Moving on from Magnepan... better choice for small room?

[davide256]

I bought Magnepan 1.7's shortly after launch, which worked well in my prior home with a finished basement 30' x 20' space to work with.

But after moving/retirement downsizing in 2017 my listening space has been reduced to a 12' x 12' room with a 16' peak cathedral ceiling. Pretty much

feel like I have giant headphones now with a very narrow listening spot. Will be seriously thinking about a speaker change this year at Capital Audio Fest,

wondering if anyone has suggestions to compete or improve on what I already have?

 

Constraints:

1) must be smaller, nothing taller than 46" inclusive of speaker stands

2) must have better treble dispersion, tired of a narrow sweet spot

3) no cabinet or driver resonances, this is an automatic fail for me if detected when auditioning

 

Rethm and Spatial Audio are two manufacturers whose speakers I have liked at past shows.

 

Looking to spend between $4 to $8k

 

[Rexp]

Something can be gleaned from this maybe:

 

[davide256]

13 hours ago, Rexp said:

Something can be gleaned from this maybe:

 

mmm, no contest in the bass for the Spatial Audio vs other "contestants". I do note that all of the M series on their site show out of stock, hope thats only temporary.

[davide256]

These are something I really want to hear

 

https://devorefidelity.com/devore-fidelity-speakers/orangutan-series/o-baby-speakers/

 

combining a smaller speaker  later with something like a Fathom subwoofer sounds attractive. Especially when you don't want to disturb family

with late hour listening bass

 

 

[JBL]

Spatial Audio X4 would fit your budget.  Heard it at Pacific Audio Fest powered by an LTA integrated amp and Holo Spring DAC.  Sounded fantastic.  Excellent room filling bass, great soundstage and imaging, and very similar the Magnepan OB sound.  I have 3.7i's and my buddy has the M4's and they sound more similar than different.  The X4 with the AMT tweeter would sound even more like Maggies than the M4's.

[ecwl]

I would have thought in a 12’ x 12’ room, it’s bass peaks and troughs that’ll be the bigger problem but I guess mangepan is huge so yeah, might be vice like with limited sweet spot. And one can always solve some bass issues by moving the listening seat and parametric EQ. 
 

I wonder if Paradigm Founder 100F would be the speakers that’s to your taste. 

[Rexp]

8 hours ago, davide256 said:

mmm, no contest in the bass for the Spatial Audio vs other "contestants". I do note that all of the M series on their site show out of stock, hope thats only temporary.

Yes Spatial sounds like what I've heard at shows, probably not as linear as your Maggies which maybe a trade-off too far. Seems like this youtuber just discovered the benefits of a more linear performance while reviewing Perlisten speakers. Maybe try smaller Maggies and a couple of subs?

[ecwl]

I just realized both Magnepan 1.7 and Spatial Audio speakers are dipole speakers and I’m not sure how Rethm integrates their front firing drivers with their rear firing drivers. Perhaps my Paradigm Founder 100F would not be a good recommendation for OP.

[cjf]

On 8/11/2022 at 12:27 PM, davide256 said:

I bought Magnepan 1.7's shortly after launch, which worked well in my prior home with a finished basement 30' x 20' space to work with.

But after moving/retirement downsizing in 2017 my listening space has been reduced to a 12' x 12' room with a 16' peak cathedral ceiling. Pretty much

feel like I have giant headphones now with a very narrow listening spot. Will be seriously thinking about a speaker change this year at Capital Audio Fest,

wondering if anyone has suggestions to compete or improve on what I already have?

 

Constraints:

1) must be smaller, nothing taller than 46" inclusive of speaker stands

2) must have better treble dispersion, tired of a narrow sweet spot

3) no cabinet or driver resonances, this is an automatic fail for me if detected when auditioning

 

Rethm and Spatial Audio are two manufacturers whose speakers I have liked at past shows.

 

Looking to spend between $4 to $8k

 

Might be worth consideration. They make a towers also but with the size room your working with I think a smaller set of mains may be of benefit. You can fill in the Bass later with a Sub or two which would also likely help with the room shape you are working with.

 

https://www.bowerswilkins.com/en-us/product/loudspeakers/705-signature

 

The best thing I have found to fix a narrow soundstage is DSP Room correction. I've suffered with this issue in the past. Even a doubling of the speaker price didn't solve it for me. I used to have to stay head locked in the listening chair to achieve the SQ I was looking for. Not fun!

 

In contrast to that, now with DSP in the picture, I can tilt my head to each extreme side of my shoulders while in the listening chair and hear no noticeable difference or shift if the center image at all.

 

 

[JBL]

Something else to consider with OB speakers is that the bass response is going to be significantly smoother and flatter due to its dispersion pattern.  Other than the Linkwitz speakers which are also open baffle the X4's had the smoothest most even bass output PAF.  Almost all the conventional speakers had pretty uneven or peaky bass response. 

 

OB bass also does not travel or resonate throughout the house the way standard speakers and sub do therefore less likely to be disruptive. 

 

 

[botrytis]

OB's are going to have the same issue as Maggie's. Both are bipolar so the speakers need to be placed carefully

[Kimo]

Ohm Walsh.  Coloration might be an issue.  Have not heard these in awhile.

 

Gallo Acoustics

[davide256]

 

 

18 hours ago, Rexp said:

Yes Spatial sounds like what I've heard at shows, probably not as linear as your Maggies which maybe a trade-off too far. Seems like this youtuber just discovered the benefits of a more linear performance while reviewing Perlisten speakers. Maybe try smaller Maggies and a couple of subs?

I'm just convinced at this point that maggies aren't that good for vivid tone color... willing to make some trade offs to get a sound closer to what I hear using Audeze headphones

for tone color solidity

[Rexp]

8 hours ago, davide256 said:

 

 

I'm just convinced at this point that maggies aren't that good for vivid tone color... willing to make some trade offs to get a sound closer to what I hear using Audeze headphones

for tone color solidity

Sure as long as the speakers are linear, if not you will miss out on the subtle details in the music that are key to making it work or not.

[MikeJazz]

Squared rooms are tricky to say the least.

I would choose speakers that excel in the midrange and do not excite the bass too much.

Q Acoustics Concept 300 recently surprised me and might work well as the midrange is very informative with some good warmth so one does not need to crank them too much, although they are not efficient.

 

It will depend much on the room acoustics and what you can do to avoid the issues of the squared room. Diffusors and absorvers can help and also using a near-field setup also helps.

 

The smaller QUAD ESL (something like 2805's) could work very well it images wonderfully in a near-field setup and you are used to that kind of sound...

 

Finding that kind of microdynamics and articulation in box speakers is not easy...but recently I found the monitor audio gold 100 very fast and balanced (and I am not a fan of this brand)...Actually is in my list of possible future speakers; the ribbon tweeter is well implemented and the speaker is fun to listen to.

 

[scintilla]

I really like panel speakers myself; had Martin-Logan SL3's for many years, so I understand your concerns about boxes.  Also, most dipoles need a lot of room to breathe which doesn't work very well in smaller rooms without some compromises.  Mine needed a good 3-4 ft off the rear wall before they really started to open up.  But if it is just better dispersion for a wider sweet-spot, perhaps some of the smaller M-L panels which are curved?  Bass integration is better in the smaller speakers and with the addition of some room correction and possibly some acoustic treatments you may find what you are seeking without resorting to floor-standing boxes. The electromotion series and up to the classic 9 fit your budget.  Paired with a small subwoofer placed in a corner with some DSP room correction and your would be amazed how capable the little M-Ls can be.  DSP is the key to getting great imaging from non-ideal placement. I committed to Revel Studio2s when it came time to pick a speaker for the decades, but I could still live with M-Ls quite happily.  I just didn't have a suitable room for them when I bought or I would have gone with used CLX's and dual subs. Just something to chew on.

[JLash]

I've moved on from Maggies several times. And I always moved back.

[aangen]

The most logical next step up from Magnapan is MBL. Any size will do. At least as a start.

[Northern_Canuck]

Try to listen to a pair of Totem Tribe speakers. Small foot print with a big sound signature within your budget. Just demo'd the Tribe, Fire and Metal and was impressed through out the line. Moved around the demo room with the Tribe and they have one of the widest listening arcs I have ever heard - did not matter where I sat they sounded good. They have probably one of the best fully magnetic drivers in the market. Worth a listen.

[botrytis]

There are plenty of choices out there that would fit.

 

Just depends on your budget and the sound you are looking for.

 

Only your ears can tell you what you like.

 

I would suggest the Revel M126Be - they are very uncolored and are easier to place than many other speakers I have owned. Decent stands are needed.

[bilboda]

Consider the Mark & Daniel Maximus monitor line up. I have the Rubies, no sweet spot problems, no cabinet coloration at all, no sub needed. Using with Schiit Tyr monos, bass instruments are clear and detailed as well as percussion. Good luck with your search.

Mark & Daniel

[davide256]

Still musing on this, my takeaway from attending CAF this year was that the bigger issue with magnepan is the low end rolloff .

AS did an interesting article on Magnepans approach to sub woofers, I want to see what they actually launch

 

https://www.theabsolutesound.com/articles/16-woofers-magnepan-ultra-wideband-bass-system-first-listen/