From Sonus faber to Magico

[Gene]

Here's a pic of my system. Its an unusual asymetrical set up because of the particulars of the room (my living room) but it does work very well. The house was built in 1920.
Has hardwood floors,plaster walls and measures 25x15x8. What you can't see in this pic is the two large alcoves at the front of the room,with large openings to a sunroom and dinning room. Just to the right of the pic next to the speaker are steps to a landing and stairs to a second floor. My listening position which is about 10ft away, is right behind the coffee table on leather couch which runs along a wall which has several GIK panels and older echobusters to get those early reflections. Its certainly not ideal by any audiophile standard but manages to sound quite good.
Honestly, I see all the beautiful dedicated rooms with gorgeous gear and perfect set-ups that some of you have and my heart drops. I wish i could have something like that.


Anyway, on to my question to you. If I went with the S7's, would it make sense for me to go with the orange color which seems (at least from this pic) to be very close to the Strads original violin red?

Here's a angle shot showing more of the layout of the room.

 

[brodricj]

..If I went with the S7's, would it make sense for me to go with the orange color which seems (at least from this pic) to be very close to the Strads original violin red?

It makes sense for you to choose the color you prefer and not what anybody else here might think.

 

[Gene]

Yes ,of course it would. But i'm interested in what other's might have to say,too

 

[brodricj]

I say, think about M2.

 

[GSOphile]

Sealed box Magicos should be more placement friendly than comparable ported designs. Smaller than S7 might also help in this regard.

 

[Paul]

Wow. What a beautiful room. For the looks alone I think the Canterbury GR would fits so well in that room [emoji1]

 

[UltraFast69]

Wow. What a beautiful room. For the looks alone I think the Canterbury GR would fits so well in that room [emoji1]

I think that’s a Tannoy advert


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

 

[Paul]

I think that’s a Tannoy advert


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

It is As soon I saw Gene's room I thought about that advertisement. I don't know, i think they would fit so well at his room

Anyway in terms of S7 I think the orange or candy red would fits well in your room Gene.

 

[Gene]

Thanks for the compliment, Paul...
I dont know much about Tannoy's accept they are huge on the concentric driver. I've never heard them but I'm sure they make beautiful music.
Love the cabinetry which would fit right in with all the other eclectic pieces.

 

[kzhtoo]

How is Strads bass performance in your room, Gene? If Strads is enough, I think S5 mk2 should be plenty of speaker for your room.

 

[Gene]

Because the room is so open I've never had any problems with standing waves. No way for the room to ever get pressurized enough to be overwhelming.
Now the corner in between the speakers can be a bit boomy but I have a Synergistic Research black box sitting on the floor to take care of that.
The Strads,being a ported design don't have the tightest bass anyway, being a bit undefined. Certainly not as tight as the Magico, i assume.
If anything the bass can be a bit light at times for my tastes. I'd like to get a bit more slam and definition.
If I had to really nit-pic the Strads I'd say that,while they certainly sound beautiful even euphoric, they can sound homogenized and too polite at times. Add to that a Accuphase class A amp and maybe the smoothness gets a bit too much for certain types of music. There was a time when that may have worked for me, but I'm not so sure that it really satisfies me anymore.
I want more detail and transparency with just enough warmth to keep me happy.

 

[Penthouse-D]

You know what they say about opinions..... Lots of S5MKII recommendations here... Orange isn't very neutral color. It may be challenging should you ever decide to sell them....

 

[Gene]

I see what you mean about recommendations. Quite a few. Gives me hope that I'm making a good decision by possibly going Magico.
As far as the color? Well..the Strads have an orangish tint to there finish. I dont think there would be an argument that they might be a difficult to re-sell because of that.
Besides who's to say that I would ever want to sell the S7's. They just might be my holy grail of loudspeakers!

 

[KeithR]

Well I checked with Magico and while its not ideal, they said that within reasonable levels there would be no problems.
The A-75 output doubles at 4 ohms so thats well over 120w. (Accuphase says its actually much more than the conservative ratings listed)

Its not just output. The A75 is ideal with SF and its first order xovers...but Magico uses higher order versions thereby creating bigger phase angles. As such, a good Class AB amp is more ideal...one that preferably doubles all the way down.

I just heard a 200 lb(!), $40k 50W Class A Vitus amp on Rockports in a similar size room and it was lifeless until flipped to Class AB. Magico is similarly tough to drive. So saying it might have "no issues" is really meaningless - don't you want SOTA sound?

Honestly, I'm not sure why you are considering $65k speakers and want to compromise on the amp. Perhaps there is a bigger Accuphase that would work better.

 

[Gene]

I suppose the Gauder Akustik Berlina RC 9 with its 12th order crossover configuration and 50db slope would also be "compromised" by Accuphase Class A.
On the contrary. To quote the Absolute Sound...

" The Class A Accuphase A-70 proved to be as powerful sounding as the Class AB amplifiers within its power envelope. This 60Wpc (nominal) stereo amplifier has a minimum of 3dB headroom, meaning it will produce 120Wpc into an 8-ohm load when called for. Additionally, the amplifier doubles its output as the load is halved. The Berlina RC 9s have 4-ohm (nominal) impedance (with an uncalibrated measurement I took of around just below 3 ohms at the lowest point). One additional feature of the A-70 is the ability to accurately track real-time power output on its display. With this amplifier in the system, I witnessed a local reviewer, who gave a listen during the manufacturer’s visit, push the amplifier to well over 400+ watt peaks during some musical passages. Dr. Gauder mentioned the speakers can take that kind of peak power (up to 580 watts to be exact) without damaging the drivers. Needless to say, the amplifier packs a lot more power than expected. The sound produced with this amp in the system was bolder, bigger, and slightly fuller. There was less high-frequency emphasis and a warmer midrange. The upper midrange remained intact but the overall presentation was slightly burnished. Overall, the sound was favorable, powerful, and very enjoyable."
http://www.theabsolutesound.com/arti...a-rc-9/?page=3

Thanks for your advise but I think I'll just stick with what was told to me by Magico.
... and keep my "compromised" A-75 to drive them with "no problem".

 

[Gene]

I'm really liking the red if the pic is correct and its not too bright. I see so many variations in color.
Anyone have a "true" pic available? Perhaps taken in natural light.

 

[dznutz]

If you intend to stay with accuphase I say go with the bronze finish, more modern than anything orange and will compliment the accuphase gold nicely.

 

[Gene]

I definitely see what you mean. Very classy, nice understated luster and as you said, a good match with the champagne of the Accuphase.

 

[Paul]

I'm really liking the red if the pic is correct and its not too bright. I see so many variations in color.
Anyone have a "true" pic available? Perhaps taken in natural light.

So far the Candy Red is my fav as I mentioned.

* Pictures are courtesy of Audio By Mark Jones.

 

[Kuoppis]

I'm really liking the red if the pic is correct and its not too bright. I see so many variations in color.
Anyone have a "true" pic available? Perhaps taken in natural light.

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk