New Magnepan 1.7i speakers

Bruce,

Can't wait for your opinion/review. I am getting the Magnepan bug too. The 3.7i and Pass XA100.8 won best of show at Axpona 2015.

I am sure the 1.7i will be amazing too.



Best Sound (for the money): Magnepan 3.7i driven by Pass Labs and sourced by exaSound. The most natural and realistic sound at the show.

Bruce B said:

Just picked up a pair of these for another system.

Long story short.... I hope:

Long time Maggie fan, with MG IIa speakers as my first set back in the late '70's. I've owned about 6 pair since, especially after every divorce!
Fast forward to this past week. The Pacific NW Audio Society was having their meeting at Definitive Audio in Bellevue. I told the wife that I wanted to listen to a pair of .7 speakers for the upstairs system. She really liked them... but not loved them. They didn't match the décor and wanted more "color"! As we were leaving, she spotted a pair of Maggies that had bright red aluminum trim with gray cloth. She instantly fell in love! A little bigger than the .7 speakers, but she just had to have them! Damn I love my wife!!

These are the newer .i model. I guess from what I've read that the only change was the crossover and maybe some tape? I really haven't seen any reviews of these, so I'll be doing a review for Stereomojo. Now I just need a beefy amp to push them! I'll put them down in the studio and pair them with the Pass XA-100.5 amps to burn in.


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Bruce, by coincidence, I will be auditioning these next week sometime.

I am growing a bit tired of boxes and dynamic drivers.

In general, how close to the back wall can they be?

Bruce B said:

I'd say 3' minimum with 4-5' optimal.

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Thanks Bruce...i have about 3.5 feet..will just make it!

Will let you know how audition goes.

I LOVE my 3.7i's - but it was 1.7i's that led to me owning them.

I've heard (and drooled over) several Maggies over the years, starting in the mid-1970's, but the "young me" couldn't afford them.

A decade or two later, I could afford most any speaker I wanted, but my local HiFi shop didn't carry Maggies and I had "forgotten the magic." (Oh, don't get me wrong: I didn't suffer too badly with my 801's/Mark Levinson system.)

Recently (well, I guess it's been a couple of years) I went into my local HiFi shop and they had 1.7i's playing. I was NOT looking for speakers at that time. But, I sat down and listened for about 30 seconds and told the shocked salesman that walked in, "sold"!

A week or so later, I called and asked if they had a trade-up program (yes) and I ordered 3.7i's, which took about 2 months to build and deliver.

Since that time, I have auditioned 20.7s (great, but not enough improvement over the 3.7i's for the money, in my opinion) and, most recently 30.7's (which I am ordering when my new house is completed)

By the way, I was warned "not to use a subwoofer" by, well, EVERYONE (including Magnepan), but TRUST ME, you will want to use one (or two) subs -- even with the 30.7's (I have some older blogs on this). As long as you limited the subs to SUB-bass, they vastly improve - and in no way harm - the Maggies.

Hello everyone, I would like to buy an MG 1.7 amplified by Classè Audio DR3, is it enough to make it sing well? My room is 20m. I'm not looking for stadium volumes. I listen to classical, jazz, melodic rock... thanks for your help, Best Regards Stefano from Italy

I had a pair of 1.7 for a while with external upgraded crossover. Great way to get into the Magnepan sound without breaking the bank. Enjoy!