Magico S3 MK1

Magico S3:  Transparent, low-level resolution, high transient speed, warm overall balance and richer, denser color in the power range than Magico Q's. Superb tight bass. Wide and deep soundstage. I am selling these great speakers because I upgraded to the much more expensive Magico M3’s. Magnets attach the grill to the speaker. Those magnets have caused wear marks (a circular, whiter color on the speaker), which isn’t noticeable when the grills are on. Minor scratches elsewhere. Condition might be good, but I would rather exceed expectations, so to be conservative going with Fair. Footers shipped in separate box. Original price $22,600.  Don’t take it from me, see review summaries and links below.

Absolute Sound:  … the S3 actually took this sweeter Magico balance a step further, without losing much of Magico’s trademark low-level resolution or transient speed.… The S3’s were gorgeous, sounding on guitar, piano, and voice...

Hi-fi News:  the S3’s sound astonishingly quick… securing the musical rhythm with the deadly authority of a nail gun. Mids deliciously detailed, the treble sweet… a capacious and very transparent soundfield… vanishes from the picture… relaxing, informative, and yet invigorating… exceedingly fast bass… tight and dynamic, never hard or relentless.

https://www.absolutesounds.com/pdf/main/press/S3_HFN_NOV2014.pdf

Audio Video:  …The sweet spot in its S range (and perhaps in the Magico lineup as a whole)… atmospheric, with a very stable, finely focused image… vocals were allowed to flow on the almost cinematic sound stage with chilling realism… a sense of flow, of pace, of coherence… allowed the timbre and character of each instrument to come to the fore… The fine tonal hues were accurately and believably rendered, adding richness and nuance… The timbre of the vocals and the ambience of the recording venue took on an immersive, compelling intensity… pick out individual details with ease... liquid ease… smooth and articulate… inherently musical… deep sub-bass notes with an almost tactile force, yet remained clearly and authoritatively in control… crystal clear trebles… astonishing realism… propensity for bottom end slam and purity… unfatiguing to listen to… musically, engaging… dig down to the core of the music and deliver the depth, the power and the pace.

https://www.magico.net/images/Reviews/S3/AV_Feature_Sept_14.pdf

Soundstage! Ultra:  Clean and resolving. And while the treble and midrange, we’re both stunning for their transparency, the part of the audio band that really stuck out for its paradigm shifting resolution was the bass… what the S3 did that no other speaker I’ve had in for audition has done was deliver degrees of bass texture, definition, and transient fidelity, that I hadn’t known existed. And the Magico’s got it all: the minor tonal differences of notes close together in harmonics and in time… and lingering decay to nothingness.

https://www.soundstageultra.com/index.php/equipment-menu/479-magico-s3-loudspeakers

Stereophile:  … Large and dynamic, with rich low frequencies… uncolored, with a well-defined, palpable image hanging between the loudspeakers… he bass drum… pressurized the large room.

https://www.stereophile.com/content/magicos-new-s3