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Opinions on Magnepans sales/marketing approach to

Is anyone else somewhat frustrated at the inability to audition the 20.7s except at a very very few locations in the country? The fly to MN to hear does not really appeal to me either because let's be real, an hour listening to decide on 14K speakers in a strange system is simply not enough and in MN they do not do a side by side with the 3.7s to allow auditioning both through same electronics any way.

I recently purchased Maggie 3.7s with the option to upgrade to 20.7s within 6 months . The 3.7s to my ear are a cut above the 3.6s when it comes to sounding like a single cohesive speaker versus the ribbon tweeter always drawing some attention to itself.

Problem is how do you tell if upgrade from 3.7 to 20.7 is worth it if the dealers do not have them on floor? The best would be to audition in you home on your equipment but at least if the dealers had both you could audition where the only variable is the speaker.

I have spoken wo Wendell about it and there is 1 dealer who Boston who will let you try and return but that is virtually an isolated approach..one which I applaud. Of course they have to really qualify the buyer but again, if you have 3.7s and want to upgrade, Magnepan and most dealers expect you to "buy on faith or reviews" which in my mind, in today's economy, is simply ridiculous. While I am sure some have bought them "blind", the argument that the 20.1s were better than the 3.6s so imagine how much better the 20.7s are the the 3.7s will not make me pull the trigger.

Long winded way of asking about others experience and opinion of how Magnepan and dealers are handling the 20.7s

MikeH
mn2hifi
stickman451
553 posts
 
My new 20.7's are sounding better every day. First week they sounded a tad bit 'closed-in' and distant. However, after about 50hrs of play time they are definitely opening-up and sound much better.

The 20.7's are sounding more powerful and 'richer' than my old 3.6's. They definitely reach down lower; I hear more power and 'grunt', more bass and mid-bass 'punch'. The space between the speakers and the front wall is fuller, more dense, and sounds even more real (the 3.6's sound real too). The 20's speak with one voice, the separate drivers blend into one voice, unlike the 3.6's where on occasion the tweeter ribbon could 'stick-out' just a bit.

Very favorable so far! And expecting the 20.7's to get even better!

josh358
286 posts
 
That's great, I envy you!
rayooo
70 posts
 
Stickman451
Congratulations on the 20.7s!

My 20.7s arrived on Sept 21st. I lugged the things in and installed them myself, these things are absolute monsters. I knew they were bigger and heavier than my 3.7s, but OMG.

Anyway, as you experienced and as expected, they were just plain dull at first. But in fairly short order they begin opening up nicely. I probably have 30ish hour so far.

My biggest concern, and what drove me almost nuts for the 4 month wait time is that I'd find something about them I did not like as much as the 3.7s, which I thought were wonderful.

Fortunately, my fears are over, as these things really do everything the 3.7s did, better. That coherence is there as you mention, it's like listening to single driver speakers.
I had myself convinced that they could not be as good as the 3.7s were in this regard!

That added bit of lower end is very nice.

I noticed they can play louder with no "congestion". Male voices are a bit fuller. (i.e. Leonard Cohen's)

Also noticed they are ever so slightly less bright than my 3.7s were. (using the same 1 ohm Duelund in tweeter and jumper on mid) I like this because I think it provides a bit more centered adjustment range with smaller value attenuator resistors. No more fears for me. :)
mrschret
52 posts
 
When I heard the 20.7's at Magnepan and then again at Audio Emporium in Milwaukee (A beautiful store and extremely nice folks) I noticed right away a less bright sound. Avoiding any technical reasons could it be simply from the increased midrange and woofer areas on the in the panels?
josh358
286 posts
 
According to Wendell, brightness in Maggies is usually a consequence of low midbass rather than excessive treble.

The thing is, each of their models is tuned for an average room. The larger a room, the less but smoother bass it tends to have -- and of course each room has different room modes/placement/etc. The larger ones have more panel area and this may be what you're hearing. They might also have more panel area to do the acoustic equalization that allows them to tailor the response of the woofers.
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