Has anyone heard the Magico Mini?

Alexc,
you say you heard the Mini with a pair of Torus: can you elaborate on the difference with the mini alone? does it justify the 19k additional investment?
thanks

I am a little late to the discussion, but would still like to add my 2 cents.

Much of the discussion so far surround the Mini and the SF Guarneri.

I currently own and use the Mini, and I used to own the Guarneri. (the original)

To compare the Guarneri to the Magico Mini, imho, is not very appropriate. Of course they are both fine loudspeakers, but they are based on completely different design goals. I have also owned the SF Amati, so I am quite familiar with the SF approach. The Magico Mini is imo, a level, if not two, above the Guarneri. Yes, the Guarneri can be more 'relaxing', but whatever characters or adjectives one manages to use to describe the Guarneri sound, it is because SF designs their speakers after a *certain* sound. I have spoken with Mr. Alon Wolf. His approach is very much different from SF. AW prefers to designs his speakers from a scientific angle... just like if you feed an amplifier a square wave, the resulting signal should also be a square wave. So the Magico Mini are designed to be hi fidelity transducer that attempts to convert the electrical signal into a mechanical motion -> acoustic energy.

The G has a sound. In the long run, every CD you play through the G will have the G characteristic. The Magico Mini is imo much more successful as a transducer to deliver what the signal truly are with very very low distortion and little to no 'coloring' (the room will become the biggest variable).

The resolving power, the lightning fast transients attack (start and stop), the tuneful and VERY extended bass from the sealed enclosure are truly steps above any SF model.

Also, the build quality, I should mention... I used to think SF are gorgeous, but they are nowhere close to the way Magico constructs their speakers. What you see on the Mini is the actual stacked plywood pattern with no veneer masking what is underneath. The woodwork quality, plus the aluminum CNC work are all top notch.

These are not speakers that you will be impressed with with casual listenings. Speakers like the WP8 (pretty yucky to me) can often grab someone's attention by their exaggerated midbass. The Magico Mini, on the other hand, are so linear, so distortion free, they could take some time to use to. It took me only 10 mins to realize how good they are. But if you have been 'suffering' from poorly ported design for years, the linear, extended and tuneful bass from the Mini could really take some getting used to. But trust me, once you get used to it, there's no going back.

Wslam,a wonderful,thoughtful,post.Sensible conclusions,about performance,and a sealed design advantage,too.I have NO doubts that the Mini performs as to your description.I hope they show this at the Stereophile Show,in NY,in May.
Best.

Wslam, an interesting post. In my room, which is a small room, comparing the Mini's to the G's, I prefered the G's.All of my 'phile friends agreed; why, because the G's were more naturally extended in the highs and were able to portray depth in a more realistic manner. The Mini's are very good, but in a very small room like mine, tend to be a little hard and edgy. I have heard this from several others who have more experience with the Mini's than I do and who have listened in a larger room. The build/quality/finish of the two products is very much subjective to opinion. IMHO, the Mini's are not in the same league in this area, kind of like comparing a Ferrari to a Hummer. No question the Hummer is way better off-road ;0)

"More naturally extended in the highs"?? Have a look at http://stereophile.com/standloudspeakers/487/index5.html
And then look at http://www.magico.net/magico.pdf. How is it more extended if the G's tweeter drops more then an octave below the minis tweeter? The G's Dynaudio's Esotar tweeter was old news 10 years ago. I can not arguer with what you hear (Or think you do) but look at the facts. If the minis were harsh in your room, it is simply because they were telling you how your room and its associate equipment sounds.