MG20.7’s Up and Running

[rclark]

Jul 26, 2012 2:42:00 GMT -5 garbulky said:

I assume you can hit 10 times reference level? ;D

You and some of the others miss the point. Maggies actually don't get all that loud compared to box speakers. It's not about loud, it's about better sound.

And to CopperPipe especially. He thinks the amps are there for extra loudness. Typical noob.

[GreenKiwi]

Yeah, just absolutely amazing details and timber.

[rclark]

The MMG alone, the tweeter has the surface area of 72 dome tweeters and the rest of the panel has the surface area of 8 8" woofers, and the mylar material weighs less than the total volume of air it's moving. Just ridiculous SQ capabilities in these speakers.

But most box speaker, HT guys assume everything is about getting REEAAAL LOOOUD.

DUUUUUUUUDE I COULD HEAR THAT ACROSS STREET DUUDE

.. all the power that a Magnepan sucks up is about making beautiful ear candy that box speakers only can dream of... below a certain (large) pricepoint.


I've noticed the same thing about subwoofers. They assume that if you have more than one DUUUUDE THAT'S GOING TO BE LIKE EPIC I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU HAVE ALL THOSE SUBZZZZZ

when in reality, the guys running multiple subs aren't playing them any louder, it's for smoothing out bass response in the room and having pure unadulterated, low distortion bass that is smooth throughout the whole room.

[KR6600]

I think it is the quality of the XPA-1s that is just as (if not more) important as the raw power output they are capable of and it is that quality that keeps me up at night (and the 20.7s of course). Recently I have spent many late nights listening to 2.0 music – I just do not want to turn it off. What stands out the most is the subtle details of the music. Listening to pieces I thought I was familiar with sound different, more life-like, or what I imagine is life-like. The imaging and depth is amazing in spite of the less than optimum placement.

I estimate average SPL for “loud” passages is in the low 80’s for the 20.7’s in 2.0 mode with average, mid frequencies musical passages. I don’t have formal test equipment, just a Radio Shack SPL meter. Loud passages will just get the first few LEDs on the XPA-1s jumping and that is when I read low 80 decibels. Low frequencies will suck the power out of the amps and really get the LEDs moving, but the SPL does not seem any higher for the amount of additional power output. I have not pushed the 20.7s yet. I am curious if the XPA-1s can continue to produce quality at higher HT sound levels.

For reference, the 20.7s are a little over 11 feet apart. The center of the listening area is about 14 feet from the 20.7s. Again, a compromise with being in a theater setting with a large screen. I do not run my JL subs with the 20.7s in two channel mode.

Still working on the lighting.

[monkumonku]

Aug 4, 2012 1:08:24 GMT -5 rclark said:

The MMG alone, the tweeter has the surface area of 72 dome tweeters and the rest of the panel has the surface area of 8 8" woofers, and the mylar material weighs less than the total volume of air it's moving. Just ridiculous SQ capabilities in these speakers.

But most box speaker, HT guys assume everything is about getting REEAAAL LOOOUD.

DUUUUUUUUDE I COULD HEAR THAT ACROSS STREET DUUDE

.. all the power that a Magnepan sucks up is about making beautiful ear candy that box speakers only can dream of... below a certain (large) pricepoint.


I've noticed the same thing about subwoofers. They assume that if you have more than one DUUUUDE THAT'S GOING TO BE LIKE EPIC I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU HAVE ALL THOSE SUBZZZZZ

when in reality, the guys running multiple subs aren't playing them any louder, it's for smoothing out bass response in the room and having pure unadulterated, low distortion bass that is smooth throughout the whole room.

Such as it is with other things too, like food. People rate a restaurant as awesome because of the portion sizes. Duuuude, that burger was sooooo huge!!!! Awesome!!!! Never mind what it tastes like.

Supersized is good. ;D

[klinemj]

And high quality supersized is better! Like...the 20.7's and all those other Maggies and all those XPA-1's!

[kzone]

fantastic setup ! Felt privileged to have come across this!

Bumping this thread up for more to enjoy

[KR6600]

Thanks. I am planning on posting more pictures in The HT Zone. I am trying to stabilize things in the theater. I recently replaced some cables. I added a dbx crossover to replace the original 3.5 external crossover and cable splitters. I also added Mye Stands to all speakers – 20.7, 3.7 (x2) and 3.5. And, most recently, added an XSP-1. This necessitated moving some XPA-1’s around – not an easy thing to do.

[GreenKiwi]

So for people who have heard the differences between 3.6 & 20.1 & 20.7, how much of an improvement would the 20.1s be over the 3.6s?

There is a used pair near me that would probably go for around $6000, and I've been given the OK to "convert" my black/cherry Maggie's into white ones. And so I think I could pass off the 20.1 as 3.6s. As long as they weren't in the same room together.

Guess I'm wondering whether or not its worth it. My room is 13'x25' with 9' ceilings, but I have to place the speakers on the ends.