall mate and well apart. The only problem with this is to-in but experience will overcome that.

 

Why is toe-in a problem in the long-wall scenario, W? 

 

Andy

 

[djb]

@Big Dog RJ excellent post

[Big Dog RJ]

In order to start off with Maggie's, just to experience what they're capable of, I would advise the smaller series first and then later on, if it's required, aim towards the MG20 series, rather than dive straight into the MG20.

 

The model that I've listened to date and in my experience beats an array of highend contenders is the MG3.7i. This series will also match superbly well with the MC452. My good mate, John Hall (repair guru of Quad stats) has a pair, driven by a powerful Magtec amp designed by Roger Sanders. Superb combination!

 

Once you get a feel of the MG3 series, you will begin to understand the Magneplanars abilities and the philosophy of Magnepan, the company that builds Maggie's in Minnesota USA. The founder and chief designer, Jim Whiney, is no longer around on our little blue planet but he was an absolute genius with "true ribbon" transducer technology.

 

If I didn't have the means and for my luck the special trade-in deal I got for my Ethos stats, which helped me to acquire the CLX's, it would have been the MG3.7i, no doubt! 

 

Also tubes sound very life like with Maggie's, and especially Conrad Johnson amps, which I've been using for nearly three decades. However, that's a totally different equation and certainly not everyone's preference...

 

As forum members have suggested that you first listen to a system with Maggie's in a private home that is properly set up, it will be very different when trying to gauge what ribbons sound like. Demo's are the worst unless again optimally placed with the right kind of amplification to drive them. 

 

All the best and do let us know how it all goes. Cheers, RJ 

[Wimbo]

12 hours ago, andyr said:

 

Why is toe-in a problem in the long-wall scenario, W? 

 

Andy

 

Hole in the middle effect Andy. If they are too far apart they may not integrate properly.

 

Edited November 25, 2018 by Wimbo

[Ittaku]

12 hours ago, djb said:

Many ppl walk away after listening to Maggie’s as they cant/won’t give up the dynamic range they currently have in place

Indeed, which is exactly how my experience went with listening to them. However, there were still aspects to their lovely sound I heard from Andy's setup which were very seductive and made me approach my own speaker building very differently. Going open baffle only goes partway to recreating the sound, as there is magic in their sound beyond them simply being a dipole.