Magico S1 Mk II - The First Review

I would not call this a review. It’s a useless piece of crap with its only virtue being that it’s the first assessment of the speakers. It’s a blog, not a review. The blogger is in an unfamiliar room with equipment he’s likewise unfamiliar with, and there are no other speakers used for comparison purposes. And we don’t even know if the blogger was familiar with the recordings that were being played. Further, we don't know how long the listening session was or if the speakers were completely broken in.  In my opinion this guy has no business asserting that his conclusions are valid in any way, and he doesn't even mention that all these variables may have affected what he heard.  Say what you will about the more established review publications pro or con, but at least most of the time you’re getting a review based on a known room with the reviewer’s own equipment, their own music, and their own speakers for basis of comparison. With all the variables involved and the lack of rigor on the part of the blogger, I would put zero credence in any conclusions drawn from this thing.

I just looked at the blogger's other "review" of some Focal speakers.  His ONLY other "review."  In this one he whole-heartedly recommends the Magico speakers, that he wasn't overly impressed with, over the Focals.  Huh.  The fun thing is that it's not evident he ever even listened to the Focals.  The whole assessment seems based on videos and measurements taken by another publication.  Apparently we cannot only accurately assess the performance of a speaker in a strange room with unfamiliar equipment, we can just do away with the whole listening process altogether and make judgements on paper.  Who knew?  I feel like an idiot wasting so much time using my ears. 

By comparison, I think the Magico's are far better built than the Focal's, which is why I was so bent out of shape. Bent pressboard cabinets, miniature, underdamped tweeter motors and crossovers deliberately designed to create a low impedance in the Focals does not create a high value proposition for me, even if I think I can hear the Archangel Gabriel on the other side of the speaker.

Magico speakers, whether I like the sound they produce or not, are class acts all the way, from the quality of the drivers, integration and crossover components.  I could argue the internal wiring is "bargain" but I can't argue it's substandard by any means.

As for the room, I have to say, if Magico couldn't produce the absolute best sound in their amazing listening room with $200K tube amplifiers, where does that leave anyone else? That very wide listening angle in particular is something I think purchasers should consider. This would be a $5,000,000 purchase for me. I'd have to not only buy the speakers but a house with a room big enough to do them justice, so for me it's a weird little combination for the particular use of long-term critical listening. Also, your own ears matter a lot. Mine are really good for being nearly 50, so I'm a lot more sensitive to treble uptilt than others my age, and that lower male voice / piano I heard was just a little extra. .

Mind you, your ears and your room should be a better judge as to whether the Magico's should make you reach for your wallet or not. Please go listen to the Magico's yourself. My posting should help you avoid what I thought could be buyer/speaker mismatches that the dealer and current crop of professional reviewers would probably leave out.

A good question was what do I listen to.  I listen to custom speakers using parts from Mundorf, Scanspeak and measurably flat and with very low distortion. The good folks at Raal traded help with me do some of the measurements so I know what I am used to listening to is pretty neutral, and distortion free, and free of current high-end fads or signatures. So if you are used to an uptilt in the treble, the S1 may sound very neutral to you.

Again, not really interested in proving the value of the S1, just sharing how I would describe them in the hopes that everyone who buys a pair loves them for a long time. :)

Maybe this would help. By comparison to the Wilson Sasha Mk 2s or B&W 802D’s (last ones I heard) the Magico’s missed nothing. The B&W’s and Wilson’s I’ve listened to by comparison made me feel the treble kind of stopped too soon or I was missing something. I think if you hear the Magico’s in the right situation side by side, you’ll feel like you have not been hearing everything before. The treble uptilt is related, but really separate issue.

If you know anything about capacitors and their sound, Magico has been taking advantage of the latest Mundorf Evo caps across their range. They are gigantic and hideously expensive. I personally am not a fan of those particular caps and believe I detect a little Disney-like sheen, or fairy sparkle to the top treble, so I don’t use them. I’m not completely against euphonic gear, this just isn’t a trait I seek out.

Still, please buy what you like.