Those knowledgeable about Magico.
Harley was comparing the M6 to something. I could only figure that was to earlier edition Magico speakers. I'm asking about how the company has changed the sound of their speakers over time. I take you to be saying there is no consistent Magico sound and there are so many different models and versions. Although you do mention "the old days" and presumably something is different from that time. But I take it from your view that there's no Magico sonic evolution in one direction or another, or one cannot ascertain such.
I don't have the broad Magico experience that Harley has to know if his descriptions are lazy and disappointing. Perhaps the best I can do is take his words at face value and see what others have to say.
Tim, here is another attempt to answer your question: "Would you say "more relaxed, warmer, richer, greater" reflects the way the Magico Sound has developed over time?" There is a sonic evolution in one direction, but it is not toward a more relaxed, warmer, richer sound", IMO. The direction is toward an ever lower distortion and lower noise sound, creating a more accurate portrayal of what is in the signal and on the recording. I do not have the sense that there is an effort toward a more pleasing "voicing" of the speaker or a different tonal balance.
What I am about to write is only my personal opinion and what I have gleamed from listening and from reading reviews and marketing material and interviews. I did visit the factory a few years ago and have spoken to Mr. Wolf a few times about his designs.
By "the old days" I am referring to when Magico made speakers with wooden enclosures and aluminum from and rear baffle plates, the Mini, the M5, the V2, and V3. They had a distinct family sound, IMO. I would describe it as highly resolving, given the various price points, with a fairly neutral tonal balance, and low distortion. The bass was about accuracy and not slam or extension. It was a very distinct sound relative to some of the other brands at that time. The sealed enclosure and other design decisions seemed to define a direction.
The middle days were when they developed the Q series and then the S series. These were at different price points and to me sounded as though they were voiced for different customers. One line was more pleasing, more flexible with different paint colors, and was more "life style" while the other line was about accuracy and a no holds barred no compromise attempt for the most transparent to source sound they could achieve. People discussed the different bass sounds and tonal balances. People picked their sides, some preferring the more expensive, more "accurate" Q, while others preferred the less expensive, more flexible, more pleasing sounding S.
That was the first decade. Then they developed the M Pro which marked a new direction. This was an effort to reach for new technologies and see where it could take them. Very expensive, very different, sold in a limited 50 pairs. I have heard one many times in a familiar system. It is excellent. The tweeter is smoother, less aggressive, perhaps more relaxed, and perhaps slightly warmer. Like previous designs, it is an extremely coherent and tonally neutral speaker. And it is lower in distortion. From this came the S series mark 2 speakers and now the M line and A line. Everything seems to have followed.
Personally, I would not describe the evolution in terms of tonal balance shifting because every current model that I have heard sounds slightly different. There are large price point and aesthetic differences. There are construction method differences and material differences. What has remained consistent is an effort to reduce distortion and lower noise. It is a technology driven company. At the various different price points, they are trying to make speakers that have little sound of their own. The evolution is about reducing the impact of the speaker on the sound from the system and with the S series and especially, the M series, the interaction with the room.
So, for Harley to reduce his description of the evolution of the company's speakers to simply a more relaxed, warm, sound to me seems a bit lazy. I just don't think Alon Wolf is focused on voicing his products to have a more pleasing tonal balance. I think he is more about pushing technology (materials, driver, crossover, cabinet construction and shape) to produce a product that is lower in distortion and noise and gets increasingly out of the way of the music. He also seems to want to offer a speaker to an ever increasing range of music lovers by creating a very comprehensive number of speakers in different product lines.