xMagic T5577 read performance vs xEM

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I currently have a xMagic in L0, which I’ve had for around 8 months now.
I’ve always had issues with the T5577 side, but only when I’ve tried to write Indala cards to it. I’ve tried with my pm3 Easy and my Flipper, and once I’ve written an Indala card, I can never get a read.

We did some digging in the Iceman Discord and from what I could tell, I think it might be installed a bit deep to get a good read on the higher data rates. I’m open to trying anything else to get a good read, but I’m considering getting a dedicated xEM in L5 and hoping I just got unlucky with my xMagic placement.

I know the xMagic is a larger diameter than the xEM and the NExT, but I’m wondering what the practical difference in reading is, especially given the xEM is a dedicated antenna. I’ve seen the video comparing the xEM and the NExT which doesn’t seem to show a large difference between the two, but I haven’t been able to find anything comparing to the xMagic.

I’m likely going to be ordering something to put in L5, but I’m just trying to figure out what’s going to give me the best performance on the T5577 side, given my new office uses Indala and I’ve already got the go-ahead to use my implant for access.

Thanks for any advice!

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The NExT and xMagic use the exact same T5577 module (chip+ferrite+antenna) while the xEM does have a longer ferrite and more elongated antenna coil. Practically speaking, the xEM does technically have better performance because of this, but the difference is ever so slight.

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Good to know, thanks!

I’m guessing I just got unlucky with the depth of my implant.
L5 seems much closer to the skin so that might give me some better results, might as well go for another xMagic if they’re about the same performance.

Will order one shortly and hopefully I can get some better performance once it’s healed up.

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If you need better performance, a flexEM will always be a solid pick for LF use.

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