New 1.7i

[frequentflyer]

Mono and Stereo High-End Audio Magazine: Magnepan 1.7i Planar Magnetic Loudspeakers

New 1.7i to debut at CES.

[mgard]

frequentflyer,

Very cool, thank you for posting!

~Mike

[ylee]

A buddy of mine decided to buy the 1.7i back in December. The only challenge for him is that he doesn't have his music room in his basement finished yet. So he asked me to store them in my music room while he works on his listening environment. We recently set them up and connected them to my system (minus obviously the Quatro Wood CTs I have).

Maggies have a "house sound," like most brands. And I like it. It doesn't have the breadth of tone and frequency response my Quatros possess, but that's almost a given considering the price difference and the design. But above about 35 - 40 Hz, the 1.7i is a VERY nice sounding speaker. So much so that given their low price I'm thinking about ordering a pair myself. Either that or buying my friend's that are already set up in my room so he can order another pair when his room is ready

[mgard]

ylee,

Thank you for posting your impressions. Magnepan gives a lot of good sound for the money. When I had the 1.7's I didn't have them optimally positioned in my room for the bass but they sure shined in the mid range and treble end. Acoustic instruments and vocals are just beautiful. I find the same thing with my 3.7i's. The bass really comes alive depending on where they are positioned in my room. Your Vandersteen speakers are really good, I agree.

~Mike

[ylee]

Mike - I definitely agree Maggies are a great value. Given the design, the midrange especially is seamless. In my experience Magnepans of all cost levels have among the most seamless sound I've heard at any price. Another way to describe it I believe is that they sound very smooth.

I should state that I spent almost three hours at Gifted Listener Audio in Centreville, VA auditioning the 20.7s vs. the Quatro Wood CTs back in September, 2013. Both are great speakers. What tilted my decision toward the Vandersteens were depth of soundstaging, timbre of wooden instruments, and the speed of attack of transients. As an analytical tool, Vandersteens are hard to beat. The Maggie 20.7s on the other hand had the edge in overall beauty and overall smoothness. Both speakers cost about the same. I would have been happy with the 20.7, so it was a tough decision.

[cma29]

Thanks for the review, Yong.

I'm very happy with my 20.7s and continue to tweak my system around them.