Question about Magnepans

[Xsound]

I have read some cool reviews about the new maggies and the home theater set up. I know that they can be a tough load, so my question is what does it take to drive them?

Is there a receiver out there that can push them, or do you have to go separates? If you have to go with separates, what is the minimum required to do them justice? (Not just to get by).

I am a freak for imaging, sound stage, etc., so I would love to set up a system with some maggies.

 

[Az B]

I have a pair of Apogees which are a similar design to the Magnepans. I use them only for 2 channel, for a couple of reasons.

a) The sweet spot is exceptional, but it's very small. Not ideal for a large room with 6-8 people sitting in different locations.

2: Speaker placement is critical and rather unforgiving. This may not coincide with the HT environment. It depends on the room.

d The company has been out of business for a while and it would be hard for me to find surrounds and center... Not a problem for Maggies.

E. Dynamic range is not the best. For home theatre I like a lot of dynamics. I prefer a good compression driver horn.

5. I've never had any problem driving the Apogees with any amp or reciever that could handle an honest 4 ohm load. I'm sure the Maggies are no different.

Again, my solution was to leave the Apogees for 2 channel where they really shine.

FWIW, YMMV, etc.

 

[dsa220]

I know that they can be a tough load, so my question is what does it take to drive them?

Not quite true, over the years I have owned maggies and have found them to be a rather easy load, unlike the Apogees that AZ B has or the Acoustat 2+2's that I have. I use to drive them [maggies] with a 10 watt tube amp (no loudly) to show people how easy they were to drive. I was not until the more 'exotic' lines until an amp with generous power was needed.

Older Magnapans tended to be almost purely resistive in their impedance curve, maintaining just about 4 ohms across the audio spectrum with minor deviations. I am almost positive that their newer models follow the same creed. If the receiver (or amp) you are looking at is stable into 4 ohms (and has a half way decent power supply), then there should not be a problem.

 

[Rip Van Woofer]

AzB, what Apogees do you own? There's an active Apogee forum if you didn't know already although most there subscribe to the sillier notions of the high end IMO. The devotion of Apogee owners is almost cult-like, at least from what I've seen there. Being a Mac user I relate to that! My interest in dipole speakers came about in part thru a friend in another state who acquired Stages a few years ago (and raves about them) and told me about that forum. I lurk there from time to time. I've not heard the Stages or any other Apogees yet.

 

[jaxvon]

The question also is, which ones were you thinking of getting? That choice would also dictate what kind of subwoofer you buy. Really though, I think it's a matter of personal preference. If you can do it, try to audiotion some maggies in your own home to see how they work for you.

On another note, and while I have not heard them, Axiom's top of the line HT speaker system is supposed to sound really good. The deal looks even sweeter with the new EP500 and EP600 subs they're offering.

I've listened to maggies for a long time over my short years, but those weren't set up correctly, nor was the room optimized, etc. Therefore, I can't pass judgement on their sound. The only thing that I can really claim is that they sure as HELL sound better than b(l)ose. Glad to hear you're asking about real loudspeakers, not a Music Distortion System.

 

[Az B]

Rip,

I have a pair of Centaurs now, but I've also owned some Stages. In fact, the guy I sold the Stages to has them up for sale and I'm considering purchasing them back.

The Centaurs are a hybrid, so they're really easy to drive. But the Stages had the bass panels. They were sandwiched panels though and are a little easier to drive than earlier Apogees. They are 3 ohm speakers. I never had a problem with a high quality 4 ohm amp.

I didn't know about that user group. I did find a guy in Australia the still sells ribbons and panel replacements for Apogees.

 

[JoeE SP9]

With Maggy's the more power you have the louder and cleaner they will play. My buddies MG2A's where not satisfying to him with a 100 Watt Adcom power amp. He switched to a 250 Watt Adcom and was happy. That same Adcom is serving quite well with his new Maggy 3.6R's. As far as ESL's go, my Acoustats seem to be quite happy with the worked Dyna MK3's that are used to drive them from 85hz up.

 

[warnerwh]

You'll probably want at least 200wpc which pretty much means a separate power amplifier and all will handle the load.