I don't have the Apogee's but I do have the 10e's with Magtechs, and also have some Quad ELS speakers and various others. I replaced Quad 2805's with the 10e's.
I have my speakers set up such that their rear output can either get reflected into the room, or alternatively if I open a window behind them, the rear wave goes outside. Opening the window does make a huge difference - the sound becomes much cleaner. I've long noticed that near reflections, particularly from a back wall, makes the highs sound edgy and distorted. This is true with choirs too! In Orange County, I attended several concerts in which a choir was placed sight under the back wall, and the resultant sound was quite JBL-like!
I don't get the head-in-a-vice effect, at least, the sound is holographic in the sweet spot, but perfectly fine everywhere else. It is very similar indeed to the original Quad ELS (except the bass, and how loud it goes). If I want to listen closely I sit in the sweet spot; otherwise anywhere else is perfectly fine for casual listening.
I have my speakers set up such that their rear output can either get reflected into the room, or alternatively if I open a window behind them, the rear wave goes outside. Opening the window does make a huge difference - the sound becomes much cleaner. I've long noticed that near reflections, particularly from a back wall, makes the highs sound edgy and distorted. This is true with choirs too! In Orange County, I attended several concerts in which a choir was placed sight under the back wall, and the resultant sound was quite JBL-like!
I don't get the head-in-a-vice effect, at least, the sound is holographic in the sweet spot, but perfectly fine everywhere else. It is very similar indeed to the original Quad ELS (except the bass, and how loud it goes). If I want to listen closely I sit in the sweet spot; otherwise anywhere else is perfectly fine for casual listening.