Magnepan MG-12s coupled with A/V receiver
default -- Tue, 11/17/2009 - 20:46
I recently purchased a pair of Magnepan MG-12s, and took them home and plugged them into my also newly acquired Pioneer 1019 A/V receiver. The sound is not what I heard out of the Maggies at the dealer. I am wondering if I have the wrong receiver and would like some advice on a replacement. The Pio does not have a pre-amp output (except for a sub), so I cannot utilize an amp with it. I am new at pursuing good home audio, and would appreciate any advice. I am mostly interested in good music quality, but it will also need to run my TV sound. Thanks, Mark
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Your best option is to get a better reciever altogether. The Magnepan MG12s are fairly inefficient loudspeakers, all that means is that they benefit from higher quality amplification. I'm interested if the dealer inquired what these loudspeakers would be connected to in your home.
I tried a setup similar to this, using a Pioneer Elite AVR. I was just getting into high end at the time. Even though that integrated supported 4 ohm loads, I had to really crank up the volume and push the amp hard. I was using Magnepan MMG. I would agree with Zach, you probably need more power. If budget is an issue, you could look at brands like Emotiva just to go to separates then upgrade as time and finances permit. In my own system I started with a high quality CDP and preamp, but bought an Emotiva XPA-2. Then, earlier this year, I bought a high-end amp.
My local dealer drives his Magnepans with high end amplification, and they do sound pretty good: Ayre V-5xe/MX-R, VTL, etc.