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Magico, Aerial, Dali

I have my next speaker upgrade narrowed down to the Magico V2's, Aerial 7t's, and Dali Helicon 400 MK2's. The only problem is I haven't heard any of them in my own system consisting of ARC LS17SE pre, and Bryston 4Bsst2 amp. I can get the Magico's for a decent price but they're still more expensive than the other options and the dealer will not let me demo at home unless I pay him. I thought this was odd and kind of turned me off to this dealer in general. Seems like for that kind of money in this economy the dealer should be willing to let a serious buyer demo at home.
I heard the 7t's on ARC reference and Levinson amps and was very impressed. Hard not to be with those kind of components. The Dali's are less expensive and I heard them on much cheaper gear but they still sounded fabulous. The dealer has arranged a demo later this week. If I went that route I'd have some money left over to buy a phono pre. I currently have the Aerial 6's and like their sound but they're not enough speaker for my room and if I sell now I can get the same amount that I bought them for.
Does anyone have experience with these three speaker's and/or companies? I am looking for detail, transparency, and realism. Any suggestions? Are the Magico's worth the extra money? I know it comes down to subjective taste, but is there a consensus on what the strengths are of each of these speakers?
minibox
jl35
2,244 posts
 
If you like the Aerial 6, the 7b and 8b have a very similar sound and are a lot more speaker for your room. I have owned all three and still have the 7b. I believe the Dali MS4 is way better than the Helicon 400. I owned the MS4, actually replaced Aerial 8's with them, and a close friend had the Helicon 400 and replaced them with the MS4.
audiofreak32's avatar
audiofreak32
253 posts
 
Sonus Faber Cremona will likely sound better than all those three...
minibox OP
12 posts
 
I'd love to hear the Cremona's but I can only find a listing of 7 total dealers in America and Canada. They have a very good reputation but they need to expand in the U.S. and make themselves more available.
minibox OP
12 posts
 
What's odd about the Magico dealer is that he only lives 40 minutes from me and still won't let me demo at home.
brownsfan
1,238 posts
 
Minbox, the cremonas are terrific speakers but if your priorities are detail and transparency they may not be the way to go. They are superbly musical, and I almost pulled the trigger on a pair at a great price.
If you don't mind me asking, what kind of music do you listen to? The dalis are superb on vocals. If I were an opera fan, I'd lean hard in that direction. I thought they beat everything I heard (including the maggies that I bought) on vocals. I thought there was too much congestion on complex orchestral passages with the 400's, hence, my interest in the 800's which ought to handle climaxes better. At some point, I will probably buy the 400s for my bedroom. Loved those speakers. There are just too many wonderful speakers and I would love to own them all.
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