ML vantage with Magnepan 1.7 as surround?

[papageno]

Hi,
new to this forum. Need Surround speakers for multichannel audio. Have a pair of ML vantages as front speakers. Thinking of pairing it with Maggies 1.7 as surround for multichannel audio. Any comments or thoughts. Greatly appreciate it. Dealer thinks not a great idea.

 

[beek]

I would not do it. The ML is much faster a driver.I like other folks here have tried mixing driver types and found later on you begin to sense the different technologies. Sure others will chime in..

 

[User211]

I would not do it. The ML is much faster a driver.I like other folks here have tried mixing driver types and found later on you begin to sense the different technologies. Sure others will chime in..

With Beek on this. But I think an ESL MRT/ribbon bass speaker might be pretty good.

 

[beek]

Many moons ago I mixed sub,maggie,ribbon tweeter in active/passive mode & after awhile I had to take it down

 

[beek]

If you have the real estate get the ESL motions with a discount? No conflicts better melding.

 

[papageno]

Thanks Beek,
appreciate your input. Some have told me that a dipolar surround is not the best option for multichannel audio even though that is recommended for surround sound movies. Do you agree?

 

[papageno]

pardon my ignorance but what is a ribbon bass speaker and who makes them

 

[beek]

To be Honest I am not a suround guy but I do have experience with many driver types.

 

[beek]

Take a peek

http://www.analysisaudio.com/

 

[roberto]

Hola. I am going to chime in here. The recommendation for bipolar speakers for surround is due to their dispersion pattern. They allow to spread the rear sound info wider. All it is a matter of taste and liking. (taste in sound???) Perhaps in your room, too much dispersion is not right! or you do not like it. Some of my customers use them with outstanding results. My room is too small, and I almost have my rear speakers as earphones, so the level that I use for rear is very little. I just like to have a bigger room, and what I get from my rear speakers are that, widder and more "rear depth" sense. Trust your ears and liking, happy listening,
Roberto.

 

[Hocky]

I think bipolar is more appropriate for a room with seats behind the surround speakers whereas a room without seats behind the surround speakers may benefit more from a dipolar speaker.

Personally, I think that using it for music will call attention to the differences in the speakers. Using it for movies would not be so bad.

 

[Gordon Gray]

General rule of thumb for surround sound systems is that all speakers are "voiced" in a similar manner (read same manufacturer) to minimize sonic differences between transducers.

GG

 

[beek]

Jus realized Apogee's but they are gone now. No true ribbon woofers just mixtures of plastics & ribbon.

 

[User211]

Jus realized Apogee's but they are gone now. No true ribbon woofers just mixtures of plastics & ribbon.

Actually Apogee does still exist - but it is run by an Australian. He has even developed new models - a pair of which will be delivered to someone this Friday in England. CLX price territory - the Synergy (mk2). If I can I'll post pics...

 

[tsv_1]

Actually Apogee does still exist - but it is run by an Australian. He has even developed new models - a pair of which will be delivered to someone this Friday in England. CLX price territory - the Synergy (mk2). If I can I'll post pics...

Do you know this recipient in England? (it's not you is it?)... assume you'll be visiting said recipient? Do tell.

 

[User211]

Do you know this recipient in England? (it's not you is it?)... assume you'll be visiting said recipient? Do tell.

I have shaken his hand. And that of another Synergy owner. So no - but I have met them both. These particular owners live close to each other - the same town. They've both heard pretty much everything under the sun. Including - ahem - the CLX, I am sure (wink - on a phone).

Of course it could be a rivalry thing - or it could just be the realisation of something too awesome for words. Something higher than human perception and reasoning. Something beyond Aristotle. Beyond Plato. Beyond Socrates. Beyond even Zeus. But I suspect the reality is they just know there's nothing out there with a performance that is as awesome as they have experienced with these particular transducers.

I was going to go have a listen this Friday with the installer - if the new owner would allow it - but TBH it isn't worth it yet - they'll need to break in. Seriously - they will need a couple of months to relax. Not sure what happens to the ribbons on a molecular level - but something does happen to them that makes the audible performance that much more rewarding. TBH a raw ribbon - especially an MRT one - just sounds extremely odd in it's first few hours.

Todd - you know I'll spill the beans if I can get any more info... Hopefully before Xmas I'll get the chance of a listen.

 

[invenio]

I own the vantage and have demoed the Magnepan 1.7's. I would NOT pair these speakers together. Even though they are both electrostats they sound very different. Another issue with the 1.7's is that they have very little low end. In a multichannel setup you have a sub to handle this but still, you are going to get significantly more base from your two Vantages compared to the 1.7's and it probably would not sound right. I don't think your going to be happy with the end result. You may want to see what speakers ML has in the same price range and would probably do much better with that option vs pairing with magnepan. Please note that I am not saying that magnepan's are bad, I was actually considering buying them at one point (I was looking at the 3.6's), but they just sound very different. Hope this helps.

 

[beek]

The Maggies are not electrostatic they are electro-magnetic, hence the Magnaplanar.

 

[invenio]

The Maggies are not electrostatic they are electro-magnetic, hence the Magnaplanar.

This is absolutely correct and was a mistake on my part. Nonetheless, it doesn't change the fact that they sound very different and I would not recommend the pairing with the ML's.