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Planar Speaker Asylum

Magnepan upgrade kit

66.87.114.254

Have you guys seen this on audiogon? Essentially two silver bars in place of the fuses and I believe two silver jumpers to replace the ones magnepan provides. Fifty bucks. Any opinions?

Follow Ups:

RE: Magnepan upgrade kit - pictureguy 18:22:49 03/10/20 (1)
Instead of bridging fuses, why not open the panel and start eliminating wires and connections?

To the extent that all those extra connections and additional wire hurt sound, you can do nothing but good?
Too much is never enough
- RE: Magnepan upgrade kit - Roger Gustavsson 09:33:59 03/11/20 (0)
  That is good point! That is what I have suggested all the time. It is a pity the crossover can only be accessed after removal of the front. There are a few push-on connectors that can corrode.
RE: Magnepan upgrade kit - Panel Man 21:08:00 03/09/20 (0)
I replaced the fuses on my mg IIa, IIIa,, and 3.6 speakers that I have used since the 70's and gotten much clearer high frequency reproduction.
Never blew a tweeter or midrange.
I do not play loud and never drive my power amp into clipping.

Edits: 03/09/20 03/09/20
A warning from Magnepan - josh358 09:34:36 04/14/17 (17)
Wendell sent us a cautionary note --

"A tweeter (or 3.7i/20.7 midrange) that gets too hot will melt the diaphragm and destroy the entire driver (and can not be rebuilt). We recommend blind testing before taking that kind of risk (remember---it requires more than 50% to beat tossing a coin)."
- RE: A warning from Magnepan - zulugone 19:21:03 04/14/17 (16)
  Speaking from experience an underpowered amp (sold by Maggie dealer) will blow a tweeter from a Soprano hitting a high note at modest volume even with a fast fuse and if the resulting aluminum break arcs it will burn a hold in the Mylar.
  - RE: A warning from Magnepan - josh358 08:06:07 04/15/17 (13)
    Wendell doesn't believe that that was caused by overheating. Here's what he has to say about it:
    
    "When the aluminum foil gets sufficiently hot, it melts a long section, typically in numerous places. It doesn't happen quickly and the correct fast-blow fuse will protect the tweeter or midrange.
    
    "I have done all the destruct tests. I turn up the volume until the fuse blows. I leave the volume setting where the tweeter fuse blew and install a copper slug and put the CD player on repeat. I continue the cycles until the equivalent of 50 to 100 tweeters would have blown. The fuse value is set at a conservative level. I have never damaged a quasi-ribbon tweeter or midrange with the correct fuse."
    
    This makes sense to me in that the aluminum will heat evenly along its length and the mylar will melt long before the aluminum does.
    
    How's this for a theory? There was a flaw or metal fatigue in the aluminum. When the amplifier clipped, sending a high voltage to the tweeter, the weak segment opened up and you got an arc fault, melting the plastic. So the failure mechanism would be similar to that of a ribbon tweeter, except that the mylar would hold the aluminum in place and melt.
    - RE: A warning from Magnepan - zulugone 09:18:58 04/15/17 (12)
      I did not mention overheating and I did mention that the volume was not high. I saw a blue flash. There was a hole in the Mylar. There was no melted aluminum. The fuse was intact.
      
      On a 1.7 the tweeter can have a break so narrow it takes a magnifying glass to see. It can then arc over the break.
      
      There are various repairs for these breaks reported on forums which are less irritating than shipping to MN for repair and I had one last for 3 years.
      
      Given more amp power (but not more volume) the soprano can now pierce ear drums over and over and the tweeter is unaffected.
      
      In the humor department...back in the 80's when I bought my Apogees I took one of these offending soprano CDs in for a demo. The dealer had them hooked up to some Tandberg amp. When the soprano hit a high note blue flames danced over the aluminum without doing any damage...at least at that moment. The salesman was certain it was the CD. So I drove to the only other Apogee dealer this side of the Cascades and played the same CD on the same model speakers with a PS Audio 200c...no problems with that amp for 30 years. That dealer also had a pair of I recall Krells which he demoed at cilia destroying levels with no ill affects on the Apogees....at least at that moment.
      - RE: A warning from Magnepan - BDP24 15:12:33 04/15/17 (0)
        
        In Reply to: RE: A warning from Magnepan posted by zulugone on April 15, 2017 at 09:18:58
        
        I happen to have a PS Audio 200C. I'll be trying it with the M/T panels of the T-IV's in the near future, with another oldie---the Electron Kinetics Eagle 2b, on the bass panels, bi-amped.
      - RE: A warning from Magnepan - josh358 10:24:03 04/15/17 (10)
        
        In Reply to: RE: A warning from Magnepan posted by zulugone on April 15, 2017 at 09:18:58
        
        Blue flames? That's truly bizarre!
        
        use a sufficiently powerful amp with high current. - Satie 12:56:09 04/15/17 (9)
        
        In Reply to: RE: A warning from Magnepan posted by josh358 on April 15, 2017 at 10:24:03
        
        I always try to point out that bypassing the fuses requires that you can trust your amp not to clip at the levels you play. Biamping does this well, reducing the chances that you get high current demand from the bass playback that brings the amp to clipping.
        
        my mid/treble tube amp simply can't put out enough power to kill the tweeters when it is clipping..Particularly as they are crossed over so high into the top octave. So I trust it. The DR-9 that did tweeter duties before is a high current design and is rated to 2 ohms even when bridged. So I trusted that amp. The little Nuforce switching amps ran hot on the mids and on the tweeters but I trusted them not to make any clipping noise in my use. The Bryston 4B NRB ran hot on the tweeter, and sometimes had the leds glow orange in warning. Didn't trust it. It was sold off quickly. The Fosgate amps in SE mode did fine but ran hot. They were supposed to get cooling fans for a 2 ohm load. In differential mode they simply went into overheating and blew their transistors. So I didn't do that again. Now that amp only gets used with a resistor in series to bring up the load to 4 ohms.
        
        RE: A warning from Magnepan - josh358 14:11:30 04/15/17 (8)
        
        In Reply to: RE: use a sufficiently powerful amp with high current. posted by Satie on April 15, 2017 at 12:56:09
        
        LOL, and ouch re blowing your transistors.
        
        Paradoxically, I think I'd worry less about blowing the ribbon tweeters than the quasi ribbons, since they can easily be replaced. But I think that even with an amp that's clipping, the tweeters are unlikely to blow if you use the right fuse. My Hafler used to hard clip sometimes into the 1-D's, and I used to blow fuses periodically without harm (to the speakers, anyway, not sure about my neighbors or ears).
        
        Still not sure what I'll use to drive the tweeters -- I'm assuming now A-21 on the bass, Benchmark on the mids . . .
        
        RE: A warning from Magnepan - Satie 15:02:22 04/15/17 (7)
        
        In Reply to: RE: A warning from Magnepan posted by josh358 on April 15, 2017 at 14:11:30
        
        Yeah that Fosgate was a real toaster. I have another and a friend with a RM30 ribbon box speaker used one for a while for the upper portion for its' Chocolaty midrange: smooth rich and dark, as he described it. Burned his too. I still recommend the amps from this series, but no longer for low efficiency speakers and low impedances. The 4200 is amazing so long as it does not have to do deep bass.
        
        Should be similar to the haffler amp design IIRC. Lovely amps. Particularly when converted into NYALs with a SE tube front end. Also a long standing recommendation for amps, particularly the XL600 and the 9000 series. I can easily see the amps clip into a T1D.
        
        RE: A warning from Magnepan - josh358 18:23:30 04/15/17 (6)
        
        In Reply to: RE: A warning from Magnepan posted by Satie on April 15, 2017 at 15:02:22
        
        I thought about modding my Hafler for a bit, but it looks like I'll be Ebaying it at some point. Though maybe I should reconsider -- it might be a good match for the tweeters. It's been packed up in the basement since like forever.
        
        RE: A warning from Magnepan - Satie 21:00:51 04/15/17 (5)
        
        In Reply to: RE: A warning from Magnepan posted by josh358 on April 15, 2017 at 18:23:30
        
        If you do use it for the tweeters it will benefit from some updated PS caps, diodes and direct contact to the output wire since the OEM binding posts are not all they should be. Lots of mod projects for the Haffler progeny online.
        
        RE: A warning from Magnepan - josh358 05:23:04 04/16/17 (4)
        
        In Reply to: RE: A warning from Magnepan posted by Satie on April 15, 2017 at 21:00:51
        
        It would be fun to rebuild it, but God knows when I'll have the time! Latest is it seems the contractor didn't prime the sheetrock on my listening room ceiling before he skim coated it, and as a consequence, when I pulled off what looked like some peeling paint from the ceiling, the plaster started coming off in big chunks. So I primed and started patching, and for the next few days the room will be unusable:
        
        Then I'll have the new amp to try, after which I have to rebuild the speakers, try the Mini DSP, and hang the projection screen, which has been lying on the floor for a month now. So I have to be realistic about what I can hope to accomplish.
        
        RE: A warning from Magnepan - Desafinado 14:41:36 04/16/17 (3)
        
        In Reply to: RE: A warning from Magnepan posted by josh358 on April 16, 2017 at 05:23:04
        
        Most Maggie owners mark the floor once they finalize the best speaker positions. It looks like you are planning to mount them on the walls and/or ceiling. Or perhaps the tape marks off multiple crime scenes!
        
        Seriously though you have a room filled with old world detail and character!
        
        RE: A warning from Magnepan - josh358 15:54:56 04/16/17 (2)
        
        In Reply to: RE: A warning from Magnepan posted by Desafinado on April 16, 2017 at 14:41:36
        
        Shhh, you'll give away my trade secrets!
        
        Seriously, this room was built in 1695 and someday I must complain to the guy who built it because the ceiling is too low for Acoustats. The beam above the speakers is part of the original frame and was hewn from a gigantic chestnut log -- wonder what they'd think about MDF?
        
        RE: A warning from Magnepan - Norman M 09:54:33 04/17/17 (1)
        
        In Reply to: RE: A warning from Magnepan posted by josh358 on April 16, 2017 at 15:54:56
        
        "Room built in 1695" and some other posts in this thread:
        
        RE: A warning from Magnepan - josh358 15:31:53 04/17/17 (0)
        
        In Reply to: RE: A warning from Magnepan posted by Norman M on April 17, 2017 at 09:54:33
        
        Hey, the ghosts say they *like* the music, though a distinct minority argue that I'm guilt of witchcraft and should be burned at the stake.
  - RE: A warning from Magnepan - Davey 06:59:07 04/15/17 (1)
    Yep. I don't think many users appreciate what a dynamic condition the fuse is operating in. Different types of amplifiers (usually under-powered ones) have the potential to create some hazardous conditions for both ribbon and fuse. And there's no guarantee which one will protect the other. :)
    
    Even assuming they don't open, they have some non-linearities that can affect the sonic results.
    
    Fuses are not suitable for this application (in my opinion.) I think for Magnepan and users, they are considered a "safety" device that has an understandable operation so they continue to be used.
    
    If you have Magnepan speakers with QR tweeters, I highly suggest you bypass the fuse/fuseholder. If real ribbon speakers, I suggest replacing with something more advanced like a polyswitch.
    
    Dave.
    - RE: A warning from Magnepan - josh358 08:10:44 04/15/17 (0)
      (sigh)
      
      Something else on my list -- replace the fuses with polyswitches.
      
      Right now, the plaster on my ceiling decided to detach so I had to dismantle everything to patch and paint. It will be several days before I even have sound again . . .
I took a silver wire and clipped in in place with the fuse. twenty cents - 3+4=5 11:36:13 04/13/17 (4)
I wanted to see if it made any difference, so I stuck the wire in place using the fuse to hold it in.
Still there. really did not notice any difference.
I have aftermarket fuses anyway..
- RE: Ummm ... not surprising! ... - andyr 18:23:18 04/13/17 (3)
  The signal is still going through the crappy fuse holder.
  
  You should've used the wire behind the fuse, to bypass the connector.
  
  Andy
  - RE: Ummm ... not surprising! ... - timm 19:32:36 04/13/17 (2)
    So do we feel the issue is the crappy fuse holder... or the fuse itself?
    - RE: There's little oint in putting a super fuse into the stock fuse-holder ...! ... - andyr 19:36:40 04/13/17 (1)
      I suggest you would get better sound from putting the stock fuse into a good fuse-holder ... then even better sound from a better fuse in that good fuse-holder. Or - even better still - remove the fuse & fuse-holder, as I've done! :-))
      
      Andy
      - RE: There's little oint in putting a super fuse into the stock fuse-holder ...! ... - jrdoe 17:15:21 03/08/20 (0)
        
        In Reply to: RE: There's little oint in putting a super fuse into the stock fuse-holder ...! ... posted by 297 on April 13, 2017 at 19:36:40
        
        Blew a tweeter fuse today. Sure was glad I never bypassed them!
RE: Magnepan upgrade kit - zulugone 10:04:41 04/13/17 (0)
....and after you connect the plain old copper wires behind the magic curtain you will have saved enough money for a $46 tweeter repair kit.
LOL (nt) - josh358 09:02:42 04/13/17 (0)
Bypassing fuses can yield a subtle increase in clarity (they're intrinsically nonlinear at high levels), but as others point out you can bypass with wire. Same with the jumpers if you aren't using them.
Yes. - grantv 06:53:17 04/13/17 (2)
Yes, I have an opinion; you're better off bypassing the connections altogether if you want to bypass the fuses. I did a complete bypass on mine by simply passing the wires from inside and outside into the crimping area, then tightening down = wire-to-wire connection.

If your wiring is too thick to insert both inner and outer wires, simply pass the inner wires to outside. Then use crimps, maurettes or similar to connect.

Edits: 04/13/17
- RE: Yes. - Satie 11:34:48 04/13/17 (1)
  Definitely the way to go. Best thing ever. surprising clarity.
  - Absolutely. - grantv 12:24:30 04/13/17 (0)
    Never mind no fuses (if/once somebody is comfy doing so), no connectors or fuse holders either. Just bare wire to bare wire.
RE: Magnepan upgrade kit - ahendler 19:02:51 04/12/17 (10)
In some cases sound might improve but you do lose protection for your speaker. Better to replace the fuses with ceramic fuses
Alan
- RE: Magnepan upgrade kit - jubal62 02:34:56 04/13/17 (9)
  Before installing the silver bars you must first wave over them the feather of a barn owl three times then sprinkle them with holy water. If you do not notice an increase in sound quality then repeat three more times. If this does not work then reinstall the stock fuse.
  - RE: Magnepan upgrade kit - timm 12:59:50 04/13/17 (1)
    Wow... You know the owl feather ... is an added 25 dollars..... I just didn't think it was worth it!! Bu now that you bring it up.... :) ....
    
    In any case ... yes - I get the no fuse = no fuse.... and it could be there for a reason... yet there seem to be a lot of cases of people burning up their tweeters with quite healthy fuses....
    
    Was just wondering IF someone did want to bypass fuses would something like little silver thinga-ma-bobs that are shaped just like fuses create a similar effect to having no fuse at all and avoiding the surgery on the wires.... I am leaping to the conclusion that they are in fact solid silver little bars shaped like a fuse to fit in the fuse holder.
    - RE: Magnepan upgrade kit - Satie 09:05:27 04/14/17 (0)
      No. The fuse holder is a major downside. It robs you of quite a bit of performance regardless of what you stick in it. Best thing is to bypass it if you trust your amp not to blow the tweeters with high freq clipping noise.
  - the correct incantations require a PhD in thaumaturgy or they do not work. nt - 3+4=5 11:38:08 04/13/17 (0)
    .
  - Well, that certainly didn't work - M3 lover 11:00:31 04/13/17 (0)
    with the feather from a screech owl! ;^)
    
    "The piano ain't got no wrong notes." Thelonious Monk
  - LOL (nt) - josh358 08:53:32 04/13/17 (4)
    .
    - RE: LOL (nt) - jubal62 06:31:51 04/14/17 (3)
      Do you know what sounds worse than Maggie tweeter with a fuse?
      A blown Maggie tweeter with a bypassed fuse.
      - RE: LOL (nt) - josh358 09:29:12 04/14/17 (2)
        
        In Reply to: RE: LOL (nt) posted by jubal62 on April 14, 2017 at 06:31:51
        
        Yeah, bypassing the fuses is for people braver than me. Of course, the way I look at it is that the purpose of the tweeter is to protect the fuse. :-)
        
        RE: LOL (nt) - jubal62 07:42:58 04/15/17 (1)
        
        In Reply to: RE: LOL (nt) posted by josh358 on April 14, 2017 at 09:29:12
        
        I worked with a guy years ago who actually sent all his speaker wire and interconnects to somewhere in California and had then frozen. Some people will buy into anything searching for that elusive sound that simply is not there.
        
        RE: A warning from Magnepan - josh358 08:13:51 04/15/17 (0)
        
        In Reply to: RE: LOL (nt) posted by jubal62 on April 15, 2017 at 07:42:58
        
        LOL^2. What makes it doubly silly is that there are so many thing you can do that really do make a difference!

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