Old vs New Magnepan 1.7 vs Tympani IV

Thank you and interesting to learn more about the Magnestat website and modifications....

However, not so sure I like the looks of the larger frames, and I already have Myesound stands.

Grant was also very helpful / responsive and to my ears they made a significant improvement and reduce the worry of anyone knocking them over...

Frogman, the internal and wire mods sound well worth while, and would love to hear your friend's system.

If anywhere near NYC (or any city I might reach for business) please do tell him I will treat to dinner in exchange for a demo!

I think that could be arranged. He is, in fact, in NYC and I suspect would enjoy this. Send me a private message with your email and I will pass it on to him (Bill G.)

Cwlondon,

I don't think there's any one way to upgrade the crossovers. The best results, as with any speaker, will be with bi- or tri-amping. Many advantages -- you can use the best components, the amplifier is always connected directly to the load and seeing a beautifully non-reactive impedance, you can select amps that are best for each frequency range. Of course, it's also the most elaborate approach.

In an unmodified IVa, I believe it would probably mean an active crossover rather than a PLLXO, since we're talking high order crossover slopes. Another possibility would be to use a digital crossover. That's what I'll be doing with my own IVa's, but all my sources are digital -- I know that some people want to stay in the analog domain. The best and most practical way to go digital is probably DEQX, but the crossover can also be PC-based.

Of course, the simplest approach is to upgrade the quality of the high-level components. Upgrading the caps seems to have a bigger payoff than upgrading the chokes, that at least is what some people say.