MAGICO S1 speakers ....

[Jabba_Jabba]

Originally Posted by Orb

Thank you Been a looong time lurker so apologies for the delay in finally posting Just like to say great site and people as well. Cheers Orb

I agree. In my opinion is this the best site for owners of Magico speakers. By the way I must say that you have a really good setup there.

[sganesh]

Orb, what do you think the strengths and weaknesses are of the S1? Does it shine on particular genres of music? I am currently auditioning a pair. Thank you.

[pweg]

HI Orb

good question - to be honest I'm not exactly sure. I listened for about half an hour and couldn't continue. I think the amp had been on for a couple of hours before that though.

what you describe could very well have been true - i guess ill never know

cheers paul

[Orb]

Thanks Jabba,
although its a pretty humble setup compared to the big boys here (love reading about their systems and what they are doing)

Paul, well at least the Vitus is a stunning integrated so I doubt one loses much sleep on the question

Sqanesh,
well I do feel there are more dynamic speakers out there and some good 3-way designs at similar price that have deeper bass, but for me they do not have the same resolution-neutrality-transparency/"accuracy" as the S1.
Thankfully the S1 combines the right amount of "forgiveness" to remain fatigue free IMO and works with all genre including those that are dynamically compressed such as Adele's album.
But, the weakness (and also its strength) is that it really presents the electronics/cables so one may find the setup more hit or miss for preferences depending what gear they use with the speaker and more so than usual.
So having access to a reasonable selection of products may really help in deciding whether the speaker is for them.

As an example the Devialet works really well with Sonus Faber speakers and Wilson Audio, but one dealer I trust (who sells all of these including Devialet and Magico) feels that the Devialet and S1 setup will only appeal to a few not just because of the reference neutral sound but also some subtle limitations of the Devialet do come through more than usual (context being not as natural sounding as the best integrateds).

Regarding cables, I really would love to know what some listeners' experience is with using Nordost Valhalla and Wireworld Gold/Silver eclipse with Magico as I would had thought the combination would not work compared to how great they are with Sonus Faber or Wilson Audio.

Bear in mind that my setup sort of balances out, with the MBL C31 being very organic-analogue sounding that compliments very well with the Dartzeel 8550.
I do wonder if the MBL C31 combined with the Vitus SA-025 would be too much or glorious when listened to via the Magico S1 for my preferences

Cables used Crystal Cable Ultra and XLR between MBL and Dartzeel (unfortunately MBL sounded best using XLR even though the 8550 is not a true balanced system).

Music for me is classical, original sound tracks, arias, both good and appalling rock/pop/country/dance

How you finding the Magico S1 yourself?
And what are others thoughts about Nordost Valhalla and Wireworld with the Magico speaker range?

Thanks
Orb

[Orb]

Mentioning the Valhalla and Wireworld because I came from Sonus Faber speakers before Magico, and I regret (would not stop me moving but more for the fun) never experiencing either of those speaker/interconnect cable models with my previous SF speakers.
Thinking of them and chatting to the SF/WA/Magico dealer I trust made us both think their synergy is more applicable WA and SF, but will never know now.

Thanks
Orb

[sganesh]

Orb,

Thanks for taking the time to write down your impressions.
It's not easy for me to comment on characteristics such as neutrality, transparency without a frame of reference. My base of reference is a Dali Helicon 400 Mk1.
I realize that the DALIs are less than 1/2 the price.

Bass: I find the S1s to have more focused bass but not deep down low. Still feel the punch when needed.

Midrange: not as warm sounding as the DALIs. S1s don't seem to embellish the sound with added warmth nor do they sound thin either. I was concerned that they could come off dry and sterile.

Transparency: This is one area I was especially hopeful for with the S1s. I noted with the DALIs that piano arrangements and orchestral passages sometimes had notes running into one another such as with Lang Lang's Dragon songs CD. No problem with the S1s - really could hear the separate notes - was a real Wow moment. This came through on both CD and record.

Listener fatigue: I agree that these speakers are forgiving, to a point. They are not as forgiving as the DALIs. If the S1s are fed quality music, they truly shine.

Those are my impressions - thanks again.
Sganesh

[jazzman]

Originally Posted by Orb

Thanks Jabba,
although its a pretty humble setup compared to the big boys here (love reading about their systems and what they are doing)

Paul, well at least the Vitus is a stunning integrated so I doubt one loses much sleep on the question

Sqanesh,
well I do feel there are more dynamic speakers out there and some good 3-way designs at similar price that have deeper bass, but for me they do not have the same resolution-neutrality-transparency/"accuracy" as the S1.
Thankfully the S1 combines the right amount of "forgiveness" to remain fatigue free IMO and works with all genre including those that are dynamically compressed such as Adele's album.
But, the weakness (and also its strength) is that it really presents the electronics/cables so one may find the setup more hit or miss for preferences depending what gear they use with the speaker and more so than usual.
So having access to a reasonable selection of products may really help in deciding whether the speaker is for them.

As an example the Devialet works really well with Sonus Faber speakers and Wilson Audio, but one dealer I trust (who sells all of these including Devialet and Magico) feels that the Devialet and S1 setup will only appeal to a few not just because of the reference neutral sound but also some subtle limitations of the Devialet do come through more than usual (context being not as natural sounding as the best integrateds).

Regarding cables, I really would love to know what some listeners' experience is with using Nordost Valhalla and Wireworld Gold/Silver eclipse with Magico as I would had thought the combination would not work compared to how great they are with Sonus Faber or Wilson Audio.

Bear in mind that my setup sort of balances out, with the MBL C31 being very organic-analogue sounding that compliments very well with the Dartzeel 8550.
I do wonder if the MBL C31 combined with the Vitus SA-025 would be too much or glorious when listened to via the Magico S1 for my preferences

Cables used Crystal Cable Ultra and XLR between MBL and Dartzeel (unfortunately MBL sounded best using XLR even though the 8550 is not a true balanced system).

Music for me is classical, original sound tracks, arias, both good and appalling rock/pop/country/dance

How you finding the Magico S1 yourself?
And what are others thoughts about Nordost Valhalla and Wireworld with the Magico speaker range?

Thanks
Orb

I like a lot your setup and I find your description of the S1 very accurate. I tried Devialet on S1 (and Q1). It sounds good, but Magico speakers are so transparent that you hear weaknesses of upstream components.... which on other speakers are hidden by the weakness of the speaker itself. This is for me a good thing, because that means you hear things on your recording you never heard before. The Devialet is a good value for money, but it is a bit "boring" - by this I mean it lacks tone refinement of the Dartzeel (or a Vitus). I don't believe a Devialet would compete with the Dartzeel integrated (based on the comparison I did in my room between the Dartzeel power amp and the Devialet).
For those who want a small speaker like the S1 but with more bass, seems like the S3 will be a promising candidate. I am curious to hear it!

[Orb]

Thanks Jazzman.
I am probably in the minority but I am a bit disappointed that it seems to me the S3 is built to a price point rather than room size point.
With its depth and height equal to the S5 but width 3 inches less and now 2 woofers compared to the S1, it does make me think that a certain room size is still missed as the S3 is probably not far off from an S5 in terms of room requirements.
I would have loved to consider the S3 with only one woofer that focused on the smaller medium sized room and best integration between woofer-mid-tweeter.

But that is just me, saves me cash though I suppose
Will be interesting to see how many sales of S5 it will eat into even though the S5 will have better bass depth-energy-quality.
Cheers
Orb

[A.Wayne]

Its more a case of bandwidth , do you want a full bandwidth speaker with lower
Distortion , then best with 2 ...

[jazzman]

Originally Posted by Orb

Thanks Jazzman.
I am probably in the minority but I am a bit disappointed that it seems to me the S3 is built to a price point rather than room size point.
With its depth and height equal to the S5 but width 3 inches less and now 2 woofers compared to the S1, it does make me think that a certain room size is still missed as the S3 is probably not far off from an S5 in terms of room requirements.
I would have loved to consider the S3 with only one woofer that focused on the smaller medium sized room and best integration between woofer-mid-tweeter.

But that is just me, saves me cash though I suppose
Will be interesting to see how many sales of S5 it will eat into even though the S5 will have better bass depth-energy-quality.
Cheers
Orb

Having one or 2 drivers doesn't change anything in preferred room size: it will go down to the same frequency as with a single driver. With 2 woofers, each driver has to manage less excursion, therefore you get lower distortion. The S3 is the best speaker for the smaller medium sized room. It was designed for that: people who want to have more bass than in a 2 ways like the S1, but for whom the S5 would be too large.