CurtPalme.com Home Theater Forum

drice1234 · Joined: 07 Oct 2006 Posts: 1309 Location: Allen, Texas

There is a set of these for sale in my area and I remember thinking that they were cool when I was younger. What grade of quality are these speakers and could I use an 8 ohm receiver to drive them. Below is a link to the auction
Thanks
Dan

http://cgi.ebay.com/Magneplanar-5-Ohm-Speakers-Model-MG-1-Great-Condition_W0QQitemZ110213441688QQihZ001QQcategoryZ14993QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

**kal** · Posted: Wed Jan 16, 2008 4:14 am Post subject:

I owned a pair of Maggie MMG's in the 80's and loved them. They *CRAVE* power however. Your average receiver need not apply. You won't do them justice. A good 200W/ch power amp with good current capabilities would make them open up nicely.

Kal

**AnalogRocks** · Posted: Wed Jan 16, 2008 6:36 am Post subject:

I auditioned a set of those once. I agree with Kal, the Yamaha reciever I was looking at couldn't drive these hard enough. Plus they were a little pricy for a 22 year old.

jask · Joined: 17 Mar 2006 Posts: 10187 Location: kamloops BC

Find a good sub as they bottom out at 80-100Hz and a set of big amps (4 OHM?) and you are ready to rock. One big problem is they need room to breath, they need to be at least 3 feet from the wall to open up.

rabies_70 · Posted: Wed Jan 16, 2008 9:02 am Post subject: ooops

double post...sorry, please remove

rabies_70 · Posted: Wed Jan 16, 2008 9:06 am Post subject:

I tried a set in my theater. Some people love em, and as far as I could tell they sounded nice, but not for what I wanted. Very musical though, crazy nice sound stage (whatever that means) and some maggie guys wont listen to anything else. I sold em.

Quality wise the Magneplanar are well respected. The wire that excites the membrane over time can separate from the membrane giving off a from an annoying buzz to almost no sound depending on how bad it separates. Relatively easy fix with some 3M spray glue.

mike calcott · Joined: 18 May 2006 Posts: 307 Location: Australia

Used to sell them new years ago, definately need a sub, otherwise excellent

santler@roosevelt.edu · Posted: Fri Jan 18, 2008 6:13 pm Post subject:

Nothing like them for orchestral music. If you like Beethoven and Brahms snap them up immediately.

Moose · Joined: 09 Mar 2006 Posts: 788 Location: Minnesota

Do these have a ribbon in them? If so, that would be the only good thing about a Magnepan speaker. I have never liked Magnepan speakers. I have heard them many times. I know a lot of people love them but I just can't see why. Well, I can, to a point. It has a nice launch area. They seem to fit into living areas well. And they're made in Minnesota! But the Magnepan driver - not the ribbon but the driver that was Magnepan's claim to fame - is a piece of junk. Unlike electrostats and ribbon planar speakers, it's single ended. There is no amplifier damping. They ring - badly. Ever review I have ever seen that included measurements has pointed this out. Apply a signal and when it ends, the speaker just keeps on giving. Add to this the fact that the driver itself is quite heavy in comparison to ribbon and electrostatic drivers (which can be breathtakingly light), what with all those wires glued onto the Mylar. These facts are undoubtedly why the more expensive models include a ribbon.

So there - shot me.

JustGreg · Joined: 07 Mar 2006 Posts: 3098 Location: Kenosha, WI

There's a set on Milwaukee Craigslist too. Guys says he overhauled them at great expense...if anyones interested.
Greg