Anyone go from Magnepan to Emotiva Airmotiv T1/T2?

[Cogito]

Apr 2, 2018 17:31:01 GMT -5 KeithL said:

I'm going to throw my two cents in here.

Many people really like MagnePlanars.
However, to be honest, I've never been one of them.
I've heard various models of Maggies several times, in different rooms, and with different associated equipment.
To me, they always sound EXCESSIVELY airy.
I simply don't hear the pinpoint imaging with Maggies that I hear with other good speakers.
And, being dipoles, they are both thin on the bass and VERY fussy about room placement.

I find that the folded ribbon tweeters we use on our Airmotiv speakers (and on our powered monitors) offer better clarity without any harshness...
And the T1's and T2's simply avoid most of the drawbacks that I don't like about the Maggies.
(And you CAN use T2's without a subwoofer.)

Maggies require careful consideration to sound their best. They need lots of room to breath, often way out into a listening area which can be cumbersome (The reason I gave up my 1.7s). Also, if you want pinpoint imaging, it isn't gonna happen as it's inherent with the dipole design. It can be good, not great. Instead, you get a HUGE soundstage with lot's of depth that you typically can't get with vast majority of box speakers. The other advantage of the Maggie system is their amazing ability to reproduce vocals, horns and strings. The results can raise the hair on your neck.

As for the bass... No, they aren't going to shake the pictures off the wall, but what's there is quite satisfying and accurate. Of course, if you are a bass-head you CAN add a subwoofer with phenomenal results.