Magnepan 20.7 Review

[Rayooo]

Originally Posted by dpod4

Thanks Mike. There is a large part of me that likes the smaller footprint of the 3.7 and worry that bigger isn't necessarily better. It wasn't until the 3.7s entered my system that I stopped having upgrade-itis. It is amazing how after about 300 hours the bass panels on the 3.7s kicked in. Amazing speakers.

I have never, been happier with ANY speaker I've owned prior to the 3.7s

including way back with Apogees, 1.6 mags, 3.6 mags etc.

Originally Posted by Rayooo

I have never, been happier with ANY speaker I've owned prior to the 3.7s

including way back with Apogees, 1.6 mags, 3.6 mags etc.

+1

[mgard]

Julian,
That is a very impress picture of your room with those big 20.1’s. I have to agree with you, they do impair the beautiful view. My wife would have been all over my posterior too. The 3.7’s will be the most expensive pair of speakers that I have thus far experienced and will be my last. It is encouraging that others who have much more experience than I in critical listening skills speak so highly of the 3.7’s.

~Mike

Originally Posted by mgard

Julian,
That is a very impress picture of your room with those big 20.1’s. I have to agree with you, they do impair the beautiful view. My wife would have been all over my posterior too. The 3.7’s will be the most expensive pair of speakers that I have thus far experienced and will be my last. It is encouraging that others who have much more experience than I in critical listening skills speak so highly of the 3.7’s.

~Mike

I like my 3.7s better than a $50,000 pair of Magicos I heard 2 weeks ago.

[mgard]

Originally Posted by dpod4

I like my 3.7s better than a $50,000 pair of Magicos I heard 2 weeks ago.

Wow that just blows me away. Derrin you do have your system really dialed in right down to the wall power plugs. So maybe that was an unfair advantage.

~Mike

Originally Posted by mgard

Wow that just blows me away. Derrin you do have your system really dialed in right down to the wall power plugs. So maybe that was an unfair advantage.

~Mike

Those Maggies are so good that they honor any goodness introduced right down to wall plugs!

[avsBuddy]

I'm the last person to discount speakers because of how big they look in the room, but in this case I agree with your wife. 20.1 look awkward with the big windows behind it and a beautiful view. Has it just been a wall - no problem - but with such setup Maggies not only look out of place, but they do physically look weird blocking the windows in such fashion.

[Ritmo]

The 20.1s look fantastic. I'm sure they sound even better!

Mike

[audiot servant]

Just noticed in J.Valin's 'first listen' to the fantastic Raido Acoustics C1.1 speaker that that he states he wouldn't have a pair of Maggie 20.7s for over two months (to be delivered May 8th) and would blog about them then.

Jonathan Valin -- Thu, 03/01/2012 - 18:25
Majestic,

Won't have the 20.7s until May 8th. I'll blog May 9th.

(Actually, it may take me a little longer than that, although I'm really psyched for them).

He wrote this on March 1... then just 12 days later on March 13th filed a completed review on them... curiouser and curiouser... perhaps just throwing the opposition off the scent so they don't publish first maybe... obviously veracity might not carry a premium value anymore in the written word... what is said don't have to amount to a hill of beans it seems... although, that said, I do enjoy reading his reviews and have valued his thoughts even if I have not necessarily always agreed with it all... just I actually understand what he means when he describes the sound of gear... that's valuable as long as it's the truth... not being rude just asking.

Graham

[Rayooo]

I've never quite understood how the "mechanics" and "politics" of the high-end audio publication business works.

On one hand as a writer, I've got to generate interesting, involving and honest reviews of high-end gear, on the other hand, there simply must be outside pressures pulling at you the writer/reviewer, every minute.

If I use the latest gen of magnepan speakers as an example, I myself was shocked at the pretty much universal praise for the .7 series.

and...If I'm the president of a speaker manufacturer of superb $15kish speaker systems, that have advertised in a given publication for many years, I could easily see myself calling the publication and saying something like: "How in the world would you state that this new Magnepan at $5k, compares favorably to my $15k SuperDuper3 model?"

When I read Mr Valin's mention of the 20.7s, with the lead off list of "what magnepans can't do" It immediately hit me that this was a result of that phone call from from the president of SuperDuperSpeaker Co.to the Editor In Chief.