Speakers , Which one, Yet Another

[sandeepmohan]

I will give the Avant f/s a hearing if I get a chance.

I am sure you will like the Avant. They are also smaller in size. I spent a good bit of time with the Avant at the What Hi Fi event driven by their own electronics (Who wants to listen to a Sonodyne stereo set up these days).

I heard the 2605 at the Sonodyne showroom in Bangalore. An all glass showroom. Far from ideal. Still; the second the sales personal hit Play, it was screaming and a sound I did not like at all.

In any case, you do have a lot of options for speakers from KEF, PSB, etc.

 

[sound_cycle]

FM @drkrack had previously loaned me his Vidar power amp when I was auditioning ATCM SCM111 at home. The additional amp meant that I could hook up in monobloc config. The step up in the sound was all round and huge.

He had told me several times about repeating that experiment with the Maggies. Work, travel, Murphy and various sundry things came in the way. Eventually got to hear them sing yesterday.

There is no way I would want to listen to a single Vidar any more. There is so much which is well alive now. These speakers really need the power! 400 w pc ...

The Vidars are not rated into 4 ohms. They could heat up and shut down if pushed hard. I have them hooked up with RCA to XLR cables. ATM none of that matters.

ciao
gr

 

[raghupb]

@sound_cycle
Congrats!! You have done a full makeover to your rig.
Marantz+Dalis to Schiit (ecosystem)+ Maggies.
Enjoy.

Monobloc setup does give extra headroom (current) when the amp presents a large voltage swing and the speaker impedance dips momentarily.
You don't have to worry about overheating and shutdown. Reading about your listening habits, you are not the one to push the amps to their limits.

Cheers,
Raghu

 

[liverpool_for_life]

He had told me several times about repeating that experiment with the Maggies.

Two things:

1. The Magnepans were the first truly hi-fi speaker I desired to own courtesy of some fantastic reviews.

2. I can't call them Maggies, at least not without being reminded of the Tamil movie "Panchathanthiram".

Enjoy your music! Perhaps someday I'll have the good fortune to listen to them.

 

[sound_cycle]

2. I can't call them Maggies, at least not without being reminded of the Tamil movie "Panchathanthiram".Enjoy your music! Perhaps someday I'll have the good fortune to listen to them.

Two things:
1. Well, I cannot call them Maragathavalli ;P
2. Welcome any time (if while I have the additional borrowed Vidar, it would be with them singing properly)

Thanks

@sound_cycle
Reading about your listening habits, you are not the one to push the amps to their limits.

I agree. Unlikely given my preferred listening levels, and with Saga which is unity gain, but I will be nervously listening. I'm not concerned about the tripping but the clipping ...

ciao
gr

 

[tuff]

@sound_cycle Try and see if you can borrow a Crown XLS 1502 amp. Would love to hear how it performs on the 1.7i s, in your room.I think fm @prateekatasniya has one crown and he lives in Hyderabad

 

[panditji]

Also wanted to know from your experience if the 1.7i can give their best if placed closer to the back walls in real room conditions...Are they flexible enough to give 90% performance if placed closer to walls ?

 

[drkrack]

Its

FM @drkrack had previously loaned me his Vidar power amp when I was auditioning ATCM SCM111 at home. The additional amp meant that I could hook up in monobloc config. The step up in the sound was all round and huge.

He had told me several times about repeating that experiment with the Maggies. Work, travel, Murphy and various sundry things came in the way. Eventually got to hear them sing yesterday.

There is no way I would want to listen to a single Vidar any more. There is so much which is well alive now. These speakers really need the power! 400 w pc ...

The Vidars are not rated into 4 ohms. They could heat up and shut down if pushed hard. I have them hooked up with RCA to XLR cables. ATM none of that matters.

ciao
gr

its possibility of dipping to <4 ohm load, which routine 4 ohm speakers dip into, prevents Manfacturers from mentioning the 4 ohm compatibility. But Planars pose relatively flat 4ohm load so stability should not be a concern. We'll meet up this weekend for a musical get together.

 

[prem]

Panditji, if you absorb the rear reflection you can place them close to the back wall. Else it’s not advisable

 

[prateekatasniya]

@sound_cycle Try and see if you can borrow a Crown XLS 1502 amp. Would love to hear how it performs on the 1.7i s, in your room.I think fm @prateekatasniya has one crown and he lives in Hyderabad

I plan to go to his home and listen to the speakers with crown .

 

[sound_cycle]

Also wanted to know from your experience if the 1.7i can give their best if placed closer to the back walls in real room conditions...Are they flexible enough to give 90% performance if placed closer to walls ?

I tried it. The sound stage just collapsed, none of the magic. In my room/ rig the distance back wall seems to be the most important positional pattern (I have a door and an alcove behind the left speaker, with the panel flush against the wall / door one side is in in a corner the other has an open space next to it). The panels are almost flush with the side wall with no detriment IMHO.

ciao
gr

 

[sound_cycle]

FM @drkrack came over for listening session today. He (and my son) agreed that the additional dabba did improve headroom, dynamics and make for a much nicer sound*. So that's that. The arrangement has now taken permanent home in my rack. I'm as happy as a pig in Schiit And I do hereby swear no more dabbas.

We also tried out a rather cute and petite 130W pc Class D pair. Not quite the same. I don't care if we heard things or a difference. But we did

ciao
gr

 

[mpw]

Did I tell you this before sound cycle ??

Your speakers will most certainly appreciate the extra room.

The sonic benefits would be nice..

So kind of drkrack to have done what he did...

The next Dabba you need to have a crack at is the pre Amp.

But maybe that's for another day...

BTW... Does the Class D Amp have a French name ??

Regards

 

[drkrack]

I was pretty impressed with the setup now ; the bass had the grunt which was missing. We did push it to the limits by playing low end heavy tracks and well it was a pleasure to listen to. Compared to the last visit, Maggies were literally breathing this time. Soundstage was much larger, dynamics was easily appreciable. Gungnir Multibit details were pretty evident, with not a hint of boominess.

Strings, especially the various guitar notes were a feat to listen to, the rock numbers were exuding full potential. Some brightness noted in older songs like Sharaabi (the Tidal version is amazing otherwise), so was a need for subtle bass improvement in some tracks, mostly poorly mastered ones. These are Few things which reminded that the Maggie aren't fully broken in. Also the these deficiencies can be easily overcome by matching cables.
I think 2 Vidar is a good investment than investing in costlier preamp if you are planning to drive pretty demanding speakers.

The class D monoblocks were flying mole Dad-m100 160wpc @4ohm, which reminded us of the suffocated performance of Maggie with Single Vidar setup. Nothing was really exciting about them, other than the fact that these light weight (from Power requirement sense as well) monoblocks were able to drive the Maggies!

 

[mpw]

Drkrack

Since the pre Amp controls the sound and power delivery... It may get be worth the while maybe at a later stage.

The OP is happy...so there ends the story I guess...

Regards

 

[sridharpoli]

That sounds exciting to me. Thanks for the detail review dr.krack

 

[drkrack]

Drkrack

Since the pre Amp controls the sound and power delivery... It may get be worth the while maybe at a later stage.

The OP is happy...so there ends the story I guess...

Regards

Yes I agree with your comment, a balanced preamp will now complete the chain in a better way, With Gungnir and Vidar being in balanced connection capabilities and a definite sonic gain is possible. Probably for a later stage of upgrade. Also a weiduka power conditioner has contributed in a good manner compared to the previous setup.

This also reminded us that how much basic things matter in getting the best performance, Speakers and And amp with good headroom is quite essential before upgrading anything else. For instance, if someone were to compare Maggies driven with 2 Vidar and Modi Multibit vs 1 Vidar & Gungnir Multibit -they'd erraneously conclude that Gungnir doesn't deserve the extra premium. So Get Amp +Speaker combo right, DAC and cables will have to be upgraded later...

 

[raghupb]

.... Speakers and And amp with good headroom is quite essential before upgrading anything else ....

Very rightly said. It is an essential part of a healthy rig.
Cheers,
Raghu

 

[sound_cycle]

Did I tell you this before sound cycle ??
<snip>
The next Dabba you need to have a crack at is the pre Amp.
<snip>
But maybe that's for another day...

Yes you did. And the "gain" is clearly appreciable and enjoyable. I could not implement at that point though

As a pre- the Saga measures better than the Freya, and is "simpler" (and cheaper too). Freya has more bells and whistles: A JFET stage, 128 level attenuator and the <tada> bit, XLR. Why only Freya ? Because, it is Schiit and silver. And more imp it is a h/w balanced pre- at a (kind of) affordable price.

Will get there ... next year ish.

ciao
gr

 

[sound_cycle]

The next dabba turned out bigger and heavier than a Freya which I thought would be my next step.

Over the past few weeks, the son said while we were tripping on Flea's bass, we really need a sub. I was in my "sub, in my rig, no never" state of mind even then.

We then listened to @drkrack set up which combined panels with a sub. I flipped instantly. Last week listened to another very nice rig with nice deep bass*. "Only for rumbles in movies, no musical content below xx hz, who needs a sub" were consigned to the garbage pile of ignorance.

And my prayaschittam was to order a REL T9/I. The original plan was two T5/I but the magnepan forum suggested that the t9/I would be better suited and easier to integrate. It got delivered last night and got set up this morning. For various reasons I am using the RCA/ low level and not the high level connections with the speakon connector.

The son was very helpful in providing ear and muscle.

We put Dirac off, pink noise right channel on loop.

Figured out the position with the crawl.

Put the sub on a coin we placed to mark the selected spot, then fine tuned position left to right and then back to front. Finally got the orientation (toe in) set.

All this was REL only with the xo and vol maxed out.

We then got the Maggies on, and dialed back the volume till the REL just vanished and came back up one notch. Same process with the xo.

Dirac will perfect it , for now it stays off I have to figure out the version upgrade etc. That an burn in baki hai. But I don't think I will embarass myself if I say it sounds okay. I am happy with the sound. The son agrees.

The improvements are all round, stage and separation, and the layering. Of course the room is nicely energized.

Unsurprising we ended up very close to the Maggies. That position was chosen for bass anyway. Which should mean that the suckout is only partially mitigated (by adding to the energy from the front of the maggies ?) Willl know only after I measure. That is for later after burn in etc.

Anthony Kiedis voice is so much better sounding with the REL on. There is no going back. (I am on a RHCP trip currently)

ciao
gr

* no sub was involved.