The Gear to drive Mini Maggies

With Maggies, ANY Maggies you can not have too much power.

Jim, welcome to Audiogon :-)

Aside from the issues the others have (correctly) raised, I'm not certain that the Mini Maggies would give you what you are looking for. You mention your PC desk, which is the kind of application they appear to be intended for, but you also mention "MOSTLY near field listening," and that the room is medium to large size. I'm doubtful that the Mini Maggies would be good choices for those occasions when you want to listen from positions away from the desk.

I note this statement at the Magnepan site:

We are frequently asked if the Mini Maggie System can be used in lieu of one of our larger models. Yes, but we err on the side of caution. There is a good reason why line-source drivers are big. We suggest that you view the Mini Maggie System as a solution to a installation dilemma---especially well-suited for near-field listening in a VERY small room when used with two DWM Bass Panels.

I also suspect that, like the power amplifiers, the Descent subwoofer would not be a good match for the Mini Maggies, given its three drivers, three 250 watt amplifiers, and 105 pound weight.

Regarding the power amplifiers, I note that Magnepan offers the speakers in combination with a Wadia 151 DAC/amplifier, and states that:

Mark Winey, the president of Magnepan, has the Wadia 151 on his desk, driving the Mini Maggie System. We'll play it for you if you visit Magnepan.

Although you already have a DAC, my point in mentioning this is that the 151 is rated at just 50 watts, for the 4 ohm impedance of the Mini Maggies (and 25 watts into 8 ohms).

Is to big of an amp bad for speakers or in this case would it just be a waste?

To use most of the power capability of the amplifiers without overloading the electrical wiring and/or tripping circuit breakers, you would probably need a separate 20 amp line and breaker for each amplifier. Although, of course, you would not want to use most of their power capability, or both the speakers and your ears would stand a good chance of being damaged.

If you were to ever make the mistake of turning the components on or off in the improper sequence (the proper sequence being power amps on last and off first), and if the preamp or DAC were to generate a significant transient (i.e., "pop") when turning on or off, as some of them do, that might cause the full power capability of the amplifier to be momentarily applied to the speakers, with destructive results.

That might also occur in the event of an AC power dropout. Most likely the amps would continue to be able to amplify for some seconds after power drops out, utilizing internally stored energy, and a turnoff transient generated by the preamp or DAC during those seconds could very conceivably be amplified to 1000+ watts.

Also, a lot of amps don't sound their best when only a tiny fraction of their power capability is being used. Also, using a very high powered amp may result in your having to use the volume control of the preamp undesirably close to the bottom of its range, which can have a number of different adverse sonic effects.

And of course there are issues of size, weight, heat generation, and cost.

My suggestion is that you reconsider the speaker selection based on the range of listening positions you anticipate, and finalize or narrow down the choice of speakers first. Then address power amplification that would be an appropriate match, perhaps initially by researching the amplifiers others have used with the same speakers. And consider deferring purchase of a subwoofer until after you have purchased and had a chance to familiarize yourself with the performance of the rest of the system in your particular listening environment.

Regards,
-- Al

See this is where my confusion is with Mini Maggies. Extreme opposing positions on the amp. Either its Maggies can not have too much power (aka the more the better) or I hear 100w amp ran Maggies great. You can see why someone new like me just scratches their head.

Quote from the manual:
"The Mini Maggie System is a 4 ohm speaker and should be used with a high-current amplifier that can safely drive
a 4 ohm speaker. As a general rule, the Mini Maggie System will require less power when used as a desktop
system compared to use as a woofer/satellite system.
Connect the output of the amplifier to the amplifier input on the DWM Woofer. (Note- There are no left or right
input/outputs on the DWM Woofer.)
Connect the Mini Maggie to the "high" output of the DWM---observing polarity in both cases."

Here are specs from the guide(I don't see power anywhere):

"Specifications
System Description: 3-Way, full-range, true ribbon/planar speaker.
Frequency Response: 40Hz--40kHz
Sensitivity: 86 dB, 500Hz, 1 meter, 2.83V
Impedance: Nominal 4 Ohms"

Finally from the website:

How much power do I need? [top]

We are asked this question every single day. We wish that we could be of more help, but individual tastes vary. If someone tells you that you need an amplifier with ___ watts, how can they be so sure if they are not listening with you in your room?

You can get a lot of free advice in the chat rooms on the internet. Most of it is of very little value (or misleading). Often, their power recommendations are influenced by their listening habits and room conditions. If they have a strong opinion of what you need for power, take it with a grain of salt.

Personal tastes are "all over the map". We hear of customers that are perfectly happy with 50 watts and others using 1000 watts. Without the option of listening with you, we have no way to give meaningful advice. The most reliable way to answer this question for your particular needs is by visiting a dealer or arranging to hear a pair of Magneplanars. If you listen to your music at your normal volume, in a room that is approximately the same size as your room, with an amplifier similar to what you plan to use, an accurate power requirement can be determined for your listening habits. This is a lot to ask, but it is the only reliable method of determining the power needs for a specific individual.

There is a persistent impression that the larger Maggies require more power. It is true that most customers with the more expensive models have more powerful amplifiers. But, the popular assumption is not correct. They typically have a larger budget. If and when you upgrade your electronics is a separate decision."

Basically, Magnepan decided not to say what amount of power is needed but do say that people enjoy 1000 w amps.

You can run them with 100 watt SS or 50 watt tube, but they will not do all they can do with less than 500 watts a side at 4 omhs,stable to 2 ohms.
Proved many a time, to many people.
An EE Professor cum audiophile at U of Wisconsin proved it to me,

Have heard the Minnie Maggies with the Wyred mINT. Sounded great, plenty of power.