New Maggie 3.6 OR 10 yr old Sound lab A-1 s

Telescope trade,

Modern M-1's may beat Maggie 3.6's soundwise... but the M-1 is a new $14k speaker and the Maggie is a new $4k speaker. If I could afford $14k on a speaker the Sound Labs speakers might be perfect.

I have never heard the Sound Labs A-1 or M-1, however, equating the two soundwise seems problematic since they are 10 years apart in age. Speaker design may have not jumped leaps and bounds in 10 years, but rest assured, the Maggies they make today: 3.6's and 1.6's and other lines, sound better than the lines Maggie sold 10 years ago. I really hope the same can be said for Sound Labs speakers, else they probably will have trouble competing with other speaker companies who do advance their technology forward.

The Maggie 3.6's are seriously better than the 3.5's,and I hope the M-1's are seriously better than the A-1's.

This and $.50 will get you a cheap cup of coffee.

Just food for thought.

Hi,

Thanks for posting your thoughts. I went ahead with the
purchase of the A-1's, as it was a time frame thing.
I called Sound Lab, and everything can be upgraded,
actually quite reasonable.
They also said if the were maintained reasonably well,
they should have another 10 yrs left before mylar
replacement is needed.

Thanks again to you all,

Bob

Congrats, Bob! I think you're gonna like your new babies!

I have a friend with fifteen year old Sound Labs (I've never actually heard his pair). He has never had a thing done to them - no upgrades, nothing. He's a much more mature human being than I am - me, I'd be wanting the latest & greatest. He is quite familiar with the latest advances - he used to work for Sound Lab, and he helps Roger West every year at the CES. Roger would update his speakers free - they are best of friends - but the man isn't interested. I have heard of even older pairs still in use. My point is, Sound Labs can last a long time, and even older models continue to sing.

For the benefit of anyone not familiar, Roger West of Sound Lab (formerly of Janszen - remember them?) designed the A-1 ("Audiophile"-1) about 20 years ago. The same basic design is still in production today - a large faceted-curve panel that radiates over a 90 degree arc. There have been incremental improvements over the years, but the basic design is the same - it wasn't Roger's first try, but when he designed the A-1 he really got it right. The M-1 ("Millennium"-1) is a relatively new development - it's essentially an A-1 with less wood trim, and a bit lower price. The U-1 ("Ultimate"-1) is an A-1 with an ultra-rigid tubular metal frame, and a higher price. For the traditionalist, the A-1 itself is still in production.

One nice thing about the Sound Labs, as Bob discovered, is that Roger West does his very best to design improvements that can be retro-fitted to older speakers, so that customers haven't just spent a pile of money on a speaker that in a couple of years will be obsolete. To put it in Maggie terms, it would be like being able to bring a 3.5 up to 3.6 standard.

Way to grab the situation, Bob! I was afraid at the bottom of the reply page I would read that you went for the Maggies. Hope you will update on the A-1's from time to time, perhaps share any significant findings. Enjoy!

good choice . the maggies although good never get 3d . the sound labs even old ones will scare you in the dark. i hope you have good tubes.