[Austin08]

Hello all,

I am thinking of buying Magnepan 3.7i and wonder if my BAT VK55 mono block are up to the task. So far, they power my Salk SS8 wonderful. My Salk sound is rate at 87db/4ohm. The 3.7i is rate at 86db/4ohm. Would I be ok with the 55 mono block or should I look for different amp? Any recommends are welcome.

Thanks,
Quan

FYI, The "Maggie system" will be as follow.

Sim Audio P5 (will upgrade later)
W4S DAC2 DSD SE
Salksound Streamer/player

Will ad analog system in the future.

[*Scotty*]

If your P5 is circa 2002 I wouldn't be in too much of a hurry to replace it,at that time Stereophile gave it a very good review and any replacement should have to outperform the P5 in head to head competition in your system to justify its place.
Scotty

[Austin08]

If your P5 is circa 2002 I wouldn't be in too much of a hurry to replace it,at that time Stereophile gave it a very good review and any replacement should have to outperform the P5 in head to head competition in your system to justify its place.
Scotty

Scotty,

I have to agree with you on this. The P5 performs outstanding in my room. Love the sound. I owned BAT 32se before and have heard the ARC, CJ and Classe preamps lately. All have their strong point but they are not what I call an upgrade over my P5 yet.

[SteveFord]

I'd say that more power is in order.

[Austin08]

I'd say that more power is in order.

Steve,

I have the same feeling. I just though that with110 watts per channel of tube amps is enough. I like these power amp very much that I hope they will mate well with the MG. Did you ever try tube amp with MG?

Quan

[*Scotty*]

I wouldn't ditch the BAT out of hand, but rather wait and see how the two play together in your system.
Scotty

[Austin08]

I wouldn't ditch the BAT out of hand, but rather wait and see how the two play together in your system.
Scotty

Scotty,

I am sure will do that. I rarely see people power their MG with tube amp. Ofcourse, powerful solid state amp is ideal. It would be a no brainer to bring my mono block to MG dealer and see how thing turn out. Wish I could do that. In reality, I don't have enough money to by new one. So I can only hope to get advise from experience MG users here to stear me to the right direction before I make any commitment.

Quan

[kevin360]

I rarely see people power their MG with tube amp. Ofcourse, powerful solid state amp is ideal.

I drove my 3.7s to rather high volumes in a ~600sq' room and it was glorious. At 150wpc, the Phi 300.1 is a fairly stout valve amp. It's load was lightened by use of a Bryston 10B-Sub XO, so it didn't have to do the really heavy lifting. Sadly, the bulk of that system is in the back of the room in various stages of disassembly - the room 'shrank', so I'm changing gears (for now).

[Austin08]

Kevin,

So, did you use Mag bass panel or some other sub with your 3.7? Do you want more bass or the 3.7 did not provide enough bass in Your room? (My room is 14x24x8 and speakers will be on long wall)

Thanks
Quan

[kevin360]

I guess my MMGs spoiled me. 

I should clarify that I stripped the panels out of my MMGs and built frames which house them above REL Q150 subs. In a quite near-field arrangement in a small room, I find them nearly perfect. Moving the 3.7s very close to the side walls (tweeters in) helped considerably, but I got there less than a year ago. At that point, I was already well down the supplementation path, with an amp that was not up to the task of driving them full-range. If there's something in the recording, I want to hear it (and I do with the MMG system). In terms of bass, the Def Tech SuperCube Reference subs flesh out depths that the 3.7s simply can't reach. Heck the pair of Mythos ST speakers that took the place of the 3.7s in the condensed space to allocate reach surprisingly deeper than the Maggies (which were 9'3" off the front wall (short) - room is 15x34x8). BTW, I'm not a bass freak; I just demand full-range sound (as part of the fidelity equation).

[Austin08]

I am still on the fence. Still try pass WAF to bring the giant into the home. Almost bough the Salk Silk today but stepped back at the end. Did any of you ever heard the  1.7 or 1.7i yet? If i am about to put 2 Rythmik F8 into the equation, how would you guy feel about this combo against the 3.7i? (I guess I have to make another topic but just want to pop it out now)

Thanks,
Quan

[SteveFord]

I've had 1.7s since about the time they came out and while they're very nice speakers the 3.7s are better, subs or no subs.  The ribbon is a real step up and they'll give you more detail and a larger soundstage.
See how your amps work out - I use a pair of VTL 250s with my 3.7s so I've got enough power to play them as loud as I care to.
What you have might be just fine for your room and tastes.

[Austin08]

Thanks Steve, I am trying to push for the 3.7i but so far only got "green light" for 1.7i . I got be a good husband for a few more days. 

[mfsoa]

I just got to hear a pr of Maraschinos on some 1.7s and they were superb. I'd imagine a pr on 3.7s would be a good match too.

[Austin08]

mfsoa,

Thanks for the info. I will keep that in mind.

Quan

[*Scotty*]

Stick with the 3.7i and if you feel that you need more foundation get a sub or subs next year.
Scotty

[Angaria]

the 3.7 with pass amps and exasound dac just won best of show from TAS at AXPONA.  Heard that room myself and liked it.

[Austin08]

Today, my wife and I went to local dealer to audition the Mag 3.7i. The listening room is about the size of my listening room and close-in. The Mag was powered by McIntosh 6700. Source was Ayre cd player. We were listening to variety of music from jazz, classic rock, vocal and a bit of classical....

The first thing was striked me was how similarity the Mag sounds compared to my Salk SS8. Very 3d, great vocal, super detail....

Second, the Mag 3.7i had very good bass line- very authority and pronounce. ( I believe my Salk's bass is more punchy and tighter). The 3.7i sure can do fullrange without the help of sub. I did not expected that.

Third, although the Mag sound very even from top to bottom, it seem like there is a bit of "bump" in the mid bass. I forgot to ask weather or not my saleman turned the tone control on.

Finally, this is a major factor that "We", my wife and I decided to buy the 3.7i for a second system. Even as I said ealier, the Mag 3.7i and my Salk SS8 share many similarity sound characteristic but there is definitely a distinctive of different house's sound. While the Salk is more slam and aggressive with a bit clearer sound (I prefer it as "solid stage"). The Mag 3.7i on the other hand sounds warmer, softer with bigger soundstage (i prefer it as "tube").

With the purchase of Magnepan 3.7i, I felt very lucky and fortunate to be able to own both excellent product in the same house at the same time. (A big thanks for my wife's support). Now, will wait for Mag arrive to my house and see how my tube amps drive these beauty. (I was lush over several Pass and MAC stuffs while we were there  )

[*Scotty*]

Autstin, I predict you are going to need a "grinectomy" shortly after the 3.7is arrive at your house. Believe it or not speakers seem to invariably sound better in your home than in the store.
Happy listening.
Scotty

[Austin08]

I am looking at the Mye stand and Look like the Mye stand is more sturdy than the Sound Anchor stand. did any of you using those? How is the Mye stand connect to back of the 3.7? I like the stand but really hate to put claim around my beautiful trim to wrap hold the speaker.