Magnepan LRS-power with PA-1’s or XPA-100’s?

[pdaddy]

Asking for a friend....

[monkumonku]

Aug 28, 2020 13:50:50 GMT -5 pdaddy said:

Asking for a friend....

Was that recent purchase you made actually for a "friend" also?

I see you have the PA-1 in your signature so have you tried it yet with the LRS? I've got a pair on order (LRS) so I welcome any sort of info about it.

[pdaddy]

Pa-1’s sound good but these are my first foray into class d so wanted to garner some insight and wisdom from this crowd. And yes, I was being silly. I am the friend.... oh, and I have not got the LRS tuned in and setup well enough for detailed listening.

[Boomzilla]

Hi pdaddy -

You may not like my recommendation, but here it is:

The LRS speakers like CURRENT. Usually, LOTS of current comes with LOTS of watts.

An ideal match would be some generation 1 or 2 Emotiva XPA-1 amplifiers (NOT XPA-1Ls). A great match would also be a generation 1 or 2 XPA-2 amplifier. Another great workhouse choice on the used market is the Crown PSA-2, usually had for about $200 to $400 on eBay. Of course, if money is no impediment, buy a Krell!

If you want a new amp and at a discount price (and if you're willing to consider class D), then audition some "pro" amplifiers. But be sure to aviod ANY pro amp with DSP in it. The additional A-D / D-A converters are highly audible and in a very bad way. This rules out all the Crown XLS products (regardless of how many tin-ear online raves there are). If you want Crown quality and without DSP, then I think the Crown XLi series is their only option currently on the market. The good news is that a Crown XLi 2500 puts out 750 wpc into 4 ohms in stereo mode for about $500 or less (new) and can be had for significantly less used or refurbished.

With the LRS (as with most Magnepans) more power = better sound. The only exception to this statement is tubes, and that's a whole different price ballpark.

Cordially - Boomzilla

[davidl81]

I have PA-1's on my Martin Logan Theos speakers and they sound amazing. At that price point you can't go wrong IMO. I have not used the pro amps like Boom has though, so he may be on to something.

[pdaddy]

Thanks Glenn and David. I have the PA-1’s and read Glenn’s review that these worked. As with many of us, just looking to see if the juice was worth the squeeze to kick it up a notch. I ran many iterations of MMG’s and a part of 2.7’s on XPA-2 first gen and was quite happy. I may keep an eye out for one in the local Atlanta area for sale.

All that said, I would love any tube consideration too since you mentioned it Boom.

[Boomzilla]

Tube amps that put out more than 35 or so watts become expensive in a hurry. And although you can run Maggies with 35 tube watts, they really want more. How much more? Well mono tube amps of 70-100 watts do well, although to get any volume from Maggies, you want 150-200 tube watts per channel. That gets expensive in a BIG hurry, so some alternate choices are to run hybrid systems - I've had good luck in the past with tube preamplifiers running solid state power amps. Back in the day, I ran a Van-Alstine modified Dynaco PAS preamplifier with an Adcom GFA-1 power cube. AWESOME sound...

But many claim that it's still no substitute for a muscular true tube amplifier. And at this point, let the wallet-hemorraging begin! Some candidates:

McIntosh MC-1502 = 150 watts @ $11,000
conrad-johnson ART300 = 300 watts @ $35,000 / pair
conrad-johnson ART150 = 150 watts @ $20,000 / pair
Rogue Audio M180 = 180 watts @ $11,000 / pair
VTL S200 = 200 watts @ $12,500
BAT VK-76SE = 150 watts @ $14,000 (x2 - must be run bridged)
VTA M125 = 125 watts @ $2,955 / pair

Are those worth the $$$? Not having heard any but the VTA ones, I can't say. Would the VTAs sound as good as the high-on-the-hog brands? I couldn't answer that either, but in general terms - you get what you pay for...

Were it me, I'd pair an Audio-gd Vacuum HE-1 XLR preamp with maybe a pair of used Emotiva XPA-1s and not look back. Don't care for Chinese preamps? Look at a McIntosh or a Prima Luna or even a Rogue tube preamp. Need to economize? - any of the inexpensive Chinese tube DAC-preamp combinations with a Crown XLi 3500 (1,350 wpc into the Maggie's 4 ohm load) and see what you get.

[pdaddy]

Thanks again Boom

[Boomzilla]

MY opinion is worth every penny you pay for it! LOL - but enjoy your trip and try out what you can - you might find a combo that really lights your fire! audiobill might have some good information on the topic... Bill?

[audiobill]

I think with Maggies, and their superb imaging, soundstaging and articulate bass, are not about shake the house volumes. Head bangers need not apply.

Although I run mine with 450-700 wpc from my MC452, in a 14,400 cubic foot room, they also sound great with the 80-90 wpc from my MC275s.

I think a lover of real uncompressed music in an average room size could be happy with anything over 60 wpc.

[AudioHTIT]

Aug 28, 2020 19:26:30 GMT -5 audiobill said:

I think with Maggies, and their superb imaging, soundstaging and articulate bass, are not about shake the house volumes. Head bangers need not apply.

Although I run mine with 450-700 wpc from my MC452, in a 14,400 cubic foot room, they also sound great with the 80-90 wpc from my MC275s.

I think a lover of real uncompressed music in an average room size could be happy with anything over 60 wpc.

Uh oh, got some head banger in me ... 🤘🤘🤘

I think for most people in most rooms, the PA-1’s work well with Maggies, for me as well, much of the time.

[donh50]

Unless you are in a large room sitting far away or run them very loud I would expect the PA-1 to do just fine.

My experience with pro amps has generally been good, ADC/DAC inside or not, but YMMV. Ears of clay, or tin, I guess... Maybe my system is not resolving enough, that's the usual response, followed by my ears just aren't good enough. Whatever.

Given your first post, I would spend more time fiddling with placement and possibly room treatments, and hold off on worrying about amplification. Dipoles can be tricky to dial in, especially if the wall behind is not treated and they are fairly close to it (e.g. maybe less than 3'~5'). A few inches in position and toe-in can change the sound pretty dramatically.

IME/IMO, FWIWFM, YMMV, my 0.000001 cent (microcent), etc. - Don

[garbulky]

I think the right choice is the XPA-2 gen 2. I would usually reccomend the PA-1 as one of the best amps I've heard but I heard somebody mention lackluster results with the Maggies. So truth is I don't know.

[pedrocols]

Just buy a bigger Maggie and call it! I currently own the MG12 (in the closet) and the 1.7 (currently in use). My dealer don't even have new .7 in stock because once potential customers would demo the 1.7i they other options became moot.

[tropicallutefisk]

I run two DR1s on my Maggie 3.7is. It sounds great to my ears and I’ve tried running them with a Rotel RMB 1075 and a McIntosh Mc152. The DR1s are far superior to those other options in my system.

[creimes]

Aug 29, 2020 18:12:19 GMT -5 tropicallutefisk said:

I run two DR1s on my Maggie 3.7is. It sounds great to my ears and I’ve tried running them with a Rotel RMB 1075 and a McIntosh Mc152. The DR1s are far superior to those other options in my system.

There seems to be two different for sale ads here for a pair of DR-1's, one pair is $1800 with shipping and PayPal included within the US.

Chad

[pdaddy]

Thanks Creimes. $1800 too rich for my blood.

[pdaddy]

What are y’all thoughts on the XPA HC-1’s for this setup vs say a gen 1 or 2 XPA-2 vs staying with PA-1's?

[vcautokid]

Don't forget Prima Luna too. Bargain for Tubes relatively speaking and will drive your Maggies just fine. How do I know. I had a Prologue Two, and it did great on my MMGs at the time. Auto Biasing and runs the tubes consertively for long life. Build that is exceptional.

[creimes]

Aug 29, 2020 22:09:40 GMT -5 pdaddy said:

Thanks Creimes. $1800 too rich for my blood.

My mistake haha, I read your post as PA-1 or XPA-1

Chad