Magnestand: made in America

Rclark · « **Reply #140 on:** 12 Mar 2012, 04:02 am »

Did I mention these things are beautiful? I really need a high definition camera of some sort.. maybe take them out into sunlight. The pics I've shown so far do not do them any justice. Colors are wrong. Detail is nowhere like real life. And maybe get them out of my bedroom which is not the most ideal backdrop LOL. There is so much tiny detail and striations.. PG told me the batch of mahena he used here is exceptionally rare, in fact he tried to get some more recently and it's just not happening.

I bought these with the intention that the frame would provide sonic benefits FIRST, and looks would be secondary but man oh man do they look GOOD.

"oh those? Just my speakers.."

They look and feel and smell very very expensive.

I think I could take them to any audio show and just by looks alone put everything else in the room to shame.

SteveFord · « **Reply #141 on:** 12 Mar 2012, 10:23 pm »

I'm not sure but I think that speaker sniffing is a misdemeanor in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. You might want to keep that part to yourself.

Have you updated your speaker wires yet? I might have an extra set if you're interested.

medium jim · « **Reply #142 on:** 12 Mar 2012, 10:35 pm »

Quote from: SteveFord on 12 Mar 2012, 10:23 pm

I'm not sure but I think that speaker sniffing is a misdemeanor in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. You might want to keep that part to yourself.

Have you updated your speaker wires yet? I might have an extra set if you're interested.

It probably is illegal in the State of Washington as well. However, there may be local ordinances in the city of Seattle that allow it on the 2nd Monday of each month

Jim

SteveFord · « **Reply #143 on:** 12 Mar 2012, 11:55 pm »

Curiosity got the better of me.
Mine smell like old socks and pipe tobacco.
I knew it was a mistake to let the laundry pile up.

medium jim · « **Reply #144 on:** 13 Mar 2012, 12:07 am »

Got Wood?

Sorry, I couldn't resist!

Jim

jk@home · « **Reply #145 on:** 13 Mar 2012, 12:32 am »

Quote from: SteveFord on 12 Mar 2012, 11:55 pm

Curiosity got the better of me.
Mine smell like old socks and pipe tobacco.
I knew it was a mistake to let the laundry pile up.

Just don't let the dog sniff them again...

SteveFord · « **Reply #146 on:** 13 Mar 2012, 01:10 am »

No worries, the wife now has a female doggie.
It doesn't seem interested in speakers.
It likes to eat leather couches.
Bad doggie, nice Les Paul!

Rclark · « **Reply #147 on:** 13 Mar 2012, 01:32 am »

Nope, actually they just kind of fill the room with that nice smell, no sniffing required. I'm good on wires right now.

Actually the plan is once I get the Ncores I'm gonna bounce back and forth between radio shack and cryo'd stiff copper. I have a hunch if there truly is a difference, the Ncores will expose it.

Edit: I truly hate this phone's spell check, and you can't shut it off.

SteveFord · « **Reply #148 on:** 12 Jun 2012, 11:53 pm »

Enough time has elapsed for your "new" speakers to be fully broken in.
Did you notice any substantial changes to the sound along the way and now that they've lost that new speaker smell are your initial impressions still valid?
Finally, when are you going to tackle that all foil MMG you threatened to undertake?

Rclark · « **Reply #149 on:** 13 Jun 2012, 01:47 am »

I'd been somewhat sidetracked as I'd been playing with GR N1x's for the last few months. However, they are back into the system, placed right into their taped out positions, and I must say, yes, the initial impressions stand.

I have a few things in the que, haven't been able to go as fast as I'd like but such is life. First is a preamp that I've been waiting eons for and is supposedly out next month, followed by the amps. As good as they are with the battery powered, modded tripath, I can't wait to hear them with what people are calling world class power. So that will be exciting.

After that? Probably. I can't imagine myself ever stopping in this hobby, and I have this desire to take all of my chosen gear as far as it will go. So I can imagine eventually trying the foil trick, but only after hearing them with Ncores.

As it stands, the Magnestands are lucid and fast as can be. Once the system is more or less complete I'd love to take them to an audio show to have them compared. Gunn says post mod they have electrostatic speed all the way into the bass region, and I haven't heard anything else so transparent across the full range as these. admittedly, the range of top class speakers I've heard hasn't been very large, I would say if the N1x's represent a good quality speaker, then I'm hardly suffering with what I have now.

The panels aren't that expensive to replace if I messed something up. So after all is settled, I may try the foil mod. Hypex has a new PC controllable digital crossover coming soon. Perhaps when all is said and done, an active system, multiple ncores, foil mod.

But as it stands, they give me a huge grin, and I could be satisfied if I never changed a thing.

... money very well spent

medium jim · « **Reply #150 on:** 13 Jun 2012, 04:14 am »

Please don't read anything into this question, if the Gunned MMG'S are as good as you say, why are try brides in waiting and not fully married into your existing system?

Jim

Rclark · « **Reply #151 on:** 13 Jun 2012, 07:31 am »

Well why would anybody want to hear other speakers if that's their hobby? I dont know about you but there are many many types I mean to hear eventually. That and window shopping for my next speaker, something that works better in a living room for general purpose use. Something that doesn't dominate the space and works better than a Maggie near walls. Off axis also important for that use.

kevin360 · « **Reply #152 on:** 13 Jun 2012, 01:22 pm »

Quote from: Rclark on 13 Jun 2012, 01:47 am

As it stands, the Magnestands are lucid and fast as can be. Once the system is more or less complete I'd love to take them to an audio show to have them compared. Gunn says post mod they have electrostatic speed all the way into the bass region, and I haven't heard anything else so transparent across the full range as these.

I find the first part a bit scary. Your speakers think clearly?

As for what PG says, take it with a grain of salt. Wood frames and a different crossover aren't going to affect the behavior of the motor - won't change 'speed' or efficiency. Replacing the wire with foil will impact both of those metrics (in opposite directions).

I'm glad to read that you're still enjoying them and I have no doubt that they are simply gorgeous.

Letitroll98 · « **Reply #153 on:** 13 Jun 2012, 01:45 pm »

Quote from: Rclark on 13 Jun 2012, 01:47 am

Once the system is more or less complete I'd love to take them to an audio show to have them compared.

Nice thought, but extremely unlikely that any exhibitor would waste even 30 seconds of their precious show time to let you come in and set up your home speakers. Unless of course it was a room rented by Peter Gunn. However a GTG in your area would be an excellent place to show off your beauties. Check the Regional Audiophiles section to see if there's a group in your area, if not, start one.

medium jim · « **Reply #154 on:** 13 Jun 2012, 02:28 pm »

Quote from: Letitroll98 on 13 Jun 2012, 01:45 pm

Nice thought, but extremely unlikely that any exhibitor would waste even 30 seconds of their precious show time to let you come in and set up your home speakers. Unless of course it was a room rented by Peter Gunn. However a GTG in your area would be an excellent place to show off your beauties. Check the Regional Audiophiles section to see if there's a group in your area, if not, start one.

If I'm not mistaken, there was recently an effort to putforth a Northwest regional group on the AC that went through the initial proposal stages and was approved, but the geographical ranges were at issue and the proposer couldn't cement a tag line.

RClark,

Why don't you put it up again and I bet it will fly this time as you clearly now the lay of the land and have the desire to make it happen.

Jim

Rclark · « **Reply #155 on:** 13 Jun 2012, 04:56 pm »

Yeah that's what I meant Letitroll, not a show, per se, I guess but a "meet". I've seen shows where people also bring their stuff. And sorry Kevin, I'm still learning how to use all the proper audiophile buzzwords correctly.

I might not be entirely accurate for the old hands. Just saying what makes sense to me.

As far as running an enthusiast group, not quite ready for that. I'm small potatoes compared to a lot of guys around here. Wrong guy, wrong time.

josh358 · « **Reply #156 on:** 13 Jun 2012, 05:21 pm »

Quote from: kevin360 on 13 Jun 2012, 01:22 pm

I find the first part a bit scary. Your speakers think clearly?

As for what PG says, take it with a grain of salt. Wood frames and a different crossover aren't going to affect the behavior of the motor - won't change 'speed' or efficiency. Replacing the wire with foil will impact both of those metrics (in opposite directions).

I'm glad to read that you're still enjoying them and I have no doubt that they are simply gorgeous.

I gather that the series crossover boosts the level at the crossover point, which is where sensitivity is measured. Why this would be I'm not sure, since a series and parallel crossover should have the same electrical response for a resistive load, and planar transducers are essentially resistive. That assumes of course that the same crossover point is used.

Magnepan is getting slightly higher sensitivity out of the .7's. In that case, though, the entire crossover characteristic is different.

Dr. Chaos's theory is that the wood frames do a better job of damping the pole piece resonances, and PG says they do a better job of damping diaphragm resonances. Of course, it's just speculation until someone actually does some experiments. But what we refer to as "speed" isn't so much speed -- the only driver that can go "fast" is a tweeter -- but rather a sharp, cliff-like falloff in the waterfall plot. So it seems plausible to me that anything that reduces audible resonances could increase the perceived detail of the speaker. In a planar, that can be correlated with low mass, because it improves the air damping, or with foil, which appears to improve the diaphragm's self-damping. Or it could be correlated with other factors such as edge damping, surface treatment or nylon mesh, non-contact air damping, etc. Again, just speculating, since I haven't heard PG's mods and haven't seen any measurements . . .

jk@home · « **Reply #157 on:** 14 Jun 2012, 01:30 am »

Quote from: Rclark on 13 Jun 2012, 01:47 am

...The panels aren't that expensive to replace if I messed something up. So after all is settled, I may try the foil mod. Hypex has a new PC controllable digital crossover coming soon. Perhaps when all is said and done, an active system, multiple ncores, foil mod.

But as it stands, they give me a huge grin, and I could be satisfied if I never changed a thing.

... money very well spent

As someone who's spent way too much time and energy on my MMGs (with no regrets), I won't be doing the foil mod. Next upgrade will be to 1.7s (that already have the foil mod

) or something else.

Jonathon Janusz · « **Reply #158 on:** 14 Jun 2012, 01:55 am »

RClark, regarding the "show demo" comment, if you've got the time and money to make the trip, LSAF sounds like the kind of show you're after, if I read the reports from folks who were there this year correctly. There were a few folks there with their personal rigs set up for demo, and some really good professional rooms were there to compare with.

Rclark · « **Reply #159 on:** 14 Jun 2012, 02:00 am »

As long as the world don't blow up I imagine eventually I'll be like a lot of guys here with multiple speakers sitting around and my Magnestand MMG's will be just one pair to choose from.

I love this hobby.

As far as taking these to LSAF... I might be able to ship em there and pick em up.. Dont know about this year though.