Quandry: Used Magico V2 vs. new S1

Hi. I have the very same question above (used V2 vs new S1). Since it's been a year since the original thread got started, I would be interested in updates. Now, V2 or Mini at used prices are cheaper than S1.

I chose a Mini II over the V2 and did not really like the S1 when I heard it. The S1 is the entry level speaker, has lower quality parts and sounds fairly thin to me. The Mini II was an all out effort for state of the art in small speaker designs. It is a much more refined and capable speaker than the S1, IMO.

Peter is fully right, but don't forget that they have different
prices. I love the looks of the S1. But when you compare them
with the more expensive Magico spakers you are aware of their
limitations. I heard both S1 and S5. They are nice speakers but
they still miss something. Peter calls it 'thin'. I call it lack
in timing. A better timing would have given them more layers in
the low freq.

10-20-14: Peterayer
I chose a Mini II over the V2 and did not really like the S1 when I heard it. The S1 is the entry level speaker, has lower quality parts and sounds fairly thin to me. The Mini II was an all out effort for state of the art in small speaker designs. It is a much more refined and capable speaker than the S1, IMO.

+ 1. Though I wouldn't say the S1 has lower quality parts per say. The Bass-midrange driver is a version of the current Q series drivers. But I agree with your sound description though. I heard the S1's a couple of times and they just don't do it for me. The Mini II is a classic speaker & as you said, was an all-out effort to build the best stand mount. It also looks beautiful and has a very solid integrated stand. If you find they're a bit bass-shy in your room, you could always add one or two Wilson Benesch Torus subs which i'm told is a good combo. Of course not on the same level as the Q-sub 15, but still very good.

Hi Bol, i'd be curious to ask what upstream gear you heard the S5's with? Were they fully played in? & What size room did you hear them in? A fully played in pair, in a medium to medium-large size room matched with Soulution, Vitus or Vac amps and the sound is rich, smooth, coherent, notably well balanced and has many layers in the bass. The S5's are fairly neutral, though are a bit on the warm side and transparent to source. They need a lot of run in time (500+ hrs). Would the Avalon Eidolon Diamond or Vandersteen 7 have better time coherency? Yes perhaps a little bit, but to my ears the S5's are plenty coherent. But if you weren't hearing many layers in the bass, I wouldn't blame the speakers. I would be looking at the upstream gear or run in time as likely culprits.