[I.Greyhound Fan]

I certainly understand wanting to preserve the dealer network.  But I don’t see how selling online to those without a dealer threatens any existing dealers.  As it is, it leaves those without a (reasonably) local dealer few to no options.  Apparently, Magnepan is ok with this.

I seriously miss my local dealer who would let me audition most anything at home, knowing I’d likely end up buying it. 

I’m can’t say I’m real confident that the LRS would give me a good enough idea how a larger Maggie (and which one??) would  look and perform in my room.  Am I wrong? 

The LRS would certainly give you an idea about how a 0.7 or a 1.7i would sound in your room depending upon the size.  The 3.7i is a different animal.  I own both an original MMG and the 1.6's.  My room is 17x17 with 9 foot ceilings.  The MMG's easily filled the room without strain.  Of course, you need a good amp.

[Saturn94]

The LRS would certainly give you an idea about how a 0.7 or a 1.7i would sound in your room depending upon the size.  The 3.7i is a different animal.  I own both an original MMG and the 1.6's.  My room is 17x17 with 9 foot ceilings.  The MMG's easily filled the room without strain.  Of course, you need a good amp.

Thanks for sharing your experience.

My space is a living room/ dining room combo that’s about 14 x 25, with a cathedral ceiling that goes from 9’ at the long wall to about 19’ at the opposite side.  The living area is also open to the stairwell and small upstairs landing.  The living area, where my system is, is about 14 x 14 (actual useable area is about the 11 x 14) with the speakers on the long wall of the room.

So while the usable floor space is smalll (main speakers 7-7.5’ from the main listening position, max space behind the main speakers is 2.5 - 3ft.), the actual cubic feet of the the space is about 5500 ft3.  There’s a pic of my listening area on post 379 in this thread.

I believe my amp would be up to the task; Parasound Classic 5250, 250wpc @ 8ohms, 385 wpc @ 4 ohms, 45 amps peak per channel.  https://www.parasound.com/vintage/5250.php

So, one question is, if I like the “appetizer” and want/need to move up to a bigger panel, is it worth it to have to deal with a dealer over 175 miles away?

[josh358]

I certainly understand wanting to preserve the dealer network.  But I don’t see how selling online to those without a dealer threatens any existing dealers.  As it is, it leaves those without a (reasonably) local dealer few to no options.  Apparently, Magnepan is ok with this.

I seriously miss my local dealer who would let me audition most anything at home, knowing I’d likely end up buying it. 

I’m can’t say I’m real confident that the LRS would give me a good enough idea how a larger Maggie (and which one??) would  look and perform in my room.  Am I wrong? 

The impression I have is that dealers are very threatened by anything like that. They see it as a foot in the door and online sales as destroying brick and mortar stores. But I assume there's a way to handle this situation, e.g., if you ordered something from a dealer by phone, Magnepan could drop ship it to you. It's going to be shipped to the dealer from the factory, anyway. I know that they sell speakers to people who haven't heard the model, e.g., 20.7's, which most dealers don't have on display.

The LRS was specifically designed to give people with good equipment a taste of the sound of their current larger models. Wendell Diller would just love people with $30,000 speakers to try it, it's that good. Of course, you're going to get more with the larger models -- deeper bass, higher output, and the amazing true ribbon tweeter on the 3.7 and up. But at more moderate levels, the LRS is basically a slice out of a big Maggie. However, Wendell says it won't work in big rooms, it doesn't couple properly so the bass disappears.

I think the thing to do is to give Wendell a call at Magnepan and discuss the situation, he's very aware of the vanishing dealer problem and is doing his best to find ways around it. He can probably give you a good idea about whether a given model will work in your room, too. He doesn't like to sell the wrong model to people because they depend on word of mouth and a good reputation.

[SteveFord]

I think it's time to take this to a different thread if you wish to continue this discussion.
There are no questions for the factory here.

[Saturn94]

I think it's time to take this to a different thread if you wish to continue this discussion.
There are no questions for the factory here.

I do not understand.  Are questions about where to buy Magnepans and which model would be appropriate in a given room not appropriate questions for the Magnepan factory? 

Oh well, I’ll move on since my questions have been answered to some extent (where to buy?  Except for the LRS, from a dealer, period!  Which model for my room?  Call Magnepan, don’t ask in this thread  )

Please correct me if I’ve misunderstood your post.

[Saturn94]

I see on Magnepan’s website the LRS comes with a 60 day return policy.  I thought they also offered full credit towards an upgrade within the first year, but I see no mention of that on the website.

Does Magnepan no longer offer the 1 year full credit towards an upgrade?

[SteveFord]

The LRS program is the same as the MMGi. There is a one-year upgrade to a 1.7i or higher with a partial credit.

  I looked and the MMGi trade in was full credit so I'm not sure if I have the definitive answer or not.  At the very least I can say that there is a trade in period towards the big boys.

I asked Wendell years ago what they did with all of the returned ones and he said that very few speakers ever come back.
Everyone probably does what I did: hold onto them and use them in another system.

I'm thinking of getting some LRS for the TV system and using my old MMGs set up like giant Stax headphones by my computer.
No fooling.

[Saturn94]

The LRS program is the same as the MMGi. There is a one-year upgrade to a 1.7i or higher with a partial credit.

  I looked and the MMGi trade in was full credit so I'm not sure if I have the definitive answer or not.  At the very least I can say that there is a trade in period towards the big boys.

I asked Wendell years ago what they did with all of the returned ones and he said that very few speakers ever come back.
Everyone probably does what I did: hold onto them and use them in another system.

I'm thinking of getting some LRS for the TV system and using my old MMGs set up like giant Stax headphones by my computer.
No fooling.

Should I decide to order, I’ll call Magnepan to see if they can confirm the details of the program.  It’s odd that this isn’t spelled out on the website.

Interestingly, searching on Google I found an old Magnepan webpage that mentioned a 60 day return period for the 1.7 (has since expired).

[Wind Chaser]

...although they're really against conventional cone woofers and any sort of built-in amplification. I know for a fact that ain't never gonna happen even if ain't ain't in the dictionary.

Jeez, how I wish I made a bet with you about this.

Six months later we have a prototype and tour.

[SteveFord]

HA!
I'm really surprised at the direction they took - I remember Wendell going on about how audiophiles hate built in amplification because it doesn't give them any choice as to what to use,  the problem with cone speakers is blah blah blah...

Hope it works out for them.
I've given up on a smaller 20.7 which is something I'd actually purchase for myself.

[josh358]

That might be the next step. Wendell is starting with the flagship and if that flies they'll work on less expensive models.

[Wind Chaser]

“If we sold the portion of the speaker from 200 Hz up, you could put it in the average apartment. Yes, it would be tall, but very narrow.”

They should put that portion on the market. Implementing ones own bass solution isn’t that hard.

[dwmaggie]

I'm running 2 DWMs in a left and right stereo configuration.  Because each one comes with 2 inputs, should they be wired in series or parallel for best bass reproduction?  Do you know what the actual frequency response of a DWM is?  Literature and web site both state 40hz to 200hz.  I am not seeing anything close to 40hz even though they are 4 feet from the backwall and 40 inches from a side wall.  Thank you, Jerry   

[SteveFord]

For dwmaggie:

Too complex for emails. Ask them to call us.

---------------------------

Maybe you could provide a synopsis of your conversation? 

[johnto]

11X17 you'll be fine. I started with them in a 11-9  X 15 room have since moved to 3.7i in the same room amazing sounds.

[andyr]

Yes, I have a Qu for the Magnepan factory.

Having just blown a 2-ohm (T-IVa) ribbon, I am taking the opportunity of swapping my old ribbons for a pair of current, 3-ohm ribbons.

Obviously, a more expensive proposition but:
*  as I run a 3-way active system, 3 ohms is a more benign load on my ribbon amp than 2 ohms.
*  and it means that any future ribbon blows can be more quickly resolved (as 3-ohm replacements are readily available from the importer, whereas 2-ohm ribbons need to be rebuilt).

The current 3-ohm ribbon cage is 5/8" longer than the previous 2-ohm ribbon cage.  As the screw holes in the flanges are identical ... this means I have to extend the slot which the ribbon cage fits into, by 5/16" either end!

This is not a straightforward task - there's a lot of finicky cutting involved, as I have hardwood frames.

So I'm wondering why Magnepan decided to increase the length of the ribbon cage, when they moved to the 3-ohm ribbon?

Given the old 2-ohm ribbon cage was 60" in length, if you had kept the same length for the newer 3-ohm ribbon, its resistance would've measured 60 / 60.625 * 3 ohms.  Which is 2.97 ohms.  Which is absolutely no different, as far as any amplifier is concerned.

And if you had kept the same length ... the swap-over would've been painless.

Andy

[Elizabeth]

My bet is it had to be painful. Or all those current (back then) owners would just swap them instead of buying NEW speakers and thus keep Magnepan in business....
If  i ran a business I would be sure to make it dang impossible to upgrade old stuff to the new parts.

[andyr]

My bet is it had to be painful. Or all those current (back then) owners would just swap them instead of buying NEW speakers and thus keep Magnepan in business....
If  i ran a business I would be sure to make it dang impossible to upgrade old stuff to the new parts.

That is a very good point, Liz!   

I would still like to get Magnepan's explanation, though.

Andy

[SteveFord]

I just saw this, been busy screwing around with guitars and work and stuff.
Let me see if I can't find out (if anyone remembers is probably more like it, that was a while ago)!

[andyr]

I just saw this, been busy screwing around with guitars and work and stuff.
Let me see if I can't find out (if anyone remembers is probably more like it, that was a while ago)!

Thanks, Steve.   

Andy