Eric D Wong
Stunt Coordinator
- Joined
- Sep 8, 2003
- Messages
- 62
I've owned a pair of MGIIIA Magnepans for 10 years now and have mostly used it for 2 channel "audiophile" sound sitting next to my old 30" TV (needs replacing). The speakers are 6 feet high, 2 feet wide and need at least a 2 foot distance from the wall. The room they are in right now is small- 17x13. Not to mention its not the most ideal for HT (wood paneling, 2 open doors, 1 swinging door and 1 window) but thats all I got to work with now.
I took home last night a Polk LSi system- LSi25's fronts matching LSiC center. I have a pair of Klipsch RW12s that I havent used with that system yet cause I was just demo'ing the internal subs of the Polks. The rears are not matched, they are B&W AS6's for the side surrounds and the surround backs are Optimus LX5's (remember those??). I'm using a Denon AVR2850 and an Adcom amp to power the system.
Anyway, Maggie vs Polk- the Maggies have a true 5 foot ribbon tweeter. They are brigher then the Polks and they seem alot more "open". The Polks also sound excellent, but their highs seem a little tamer (they use the Ring Radiator tweeters).
If I were to do a Maggie setup, I would use the cc3 center, and 4 of the MC1's for the surrounds. Pro's- I love the magnepan sound and the unconventional "boxless" design. I also have no clue how the wall mounted MC1's will function as surrounds. Cons- the speakers will be huge in that sized room. Due to the opening door of the room, I cannot position the maggies very far wide in the room and this hampers my ability to get a larger TV. Also- the Maggies really sound "collapsed" when a TV is in between them, and they are in the less- then ideal position when in HT position (about 2 feet from the wall). I also have a difficult time integrating them with a conventional monopole sub. Even more other maggie owners report that the huge sound coming out of their 6 foot tall models do not match the very wide but not so tall sound out of the CC3 (which uses a different tweeter altogether).
Further, I cannot use my 8 15" DIY subwoofer I plan to build at full blast without fear of destroying the ribbons (done that before with pro audio subs).
On the Polk side, the speakers are very slender. They take up much less room and they may be better suited for HT use. I will be able to use a much wider screen without the visual blockage/impact that occurs with the 6 foot tall Maggie "screens". They have pinpoint accuracy and the fronts and center are a perfect match, with the same tweeters and midwoofers. I will also get their matching full dipole surrounds.
Basically it boils down to this- full Maggie HT system, or move the 2 maggies and start "music" system and be able to put them positioned in their full sonic glory and do full Polk HT system. I think after writing this I am leaning towards the Polk HT system and move the maggies somewhere else for music only. Thanks for listening.
I took home last night a Polk LSi system- LSi25's fronts matching LSiC center. I have a pair of Klipsch RW12s that I havent used with that system yet cause I was just demo'ing the internal subs of the Polks. The rears are not matched, they are B&W AS6's for the side surrounds and the surround backs are Optimus LX5's (remember those??). I'm using a Denon AVR2850 and an Adcom amp to power the system.
Anyway, Maggie vs Polk- the Maggies have a true 5 foot ribbon tweeter. They are brigher then the Polks and they seem alot more "open". The Polks also sound excellent, but their highs seem a little tamer (they use the Ring Radiator tweeters).
If I were to do a Maggie setup, I would use the cc3 center, and 4 of the MC1's for the surrounds. Pro's- I love the magnepan sound and the unconventional "boxless" design. I also have no clue how the wall mounted MC1's will function as surrounds. Cons- the speakers will be huge in that sized room. Due to the opening door of the room, I cannot position the maggies very far wide in the room and this hampers my ability to get a larger TV. Also- the Maggies really sound "collapsed" when a TV is in between them, and they are in the less- then ideal position when in HT position (about 2 feet from the wall). I also have a difficult time integrating them with a conventional monopole sub. Even more other maggie owners report that the huge sound coming out of their 6 foot tall models do not match the very wide but not so tall sound out of the CC3 (which uses a different tweeter altogether).
Further, I cannot use my 8 15" DIY subwoofer I plan to build at full blast without fear of destroying the ribbons (done that before with pro audio subs).
On the Polk side, the speakers are very slender. They take up much less room and they may be better suited for HT use. I will be able to use a much wider screen without the visual blockage/impact that occurs with the 6 foot tall Maggie "screens". They have pinpoint accuracy and the fronts and center are a perfect match, with the same tweeters and midwoofers. I will also get their matching full dipole surrounds.
Basically it boils down to this- full Maggie HT system, or move the 2 maggies and start "music" system and be able to put them positioned in their full sonic glory and do full Polk HT system. I think after writing this I am leaning towards the Polk HT system and move the maggies somewhere else for music only. Thanks for listening.
