Curious

[User211]

All I can say is, only in America...

http://www.mcintoshlabs.com/products/mcintosh-mc2kw-2000-watt-reference-power-amplifier.asp

I thought they max'd at 1.2KW til recently when I saw this 2KW effort.

Mac stuff doesn't do well in the UK - I hardly ever see it over here. I don't think the styling fits with UK tastes, to be honest. Though I love the MC275 (who doesn't?) to look at, that is the only one.

 

[Gordon]

I appreciate all the responses. As I mentioned in my original post, I'm very happy and content with my choice in gear. I'm certainly not looking for validation. If I was, I could go to the Mac forum at AK and get that

When searching for gear I was able to try Accuphase, Bryston, Krell and Mac. I found the Mac most pleasing to my ear so that is what I bought and have never regretted it. I'm not such a prude to believe that there is nothing "different" out there, I've heard it in my own house.

I asked this here and not AK because I know what kind of answers I'd get there. I wanted to get opinions from folks who are a little more open and using other gear.

Thanks guys,

Gordon

 

[DrJRapp]

Jerry, while possible, that is 100% personal / subjective, no if's , and's or butts !!

Example to the contrary......for those ARC fans (yes I'm one), the combination of Ref series pre and amp combined with a CD-7...pure heaven !!

I said rarely, not never....I think that we can both agree that ARC gear is rare!

 

[David Matz]

When searching for gear I was able to try Accuphase, Bryston, Krell and Mac. I found the Mac most pleasing to my ear so that is what I bought and have never regretted it. I'm not such a prude to believe that there is nothing "different" out there, I've heard it in my own house.

I asked this here and not AK because I know what kind of answers I'd get there. I wanted to get opinions from folks who are a little more open and using other gear.

Thanks guys,

Gordon

Gordon, I am also a bit surprised that there are so few 501's on this forum. Our speakers crave power, and there are not many options for quality power, especially at that price point. If there were 1 model that is popular other than the 275, this should be it. I guess no one can try everything out there, or maybe Mac is fighting a reputation that it's not quite an audiophile brand. I have heard 3 or 4 different dealers talk this way about Mac. Brands evoke certain emotional responses in people and these often come from the subconscious. If there is a negative association of some kind, whether valid or not, it may possibly "sabotage" the audition.

How do you think people from the Mac forum will answer your question?

 

[jjay]

I was looking for a grain free, smooth presentation which I can listen for hours. My solution was all McIntosh equipment. McIntosh may to some lack the last bit of clarity(not to me) but I gladly give that up for the more forgiving sound. For me the main thing was brightness/ grain issues are no longer an issue. I listened to Audio Research, Cary etc. but for me, I would go out and purchase all McIntosh again. I believe if you would A /B Mac amps/Preamps/ SACD for an extended time, many opinions about McIntosh would change.
JMHO,
Jim

 

[C.A.P]

Although I never owned MAC but have heard a lot. It has had a cult fallowing for many years. Some of my best ML moments were with MAC driving them. Imagine that! CLX twice with Mac amps, Spire with Mac amps, When I bought my Quest, Mac amps... System synergy is a big factor. Many manufactures who have a complete line design around their pre amps and CD players. Gone are the days of Amplifier designers with out a pre amp(excluding Pass, but he gets a Pass as he has shown he can get the job done) . I have NOT heard the famous Mc275 , however I would like too. Sound we hear is all subjective. Its what we want to hear and perceive to hear that moves us. How many times have you listened to a simple system that just sounded GOOD. Not world class but good. That is synergy. All the components are working as one to get out of the way !

 

[Ron]

I have listened to a few different amps with different speakers other than the Summits I now own. The first Martin Logan speakers I listened to ever, was with McIntosh amps. I was sold immediately. The synergy between the two was perfect for me. I now own a Mac 205 and a 402 amp, and Mac 871 dvd player. I could not be happier.

 

[taylode]

I think Mc goes well with most speakers and not just MLs. I also think Mc synergy is real and not just a myth, at least to my ears. I also think that the MC501 is probably the best amp in the world at it's price point. What the 501s did to my Ascents is nothing short of amazing. Also I'm hooked on their esthetics. As to the negative perception I don't get and never have. I'm off the gear merry-go-round and the only real question for me is speakers; stay in the ML family or not. I would really like to home demo the CLX and put that question to be.

Sorry I drifted off topic. McIntosh is great gear but rarely recommended outside of AK; however, most folks don't come in and say "wow, I just heard some dynamite ML speakers and have $40K to spend on electronics, got any advice?" I know I didn't and I love Mc.

 

[SundayNiagara]

"Example to the contrary......for those ARC fans (yes I'm one), the combination of Ref series pre and amp combined with a CD-7...pure heaven !!"

Now Ref CD-8 with a 6550 in the power supply. It's in Pompano, but I have yet to hear it.

 

[twich54]

Now Ref CD-8 with a 6550 in the power supply. It's in Pompano, but I have yet to hear it.

When you do, please let us know !

 

[User211]

Er, no, it's a 5881 or 6L6 in the revised PS.

Here is some banter: http://forum.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/fr.pl?ddgtl&1227310070&openfrom&6&4#6

 

[wrat]

All I can say is, only in America...

http://www.mcintoshlabs.com/products/mcintosh-mc2kw-2000-watt-reference-power-amplifier.asp

I thought they max'd at 1.2KW til recently when I saw this 2KW effort.

Mac stuff doesn't do well in the UK - I hardly ever see it over here. I don't think the styling fits with UK tastes, to be honest. Though I love the MC275 (who doesn't?) to look at, that is the only one.

Holy Crap that is a bit o power!!

I have heard Mc gear on several occasions but never on speakers I really cared for so no real opinion although I do dig the meters

 

[CCH]

I read several very positive reviews of the MC-402, and then bought one for myself after some listening tests of my own. I have been perfectly satisfied with it. I can't notice any congestion, and it handles the Summits with ease. 'Seems like a good match to me.

 

[johnwa]

Martin Logan must beleive McIntosh gear do something to put their speakers in a postive light as almost every picture I have seen associated with the introduction and tours of the CLX were paired with Mc gear. When they toured the CLX in Seattle the room was glowing with blue light and I can tell you personally the combination did not suck.

Granted I am a full on Mc owner with a dianasor Mc 205, a newer pair of Mc 501's, a Mc C46 pre , and a Mc 201 SACD. Bottom line for me is that I have have owned other brands and tried a lot of alternaitve kit along the way, but for me McIntosh and Martin Logan are what I keep coming back to and the combination sounds good to me.

 

[tonepub]

I've been listening to an MC252 for a few days now and it's not bad. I wouldn't trade my Premier 350 for it, but it's not a bad amp. I've certainly heard stuff I've liked a lot less...

It's so personal, it's really hard to say what's best.

I'm a little suspect of that 2kw Mac amp and it's power claims... Unless you hook it up to a dedicated 220 V line per side, there's no way a pair of those could put out 4000 watts.

A 20 amp line will give up about 2400 watts of juice on the input. The average class A/B SS power amp is maybe 40-50% efficient, so that means tops, you are looking at getting 1000 - 1200 watts back out the output side of the fence in a perfect world....

But it would be doable if you had dedicated 20A 220v power for each monoblock....

I remember those giant vertical Levinson monos, they needed dedicated 220 to put out full power.

 

[tonepub]

Sure enough, you need 13A for each 1000W block. So if you had four dedicated 15A (20's would be better), you could get that kind of power.

Big electric bill!

 

[jjay]

Hi Jeff,
Are you going to review the McIntosh MC252 Amplifier in Tone soon? I sure would like to get your feedback on this amp.
Jim

 

[Gordon]

Just a quick note. I got sent on a road trip and can't respond for several days.

Thanks, Gordon

 

[SundayNiagara]

When you do, please let us know !

It will be very soon!

 

[Dreamer]

Gordon,

The guy I bought my Sequels from had a Mac Tubed preamp and Mac CD Player feeding signal to a Spectral amp driving them, and it sounded VERY smooth and clean. I'm not a big fan of Spectral's sound--it's a little too analytical for me, but tempered with the tubed Mac Pre, it sounded pretty sweet.

I've always like the look of Mcintosh amps, and with many speakers (especially high-efficiency horns) they can sound divine. But I've not really been "engaged" by the sound of Mac amps driving Martin Logans which I have heard in the past. Although they seem to be very clean, and have a lot of detail, there is just something about the Mac/ML combination that I find to be, well, just not very exciting.

Perhaps it's that the setups I've heard were the older, VERY inefficient MLs. The Gen3 Martin Logans have MUCH smoother-sounding panels and some have on-board dedicated amps for the woofers, so maybe they sound better with Mac Amps. But I haven't had the opportunity to hear a Vantage, Summit, or Spire driven by a Mac amp, so I can't say...

But I will tell you that the first amp I ever just completely fell in love with was a pair of Mcintosh MC-75 monoblocks I saw in a store in Wheeling WV (Blacks Stereo and Hi-Fi,which is, sadly, gone now) when I was in college. They had been completely restored and re-tubed with OEM tubes, and were driving a pair of Klipsch LaScala's with signal from a Studer RTR tape machine. I've always wanted a pair of those, but I've never seen a set in decent condition for a reasonable price since then. I think that was in 1986, and the owner of that store was asking $500 for the pair. I saw them about a week after I'd bought my Carver M-200t. I've always wondered how things would have turned out for me if I'd bought the Macs instead of the Carver that summer...