Magnepan LRS

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rbclark

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Re: Magnepan LRS
« Reply #100 on: 11 Jun 2019, 06:55 pm »
Just got my UPS shipping notification. My Magnepan LRS should be here Friday. :D

This will be 10 weeks from order date, but I'm sure they'll be worth the wait.

I.Greyhound Fan

Re: Magnepan LRS
« Reply #101 on: 11 Jun 2019, 10:15 pm »
Okay, got it. So it's just the crossover on the Maggie's themselves. Yeah the LRS's go to 50hz so I would cross the sub over at 50. And yes, for sure going with sealed subs, either Rythmik or REL.

And from everything I have read and heard AVA stuff is VERY good and legit. I have talked to Frank on numerous occasions and he is so helpful and loves what he does. I know he would take care of me if there were any issues but I would love for his seasoned guy to build my amp. :)

But by the time I get around to ordering one of his amps, the guy will be seasoned. I think the route I am going to take for now is going with the PS Audio Stellar S300. All I keep reading is spectacualar reviews on it. And how it sounds more tube like than Class D. Very warm and musical, kind of the way you described the SET400. Steve Guttenberg paired it with his Maggie .7's and said it was a match made in heaven.

https://www.cnet.com/news/get-ready-to-upgrade-over-receiver-sound-quality-amplifier-preamp-power/

Also they have a trade in program, so I can unload the NuForce STA-200, which I have no use for and get $450 off the S300. So that puts it at $1049 or something like that.
Then I can do one of two things. If it's still not enough power for the Maggie's I can move it to my system with the ZU's and order the AVA SET400. Or trade it in for the Monoblocks from PS Audio. For sure the smartest approach and fastest. I can get that within the next couple of weeks. If I get the SET 400 we are talking a couple of months.

You should have no problems with powering the LRS's with 300wpc.  When you get a sub, play around with the crossover points, you may like it crosses over any where between 50 and 60hz.  If the Maggies are a little close to the side walls or corners you may get a little deeper bass.  Play with toe in and spacing.  Even 1" can make a difference.  They do have a small sweet spot however.  And don't pass judgement until you have at least 75 hours on them.  If you like acoustic music, piano and vocals you will love them.

AvsFan

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Re: Magnepan LRS
« Reply #102 on: 12 Jun 2019, 05:03 am »
You should have no problems with powering the LRS's with 300wpc.  When you get a sub, play around with the crossover points, you may like it crosses over any where between 50 and 60hz.  If the Maggies are a little close to the side walls or corners you may get a little deeper bass.  Play with toe in and spacing.  Even 1" can make a difference.  They do have a small sweet spot however.  And don't pass judgement until you have at least 75 hours on them.  If you like acoustic music, piano and vocals you will love them.

Yeah, 300 watts should be more than enough. Even though the 80 watts I have now sure isn’t enough, the Maggie’s still sound great with just that. I can’t imagine what 300 watts per channel will do to them. And I always play with the settings on the crossover on subs to tweak it just right. Won’t be for awhile until I get a sub for the Maggie’s. First up is amp, then pre, then CD player, then some subs.

As far as the Maggie’s being close to the side walls and corners, on the office room they are a lot closer. And I have for sure noticed a significant difference in bass response compared to them being in my open living room.
But what I have noticed now in the smaller room, the soundstage has shrunk and the music and instruments don’t seem to float around the room and air as they did downstairs. They still sound great and image well, just not as magical as they were in an open area. Maybe like you said, I need to play with them and positioning some more. I feel a little lost right now and that I don’t know what I am doing. I don’t even know exactly what I should be listening for to know they are just right. Someone come and help me set them up! Lol :D

josh358

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Re: Magnepan LRS
« Reply #103 on: 12 Jun 2019, 12:25 pm »
Yeah, 300 watts should be more than enough. Even though the 80 watts I have now sure isn’t enough, the Maggie’s still sound great with just that. I can’t imagine what 300 watts per channel will do to them. And I always play with the settings on the crossover on subs to tweak it just right. Won’t be for awhile until I get a sub for the Maggie’s. First up is amp, then pre, then CD player, then some subs.

As far as the Maggie’s being close to the side walls and corners, on the office room they are a lot closer. And I have for sure noticed a significant difference in bass response compared to them being in my open living room.
But what I have noticed now in the smaller room, the soundstage has shrunk and the music and instruments don’t seem to float around the room and air as they did downstairs. They still sound great and image well, just not as magical as they were in an open area. Maybe like you said, I need to play with them and positioning some more. I feel a little lost right now and that I don’t know what I am doing. I don’t even know exactly what I should be listening for to know they are just right. Someone come and help me set them up! Lol :D
I've found that depth is a function of how far they are from the front wall. 3' minimum and as you pull them further out into the room the sense of depth continues to increase.

As you say, if they're close to a side wall, they develop more bass, sometimes too much. There can also be issues with the front corners in a small room.

I think the main tool for dealing with a small room is diffusion. I find it works very well in the front corners, with the diffusers forming an equilateral triangle with the two walls. Also, if you put diffusers behind the speakers at the first reflection point (the point at which you see the rear of the speaker in a mirror from your listening seat), it will make a small room/close placement behave a lot more like a large one/more distant placement.

johnto

Re: Magnepan LRS
« Reply #104 on: 12 Jun 2019, 12:41 pm »
Have you thought of a used Parasound integrated which should be available for about $1500. I had one with my 1.7i and they sounded amazing together. The Parasound is a Stereophile rated A component with plenty of power 240 watts into 4 ohm and is a 2.1 integrated making it easy to add a sub.

AvsFan

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Re: Magnepan LRS
« Reply #105 on: 12 Jun 2019, 01:59 pm »
I've found that depth is a function of how far they are from the front wall. 3' minimum and as you pull them further out into the room the sense of depth continues to increase.

As you say, if they're close to a side wall, they develop more bass, sometimes too much. There can also be issues with the front corners in a small room.

I think the main tool for dealing with a small room is diffusion. I find it works very well in the front corners, with the diffusers forming an equilateral triangle with the two walls. Also, if you put diffusers behind the speakers at the first reflection point (the point at which you see the rear of the speaker in a mirror from your listening seat), it will make a small room/close placement behave a lot more like a large one/more distant placement.

I have them about 38 inches from the back walls. And depth isn't an issue. The sound stage seems deep. And for sure the bass is more dominant in this room, not over bearing though, I like it and it sounds good. I am just going to play around with placement like you suggested. And s far as a diffuser goes, where would I go for that? And would I get something that is as tall as the speaker itself? 

AvsFan

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Re: Magnepan LRS
« Reply #106 on: 12 Jun 2019, 03:24 pm »
Have you thought of a used Parasound integrated which should be available for about $1500. I had one with my 1.7i and they sounded amazing together. The Parasound is a Stereophile rated A component with plenty of power 240 watts into 4 ohm and is a 2.1 integrated making it easy to add a sub.

I have not. I really wanted to go separates. Whether or not it makes a big difference I am not sure but hey, it's a status thing! LOL  :D
I was looking at the the Parasound P6 pre to match with whatever amp I do go with. It looks like a legit pre.

rollo

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Re: Magnepan LRS
« Reply #107 on: 12 Jun 2019, 04:45 pm »
Maggies like CJ [ SS], Plinius, Parasound, Oddessey, Van Alstine, Arion class"D. Have fun trying. Separates back in the day were the way to go. today's designs of integrated amps IMHO equal separates. The only exception is true dual mono preamp [ 4 box] and amps [ mono].
Have fun trying.


charles

I.Greyhound Fan

Re: Magnepan LRS
« Reply #108 on: 12 Jun 2019, 05:09 pm »
I am not a fan of the Parasound preamps except for the JC2.  I have a friend that had a Parasound P7 and it was dry and grainy.  He just replaced it with an Atma-Sphere MP-3.  If you want a Parasound P6, them buy a used JC2, you can  find them for about $2K-2.5K.
Dead quiet.

josh358

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Re: Magnepan LRS
« Reply #109 on: 14 Jun 2019, 12:00 pm »
I have them about 38 inches from the back walls. And depth isn't an issue. The sound stage seems deep. And for sure the bass is more dominant in this room, not over bearing though, I like it and it sounds good. I am just going to play around with placement like you suggested. And s far as a diffuser goes, where would I go for that? And would I get something that is as tall as the speaker itself?
You could try GIK for QRD's (1D), or Vicoustic for skylines (2D). In both cases you can get EPS (dense styrofoam) or wood, the wood is better but more expensive and heavier. Height of the speaker would be ideal but in general 2' x 4' centered on your ears is adequate (with the low LRS, I'm not really sure what position is best, centered vertically on the speaker or on your ears). I'm thinking that with the LRS, the QRD is best, since the speaker is angled and a QRD will tend to deflect the backwave towards the floor. But again, not sure.

AvsFan

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Re: Magnepan LRS
« Reply #110 on: 17 Jun 2019, 09:44 pm »
I am not a fan of the Parasound preamps except for the JC2.  I have a friend that had a Parasound P7 and it was dry and grainy.  He just replaced it with an Atma-Sphere MP-3.  If you want a Parasound P6, them buy a used JC2, you can  find them for about $2K-2.5K.
Dead quiet.

I am and have also been looking into Van Alstine pre's. Since I will most likely end up with his SET amps as well.  I bet there is great synergy with the two combined.

AvsFan

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Re: Magnepan LRS
« Reply #111 on: 19 Jun 2019, 02:01 pm »
I don't know if I have posted any pics of my LRS's yet so here they are.














rollo

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Re: Magnepan LRS
« Reply #112 on: 19 Jun 2019, 03:34 pm »
  Looking good. You may try if you desire removing the "U" connector at tweeter attenuator and replace with a piece of speaker wire you are using. Then maybe an upgraded fuse like SR Blue.
  Enjoy your new speakers.


charles
 

I.Greyhound Fan

Re: Magnepan LRS
« Reply #113 on: 19 Jun 2019, 03:39 pm »
Congrats.  Looking forward to your impressions.

AvsFan

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Re: Magnepan LRS
« Reply #114 on: 19 Jun 2019, 03:42 pm »
  Looking good. You may try if you desire removing the "U" connector at tweeter attenuator and replace with a piece of speaker wire you are using. Then maybe an upgraded fuse like SR Blue.
  Enjoy your new speakers.


charles
 

What does all of that do?

AvsFan

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Re: Magnepan LRS
« Reply #115 on: 19 Jun 2019, 03:43 pm »
Congrats.  Looking forward to your impressions.

So far so good. I go back and forth posting on this site and audiokarma, so I think most of my impressions I have posted there. Love the sound though. It's a different way of listening to music than I am used to.

rollo

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Re: Magnepan LRS
« Reply #116 on: 19 Jun 2019, 06:43 pm »
What does all of that do?

   Less grainy, smoother top end, improves vocals, better dynamics and bass.  Break in your speakers for 300 hours then try some tweaks one at a time. Have fun trying.

charles

AvsFan

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Re: Magnepan LRS
« Reply #117 on: 19 Jun 2019, 08:41 pm »
   Less grainy, smoother top end, improves vocals, better dynamics and bass.  Break in your speakers for 300 hours then try some tweaks one at a time. Have fun trying.

charles

300 hours! That is going to be awhile. LOL  :D

But for sure, any little bit of tweaking I an do to get them to sound better.

Is there a link for the specific fuse? A fuse helps with the sound?!?!?!

And just a piece of speaker wire instead of that metal thing?

Are there pictures of peoples speakers like this?

Elizabeth

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Re: Magnepan LRS
« Reply #118 on: 19 Jun 2019, 08:55 pm »
I used to own 3.6 Magnepans. Now I own 20.7 Magnepans. Replacing the cheap metal "U" jumper with even a regular bit of good copperwire might repeat 'might' improve the sound slightly. You might also try the resistors supplied in that spot (the ability to slightly alter the sound with resistors is the reason the "U" shaped plug exists.) AFTER the speakers are broken in. you might experiment with the OEM resistors. and if you like the change in tone, you can buy other better resistors. (Which btw Mundorf only cost maybe $0.89 each. or really fancy $15 each)
Ditto a better quality fuse. However the usual aftermarket audiophile fuses cost between $100 and $500 a pair. You would be way better served putting that money into quality speaker cables instead. and leave the fuse stock.

josh358

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Re: Magnepan LRS
« Reply #119 on: 19 Jun 2019, 10:40 pm »
Yeah, I wouldn't waste money on the audiophile fuses. For any number of reasons, not the least being that Wendell Diller and Mark Winey tried bypassing the fuse entirely at Magenpan in a blind A/B test and couldn't hear any difference. If there's a difference, it's likely because people have let the fuse and holder become dirty and corroded and putting a new fuse in tends to clean them.

Do begin with the 1 ohm resistor. People think that the norm is the jumper, but according to Magnepan, *it is not.* The jumper is like turning the tweeter level all the way up, and the 2 ohm resistor is like turning it all the way down. The middle is the 1 ohm resistor, so that's what you should start with and only add the larger resistor or go to a piece of wire (rather than the jumper) if it the room is too bright or too dead respectively.

If you want to upgrade the resistors, you can go to a non-inductive resistor like the Mills, but the inductance on the supplied ones is minuscule so I doubt you'll hear it unless you hear in the megahertz range. The Dueland graphite resistors do sound better than wirewound, but they're big, expensive, and have fragile leads, so if you go that route I'd make sure first that you know what value you'll be using.