Legacy Focus SE
vs
Magnepan 20.7

Two Ways to Move Air

The Legacy Audio Focus SE and Magnepan 20.7 represent two of the most celebrated approaches to high-fidelity loudspeaker design. Both are built in America by companies with deep engineering heritage. Both have earned decades of critical acclaim and devoted followings. And both deliver the kind of performance that can fundamentally change how you experience recorded music.

The Focus SE is a six-driver, four-way tower that pairs Legacy's signature dual Air Motion Transformer tweeter array with cone midwoofers and dual 12-inch aluminum bass drivers in a ported enclosure. It is a conventional speaker taken to its highest expression: drivers matched to within 0.25 dB, a cabinet engineered with angled walls and faceted corners to eliminate diffraction, and sensitivity of 95.4 dB that makes it compatible with everything from 30-watt tube amplifiers to 750-watt solid-state monoblocks.

The Magnepan 20.7 abandons the conventional speaker altogether. There is no enclosure, no cone drivers, no dome tweeters. Instead, three full-range planar sections (a true aluminum ribbon tweeter and two quasi-ribbon panels for midrange and bass) stretch across a panel nearly seven feet tall and two and a half feet wide. The result is a dipole radiator with zero cabinet coloration that produces sound from both front and rear, filling a room with a spatial presentation unlike anything a conventional speaker can achieve.

Sensitivity and Amplifier Requirements

The sensitivity difference between these two speakers is the single most consequential practical distinction. The Focus SE at 95.4 dB and the Magnepan 20.7 at 86 dB are separated by nearly 10 dB. In practical terms, this means the Focus SE requires roughly eight to ten times less power to achieve the same volume level. A quality 30-watt tube amplifier will drive the Focus SE to satisfying levels in most rooms. The same amplifier connected to the 20.7 will produce polite background music at best.

The Magnepan 20.7 demands high-current amplification. Most serious owners use 200 to 400 watts per channel into 4 ohms, and many biamp with monoblocks. Common pairings include Bryston, Pass Labs, Krell, and Audio Research. The amplifier investment alone typically ranges from $5,000 to $30,000. The Focus SE, by contrast, rewards almost any quality amplifier you pair it with. If you already own a beloved amplifier, especially a lower-powered tube design, the Focus SE will let you hear what it can truly do.

Bass: Visceral Impact vs. Tonal Accuracy

The Focus SE's dual 12-inch aluminum woofers in a ported sixth-order Butterworth alignment deliver bass to 18Hz with the kind of physical slam and authority that only cone drivers can produce. Kick drums hit with chest-compressing force. Pipe organ pedal notes shake the room. Reviewers consistently note that a subwoofer is unnecessary and would offer nothing the Focus SE does not already provide.

The Magnepan 20.7 dedicates 76% of its panel area to bass reproduction and claims extension to 25Hz. The bass character is fundamentally different: articulate, tonally precise, and wonderfully integrated with the midrange and treble. But the limited excursion of planar drivers means the visceral physical impact is more moderate. Many Magnepan owners supplement with dedicated bass panels or conventional subwoofers for music that demands low-frequency authority. The Focus SE needs no such supplementation.

Treble Character: AMT Speed vs. Ribbon Delicacy

Both speakers use folded-ribbon technology for high-frequency reproduction, but the implementations differ. Legacy's dual AMT array (a 4-inch Air Motion Transformer and 1-inch super tweeter) moves air 16 times more effectively than a conventional dome. The Kapton diaphragm operates in a 2 Tesla magnetic field, producing treble with exceptional speed and transient accuracy. Extension reaches 30kHz. The AMT's character is detailed, fast, and effortless.

The Magnepan's true ribbon tweeter (not a quasi-ribbon, but an actual ultra-thin aluminum foil suspended between magnets) extends to 40kHz. True ribbons are the lightest, fastest transducers available, and the 20.7's ribbon has a delicacy and airiness that is exceptional. Both approaches deliver world-class treble, but the AMT leans slightly toward authority and projection while the Magnepan ribbon emphasizes finesse and spatial decay.

Room Requirements: Flexibility vs. Dedication

This is where the Focus SE holds a significant practical advantage. At 14 inches wide and 15 inches deep, it is a large but conventional tower that works in a wide variety of rooms. Back-panel switches allow mild high-frequency roll-off and mid-bass adjustment for smaller or more reflective spaces. Placement near walls is manageable with these adjustments, and optional Wavelet compatibility adds DSP room correction for complete acoustic optimization.

The Magnepan 20.7, at 29 inches wide and nearly seven feet tall, demands a dedicated listening room. The panels must sit three to five feet from the front wall (many owners prefer even more distance), and the dipole radiation pattern means the rear wall becomes part of the speaker system. Acoustic treatment behind the panels is strongly recommended. The sweet spot for optimal imaging is narrower than conventional speakers. The reward for getting placement right is extraordinary, but the 20.7 is not a speaker that adapts gracefully to a living room shared with other purposes.

Soundstage and Imaging

The Magnepan 20.7's dipole radiation and massive panel area create a spatial presentation that is genuinely unique. The speakers seem to disappear, replaced by a wall of sound where instruments appear life-sized and voices float in three-dimensional space. Properly set up, the 20.7 produces a soundstage that no conventional speaker can replicate.

The Focus SE produces a different but equally compelling soundstage. The symmetric driver array and AMT tweeter system create precise, focused imaging with excellent depth. The soundstage is wide and layered, with individual instruments placed with pinpoint accuracy. And critically, the Focus SE maintains its imaging across a wider listening area, making it more accommodating for multiple listeners or off-axis seating positions.

Practical Versatility

Choose the Focus SE if you want a speaker that excels with every genre of music and doubles as an outstanding home theater front channel. If you value deep, physical bass without a subwoofer. If you want amplifier flexibility from tubes to solid-state. If your listening room serves multiple purposes. And if 14 consecutive Editors' Choice Awards from The Absolute Sound carry weight.

Choose the Magnepan 20.7 if you have a large, dedicated listening room and are willing to invest in high-current amplification. If your musical priorities are classical, jazz, vocals, and acoustic music where the 20.7's ethereal transparency and life-sized presentation shine brightest. If the dipole soundstage experience is something you have heard and cannot live without. And if you understand that you are choosing a speaker optimized for a specific, exceptional listening experience rather than all-around versatility.