Maggie update (2 Viewers)

[Alan M]

I guess, I'm the last of the Alan's to respond,lol.O,and BTW,I think your an honorary Alan member Parker
I would agree,theres a "you are there" quality to Maggies that I just havent been able to achieve in my HT with any other speaker.The openness or airy quality of Maggies adds so much to surround,It truly enhances the effect.
Hey P,
Tough decision you have,but I'm sure ,you'll be thrilled either way you go(wished I had the same problem )

 

[AlanZ]

Do you other Alans ever use your Maggies with television? I was so damn excited during the superbowl, because I SWEAR these things bring new life to tv programming. Honestly, with my old Paradigms I hardly ever ran them with tv......sure, it sounded better, but nothing really special. With Fox especially, if there is some sort of live show like spor ts or even American Idol (:b), it really turns it into a live experience. I was so excited about how the superbowl sounded that I was actually posting on the Maggie forum like an idiot during halftime lol. Maybe I'm just easily amused, but to me the Maggies do for tv audio what my HDTV cable box and tv do for video, baby!

 

[Alan M]

HI Z,

Do I use my Maggies for TV? Thats the only way I watch TV.Although I dont watch TV often,shows like csi,as an example are broadcast here locally in HD and DD 5.1.

The switch in back of my rptv to turn off its speakers has never been in the on position.Its going on 2 years now.

 

[Alan Pummill]

AlanZ,

Don't feel :b all by yourself. The wife and I watch each and every American Idol show!!

 

[AlanZ]

Well good, I feel better then lol......I admit, that show is one of my guilty pleasures

 

[Dean_M]

Quote:
"Dean, here I was thinking I had this original idea, and there you are having already done it lol.......oh well....at least it works! My plan is very similar to yours...."
Great minds think alike!

 

[Dean_M]

Z, I use my Maggies for everything, but I don't watch a lot of television, and only if it's HD.
I find myself listening to the Maggies more than I ever listened to my old speakers. It seems to me that I'm hearing things that I never heard on my old set-up, and I'm hearing everything in a new way. To me, the light, airy quality of these speakers makes listening so much more pleasurable than my old cones. Before I bought them, I was somewhat concerned because of what I've read of planars lacking the dynamics of cone speakers. For all I know that may be true, but my old ears can't tell the difference. Pink Floyd and Zappa sound amazing to me on these things.

 

[Dean_M]

AlanP, I am probably committing heresy by suggesting this , but how about a high end HT system that you can also use for high end two channel? If I had a large enough room to use, I would definitely go with the 3.6s, 1.6s, and CC3 for HT.
How do you like the ML sub? Do you think it would do well serving double duty for music and HT? I'm using the SVS PB12-Plus/2, but it's overkill for the size of the room that it's in and for the volumes that I listen to things. In hindsight, I'm wishing that I had gone with a single like the PB12-Ultra instead. But sometimes it's just impossible for me not to succumb to the idea that bigger is better.

 

[AlanZ]

Dean:
I know what you mean about the Maggies for tv......I've only been using them for HD/DD broadcasts, too......it's quite spectacular As far as the dynamics of the Maggies vs. other speakers, I honestly can't really tell either since I don't have them side by side. All I know is that the other day I put my MMGs through the Saving Private Ryan test (which is basically the first 25 mins, in addition to the tank scene at the end of the film) and it passed with flying colors. I had to keep checking myself to make sure I hadn't taken a bullet
I think everything is a trade-off when it comes to speakers. And at least for me, I'll take the 'presence' of the Maggies over whatever I'm losing by not having a cone speaker in its place.

 

[DaveHo]

I know this goes against the Maggie philosophy, but just how loud can you get a pair of MMGs to go if using a sub? I can't help it, but I like to crank it up now and then, and with my Paradigm V2 100's & SVS PB12-Plus/2 on 2-ch material, I have no problem hitting 105-110 Db peaks at my seat. Will the Maggies play that loud? My amp is an Acurus A200x3 which is rated at 350W/ch into a 4 ohm load.

-Dave

 

[AlanZ]

Dave:
Nice system, bro......I had v.2 100s and a PB12-ISD/2 in my house for about a year and a half.....loved it!
I can't answer your question in terms of output, but I can say that 1) even these MMGs play pretty damn loud with both music and HT, but 2) if you're wanting a system that is primarily geared toward pumping out the decibels, you're probably better off with the v.2s. This is only my opinion, of course.....but Maggies are going to impress more with their 'presence' and detail than they will their overall output. That said, I have only run my Maggies w/out a sub, so I'm sure that makes a difference - especially with that absolute beast of a sub that is the SVS PB12-plus/2
Anyway, Magnepan does have an in-home trial on their MMGs.....and you definitely have the right kind of amp in your system already. But if I had to guess, I'd say that in terms of SPL, the v.2 Paradigms are going to best the Maggies.

 

[Alan M]

Howdy Dave,

I'd have to agree with "Z".I would think your V.2's will out spl the Maggies.With that said ,I'll also say the MMG's will play loud enough in my 18x12x8 HT to damage my hearing if that was my goal,lol..I'm only pushing 165w/c@4ohms with my amp.

 

[AlanZ]

You know, 'M', the three of us aren't only Alans, we're also all three of us Outlaws

 

[Parker Clack]

Hey. I am an Outlaw too. My 950 and 770 kick some serious ass.

I will remember to this day sitting in a high end electronics shop that had a pair of Maggies (sorry I don't remember the model number it was about 10 years ago) dialed in with a chair in the middle of the room.

I had them put on Karajan conducting the Berlin Philharmonic with his cover of Beethoven's Ninth. I closed my eyes and suddenly I was in that concert hall. I literally cried it was so beautiful. I also remember that the speakers seemed to be taking a breath every once in awhile to put own more. Every note covered from the woodwinds to the stings to the chorus was as the music was talking just to you. Isn't that what you come away with when you go to a concert or a play?

What I also took away from that experience is that while conventional speakers sound fantastic with the volume turned up the maggies were a huge impact at a volume that you could actually talk to the person next to you.

There are few things in our world of speakers, amp, preamps, etc. that make the hair on the back of your hair stand up when you audition them. Those Maggies did just that.

Thanks for the honorany membership. So it P and the 3 Alan's. I like it!

Parker

 

[Dean_M]

Quote:
"You know, 'M', the three of us aren't only Alans, we're also all three of us Outlaws"
I was enjoying this thread until the bigotry of name-ism reared its ugly head. I'm being unfairly discriminated against, so I'm calling Al Sharpt... Oh crap, nevermind.

 

[AlanZ]

Damn, listening to Parker talk about Magnepans is making me want to go out and buy a pair right now! Wait a minute......
Dean, sorry about the discrimination thing......we'll have to incorporate some sort of additional recognition for the non-Alan minorities Though we have to give Parker whatever he wants, since he's the boss

 

[Dean_M]

Yes, we must all be nice to Peter.
Although I'm not an Alan, I am an Outlaw.

 

[AlanZ]

Wow, look at all the OUtlaws You have to admit, they make a pretty solid product. I know the 950 is already outdated to a degree because of the newer processing formats, but there's no way I'm going to part with mine any time soon. I love my M200s, but that 300wpc multi-channel amp they have coming out is going to be very tempting if I get bigger Maggies.

 

[Alan Pummill]

My Outlaw 950 and Earthquake Cinenova Grande 5 amp does a descent job with the maggies, but I have been hanging around a hi-end shop here in Cincinnati, and I know there is much better to be had!! If I go hi-end 2 channel, which is where I'm leaning, I will be selling my 950 and Cinenova. There is already people in our local HTF group that have dibs on both of these items.

Right now, I am using 4 channels of my amp to biamp the 1.6's. (5 x 300wpc @ 8 ohms, 5 x 600wpc @ 4 ohms = maggies) But I think the weakest link in my system right now is the 950. Now don't get me wrong, it does what it does well, but it isn't the greatest 2 channel processor.

If I go all the way up to the MG3.6R's, which is where I want to go, I will want a more refined preamp and amp!! But first on the list is to get my room built so that I have a descent place to listen to music!! Boy is my mouth watering to get a truly hi-end sound system in my house!!

 

[AlanZ]

'P':
No doubt, if I were moving up to the 3.6s, I'd upgrade the pre-amp too. As much as I love the 950, it would not suffice for a strictly 2-channel setup. On the other hand, if I were going to use my 3.6s for HT (!!), there's no way I'd part with it. I'd just add a nice stereo preamp with an HT bypass for 2-channel use. I've seen that idea thrown around here a lot, and now that I have Maggies I've been tempted to pick up a nice used piece on audiogon or something. I honestly would see little point in upgrading the 950 if you were primarily an HT person, though......unless you were going to spend some serious cash.
Just my $.02