I think the spacing you are using for the VS's will work fine for 1.6's, that should be plenty of room. Yes, the Maggies will make some images larger than life, solo acoustic guitar for example. At no time did it ever bother me though. On the whole, they present a well integrated image. Durability was never an issue for me. I had one pair for about seven years and then the 1.6's for about five, never a hiccup. I think there is some consensus that delamination of the mylar is likeliest to occur if they are left in direct sunlight for prolonged periods. No product is 100% failure proof, but on the whole, Magnepan makes a very reliable speaker line. FWIW, if I were inclined to jump into the planar speaker pool again at that price point, I'd also look very hard at the Eminent Technology LFT-16, a very interesting design that's getting some great reviews. Bound for Sound & Affordable Audio both recently reviewed them very favorably.