Finally, a system that pretty much disappears and leaves just the musical event. It delivers all of the subtlety, power and glory, and emotional impact of the musical experience. If I've erred in any respect, it's always been in favor of musicality over theatricality or gee-whiz effects. Is it done yet? Not exactly.
Note:
1. I run the Accuphase DP-75 directly into the Pass X350 via the Cardas Golden Ref XLR cables for CD playback. The ARC LS22r comes into play only for phono and tuner. It's a bit of extra work, but the results are worth it.
2. The Linn Sondek LP12 is sitting on a 90 pound slab of terrazzo marble which is in turn supported by three Nordost cone and saucer isolation devices.
3. With respect to system evolution, adding a pair of Pass X600 amps would be a nice improvement. I will probably keep the X350 for use in a biamped configuration. An ARC REF 1 or REF 2 preamp with the right tubes would make the the current preamp bypass unnecessary. At some point, it would be nice to upgrade to a pair of MR20.1s
I'm researching a makover for the 20Rs. The focus of my research addresses two areas:
A. Magnepan's middle-of-the-road crossover parts selections and
B. An acoustically and aesthetically non-intrusive means of stiffening the overall speaker frame and incorporating some decent stands.
I think that there's a lot of potential yet to be realized in the stock MG20R design.
Should these improvements prove successful and significant I'll offer them as a kit or as a service to MG20R owners. The same methodology can be applied to the 3.5/3.6 as well. I should have this in testing by the end of March. The crossover parts are on the way and I'm finalizing the CAD drawings for the stand/frame stiffener. Stay tuned...
That pass amp is one tall amplifier! I found Magnepan speakers to be difficult to drive - seemed to need to adjust the volume somewhere in the middle of every track. Do you find the PL X-350 up to the task of driving the speakers?
