Hello everyone, I’m taking the liberty of creating this new topic because I’ve gone back into the archives as far as six years ago, and I haven’t seen a question that tells me any information.
I listen to Magnepan 20.7 for two years, and I’d like to change my amplifier, which is an old hungarian Etalon Integral (high current). I’m satisfied with the result, it’s an excellent piece of equipment, but I think its power (around 40 watts) is too limited to optimize the panels. In particular, I’d like more bass and sub-bass, and a better dynamic range at high levels.
I’m not used to tube amplifiers at all, I’ve only owned transistor amplifiers.
My budget isn’t unlimited, so I was thinking of buying an integrated amplifier (preamp + all-in-one amps).
Although I’m thinking of one day changing my source (Marantz CD player), its sound is currently rather round, warm and enveloping. However, I prefer transparency, large space and breath, large bandwidth and neutral tonal balance for the repertoire I listen to (organ, orchestra), and I’d like the new amplifier to contribute to these criteria.
Would you have any experiences to share, suggestions or advice?
A budget would be helpful for meaningful suggestions. That said I have a Vitus Integrated that I am happy with, the RI-101 Mk II. Plenty of power providing for great detail while maintaining a sense of warmth and engagement. Definitely not hyped or analytical sounding. A second suggestion, I do not own it but have heard it, the Gryphon Diablo 300, recently discontinued so the used market may be your best option.
40 watts to drive 20.7s is woefully inadequate, in my opinion based on not a whole lot of experience. But 40 seems very very light to me. Maggie’s need a LOT of clean power in order to sing.
I run a Rowland Continuum S2 integrated and I couldn’t be more pleased with the sound. 800W into 4 ohms. Though it is Class D, it doesn’t sound like it. It easily bested others in a head-to-head comparison (I won’t name names). Most others seemed harsh and bright, but Rowland has a sound that is distinctive and pleasant. I also tie in a pair of REL S510 subs, ‘cause… why not go boom?
Rowland might seem like a reach in terms of price, but it is well worth it in the long run.
The Grimm MU2 to front it helps, too. That’s my recent add, and I’m lovin every minute of it.
Naming names as you say should be reconsidered as it adds weight and perspective to your recommendation. It can be done via a PM for comfort’s sake.
BTW, the 20.7 are a fine listen and well worth the best amplification.
I ran panels on Michi X5 and it performed extremely well. The X3 would work well too. Consider used at TMR to boost your buying power. Another was a ML 585. Killer amp as well. Good luck. Maggies are a lot of fun …
Wee, honestly there were too many contenders for me to recall all of them.
Looking to replace a Spectron Musician III, There was Sanders Magtech. That didn’t take long. Merrill Audio monos were strong, but fell to the Rowland. Bel Canto monos… nice try. To name a few.
If I did anything different today, I’d get a pair of Rowland monos (625?) and take advantage of Grimm’s preamp. At this time, I let the Continuum function as the pre.
I run PSAudio Stellar M1200’s with my Magnepan 1.7i’s and they are amazing. Plenty oif power and very sweet sound. The bass I get out of the 1.7i’s is incredible.
I’m powering my Magnepan 3.7i and DWM bass panels with PS Audio M1200s and I am very pleased with the set up. Prior to the M1200s, used M700s and before that an Adcom 555. Each step up sounded better and better.
Another option would be a Sanders Sound Systems Magtech amplifier. These can be found used for ~$3k to $4k and can drive virtually any loudspeaker with ease. I have two of these to drive my Sanders Model 10e hybrid 'stats and they work equally well on the electrostatic panel and electrodynamic woofers.
Good luck in your search.
Just noticed @RobH mentioned the Magtech above. Not sure what he meant by “That didn’t take long.”
Thank you all for your answers!
The situation has evolved since yesterday.
I have the opportunity to buy a second-hand Audioresearch (Minneapolis, USA) reference 610T.
The professional seller told me that all the tubes have been replaced as new, and that the combination with Magnepan 20.7s works ideally.
What do you think?
The problem is that if I buy these two amplifier blocks, I’ll have almost no budget left for a preamplifier.
What’s more, I’m asking myself a few questions, which are naive, but I’m rather newbie when it comes to electronics:
Isn’t a power of 2*600W (under 16 Ohms) useless (far too much) for panels with a sensitivity of 86db?
What’s the budget when I have to change the tubes in 3000 hours?
Should I leave the amplifier on all the time? Do the tubes only wear out when you listen to music, or do they wear out if you leave the amplifier plugged in without listening to music?
I’ve often read in French-language hifi magazines that tube amplifiers have the reputation of giving a soft, fat sound, with little extreme bass. Is this a good choice for listening to church organs (which can go down to 32Hz and even 16Hz) or symphony orchestras?
That’s a lot of KT 120’s or 6550’s May want to google 32 KT 120, gonna get pricey for sure…
As an aside, I know little to nothing about stats or planner speakers, but a few years back I caught the “roadshow” when Maggie was taking the 20.7 around to different dealers
They didn’t bring amps and worked with the dealer to select amps for the evening. My local dealer powered them with Parasound JC-1’s and it sounded really nice, the JC-1’s drove the speakers with ease
If you don’t know anything about tubes, I would probably not start with the 610t amps. I have heard them with apogee Diva speakers, but the system was only using the 610T amps to drive the midrange/tweeter and krell FPB 750 MCX amps to drive the bass panels with an active crossover. That was one of the best systems I’ve ever heard. It’s probably going to cost you at least $3500 to retube it when the time comes. You don’t really want to buy from the cheapest tube sellers for these amplifiers, you need a seller that can test them at higher plate currents.
So. I have 20.7s. . I currently drive them with pass x260.8 monos. Sound is liquid / smooth. Just pretty glorious. For reference - prior I had a sunfire signature @850 watts into 4 ohm. The pass go to 520 @ 4 but it is biased around 20 watts class A. It gets warm but not overly so. I would highly recommend them. What kind of music do you listen to? And how loud?
What is the power on the ARC w a 4 or 8 ohm load? Typically Maggie’s like a strong power supply which doubles down in power as resistance is halved. Just some thoughts there.
I mainly listen to organ / orchestral music, at home levels. I leave in a house, with neighbours, but the walls are very deep and sound protective.
The room is around 6/7 meters.
It meant pretty much what I said. It didn’t take long for me to discern that it wasn’t the amp for me. YMMV
I didn’t like it at all. It did not seem nice, so I moved to the next contender after a reasonable amount of time for it to settle in for me to listen carefully. (Of note is that Sanders himself said that his amp required zero break-in time. Gasp! That probably shortened my process, having heard that.)
I tried to find information on the power capacity of the Magnepan 20.7, but the specification is hard to find.
I found a website that says 100-250W.
With an efficiency of 86db/1m, the red line indicates the maximum power with my current amplifier (40W): around 99db.
And that would give (with an hypothesis of 250W input) a real sound power of maximum 109db.
Am I right?
While I really like tube amps, and will almost always recommend tubes, I second what @invalid mentioned above, in not recommending starting off with a MONSTER tube amp like that one, especially if you have never had a tube amp before.
. I currently drive them with pass x260.8 monos. Sound is liquid / smooth. Just pretty glorious. For reference - prior I had a sunfire signature 