Will Creek 5350 SE drive Magnepan 1.6QR?

You are not going to get 'bass' out of a Maggie. It takes sub woofers (hybrid) to get to the lower frequencies. Even then, frequency integration is a challenge with those designs. The 1.6 only goes to what 40hz? No amount of power is going to change the frequency response of any speaker.

Imagining otherwise is just nonsense.

If you want the advantages of dipole in the upper bass, mid, and treble freqency, i.e., pristine accuracy, yet without the frequency integration problem associated with adding dynamic drivers for the lower bass, and the ELS/planer inherent setup difficulties, and their need for a vice to keep your head in a very narrow sweet spot, consider the open baffle designs: www.audioartistry.com, or www.linkwitzlab.com for a couple sources.

The AA 'Dvorak', for instance, only needs 100w for the main panels (2-10" mid, and tweeter), and 50w for the sub woofer pairs (2-12" also open baffle, in push-pull configuration).

All with an active crossover with equalizer capability for the woofers. Achieving seamless integration throughout, a wide and deep listening position, and ease of setup. With the active EQ/XO making them probalby the best speaker design extant for accuracy and 'true to the original' playback throughout their range capability.

Also room treatment devices are probably not called for, since the dipole drivers radiate off axis only about 30 degrees, as opposed to the 360 degrees of the enclosed cabinet designs. They tend not to excite those pesky low frequency room modes, which therefore do not need to be tamed with bulky, very expensive, and relatively ineffive devices.

The Dvorak in my 12+'x24' space are astonishingly accurate and 'live' like down to the lowest frequency the space is capable of: 24hz (565 divided by longest dimension, 24).

I wish I was smoking what you were, however, I live in the real world(yes that's a joke so don't get bent out of shape). You sure can get great bass out of maggies, I have measured response to the high twenties @ +/-1dB. My friend has measured to 24hZ @ +/-0dB, the speakers are crippled by there inferior crossovers. Active crossovers will ruin the magic in the mids/highs if you strip the signal before it gets to the speaker- you lose musicality. Though I suspect you won't believe this because you can't measure it.

Imaging otherwise is nonesense

Says enough about your inexperience with the matter- Until you start sharing your magnepan experiences I am going to ignore you pathetic attempt to justify your bogus folk lore because quite frankly that's all it is. Magnepan's are very different creatures then ESL's or dynamic type speakers- I wouldn't believe it myself if I had not tried it myself.

I have noticed a few posts from you in the last few days(you seem to be new here) and you have dropped the dipole speaker issue, open baffle and www.linkwitz...... et al links several times already. Can't you listen for yourself and see what sounds best? You seem to feel there is YOUR way or NO way to achieve good sound. Open your mind a little bit, either you are right and 98% of the folks here are wrong or there are MANY ways to reproduce great music. I am not saying your approach does not work for you, but it clearly is not for everyone- don't kid yourself into thinking it is.

Tim, I could not have said it better. You right, on, with this. peace, warren

I had Maggie IIIA's and 3.6R's(3 pair) and had awesome bass
with my Spectron digital amp. Tight & fast!! Never felt the need for a sub! (I did not do HT)

Define 'best'.


Define 'good'.

I guess you do not get it. The music that was recorded on the source cannot be changed, or made good, or bad.

You can aspire to a system that will reveal the condition and sonic quality of the recorded material, or, lets see, what is the alternative.. oh, yea, or not...and rather distort it further, as the 'connoisseurs of coloration' declare is audiophilia.

Any 'sound', whether characterized as 'good', or 'best', or bad, that is of any component is distortion and will only degrade and/or corrupt the source signal. Regardless of its specific quality.

It is enlightening to listen to the source with reference earphones (like the SHUR ER2 --$100) and compare to what you hear in your room. Then attempt to discern what is the room, and what is the system. Then which of the system is the culpret.

I recommend beginning with the speakers, the primary component. Then their setup. Followed by the amp, and its level of distortion (most are excessive, at least compared to the few relativly distortion free amps). A guide is <0.1% THD (and IMD) over a 5hz-50khz frequency range. The few I have mentioned are more like <0.005%

Once there, what can be done about the room. Its back to the speakers. Maggies are revealing, as are most ELS, and planers. Realistic and integrated bass is the issue with them. A solution is open baffle designs.

I do not see what any of that has to do with anyone's subjective interpretaion or taste in 'sound'. You either hear the source with some accuracy, or you do not.

Then you are left with selecting source material of some degree of sonic excellence, and compentent engineering, that has not been over mixed. Or, is 'true to the original'. Or not.



How about the not so great. Does your system go silent if you put in say mediocre music?

You are right, the truth is not for everyone: audio, or otherwise. In fact there is not even a majority, or the world would not be as it is.

Plese tell us where you come down on the issue. Oh, wait, you (and warrenh) have.

OK.

We are getting to know each other. That is good.