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Maggies with no Sub: Fantastic surprise

OK, I have had Maggies for years, and always had subs with them: Vandersteens, DefTech, Velodyne, JL Audio, Sunfire, SVS Sound, etc...

When using set up software I have measure the lower end to 35 hz consistantly, so then I would take a ton of time and effort placing the subs in the correct spots, and letting the sub or controller (SMS-1) set up the crossover for different locations. I was always looking for that perfect integration for both stereo and LFE effects, so I finally bought a Rel B1 and I am awaiting it's delivery.

In the mean time, I have for the first time ever, been listening to the Maggie 3.6R's without a sub, and I am shocked. My God, there's a lot of bass there. I have a lot of juice going to them (Cary CAD 500 MB's) and Mye Stands, but wow, they really sound great. I'm kind of sorry I bought the Rel now. I think I may just buy a cheap sub for LFE effects on movies and just leave the Maggie's on their own for Stereo.

Anyone else have this experience??

It may all be amp related, but I will now dispute anyone who says Maggies have no low end authority. I am shocked that much of the low end bass I thought was coming from the subs over the years was actually coming from the Maggies!!
macdadtexas
mapman's avatar
mapman
22,204 posts
 
Yes, "punch" is the thing with Maggies. If you want "punch", then there are better choices. Otherwise, if you can set them up properly, hard to beat!

Pop/hard rock is the genre where I felt the Maggies had the hardest time getting it right.
martykl
3,578 posts
 
Eldartford,

What frequency do you cross at? I agree with your notion of "punch" and further agree that subs usually work best as woofer/subs, rather than as pure sub bass extension "enhancers".

I suspect that most systems will get the greatest benefit out of subs between 35hz (not too much music below that frequency) and 80 to 120hz (depending on the room). I use EQ below 80hz, but - in the right room - merely choosing optimal subwoofer placement can win half the battle.

Marty
eldartford
4,262 posts
 
Martykl...I spent quite a few frustrating years searching for the "correct" crossover frequency. Then the light dawned! There is no correct frequency. It depends on the music.

I have an electronic crossover which lets me vary the crossover frequency very easily...turn a knob. If I am listening to classical chamber music I usually go down to 40 Hz (which is where my MG1.6 quit). Brass bands and organ music sounds best if I turn my cones loose up to 300 Hz or so. (Remember, my "SW" is not limited to the usual SW frequency range, and my scheme probably would not work so well with the typical commercial SW. For most music I use 60-80 Hz, mostly to get this LF signal out of the Maggies so they do the midrange better.
martykl
3,578 posts
 
Eldartford,

That is definitely a "thinking outside the box" solution, and you can count me impressed with your "better mousetrap". Might be more work than most are willing to do, but I'm sure it's been quite rewarding to work through the process of optimizing the system to program content.

Marty
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dogmcd
115 posts
 
Very interesting thread with lots of good food for thought for us Maggie owners. My system is a bit more budget minded with Maggie 1.6's. I also use an Onix Rocket sub. What seems to be the trick with a Magnepan (or just about any other planar for that matter...), is to figure out their roll-off point in your room. You can do this with some test sweeps and an SPL meter, but you'll usually wind up tweaking by ear anyway. I've found in my room that the real trick is letting the 1.6's handle the bass as low as they are capable, no high pass filtering. I run them full range and let the Onix merely reinforce the range from about 40 Hz down. You also need a sub that is very fast, so the acoustic suspension design of the Onix is perfect.

Keep tweaking!
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