mcintosh vs jeff rowland

The Mac isn't a fully balanced design, I'd expect them to either be equal or RCA to be better.

IMHO, just because one spends lots of money on a system does not mean it will sound good together. If you go that often to the concert hall, you should know that music does not sound as detailed as it does on your system. I sit four rows back right in the center, right in front of the pit. I never hear the instruments in the rear of the orchestra sound anything like they are portrayed in most systems. What it sounds like to me is mono, like an old mono symphonic recording. That is the closest example to my ears at least. I have had or listened to many of the same components you have mentioned and they all sound different, but not necessarily "better" than any given component. I hear all these amps with their "Class A Stereophile rating" whatever that means, and the so called experts who review them. A system is only as good as the person thinks who listens to it. I wonder if we closed our eyes and were asked to listen to several systems and asked which one we liked the most, I wonder what we would pick? Would it be the 100K system or a 20k system that was well matched, or maybe a 10K system? Who knows. I do not prefer most detailed, solid state, or otl systems. They sound boring, sterile, most are very light in the bass, and uninvolving to me. They may not sound this way to the next person, but they do to me. When I owned or heard these systems, I never liked the way they sounded, and I could not listen to anything less than the best recordings. I fought this for so long. I wanted it to sound great because everyone told me it was "the best". So I was not listening to great performances anymore, but to detailed sound that was not very musical. I do think that McIntosh does make very musically satisfying components. much more so than some of the other stuff I have owned regardless of what many say. I am very glad that I finally have a system that I can actually enjoy, and it does sound much closer to the real thing than anything else I have owned or heard.

I am not saying you do not have a good system, heck is sounds like a great setup. We all just like different things. The Rowland is a great amp, and the Mac is also a great amp as well.

Thanks for all the input everyone. I should note that I have gone with the mcintosh integrated but have decided that both brands offer great products. HOWEVER, in my set up I have recently swapped out my cardas golden reference interconnects and replaced them with virtual dynamics ultra clear interconnects and this has had an effect that is nothing short of a miracle. I have never heard an interconnect on any system have such a profound effect on the overall sound. Furthermore, I have taken the advice of many on this thread and used rca connections with these interconnects. I suggest everyone audition them these cables. They are by far the best interconnects I have ever heard. I guess I'll mention that I have absolutely no affiliation to virtual dynamics or any audio equipment manufacturer. This is just my honest opinion.

What did you notice when you swapped out the golden reference? I am looking for a new IC for my CD Player. I am interested in your response. The golden reference is a great interconnect as well.

I should start by expressing the respect I have for the cardas golden reference interconnect. It is quite a good cable and I would not have been using them had I not found them to be better than all I had tried prior to buying my virtual dynamics cables. However, when I swapped the ultra clear cables by virtual dynamics I could not believe my ears. The improvements in clarity, attack, soundstage, and dynamics were not subtle. Basically, my system is now producing a much more believable and enjoyable sound, no matter what kind of music I have chosen to play. It's seemed almost like the virtual dynamics cables were now capturing and conveying a ton of information that had fallen off the sides, so to speak, of the cardas cables. I should note that they also seem louder than the cardas cables. I simply wasn't aware that an interconnect cable could ever make its presence felt (or not felt, I suppose, since trasparency is always the goal) the way these ultra clear cables have with my set up. They are darn good cables.