Castagnari Magica.

[Geoff de Limousin]

A few days ago (in accordeon makes and models) I asked for any thoughts on the Castagnari Magica CBA's especially the Magica 3° ( 96 bass) version.... well no replies ... but I am off to view one early tomorrow (Thursday 7th sept) so I had hoped someone might suggest 'what to look for'... which tyres to kick....

I'm looking at a brand new instrument, from a dealer, at a big discount on the catalog price.. so perhaps I'm wondering why.... still a lot of money ,for me.

Too late but if any one has any thoughts this evening I'd apreiciate it.

Cheers,
Geoff.

 

[losthobos]

I played on at Eastbourne this February although was only 72 bass and 2 reed...for sale through Acorn Instruments..guys name was Peter..may still have his contact number
Anyways I was besotted with the little box, beautiful tone and action, really expressive even though I only played quietly...shop owner asked if he could use me as video demo on his site but we didn't get round to it...
The price was over the odds for me, especially as id just scored a used Sem/Piermaria for half the price with 120 bass and LMM (bassoon in cassotto)
The castagnari tone was stunning though...and perhaps when I'm too weak to play anything larger id trade all my boxes for one...but till then to high a price...
Peter gave me the impression that a lot of his buyers were folk/morris players who would come to try and 'beat the box' ie play faster than the machine could handle...and was suitably pleased that no one could....this sort of playing is of no interest to me...
I can only say the tone was fabulous, the built quality great...but the price ..pah...bit like them flash car adverts where the car looks the best thing ever as its driving down a superb road...with no other traffic in sight...yet reality is if you owned one you'd still be stuck in the same jams you were in in your last car...
Best go try it yourself....leave your credit card at home...mull her over and decide wether it's love or merely infatuation before buying...i was besotted...and in retrospect luckily skint on the day I played one..best wishes

 

[Geoff de Limousin]

Thanks Losthobos,

well, I do hope for a similar impression as I head out the door at 4am with a 6 hour drive in front of me. I have always thought the price of these was beyond me, or beyond my needs , and with feelings of guilt at spending a lot of cash on something for my own enjoyment etc etc...

As long as it does not have 'that Diato tone' that would not impress my wife's critical ear I am sure I will enjoy the reduced size and weight.... but I will take my noisy 1930's LMMM for sound comparison testing and hope the 'Cost-a-loti' lives up to its reputation.... cheers. (oh dear... what am I doing ?)... Geoff.

 

[Geoff de Limousin]

After a 13 hour round trip to view and try this new Magica 96, I did not buy it. The right hand side was very nice, strong with a round sound with reasonable dynamics for a brand new instrument... but the left side was disapointing. I had a good discussion with the dealer ( technician) regarding the relative balance levels on modern accordions in comparison to the pre war types I usually play. He suggested that most solid wood bodied accordions need a year of playing before the sound reaches an optimum level and that most players these days wanted the bass side to be somewhat subdude . He may well be correct , and I have heard it said by others too, but I was just not in the mood to put 2 months gross income on the table for an accordion I only liked one half of.

I do find this interesting because a rival instrument , the Saltarelle Bourroche, has been described on this forum as having basses that are too loud. Now the openings in the back plate of the Magica are quite small which is probably keeping the volume down and looking at pictures of the Bourroche there are more holes. This all begs the question that whilst a personal sound balance can be achieved by the use of baffles , if the openings are sufficient to allow this, has any form of moveable shuttering been included in a base plate design to aid in changing the balance quickly ?

Of course the simple solution, if the dealer was correct about the time needed to mature the sound, is to buy a secondhand model.

Any comments and opinions welcome.
Geoff.

 

[donn]

I think they sell them with minimal opening, and when you take it home, you drill more holes until the balance suits you. A suitable drill bit will minimize the splintering.

Seriously ... I suppose youve listened to recordings of other instances of this model? The one I listened to just now - CASTMAG3 - Castagnari Magika 3 LMM 96 $6995 from Liberty Bellows - has to my ear a fine bass, not over loud to be sure but a deep and clear low reed. The treble doesnt come off so well, and it occurs to me that it may be maxing out the recording level, pointing to the problem with evaluating an accordion via youtube video. Just wondering if were hearing here, anything like what you heard there.

(I love the car ad analogy!)

 

[Geoff de Limousin]

Hi Don,
I had thought of making a replacement back plate to experiment with on the Magica I did not buy, but for the moment I am trying various baffles on my current accordions to see what effects they make.

You have certainly hit the nail on the head regarding the forming of opinions based on Youtube videos. To me the Magica I played sounded quite different from the one at Libery Bellows. There is an interesting set of new videos from Liberty Bellows, put up on the 8th of September,2 days ago; a mature gentleman in a blue shirt plays various CBAs . This gives an interesting comparison of the sounds from each box.

The good advice that I've read here several times " do not buy an accordion without trying it and preferably take a friend to listen and/or play it whilst you listen"....

 

[losthobos]

I've tried baffling the bass side by adding brown paper...like honkytonk piano players used too...but no way would I be drilling into a mega priced box or a grand piano....