Magnepan 3.5r Owners needed.... No bass

@jsbelieve It's just 1 speaker, right?

Tweak1

Thanks for sharing part of your journey.  I'm always interested to hear that. I find that more people quit Maggies than stick with them.  Which is unfortunate, but people choose what works for them.  I think if we all had perfect rooms and the open space, more folks would stick with them.  

 I have no delamination, but haven't been getting the bass these should put out.  I am just about ready to go active with them.  I could definitely use some knowledge and expertise here.  I understand the basic concepts, but my trepidation has always been in spending too much money on an active crossover and not liking the sound or having It color the sound too much and create yet another variable in my system. 

I am just not sure what I'll do at this point because the mids and highs easily beat box speakers costing many times more than these.  When they're sounding right, I can't imagine looking for another speaker or doing the gear lust thing that I see so many people doing.  I like fighting until I get it sounding right.  SHouldn't be a fight, but if you saw this silly trapezoidal room I'm in that I also must use as a living room, you'd understand.   Last year I had these things Singing.  I had them off to the side and covered for a while during my busy work season and swapped between my smaller Maggies.  

I tried looking at the pic of your system, but when I click on it, it takes me to a page that says- OH NO, NOT 500. 

No idea what that's about.  I'd definitely like to see what you're talking about.

Thank you for sharing. 

Oh, wait.  Just thinking of the crossover thing.  

So when I set my amp to only use the speaker "b" outputs, which are the ones going to the bass on the external crossovers, I can listen to exactly what I am getting.  When I turn up the volume like that, It feels like the bass should be three of four notches above how it normally is.   Of course, I can't keep it that way because then the highs would be so overly loud and I'd be listening at concert levels everyday.  But I have hope that perhaps an active crossover could solve this.  
Anyway, just thought I'd mention that.  Thank you for your input.  

Perhaps you should see what happens if you use different electronics. 

It may not be the Maggies at all.  

By the way, I have had three pairs of Maggies over the past 25 years and love them all,  

Jrosemd- 

Tried many things.  I've used different electronics.  Again, it did not have this issue before, even with the electronics I'm using currently.  

But I've used several vintage pieces and some newer ones.  Vincent audio, Parasound, etc.  

I currently use a very nice, very powerful class a amplifier.  500 watts per channel in 4ohms, 100 watts pure class a.  

It's not that.  But I understand why you'd say that.  

I've always found the room to be the most important thing with Maggies.  Even more than electronics.  Then electronics 2nd.  

What model are you currently using?  

IME, although it is weird, it’s normal when only connecting the bass drivers of any speaker to barely make sound. I forget. does the back of the panel have 2 fuses? That's worth a check

Cheap actives are junk but you can buy a cheap one from several sources with money back, which would let you see if that would solve your issue, but for excellent active XO search Phil Marchand

Sometime the VS pages glitch. Try it again. ITMT: Copied from my Virtual page . I also have write up there in the comments

hth