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Maggies MG2Bs

Retro Stereo

Retro Stereo

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Maggies MGIIAs

Can someone tell me about these speakers?

I have an opportunity to pick a pair up this weekend and all the information I can get on them would be greatly appreciated.



Thanks!



Retro
 
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They are referred to as MG IIBs, they were made in 1981. Their frequency response is 45Hz-16kHz ±4dB, recommended power input was 40 to 80 watts, they were not very efficient (82db/w/m at 500 Hz), their nominal impedance was 6 ohms. Overall size was 22" x72" x 2". They were crossed over at 18db per octave at 2.1KHz. There was a MG IIc model that came out in 1987, but from all accounts, the MG III was a much better speaker.

If you are looking at the IIbs, be aware of wiring delamination and red goo.

http://www.audioasylum.com/scripts/etv.pl?forum=MUG <----- possibly the best place in the world to get information about older Maggies.
 
You'll need a high powered amp to drive them decently. Experiment with the positioning, very narrow soundfield, if you move your head to the left or right about a foot you'll hear the difference.
 
I have a pair of MGIIIa's with the true ribbon tweeter missing in the MGIIb's that sound amazing, though they did suffer from the delamination issue. It took about 4 hours to fix. The voicecoils will delaminate (come loose) from the mylar panel usually at the ends and make a buzzing noise. The voice coil side of the mylar faces the back of the speaker, and by gently rubbibg your fingertips across the fabric at the top and pbottom you will feel if they are delaminated. You can also see through the cloth with a maglight (or any narrow beam flashlight) and see the ends of the voicecoils bending away from the mylar like a bannana. A fairly easy fix, a bit tedious and timeconsuming. Definately worth it if you can pick them up cheap due to the problem.
Regards,
Jim

P.s. I'm still looking for a woofer for my Allison Two's - Help!!!!
 
I vaporized the MGIIB's left speaker tweeter of my pair in 1997. Called Magneplan and they sent me a repair kit consisting of aluminum wire, glue and instructions for about $18. Not a difficult repair job but replacing the sock and the trim strips can be a pain. All in all, I have been very pleased with the MGIIB's that I purchased used in 1992.
 
Thanks for all the info guys!

The pair I'm picking up Saturday are supposed to be absolutely mint cosmetically, and the original owner (a local doctor) says they still sound great, but I'm sure they will need the delamination repair you guys are mentioning in this thread. The good news is, that the Magnapan factory is fairly close to where I live. The owner said they are 6' tall, by 2' wide. As far as power goes, I should have plenty of that with one of my EchoWars rebuilt Pioneer SPEC 2 amps. Oh, I paid $150 for them.




Retro
 
Good luck with the Maggies, Greg. The Spec should sound wonderful with them. In case you haven't seen them yet, here are the specs:

* System Description Two-way full-range dipole radiator
* Midrange/Bass Radiating Area 500 Sq. In.
* Tweeter Radiating Area 68 sq in.
* Frequency Response +/-4dB from 40Hz to 18,000Hz
* Minimum Power Requirement 50 Watts RMS
* Maximum Recommended Power Can be safely used with amplifiers to 200 watts RMS per channel, when fused per instructions
* Sensitivity 1 watt, 500Hz, one meter 84dB
* Impedance Purely resistive, 5 ohms at any frequency
* Crossover System 6dB/Octave Low-pass-400Hz. High-Pass-1600Hz
* Dimensions Wide: 22”
* Tall: 71”
* Deep: 2”
* Weight 45 lbs. each
* Finish black fabric with oak trim

Ken
 
I just got a pair of MG-1's and enjoy them a lot.
The wife likes them because even thought they are 5 feet high by 2 feet wide I can park them against the wall and save tons or room compared to a box speaker.For serious listening I put them out from the wall about 2 1/2 feet.
I had to change the speaker input jacks as they were loose and put 5 way binding posts on.
If you have the room they need space to breathe,about 2 or 3 feet from the back wall if you have the space otherwise they sound poopy.
The mids and highs are lovely and lifelike ,pianos strings,drums,the human voice and stand up bass are in the room with you.
Love to get your impressions as when you get them up and running!
Cheers,
 
You'll love them. I got my first maggies (MGIc) early this year..fell in love with them and moved up to a pair of mint tweaked IIIs. I just sold the Is the other day and they sounded great even next to the IIIs!

As someone said...you can't have too much amp for Maggies though.
 
Retro Stereo said:
Thanks for all the info guys!

The pair I'm picking up Saturday are supposed to be absolutely mint cosmetically, and the original owner (a local doctor) says they still sound great, but I'm sure they will need the delamination repair you guys are mentioning in this thread. The good news is, that the Magnapan factory is fairly close to where I live. The owner said they are 6' tall, by 2' wide. As far as power goes, I should have plenty of that with one of my EchoWars rebuilt Pioneer SPEC 2 amps. Oh, I paid $150 for them.




Retro
Click to expand...

Hell of a deal. They are keepers for sure. My SMG's are the originals from 1985 and they don't buzz at all. I push them hard too.

Even Willie Nelson (Stardust) sounds great on them! Must be the string section he has on this album, sure sounds sweet.

Have a great weekend!
 
You'll like these I'm sure. I also have the IIBs and really *really* like them. You'll need some space and patients to get them set up properly, but when you do get them dialed in its well worth the effort. I have mine about 4' off the back wall and about 8' apart slightly towed in. For me the toe in changes a bit with the style of music I'm listening to. Also what seemed to make a difference to my ears was adding about 30lbs of weights to the base.

Thats a great price too. If you dont like them I'll take em' off your hands. (-:
 
Okay, I picked up these Maggies today and the correct model number for these is: Magnaplanar MGIIA and they are a 6 ohm speaker.

The fellow I bought them from demonstrated them for me using a Yamaha CR-840 Receiver and a Yamaha TT. This is the set up he has been using on these speakers ever since he bought them new in 1981. He played some Buffalo Springfield for me, and to be honest, the bass actually wasn't that bad. He had wood floors and really, no window treatments to do any uneccesary absorbing of the sonics. What I am wondering is if my EchoWars rebuilt Pioneer SPEC 1/SPEC 2 combo will really open these speakers up. The problem is, I have to wait for a couple of college kids to move out next weekend before I get a chance to hook them up. They are in very nice cosmetic condition, almost mint, but the stands could use a fresh coat of paint. Oh, during the demonstration, I did not hear any kind of buzzing or rattling, so I'm hoping the delamination problem hasn't happened yet, but I'm sure I'll find that out when I hook these up to the Pioneers. I'll post my impressions again after I've had the proper amount of power hooked up to these speakers.





Retro
 
Well, I finally got these Maggies set up for a good listen. I had them hooked up to an EchoWars rebuilt Pioneer SPEC 1/SPEC 2 combo and my source was a Talking Dog Transducer modded Sony DVD/CDP. I'm including a picture of everything set up down in my family room. These speakers are everything that everyone here has bragged about over the years. My wife, a huge Sarah McLachlan fan, just loves these speakers. Just like everyone says, the female vocals are where these speakers really shine. I played some Patsy Cline, Nora Jones and Stevie Nicks and they all sounded like they were standing right in front of me. Great speakers and a great price.




Retro
 

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