[TJ-Sully]

Hi all

Getting my first set of Maggie's next week.  Can't wait! 

I have Bryston 4B^3 power amp at 300 wpc.
I hear some folks suggest 400-500 watts should be delivered in these suckers.....any thoughts on this?

My feeling is the Bryston 4B3 will drive the Maggies effortlessly!

Thoughts appreciated.

TJ

[bud1451]

I powered my 3.7i with the 4b3 with no problems, by far the best sound I’ve had I’m my room(previously Model Ts) ...sold the 3.7i and picking up a pair if 20.7 this week

[Elizabeth]

The op here may be unsure about how amp power is rated.
The 4B3 is 300 watts per channel at 8 OHMS.
The Magnepan speakers he is getting are not 8 ohm speakers. They are nominal 4 ohm speakers.
And his 4B3 amplifier is rated at 500 watts per channel at 4 ohms.
 So YOU ALREADY HAVE 500 WATTS per channel.
Just to also say, I run my Magnepan 20.7 speakers with a Bryson 4B-SST² Same amplifier, previous generation.
I bought that amplifer when I got 3.6 Maggies myself.

[I.Greyhound Fan]

You will be surprised at how little watts are used.  I have the 1.6's (granted the 3.6's are larger and slightly less efficient) and a Pass Labs X250 amp (250 wpc 8 ohms, 500 wpc at 4 ohms) and the amp has a meter on it showing when it leaves Class A and switches to Class AB.  At loud listening  levels it rarely leaves Class A  (the amp leaves class A between 20 and 25 watts) except on bass heavy music.  The high power makes a difference for instantaneous peaks like you may get in classical music.  So the majority of the time I am using way less than 20 wpc even at loud volumes.

The Maggies like high current amps though. They will chew up a high power, low current amp and shut it down.

You will be fine with the Bryston as others have said.  Enjoy the Maggies!

Larry

[Markwatkiss]

Bryston +1

[Elizabeth]

Bryston +1

Yes, When I was going to buy the 3.6 Magnepans, I did a search for what owners liked and used with the Maggies. The number one answer was Bryston.

[66mgb]

you can't go wrong with Pass Labs ! I drive the 3.6's with a Pass Labs X150.5, I have never run out of power even when they were in a 17' x 45' Room!
Russ

[SteveFord]

I use monster tube amps but Magnepan does an awful lot of shows with Bryston gear.
I think you'll be in good shape and the Brystons will have enough oomph to blow you out of the room.

[zuluwarrior0760]

I originally ran Maggie 3.7s with 7bsst2 monos (900w into 4ohms)

pretty large room, sounded effortless

Changed later to Bryston 28bsst2 monos (close to 2000 into 4ohms)

surprisingly, although the wattage demands were identical, the low
end improved and the effortlessness did as well.

The gains were headroom, but it's true, noone needs more than a few
hundred watts generally with Maggies.  They should be high current
watts for best results and if you ask Magnepan, they'll tell you that
they typically use Bryston a lot at shows etc.

I recently went from 3.7s to 20.7s and still have the 28bsst2s and I am
extremely happy overall

[SET Man]

You will be surprised at how little watts are used.  I have the 1.6's (granted the 3.6's are larger and slightly less efficient) and a Pass Labs X250 amp (250 wpc 8 ohms, 500 wpc at 4 ohms) and the amp has a meter on it showing when it leaves Class A and switches to Class AB.  At loud listening  levels it rarely leaves Class A  (the amp leaves class A between 20 and 25 watts) except on bass heavy music.  The high power makes a difference for instantaneous peaks like you may get in classical music.  So the majority of the time I am using way less than 20 wpc even at loud volumes.

The Maggies like high current amps though. They will chew up a high power, low current amp and shut it down.

You will be fine with the Bryston as others have said.  Enjoy the Maggies!

Larry

Hey!

  Yup, back in the day when I had Maggie 1.5 in my system from around 1996 to 2002. I went from 250wpc SS to 100wpc PP tube and from 2000 to 2002 I was driving them with 18wpc SET amp in my small NYC's apartment room. And it was more than loud enough for me and the sound of Maggie with tube amp especially with my SET amp was quite magical actually. Crazy but worked for me. Although, Maggies are not high in sensitivity but they are "flat" 4 ohm and that help.

   Anyway, I no longer have Maggie 1.5 in my system after I discovered Single Driver speaker in 2002. I still have the Maggie 1.5 in the corners, they are act like a acoustic panels. But I still have a fond memories of listening to the Maggie 1.5 driven by SET in a small cozy room in winter evenings

Buddy

[rollo]

Hi all

Getting my first set of Maggie's next week.  Can't wait! 

I have Bryston 4B^3 power amp at 300 wpc.
I hear some folks suggest 400-500 watts should be delivered in these suckers.....any thoughts on this?

My feeling is the Bryston 4B3 will drive the Maggies effortlessly!

Thoughts appreciated.

TJ

    PERFECT !! Plenty of juice. Enjoy !!

charles

[Markwatkiss]

Yes a 4B3 has more than enuf headroom to drive any model of Magnepan with muscle and finesse.Been there done that got the T shirt.

[Ron D]

Having owned different Maggie's and a number of Bryston amps over the years (since the late 80s) you will be OK and likely happy for a long time just don't borrow a 14B or 7Bs   

[TJ-Sully]

Hi all

thanks for all the great feedback - and cool stories.   
Turns out HiFi+ just reviewed Magnepan's new 30.7's. And folks at Magnepan paired them with
PS Audio electronics - but remained true to BRYSTON power amps.   Nice!

http://www.hifiplus.com/articles/magnepan-307-four-panel-dipolar-planar-loudspeaker-system-revisited/

Well folks, a bit of a story...

When i said I had a 4B3, what i should have said, was i ordered a 4B3. I made the mistake of selling my 4BSST2 too quickly - and have been waiting for my 4B3 to arrive ever since. The amp is now in the hands of FedEx and due to arrive next week.  Fingers crossed!!

So, the sad part is...I got the Maggies set up and had zero, zip, squat to use as a power amp. I sat in my listening room staring at my new (well...used) Maggies.....with nothing!.   Then, finally, my new favorite friend lent me a spare power amp. An Emotiva two channel amp with 250wpc.   Man, what a life saver. The Emotiva saved the day. The Maggies are singing with life.  Soon, i will have a wonderful Bryston amp back in my system. (BIT20, BDA2 DAC, BDP1 player, SP1.7 as my temp preamp).   Can't friggin wait until Santa brings my 4B3.

Thanks again for all your input.  I'm confident I'll have enough juice to drive the Maggies!

Then.... in a few weeks i'll have my new (used) tube preamp to round out the system!

Cheers folks - happy holidays - and happy listening!

TJ

ps. the same friend just bought a pair of 28BSST2's.....so maybe....just maybe...i'll get to try them with the Maggies...good idea RonD!

[TJ-Sully]

I powered my 3.7i with the 4b3 with no problems, by far the best sound I’ve had I’m my room(previously Model Ts) ...sold the 3.7i and picking up a pair if 20.7 this week

Lucky!  The 20.7's look awesome.

I owned a pair of Mini T's, and also have the Model A1's.  and even with the Emotiva amp, the Maggies are the best sounding speaker i've heard in my listening room. It's a different sensation all together.
Although I think I need to add some sound absorption and diffusers to the side walls though....there's a a specific frequency...a tap of a certain piano key, or pitch in female vocals that's a sight bit piercing at higher volumes.  gotta figure that out..

T