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The Magnificent Magnepan 30.7 speakers....wait, I don’t like planars!

Wendell Diller from Magnepan has been a very busy gentleman recently. Touring throughout the US, he has visited, or will visit, numerous locations to demo the new Magnepan 30.7 speakers. It takes a lot of determination and commitment to drive through the country and then to set up in the small towns and large metropolises, a speaker the size of the new 30.7.
Last night I had the very good fortune of hearing the 30.7’s for the first time...at a local high end store demo. Also, I had the pleasure of talking to Wendell and his wife about his voyage...and why he does it.
But first, the Magnepan 30.7’s are...IMHO, at the very top of a long list of planar speakers that have been brought to my attention. Having owned Maggie’s in the past along with Quads and Acoustat’s, my interest level in this type of speaker was not in any way high. Yet, here’s the thing, these new Maggie’s are not your father’s Maggie’s. Instead, we have a speaker that given the right size room ( and unfortunately this is the real determining factor...and crucial to make these work) is very near to the top of the chain in current SOTA speakers. Easily able to compete with competitors at the $100k level or above! Yet these guys are priced at $30k....which makes them by far the best $30k speakers on the planet, imho.
Anyone looking to replace a speaker with a max budget of $50k...and with the room to accommodate this speaker, needs to hear this speaker..
Unlike planars of the past, and most if not all others that are current, this model does one thing that Planars have never done before, at least that I have heard. That thing is Dynamics...and in spades. Bass control and power is on a par with some of the best large dynamic speakers on the market...along with NO discontinuity between the drivers. ( as was prevalent in the past with Maggie’s).
So, how many times have we gone into a demo with preconceived impressions based on past experience and been proven wrong....this time for me was one of those times...and for you, I suspect it will be the same thing.
If and when Wendell brings his van and his speakers to your neck of the woods, don’t miss out on a great opportunity to hear one of the worlds best speakers...at a price that will put most others to shame.

128x128daveyf
stickman451
553 posts
 
I just heard the 30.7’s at the Denver ListenUp store last night.  I was a bit disappointed but can’t decide if it was the room, the setup, or the 30’s, or all of the above.  To my ears the lower mids and down to the bass were a bit bloated and for lack of a better term, ‘boomy’.  

The room was Absolutely too dead and took the sparkle off the top end. I have the 20.7’s and I know that the top can be extended, clean, and very real sounding with the right amps.  The sound from the 30’s last night was a bit dull on top, very little shimmer or life or air; it was all sucked-up by the overdamped room.

The room was also Too square for my tastes; 20 w x 23.5 L x 10.5 h.  That’s a width to length ratio of .85.

Also, the amps and the front-end were all McIntosh. This surprised me since every other Maggie demo that I’ve seen by Wendell used Bryston amps.  I think that the Mac amps were the big MC1.25KW. In any case I’m not convinced those are the best amps for Maggie’s.

Overall, a bit disappointing.  But, dealer demo rooms can be a mixed bag.  Following some of the conversations on previous 30.7’s demos around the country I have heard some other complaints on too much lower mid and bass energy in the presentations.  

Were you at a demo in a better room? A bigger room or perhaps one not quite so square?  

‘And, for those that have heard the 30’s demo, what are your thoughts on the minimum sized room necessary to get great sound from these large panels?  I thought that the 20’ width was a bit too narrow in the demo.  Another foot or two of width would help spread the four panels better.  The length could easily stand to be 26’ to 30’ feet or more.
daveyf's avatar
daveyf OP
2,929 posts
 
@stickman451

I also heard the Maggie 30.7’s with Mcintosh gear...which I don’t feel is the best synergy with these speakers. ( although the amps do have the necessary drive to power the panels well)
I asked Wendell what is the minimum size room for this model, his answer was that a minimum of about 15’ wide and length...depending on user preference. I would think that 25’+ would be required. The room I heard it in was 19’ X28’...which seemed pretty good. Did you happen to notice if there was any acoustic treatment behind the speakers, because I think this is pretty crucial. Although from your description of the room, it seems that the acoustics were definitely sub par in that space.
stickman451
553 posts
 
I hate to dispute Mr. Diller's opinion, but a 15 ft wide room is Absolutely too narrow for 30.7's!  I don't think I'd even put 20.7's in a 15 ft wide room....  For a room that size, the 3.7i's would be a much better choice (imo)...

My current room is 20'-8" wide and handles the 20.7's well.  I'm worried that the 30's might actually be tough to shoe-horn in that space.  But, most likely 21'-8" is doable.  
don_c55
1,025 posts
 
I reserve judgement that the 30.7 is a success when someone actually buys a set, and reports their personal opinion, somewhere on the internet.

As of now there is no evidence that the 30.7 is being produced, or if Magnepan is just collecting enough orders to actually build and ship in the future.

Even the most limited selling, expensive, obscure speaker has some actual owner talking about their personal experience somewhere on the net.
stickman451
553 posts
 
I agree.  Magnepan’s ‘marketing’ of the 30.7’s has been a complete fiasco.  If you announce a new ‘flagship’ speaker in Oct. 2017, why is it you still cannot put a set of those in your room today, nine months later?  As a company Magnepan owes its current and potential customers more clarity than that.




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