It's Magnepan 20.1's or B&W Nautilus 801's

An interesting choice, Roy, as those are two VERY different sounding loudspeakers, which excel in very different parameters. I will not tell you what I would buy in your setup, as I think it is less relevant than the following advice:

The audiophile hobby, for me, is about self-discovery, maximizing my personal energy through experiencing the journey, rather than the destination. This is very much like the philosophy of martial arts. As a novice, you won't have a large base of external experiences/journeys to reflect upon, but you still have basic self-knowledge. Meaning this: instead of asking yourself what you are hearing when auditioning these speakers, ask yourself "HOW DO YOU FEEL?" and "WHAT ARE YOUR REACTIONS?" to what you are experiencing. In this way, the choice you make will be true to yourself (what and where you are right now). In time, you'll gain more experience to be able to answer the question "WHERE DO YOU WANT TO GO?" and "HOW DO YOU GET THERE?"

Good journeys to you.

Okay, I'll get off my soapbox and resume my morning meditation on the toilet.

Steve

Do you prefer chocolate or vanilla? That is what you have with the Maggies and B&W. There is no right or wrong answer, just preference and personal taste. Both speakers offer excellent sonics, therefore, your room may be the limiting factor in your decision. IMO, I would like to have a bit more room than an 18x18 for the 20.1s. Maggies, especially the 20.1, are very sensitive to speaker placement to extract that last bit of performance. The B&W are not as sensitive (relatively) to room placement as the Maggies are and do not need the same amount of "breathing room" as the 20.1s. Nice dilemma though, 20.1s or B&W N801 !!

The first response is great and I agree totally with it. I will also add that when comparing between two items that you do not have a sonic preference for; I would go with the one that has better build quality. I have a local store with both of these speakers and agree that they both do many things very well but are totally different speakers when all is said and done. You will note upon close inspection that the BW speakers have several cheap, or flawed design aspects. One, the cheap plastic grill covers that easily break off and the midrange cover that does not stay on. Two, the cardboard top covered in grill cloth that vibrates and rattles if you knock on it??.Three, Is that a plastic base the speaker sits on?. Four, The wood and wood finish is levels below the standard at this price point. Five,The tweeter mounting is a joke. Now don't get me wrong and think I don't like these speakers, I like them! but they are not perfect. Now to the Maggies, build quality problems, none that I can find. Looks may or may not be a problem but the BW will look more impressive. You will like living with the Maggies-easy to move, the BW will be a pain to do anything with. My advice is to pack up your equipment and go to the stores and listen before you even think about spending that kind of money on a guess of which will sound better in your home.

Unlike the others, I AM opinionated. The speakers worthy of your choice of music and equipment are the Maggies. It is unfortunate that your medium of choice is digital crap (I do not care if it costs a million dollars), even a half way decent turntable, properly set up will sound vastly superior in audio QUALITY (not convenience) to the CD player. A few suggestions:

1) Make sure the Maggies are properly positioned in your room. Start by placing them 60" from the back wall and gradually move them closer to the wall until the image snaps into focus. DO this over a period of several months listening to each position over a period of days/weeks).

2) The build quality of the Maggies is quite flimsy so take care.

3) Use short (the shorter the better) speaker cables and longer interconnects from your preamp to the power amps.

4) Make sure the speaker bottom corners of the two speakers and the top are exactly equidistant (within 1/8") from the back wall.

5) Do yourself a big favor and buy yourself a decent turntable - from a VPI or Basis at the low end to La Verdier Platine or VPI TNT at the high end. You see them often at Audiogon.

6) Keep your audio path simple and straight forward. Avoid the preamp if you can. Whenever confronted with choices, KISS (keep it simple stupid). Do not believe the reviewers or the salespeople - listen with your ears. Don't buy if your can't hear a difference.

7) Be prepared to be emotionally overwhelmed with music.

8) Invite yours truly over frequently for dinner. Send plane tickets if you do not live in Houston.

I have many more opinions to offer but not enough space or time.

Regards,

Erider