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Exotica

Magico
S3 2023 FROM £57,000

High-end desirables in partnership with& RecordReview

UtterlyspellboundTen years on from the S3, which wassurpassed by the MkII, this three-way has
trickle-down tech from the flagship M9As updates go, the latest
version of Magico’s S3
speaker, isn’t what you’dcall a mild refresh. Just
as the company’s MkII was a major
reworking of the original, so this newarrival has been comprehensivelyredesigned, drawing both on thetechnology of the flagship M9 and themeasurement abilities of Magico’senhanced development tools. It’s
yours for a couple of quid short of£57,000 a pair in the five powdercoat M-Cast finishes Magico offers, or£66,000 in a choice of six high-gloss
M-Coat shades, including the striking
blue colourway pictured here.
Despite the familiar model number,it’s basically an entirely new speaker.
Given that the S3 has long been oneof Magico’s most popular offerings,
the thinking was clearly to keep itthat way as the company hits its
20th anniversary. Significant updates
have been facilitated by the latest
equipment now added to its R&D
arsenal at its ‘campus’ in the San
Francisco Bay area. It’s here that its
products are designed, engineered
and hand-assembled, a tradition
dating back to the company’s firstproduct, the Mini standmount of2004, and including the massive
four-way, six-driver M9, delivered
with an offboard analogue crossover
to take the all-up weight of a pair tojust over a tonne.
Newcomers to the Magico way of
doing things are likely to be surprised
at how the S3 2023 is constructed,
with the beautifully finished cabinet
the most obvious initial eye-catcher.
Where many speakers use either awood-based enclosure or some exotic
material such as carbon fibre, Magicois all about heavy metal, with fourextruded aluminium panels ranging
in thickness from around 12mm tothe better part of 50mm forming thestructure, the pieces precision-milled
to give the impression of a designthat’s all but seamless.
Reprinted fromfor global distribution

Exoticawww.hifichoice.co.uk

www.hifichoice.co.uk

Crowned by a hefty top-plate,curved to control diffraction andtackle internal standing waves, thewhole enterprise sits on an evenweightier baseplate to extend thespeaker’s footprint, lower thecabinet’s centre of gravity andimprove its stability. Three adjustable
feet are included, these with a flat,compliant base rather than spikes.
Incidentally, the bass arm of thecrossover is located within thebaseplate while the mid/treble arm isfixed onto the S3 2023’s second brace.

DETAILS
PRODUCT
Magico S3 2023
OriginUSATYPE
Three-wayfloorstanding
loudspeaker
Weight101kg eachDimensions(WxHxD)
300 x 1,120 x 430mm
FEATURESl 28mm diamondcoated beryllium
diaphragm tweeter
l 125mmhoneycomb
aluminum core
sandwiched
midrange driverl 2x 230mm
Graphene Nano-Tec
cone bass driversl Quoted sensitivity:
88dB/1m/1W (4ohm)
DISTRIBUTOR
Absolute Sounds
WEBSITE
magicoaudio.com
absolutesounds.com

The S3 2023 can ‘dobass’, but ruthlessly
controlled while it’s
shaking the room
As much research has been poured
into the speaker’s new drivers as thenew cabinet. The tweeter is now a
28mm unit, its diamond-coatedberyllium dome’s increase in size –from the previous model’s 26mm –achieved without significant increasein moving mass. This larger driver
includes a new back-chamber, aneodymium motor system and better
integration into the baffle, for increased
power handling, lower distortion andimproved off-axis uniformity.
The S3 2023’s new 125mm
midrange unit has an aluminium
honeycomb cone with a graphene andcarbon fibre skin that aims to improve
stiffness, also without adding any
weight and, by virtue of its profile,enhance dispersion. It’s driven by anunderhung motor system combining
extra-large neodymium magnets anda pure copper pole-cap. A key featureof the new unit is a (stable) lightweightfoam roll surround in place of therubber used before – again to boost
efficiency and transient performance.
The 230mm cones of the twin bass
drivers are, in practice, larger versionsof the midrange cones with their alloy

Designed to be
striking on theeye and ear

honeycomb core sandwiched between
stiffening layers of carbon fibre/graphene. A 125mm titanium voice
coil, with a pure copper cap, combineswith the suspension to give over
12mm of excursion, delivering deep,
low-distortion bass at high output.
Heavyweight hi-fi typically requires
assistance in its unboxing andinstallation, and the S3 2023 is no
exception given the weight and thesheer size of the wooden packingcrate in which it’s delivered. The
instruction manual has a nine-step
photographically illustrated sequence
should you wish to try it for yourself.
There are also detailed instructions
for positioning the speakers, opening
with some daunting advice: “All that’s
required is a tape measure, a pen, acalculator, a ball of string, a couple ofdemo CDs and some patience”.

Sound quality

We end up with the S3 2023
positioned about half-a-metre proudof the rear wall, well clear of sidewalls, and with the slightest of toe-in
towards the listening position. Thefront-end is a familiar setup – a dCS
Vivaldi One APEX player runningstraight into Constellation’s Centaur II
stereo power amp, located between
the speakers for the classic ‘longinterconnect run/short speaker
cables’ layout, with all cablingcourtesy of Transparent Audio.
Controlling the system with a dCS
Mosaic app, the music is hosted andsourced from USB-connected SDD
storage, the cost of which is almost
comical in the light of what is a truly

Reprinted fromfor global distribution

Exotica

Magico
S3 2023 from £57,000

In Sight
Single 4mm
cable terminals122 28mm diamondcoated beryllium
dome tweeter

125mm midrange
driver has analuminium
honeycomb core
stiffened with layersof graphene andcarbon fibre33

44 Two 230mm bass
drivers feature alarger version of themidrange driver’s‘Graphene Nano-Tec’cone design5

3x adjustable feet415
IN THE FRAME
All-alloy cabinets have long been ahallmark of Magico’s loudspeakers,whether in the form of an extruded
section, like the original S3 or themachined castings used for the enclosure
walls of the S3 2023. Five thick aluminiumhorizontal plates divide up the internal
volume here, as well as bracing anddamping the enclosure, but this speaker’s
choice of materials isn’t solely about
weight and stiffness. Rather than “bracing
the hell out of it,” quips Magico CEO Alon
Wolf, “we now brace it right”. During
our call with him to accompany ourreview, he explains that the new 3D laserinterferometry system, “enabled a very
efficient analysis of the cabinet surfaces.
We could see where the vibrations – themain panel modes – were occurring, andthis informed the placement and forces
applied by our bracing, and position of
our constrained-layer damping”.

glorious six-figure system. But thenthat’s high-quality listening for you.
The Espen Eriksen Trio/Andy
Sheppard recording of In The
Mountains, from the album of thesame name is a perfect choice for
the S3 2023 to set out its stall – theimmediate impression being oneof supreme presence and threedimensionality, along with fine
instrumental timbres, especially in
Sheppard’s sax. Similarly, AnaïsReno’s atmospheric Live At PizzaExpress, on the venue’s own PX
Records label, is performed with allwww.hifichoice.co.uk

A skeletal alloy frame is bolted to theinside of the cabinet panels, pulling them
together and applying a specific tension
at intervals. As a rule, resonances areunavoidable but this pushes them higher
in frequency, and Q, making them easier
to damp. This is achieved using BH5 (BlackHole 5) damping sheets – a laminate ofvinyl, elastomer and foam layers – applied
to all exposed surfaces on the inside of
the walls. In addition, an alloy/elastomer
constrained layer (known as EAR), ‘tuned’
to specific frequency bands, is applied
between the drivers on the rear of thebaffle. The mix of these techniques
is calibrated to selectively ‘suffocate’unwanted noise emanating from thesehuge panels. The laser interferometry
provides a window onto the vibration,and provides proof of concept, enabling
Magico to claim its new S3 enclosure is“30 percent quieter” than its predecessor.

HOW itCOMPARES
If Magico’s
magnificent S3 isjust too much of astretch then there
are many otherflag-waving
floorstanders you
really must hear.
KEF’s £30k BladeOne Meta getscloser than almost
any loudspeaker tothe ideal of a fullrange ‘point source’
while PS Audio’s
similarly-priced
aspen FR30 (HFC490) offers anexquisite blend ofplanar-magnetic
mid and treble withalloy-coned bass
drivers and ABRs.
The Signatureversion of B&W’s 801
D4 is anotherstatement speaker
which, at £45k,
takes the brand’s
iconic range-topper
to new levels ofperformance.
Directly in theMagico S3’s firing
line are PMC’s
towering fact
fenestrias at £64k
and Wilson Audio’s
three-way Sasha V(HFC 506) at £54k.
All these brands
have their own
design philosophy,
which inevitably
informs theirvoicing, but few will
paint the music
picture with suchattention-grabbing
clarity as Magico’s
latest S3.

Without doubt, the S3 2023 can ‘dobass’ – as much as you could everreasonably require, but ruthlessly
controlled while it’s shaking theroom. Play Dizzee Rascal’s What You
Know Bout That from his Don’t Take
It Personal album and the low-end
is simply thunderous, but withunstoppable drive and Mr Rascal’s
chatty vocals entirely intelligible.
Liam Gallagher and John Squire’s
eponymous album sounds impressivein the way that this speaker opens up
the big dense mix of I’m So Bored,
delivering it with bags of texture andspeed. Meanwhile the simpler MotherAs much researchhas been poured
into the new drivers
as the new cabinet
Nature’s Song has that ‘sitting in thestudio’ impact and detail. The soundis redolent of The Beatles and George
Martin, which I’m sure was very muchpart of the intention.
We put this wonderful speakerthrough its paces with more than theusual review variety simply because itis such a treat to spend time with it. It
may take a hefty remortgage to own apair of your own, but there’s no denying
its totally involving presentation.

Conclusion

Magico’s S3 2023 very much lives up
to the manufacturer’s name with apresentation that’s every bit as vivid
as it is refined, and as compelling as it
is analytical. The finish is immaculate,
and the cabinet construction as solid
as you’d expect given the price tag,and while this may only be a
‘mid-range’ offering in Magico’s
product catalogue, there’s nothing
middling about its performance. Drive
it with an amplifier commensuratewith its capabilities, and prepare
to be completely enthralled lof its ambience intact. It’s a real ‘you
are there’ experience.
The recent Lang Lang Saint-Saëns
album is so deceptively easy to listen
to via this loudspeaker that it’s easy
to overlook the sheer amount of
information that’s on offer, from thescale and delicacy of the soloist’s
piano to the accompanying orchestra.
There is a lovely light airiness to thewoodwind section in the Aviary
movement, plus tight control of theplucked strings, while the Fossils
section proves joyous with its
xylophone and exuberant finale.

Our verdict
SOUND QUALITYVALUE FOR MONEY

Build Quality

LIKE: Immaculate
finish; vivid, refinedpresentation; buildand finish
DISLIKE: Price,obviously
WE SAY: Prepare tobe entranced

Ease of drive

OVERALL

Reprinted fromfor global distribution