Magnepan for Background Listening

I'm not sure how speakers pulled out from the wall behind them at least 3' are going to work as "background". ;-)

True. Part of the appeal is that they can be shoved against the wall when not being played.

seanheis1,

     I think you'd enjoy them as background speakers and actually having them at least 3' out from the wall will only enhance their performance as background music speakers.  The fact that they're dipoles and there's direct sound from the front, as well as an equal volume level of reflected sound coming from the rear, adds a sense of depth that is noticeable and enjoyable whether your in front of or off to either side of the speakers.  Adding 1-4 subs in the room only adds to this spacious perception.  Plenty of quality amp power also benefits the sound quality.  
     I enjoy the sound of my Magnepan 2.7QRs with a 4-sub Swarm distributed bass system even from nearby rooms.

Tim
     
     

I used MMG’s for years and found them perfectly fine for background listening. Just because they sound best when you’re in the sweet spot doesn’t mean they don’t sound good otherwise. I’d love to hear the new LRS. I bet they're hard to beat at that price.

Just fine. The sweet spot is small for every speaker made it is just that the better speakers are better at displaying it for you. The sharper the sweet spot the better the loudspeaker. 
Background music is just that. You are really busy doing something else and just like to tap your feet which you can do to a first generation Sony pocket radio.