Magnepan 3.6 or 3.7 - The smart choice?


Hypothetical: If offered in excellent-mint shape used MG 3.6's for $2000 or MG 3.7's for the price of $4000 - yes $4000 not $5500-5900 - what would you do, which is the smart choice? (if the 3.7's were over $5k i wouldn't ask this.)
kingmacaw
You realize of course, that unless you buy the 3.7's you will forever be guilt ridden, have sleepless nites and many bouts of high anxiety. Just go for the 3.7's and put yourself out of your misery. As all audio people know, compromise need works.
reading through the above responses, i'm prepared to change my earlier vote and make it unanimous--go with the 3.7s. if you're as obsessive as the rest of us, it's worth the extra bucks to get the new-and-improved model (although, by the same logic, you should step up to the $14k 20.7s, which are even better). seriously, years ago i cheaped out and bought a car without the leather seats and upgraded stereo and spent the next five years wallowing in regret and self-loathing.
Kingmacaw, yes, I believe that that both the 1.6 and 1.7 are not as well balanced overall as the 3's and 20's; to me the top-end has a little too much energy on the 1.6's and 1.7's. They are still great transducers but I think they require a little more effort to get just right. I ultimately went with the 3.6's over the 1.6's; to me the 3's are just way more speaker in every way.

I recently went to Magnepan and auditioned the new 20.7's; very, very, impressed so I took the plunge and ordred a set! The 20.7's sounded even more balanced and cohesive than my 3.6's (I could never hear any of the individual drivers in the 20.7's, they sounded like one large panel), I heard more detail, more powerful and snappier base, and an even larger soundfield...now all I have to do is wait SIX months until Nov to get them.
I've heard the 3.7's in a few different systems and thought they were pretty fair. Never liked the 3.6's. No matter what was driving them they always sounded like metal on metal.
Stickman, Will you please stop that? You are making me crazy. Now everytime I listen to my 3.7's I'll be lusting after her sister.
I guess I should have waited, and I would have if Magnepan had been transparent on their plans to release the 20.7's.