Excellent soundstage, detail, clarity at low to medium power usage.

VERY limited volume before massive clipping.

I've been using these MMGs now from before Chrismas 2005 until 15 August 2006. When I first got them I was blown away by the detail and the soundstage, even though I had to spend a lot of time adjusting position, etc. I had them in two rooms, my living room and my second bedroom. The living room was more spacious and afforded a larger soundstage; I liked them best there.

I paired them with a Yamaha R-V98 integrated amp rated at 160 w/ch @ 2 ch using an iPod as an input source, with CD tracks ripped using Apple lossless compression for CD-quality sound. I used a 1/8" headphone jack with two RCA inputs to move the signal from the iPod to the amp. I never could turn them up very loud in the apartment where I lived, since I didn't want to disturb the neighbors, so the volume control never went up past about 2/3rds of the way up. I didn't really have a problem with the MMGs until I moved crosscountry into a house of my very own with a basement all to myself, where I could crank the amp without disturbing the neighbors.

So the first thing I did when I moved in was set up the MMGs and the amp and the iPod the way I liked it and turn up the volume. The result: incredible clipping at about 1/2 volume on the MMGs--complete loss of detail, crackles, blurred-out bass, you name it. I identified several variables that could have been causing the clipping--MMGs inadequate to the power source, an amp that was rated at 160 watts that was really putting out a lot less, the iPod DAC, and the line-in/headphone jack setup. So I decided to crank up the old scientific method and attack one variable at a time and see what was causing the clipping.

The first thing I did was disconnect the Samsung HD upconverter from the HDTV and haul it downstairs and use it as an input source to the Yamaha amp. I noticed immediate improvement in resolution of detail at about 2/3rds volume, so I figured the iPod or at least the line-in setup was part of the problem. OK, stick to CDs for troubleshooting for now. So I cranked it up to 1/2 volume--still same old clipping story. OK, input source is not the problem. Now let's try something else--swapping out the amp. I had my doubts about the amp, anyway--it was a consumer-grade amp that was 11 years old, and I've heard many stories about Yamaha power supplies hitting levels of infinite distortion well before reaching their max power output.

Today I went out and bought a Rotel NX-1052 integrated amp from the local audiophile component store. It is rated at 140 watts/channel @ 2 channels, and auditioning it in the store, the salesman cranked it up to about 90 db on a set of $2400 speakers whose brand name escapes me, and it sounded absolutely flawless at high volume. Perfect instrument resolution, perfect detail on my highly complex, layered synthesized Delerium "Poem" CD with exceptional vocalists who were flawlessly rendered by this amp and speaker setup--you could hear the vocalists breathing between phrases--so I knew I had an exceptional amp. My judgment was confirmed when I played a CD burned a 192 Kb/s MP3, and I could literally hear the compression on the individual bits. I could hardly wait to get it home and try it out with the MMGs.

I got the thing unpacked, got the monster cable with the spades hooked up to the speaker outputs, the CD player connected, even the iPod reconnected with the old line-in setup. (Skipping ahead a little, the iPod sounds muffled through the Rotel/MMGs. I had my wife run to Best Buy to pick up a dock with RCA outputs so I can run signal through the dock connector rather than through the headphone jack. Hopefully that will solve the problem.)

Anyway, Rotel all set up, CD player tray open, I put on a Conjure One disc. Lots of textured, detailed synth, superior production, female vocalists hand-picked by the project leader for their excellent voices. I set the volume fairly low so I could turn it up until it started to clip, which I thought would be at a pretty high volume level, judging by what I heard in the audition. Guess what comes next.

I get it about 2/3rds of the way up the volume level and--surprise--major clipping in the MMGs. I know it's not the amp, I know it's not the input source--it's the MMGs. They just can't handle the power a good amp can throw at it. The volume level I am listening to it now, which is about five marks below where it starts to clip, is only moderately high, enough to enjoy but not enough to feel it in your bones.

In short, pushing a significant amount of power through the MMGs drives them to their sonic limits VERY quickly. In my opinion, MMGs are good for small apartments where you can never turn the volume up very much or very often, but where you want a decent soundstage and great aural detail with low to medium power input. But this clipping limitation where I want to saturate my basement with sound means I will have to trade in my MMGs for a set of higher-grade Magneplanars that can handle the power my new Rotel amp.

DON'T buy the MMGs unless you are willing to live with the very serious volume limitations of the speakers. Otherwise, share and enjoy.

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Martin Logan

Sheer unbelievable musicality. Huge soundstage. They look cool. Brilliant with all types of music. Fantastic resolution.

Kinda hard to place in a small room when you are married.

I have been listening to the Maggies for about a week now. I am in a slightly different situation to many of the reviewers here, 'cos I live in Australia, where a pair of MG12's retail for $3000 AUD - roughly $2200 USD. This makes the MMG's even more of a bargain than they already are, but it also puts them up against more expensive speakers than in the US market.

Anyway, I was pretty sure I would like them. Although my system is modest - all purchased used or hand me downs from my audiophile dad - I have heard Maggies before and always loved the sound. So, they finally arrived, got unpacked and set up (using the Cardas Golden thingo system as a guide - very useful!)

First impressions -amazing! Unbelievable soundstage, depth, detail and sheer musical involvement. However, I did find that they were a bit strident in my room, and there was just not enough bass, even compared to the small standmounters they had replaced (Royston Acoustic - a similar design and vintage toi hte original Linn Kans) Really loved the detail and musicality, but I was thinking very seriously that I would need to use the supplied tweeter attenuators - to bring down the top end a wee bit.

It is now a week later. Wow. What a difference a bit of breaking in can do. Bass - you got it. Look, I know many, many people recommend using a sub with the maggies, but I think they are wrong. If you listen primarily to music, rather than HT, as I do, then they produce the most accurate and cohesive bass and midrange that you could want. Granted, my listening room is not that large, but boy, do the Maggies fill it with music! I feel it is important to point out that I lisen to a lot of rock - White Stripes, Kings of Leon, Pavement, a whole bunch of stufff, and the MMG's just eat it up. The resolution and soundstage theses things produce makes me laugh out loud - the first time I cranked up "Stereo" by Pavement (from "Brighten the Corners") was revelatory.

The great thing about Maggies is that they just reproduce whatever music you throw at them. They do it effortlessly, and musically, and involvingly. Whenever they are playing, they suck your attention in a way that box speakers cannot. They fill the room in a totally non fatiguing manner, and they look cool - although my wife isn't overly thrilled about the fact they need to live 3ft out from the wall. But I just stick them against the wall when they aren't being used.

If you can find a bigger, more realistic soundstage, a sweeter top end and a faster, more natural mid range, coupled with more thn enough bass slam - I mean that, just check out the drum sound on these things! - for the price, please let me know. The closest I found for the price (in Australia) was the Quad 12L's. Great speakers, really nice sound, good bass extension and soundstage. The MMG's destroy them, 'cos they just put you in the room with the band.

Buy them. Enjoy.

Moe detail than you will find in a similarly priced speaker.

None for the price.

First day and these have proven far better than m Athena AS F2.2. My 50 Watt Antique Sound Labs Tube Amp has plenty of power to drive them. If you"ve been tempted but turned off by comments of high power requirements, touchy placement, need for expensive or DIY aftermarket stands, or other finicky requirememts, just do it. You won't be disapointed. Bass is articulate and natural. The Athenas went down to 35Hz and I don't miss it.

Antique Sound Lab AQ1001DT Integrated Amp
Denon DVD2200 Universal Player
MMF5 Turntable
Musical Fidelity XLP Phono Pre
Audioquest King Cobra Interconnects
Monster Speaker Cable

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Athena ASF2.2
JBL Studio S38
NHT Super Zero
NHT Super 1

Articulate, realistic, tramsparency, transport to the original music.

Limited high frequency distribution, which is an advantage in difficult rooms.

I have had three maggies before this, culminating in the 2.7 QR, which frankly left me a little cold. Bigger isn't always better and I think the magnepan design lends itself to two way designs and needs refinement to get to the three way iteration (3.x series). Also I moved into a smaller room for my listening so the 2.7's dominated the room. Maggies have to breath so the speaker size should match the room. They all seem to have that "quality" and the MMG is no exception. I needed a change and the factory deal attracted me after I sold the 2.7's, especially since I live in a high sales tax area!

I'll put it this way. The MMG pulls it off, plus they are extremely articulate. In fact, I can hear reverb engineered into a recording stil sounding once the instrument ceases to play. When the signal stops, the maggies stop. SImple as that.

Sound that draws you in, easy to listen to, unfatiguing, natural.
Lightweight, easy to move, also easier to place than many reviewers have stressed.

Speaker connection fussy and quaint. Why not banana inputs? C'mon. On the other hand, it will accept banana plugs, and being light, you can turn 'em upside down to make the connections from a comfortable standing position rather than a cramped crouching one.

I had been considering entry-level Maggies since they introduced the SMG, but had declined in the belief that my listening space would be a limiting factor in setting them up. My most recent speaker pair had been the Radio Shack Optimus, like the Maggies, a steal for the price, and interestingly enough, they employed an approach to ribbon technology in their tweeters. I swore not to replace them unless they could be improved upon at a somewhat reasonable price. But build quality and durability proved their undoing. I still have a working pair in the rear channel, but the Optimus is no longer made.

At first, I sought to replace the front pair with the Aperion 633 that came out in June 2005, and got the Aperion 533 Center Channel as well. Like Magnepan, Aperion allows a trial period and a full refund if necessary. I will not hang Aperion to twist in the wind on this, but the trial didn't work out. In fairness to them, they honored their agreement, took the speakers back and there was no hassle. At this point I figured why not try the Maggie MMG? Following an afternoon of setting up and listening, I was asking, why didn't I do this in the first place?

For those who caution that placement is critical, I would say that may be true for the absolute ultimate in 3 dimensional imaging, but even within my space, I'm getting soundstage, depth, smooth unfatiguing response, and amazing differentiation in locations of instrumental groupings and musical lines. For those who say these speakers favor jazz and chamber music over larger forces, I agree with those who say you'll need a subwoofer to do justice to symphony, opera, and home threater. I matched the MMGs easily with the Sunfire Subwoofer II, with the Strereophile Test Record - by ear.

I use my system for a gamut of sources ranging from the earliest recordings to the most recent, including home theater. There's a received wisdom in multichannel surround that all your speakers must be the same, and Maggie offers a center channel speaker. However, I kept the Aperion 533 Center, and it works fine with the Maggies on 5.1 DVDs, as well as SACDs. And my surviving pair of Optumus in the rear channels are doing very well. So if you can afford the space and the bucks to surround yourself with Maggies, by all means do so, but if not, alternatives will work.

To sum up, it's a great speaker, everything that most people have said of it. It has certainly surpassed my expecations. I'm past the stage of putting something on just to hearwhat it will sound on the Maggies, but whenever I do play something on them for the first time, it's a total revelation.

Aftermarket stands? Others have recommended them. If you need 'em, they're out there? I don't need 'em. Yet.

Sources: Outlaw 1050 Receiver driving B&K ST-140 from its front channel preamp outputs for the Maggies. Variety of media sources -vinyl, tape, CD, SACD, DVD, HD cable TV.

Imaging, tonal quality, looks, build quality, MADE IN THE U.S.A

Really need to focus on placement and a good EQ system is very beneficial.

Well, I am listening to these speakers as I write this review, and the sound is truly amazing for $550.00. I have heard $2000.00 speakers that do not even come close to this sound. I have these hooked to a Hafler DH500 amp that puts out 400 watts RMS per channel into 4 ohms, and that is running off of a Pioneer Elite receiver as the pre-amp, I am using the Pioneer because of its EQ capabilities, it has a 5 band EQ for each channel, and this really helps since these speakers are very sensitive to how and where they are placed. I am a rocker, and I find that these speakers do just fine for this type of music, the only problem you will have with these speakers is the quality of the recording you are listening to regardless of type of music. I have these speakers paired with a good subwoofer crossed over at 50hz, this seems to integrate very well. I had just purchased a pair of Infinity Beta 50 speakers a couple of weeks before I ran across these, there is no comparison, the mmgs are in a different catagory, these speakers are at the begining of the audiophile food chain. In closing ,all that I can say is try them for yourself,remeber you will have 60 days to send them back, but I could not even imagine that unless your room or electronics just did not work with them. And by the way, the Infinities are setting in the closet waiting to go on ebay. Happy listening.

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INFINITY, POLK, ACOUSTIC RESEARCH, WHARFDALE , ECT

MMGs (with after market stands) are BEST is small rooms with subs. Even betters the 1.6s dynamically and in imaging. For larger rooms (BIG) go to the 1.6s, 3.6s or 20.1s but use better stands on all of them. The smaller the Maggie the better. (But Magnepan doesn't make money that way.)

Maggies tend to sound better if you bring them out into the room focused toward YOU. All Maggies are room sensitive. Don't think the larger Maggie will be better in a smaller room. It won't happen. Know what YOUR limitations are!

I'm hesitant about writing a review here for lots of reasons but here goes. If you are contemplating buying an HT/MUSIC system you would be wise to compare speakers from Axiom (the Axiom 80tis)(or any derevitives) versus the Magnepan (MMGs)(or any derivatives). Both are available on the internet in (comparatively) inexpensive packages with 30 to 60 days return priveleges). With these two magnificent speakers systems you will HEAR the difference between dynamic and planar presentations of sound in order to make up YOUR mind as to YOUR preference. These two speakers systems (to my ears) represent the best value commercially of what are "THE BEST BUYS" in speaker audio. If they don't sound good on your system then YOUR electronics and YOUR room are at fault. The bottom line here is you don't have to spend a bundle of money to get EMOTIONALLY SATISFYING sound. No matter what all the other Audioholic critics say. But there is one caveat with the MMGs and all Magnepan speakers (get rid of the stock stands!) MMGs sound SO much better with other stands than with the stock ones.(Sometimes I feel as if Magnepan does not want you to know just how good the MMGs are inorder to sell you the more expensive ones. Try the Mye or Sound Anchor stands.) Either of these speaker systems are phenomenal and sure to satisfy all those except the unsatisfiable.

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This review is my gift after over 50 years of experimentation.

Big soundstage, excellent instrument resolution, natural sound reproduction.

I haven't found any yet.

Hi all, I have loved Magneplanars since I was a teenager, and now that I am a 40-year-old adult with good job, an CD habit and a set of blown RTRs, I figured it was time to upgrade to a set of Magneplanars. I looked at the more expensive Maggies at a local dealership in Woodland Hills but ultimately decided to "try out" the MMGs, since I could trade them in for credit for more expensive models later if I so desired, and since I do have a relatively small listening room. I listen almost exclusively to electronica, so I was curious to hear how the MMGs would handle oddly shaped synthetic sound waves and detailed instrument positioning and stereo effects. I feel I got more than my money's worth out of the MMGs with my listening tastes. I have a listening room in my two-bedroom apt. in lovely Thousand Oaks that's about 10' x 12', so the MMGs were a good choice. Their soundstage fills the room completely--no weird positioning needed--no touchy sweet spot. Conjure One female vocalists sound breathy and sensual. Electronic soundwaves come across clean. Delerium aural textures are easily distinguished from one another. The MMGs deliver Kraftwerk baroque layers with purity. Uberzone's quasi-instruments are positioned as if space was an absolute. I have a trusty Yamaha R-V98 that's about 10 years old that sounds great with the MMGs. I have yet to try it with the DSP effects. I don't know if I will. I put the satellite speakers up for sale--I love the MMGs' clarity and purity so much I think the DSP effects of the Yamaha are irrelevant now to my listening pleasure.

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Martin Logan (yuch)

Clear, transparent, acoustic and vocals sound amazingly lifelike

Limited volume, limited bass and treble extension

A bargain introduction to the Maggie sound, more than enough to have you hooked for a lifetime! You'll never go back to boxes. Compared to similarly priced boxy speakers they're clear, transparent, lifelike and totally addicting. Only caveat is I made the mistake of thinking the 1.6s are more or less the same thing so should sounds very similar. No, the 1.6s sound even better - all the MMG strengths are there but much more! If you can, go the extra mile and get the 1.6s.

Great fidelity for female vocals (Diana Krall) and the clasic combo. All wood instruments sound remarkable. Gives new life to solid-state amps and digital music by adding texture.

Difficult placement since they need a lot of space to breath. Narrow sweet spot. Light on the bass frequencies. Power hungry. Forget about using 6 watt SET amps, you'll need a 60 watt push-pull or 80 watt solid state and boast the bass.

If you're a high school or college student and like to PARTY...then these are NOT for you. But...if you like to do some critical listening at moderate levels, then you must add these speakers to your collection. There are some things these speakers simply can't do...but it can do other things exceptionally well...well enough to astonish you when listening to old CDs that had previously grown tiresome. These MMGs are worth the experience.