Magico Ultimate III - $700,000 Speakers

A 5-way speaker system is a lot of cross-overs and driver segments to handle, in vital frequency ranges at that - that's certainly where the complexity part comes into play and getting it all to mesh well, let alone seamlessly. The active platform per se on the other hand is not what I'd regard "complex," that is to say: similar amps could be chosen above the "power region," and the active XO should make the integration part that much easier (and, I'd expect: better sounding) compared to a passive approach. 

@phusis 

I think you wrote a lot to my simple point:  Multi-way, active crossovers do not in anyway guarantee a significant audible improvement even when done well.  That a 5-way, active crossover system is not really a selling point so much as a design choice. 

Having said that, it sure simplifies things as a crossover designer to work this way.

@erik_squires wrote:

I think you wrote a lot to my simple point:  Multi-way, active crossovers do not in anyway guarantee a significant audible improvement even when done well.  That a 5-way, active crossover system is not really a selling point so much as a design choice. 

Having said that, it sure simplifies things as a crossover designer to work this way.

The 5-way approach is indeed a design necessity for what Magico has set out to accomplish, not a selling point. You keep insisting active multi-way is no guarantee for "significant audible improvement," yet whoever claimed multiway is exactly that? No approach guarantees audio nirvana, but this is a seriously scaled-up system aiming for a fairly authentic reproduction in vital areas, partially horn-loaded at that, and thus a bunch of cross-overs come into play. Making it an actively configured endeavor only helps, as you acknowledge yourself, and from here on it's up to Magico to work their magic with the integration. 

I could not pay $700k for speakers. Even if I were Bill Gates with his kind of cash.