Magico has just debuted its new model...the M9. Weighing in at 1000 Lbs ( pity those who have to move it) and being almost 8' tall! Luckily, they are bringing this speaker in at a bargain basement price designed to appeal to the masses...and unlike the other models in their line, financing won't be needed. Yes, for just $750,000- you can own one of these new models. This is certainly looking like the new 'norm' for many speaker manufacturer's. Luckily most of us have this as pocket change...luckily.
Andy, I think you are undercutting it by at least $500K. IMHO there is no loudspeaker worth $750,000 and certainly no system worth 1.5 mil. Maybe I'm just not rich enough. I can understand $250,000 for a system which is about what my ultimate dream system would cost. Underline dream.
Andy, I think you are undercutting it by at least $500K. IMHO there is no loudspeaker worth $750,000 and certainly no system worth 1.5 mil. Maybe I'm just not rich enough. I can understand $250,000 for a system which is about what my ultimate dream system would cost. Underline dream.
We should start a chat listing one thing each of us has owned (ever!) that is NOT audio and that might be considered extravagant by the rest of us. Let's get judgmental. Sorry, I'm just afraid to admit that if I had a 750K windfall, I would probably spend it on audio (including the listening room). Maybe hearing aids.
Wished I had an extra $750k cash lying around somewhere to upgrade to the M9. I currently own a pair of Magico M6 driven by Naim Statement NAP S1 monoblock amps & Naim Statement NAC S1 linestage analog preamp. There’s big jump in price going from the M6 to the new M9. The M6 retail for $176k/pair. And the M9 are quite a bit bigger and taller too.
The statement products at axpona I see and hear never do anything that makes me want them. Huge statement products set the bar so high no matter how they sound they don't measure up. How about the F1 audio magico with what 4 subs? The kef muon? IDK, makes audiophiles look like idiots blessed with more money than brains, not that I can talk.
Years ago we had a tv commercial in my country about a couple that won the lottery. You see them driving their newly purchased Lamborghini Countach in a typical suburb. The authorities have strategically placed ’bumps’ in the road in such areas to limit traffic speed. Next shot you see the happy couple stop their new supercar in front of one of these bumps (I’m sure there’s an official term for these things, but it escapes me). The iconic door swings open, after which the wife crawl out of the car with several grocery bags. This lifts the car just enough for the driver to ’take’ the bump. Then the wife gets in again and they drive on, most likely to repeat this procedure at the next bump. End of commercial.
I was reminded about this when I first heard one of those big Wilson speakers (the model before the Alexias, can’t remember their name). They were at a dealer demo room after a weekend show, with Peter McGrath playing some of his own recordings. It was loud and sort of impressive, even in a fully packed room. On Monday my friend who worked at the dealership allowed me a few hours alone with these things. I brought a stack of my own cd’s and we listener together. Most of these normal commercially available cd’s just sounded terrible, so both of us were very underwhelmed to say the least.
So we came to this conclusion: such extreme speakers are great for only the very best recordings, like an F1 car is made for the race track. But they’re totally unsuited for average recordings (the overwhelming majority), just like the Lamborghini was a painfully wrong choice for that suburban environment.
I’ve heard many of these extreme speakers (including Magico’s) over the years at shows and demo’s and always came back with that same feeling. If you are an audiophile with a wide musical taste who puts music before sound, such speakers are pretty useless.
@edgewear You bring up an interesting point. As your system gets more and more resolving and accurate, you will unfortunately hear more of the recording, warts and all. Since the vast majority of recorded music is done so poorly, you are now stuck listening to only the best recordings in order to fully enjoy the music. BUT if you are trying to re-create as close as possible to the sound of real 'live' unamplified instruments in your home, this is one of the downsides of that goal, IMHO.
@daveyf, these extreme speaker designs seem to prove you can go too far in the quest for ultra high resolution. If you are in this hobby to enjoy music of all sorts you’re looking in the wrong direction. The aim for highest resolution turns into an extremily complex balancing act, which can be very easily disturbed. This explains the endless serial upgrading, audio nervosa and other audio related mental states. It’s a dead end, unless you enjoy sitting in front of a million dollar system and two dozen recordings that sound really good. Of course I’m exaggerating, but you get the idea.
In my view this forum should be about building a system that sounds most convincing to you with all types of music you enjoy. Nobody seems to perceive sound exactly the same, so there’s no objective reference to start with. This approach comes down to system synergy tailored to your personal taste, which is one of the fun parts of being an audiophile.
It shouldn’t be about ’whatsbest’, which usually comes down to ’whatsmostexpensive’. In that universe 750k speakers are probably perceived as a new ’norm’. To me it’s just another level of lunacy. But there’s a rich sucker born every day (not minute, I’ll give you that), so there’ll be plenty of demand for these things.
@edgewear I think that a speaker and a system that is ultra revealing is in fact a major plus. While this system will sound horrible on a lot of poorly recored music, it will also sound amazing on well recorded pieces. Therefore, I believe that one should not be looking to dumb down the system, as you seem to be implying, but instead should be looking to get the best recordings--and encourage the release of these recordings.
@daveyf no, dump down the system is not what I'm implying. But I am suggesting that reaching for ultimate resolution can interfere with the enjoyment of the music. I look for the best recordings (or pressings) like any audiophile, but at the end of the day the quality of the music itself and/or the performance is most important to me.
Let's face it, there is so much great music in rather mediocre sound quality you will have to make a choice. Build a system that enables you to enjoy most of the music out there, or focus on building a system that will make the very best recordings sound even better. There's no right or wrong here and your idea of the pursuit of happiness will determine that choice, along with the ability and willingness to pay for it all.
I heard the Wilson WAMM's years ago. I never heard a degree of separation of orchestral instruments like I did that day on a DDD recording- nothing special. This was a $95,000 system (4 pieces). So it "gave me an idea" of what David Wilson was striving for. So what is Magico doing these days? My guess is moving a LOT of air in this present-stage-of-engineering with the most inert box you can build. I used to admire pictures of the Q7!- so what do I know? Can you put a Very Good Recording on that system and re-create the sound of that concert hall in Vienna? I don't know, but let Magico do what they want to do. Wilson also will continue to upgrade their speakers, as will many manufacturers in Denmark, Holland, France, the U.K., and so on. Who knows but someday China may produce the best hi-fi company in the world. Luckily I can think back and remember the 1st time I heard Watt-Puppies 3/2's completely disappear in the room. Later I didn't buy the speakers, but I bought the CD! It's a fun hobby, so buy what you want "after" you buy the groceries, pay the rent, etc. It took me many years to get the system I presently have, like climbing stairs one step at a time.
Any speaker that cost that much money yet tells you at the end of the review to buy a pair of subwoofers is bullshit if I'm going to spend that kind of money I think not only better just put me in a coma with the greatest music I've ever heard it also should do my dishes
I don’t know if a new reply will bring an old thread to life but please permit a question from a sojourner in these parts: Who or what is Kenjit? The Kenjit Society? How has he risen above the proletarian masses of Audiogon users to merit his own society? A cursory examination—emphasis on cursory—of his posts doesn’t reveal any particular genius.
Not to put them down. Those posts swim well with the typical Audiogon post, which is to say that they drip with wit and wisdom. But how did he get his own society?
One thing is for sure—I’m not spending $1MM on speakers without approval from the Kenjit society.
The NA sayers will always follow their ideology that is based two things: they either don’t have the ability to hear the difference between a $1000. vs $750,000. speaker or they know they never will be able to afford it so to ease their pain they simple bash everything they can’t have.
Magico has just debuted its new model...the M9. Weighing in at 1000 Lbs ( pity those who have to move it) and being almost 8' tall!
Luckily, they are bringing this speaker in at a bargain basement price designed to appeal to the masses...and unlike the other models in their line, financing won't be needed. Yes, for just $750,000- you can own one of these new models.
This is certainly looking like the new 'norm' for many speaker manufacturer's. Luckily most of us have this as pocket change...luckily.
For the asking price, I could build you a nice lake home with 2 dedicated listening rooms all custom designed for audio use with 2 wonderful systems that could rival anything magico has built. And a small 4-unit apartment building that could be rented to lower-income folks.
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