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1.7s in for repair @ 2.5 years--typical?

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Hello all, I've been lurking here (off and on) for abouy 6 years. Based largely on what I've read here, I invested in MMGs and later 1.7s, driven by Emotiva amps (I have a surround system, with MMG-Ws and center driven by an XPA-3 and the 1.7s by an XPA-2, both 1st generation).

Four or five weeks ago we detected a rattle/vibration sort of sound in one and shipped it off to Minnesota for a warranty-covered repair. I had my MMGs for over 3 years with zero problems, so this bugs me. Shipping one way alone ran me almost $200, so I'm wondering if I'd been better off with a more conventional speaker. I have a pair of B&W speakers that are over 25 years old which I've had them for about 18 or 19 years with no problems. The still run beautifully.

Is my Maggie experience typical? I don't want be shipping these off every 2 or 3 years. I haven't particularly pushed them, and in fact have played them minimally this summer (too much noise in the house).

I'm disappointed and could use some honest feedback.

Follow Ups:

RE: 1.7s in for repair @ 2.5 years--typical? - tberd 12:59:38 10/11/16 (0)
Sometimes new doesn't mean better.

tberd
RE: 1.7s in for repair @ 2.5 years--typical? - russ69 18:00:59 10/04/16 (1)
Except for the tweeter on 3s and 20s, Magnepans are about as robust as a loudspeaker gets. They are very reliable even with kilowatt amps.
- RE: 1.7s in for repair @ 2.5 years--typical? - Roger Gustavsson 02:39:12 10/05/16 (0)
  My old Tympani IIIA from 1975 are partly working. The wiring on the basses look awful but they are still playing. I am not using them regulary since many years.
glues have improved but maybe not so for the mylar - Green Lantern 16:55:10 10/04/16 (2)
without visually inspecting the area it's hard to tell what may have caused the buzzing.
Is it possible an over tensioned wire/glue 'pulled' a rip in the mylar? Without a Maggie autopsy who knows?!

Edits: 10/04/16
- RE: glues have improved but maybe not so for the mylar - Dibblestein 13:07:37 10/11/16 (0)
  If Magnepan tells me what needed to be repaired I'll post a reply.
- RE: it may not be a wire-on-mylar buzzing? ... - andyr 17:33:54 10/10/16 (0)
  On my old MG-IIIas, one of the curved reinforcing bars had come loose from the 'holey metal' at one end - and this made a buzz at certain frequencies.
  
  My solution was to re-glue but also bolt the reinforcing bar to the sheet - and I did it for each end of every reinforcing bar.
  
  If the buzz goes away when you press the end of the reinforcing bar against the metal sheet ... then that's the problem!
  
  Regards,
  
  Andy
Not a typical experience - Satie 20:54:43 10/03/16 (0)
The 1.7 is a very popular speaker second only to the MMG, itself likely to be the most popular audiophile speaker.

There have been a handful of reports of manufacturer defects and Magnepan does well on repairs, shipping costs can be reduced by using Magnepan's shipping co. at their favoredd rate. But it will still cost some.

In sunny coastal regions humidity salt air and sun exposure used to shorten the life of maggies with the old adhesives from 20-30 years to 15-20 years. My T-IVs were 23 years old when I got them and had already gone through a repair, but they came from the San Francisco Bay area and were stored under less friendly conditions for a time. A year. later the midranges gave out, there was a little delamination and a large amount of corrosion, the bass panels lasted another 5 years. It died at age 30.

Reports of early failure are related to overdriving the speakers and associated with multiple cases of blown fuses. Usually this is by an undersized amp driven into clipping. But there was one case where the MG20.7 speakers were just driven too hard - well beyond what they were designed for and had to be modified to stop the problem from repeating. In this one case the speakers were in a large space and driven to extremely loud levels.
RE: 1.7s in for repair @ 2.5 years--typical? - Limniscate 20:41:42 10/03/16 (0)
I just sent back a pair of 1.7i's that I had for a little over a year for a Mylar slip. I don't think it's that common of an issue. I've only seen one other post about it.
RE: 1.7s in for repair @ 2.5 years--typical? - Dibblestein 10:21:38 10/03/16 (0)
Like many audio enthusiasts, from time-to-time I ponder upgrades. My current plan is to upgrade my 2-channel amp. If I were to move away from Magnepan, I probably won't need the same sort of amp (higher power). Your feedback is important to me and I want to express my thanks.

The more feedback on this issue, the better, so please chime in!
RE: 1.7s in for repair @ 2.5 years--typical? - josh358 10:07:41 10/03/16 (0)
No, very rare. They used to have problems with the wires delaminating but they changed the adhesive about 10 years ago after an R&D effort and there's been virtually no delamination since. I've heard only a handful of stories like this over the years here. My MMG's are fine after many years, and my IVA's are going strong after what, 30 years? They have some delam which I have to repair but that's with the old adhesive and 30 years is a long time! So I'd say you were just unlucky. It's generally a pretty bullet-proof design.
RE: 1.7s in for repair @ 2.5 years--typical? - Norman M 09:48:49 10/03/16 (0)
"Is my Maggie experience typical?"
Maggies couldn't possibly be as popular as they are if that was typical!
RE: 1.7s in for repair @ 2.5 years--typical? - Dibblestein 07:37:40 10/03/16 (0)
No, they aren't exposed to direct sunlight. They are about 5 feet from a window covered 100% of the time with curtains. Those windows never have direct sunlight on them as they are underneath a covered patio. The central heating and cooling is never turned off, though it doesn't run continuously. I don't know what else that I have control over that could have caused this problem.
RE: 1.7s in for repair @ 2.5 years--typical? - RealStereo 00:55:24 10/03/16 (0)
My IIIa's are still going, with fuses replaced with copper tubes, since 1987!

Did the back of the speakers get long term exposure to sun light?

Sun light hurts the adhesive holding the wire to the mylar.
RE: 1.7s in for repair @ 2.5 years--typical? - Drumhead 23:37:22 10/02/16 (2)
My mmg's are going on 11 yrs with zero problems and the fuses bypassed.
- RE: 1.7s in for repair @ 2.5 years--typical? - Norman M 17:53:32 10/03/16 (0)
  Stock Tympani IV-As for about 25 years. Many blown fuses, played loud during their early years, yet no problem.
- RE: 1.7s in for repair @ 2.5 years--typical? - Utley1 12:53:38 10/03/16 (0)
  A million things can happen.I have had my 1.7's for five years now and I drive them with EmOtiva XPA 1's. They have survived Emotiva blow outs, power cuts, a freeing apartment after Hurricane Sandy with 6 weeks without heat or electricity, construction below me, and feel very fortunate. Well at least you will get the 's' improvement..... I just passed out of warranty...and hope for the best.Good luck. I have enjoyed few speakers as I have these.

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