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  3. 1422544283

Help me get the best sound under $5K in upgrades

I need help. My system: mac mini, McIntosh Pre 15, McIntosh MC2255, Joseph Audio RM22si / REL Strata iii.

I just switched to the McIntosh from an Audio Refinement Complete, but am willing to change anything other than the front end or going tubes. I don't want the maintenance of tubes, and want to keep the convenience of digital.

I mostly listen to acoustic/folk/jazz/vocals.

I'm considering planars and demo-ing a set of Maggie 1.7's next week.

I just want the best sound possible, and don't want to throw money away on things that I can't hear.

Is the McIntosh mostly just cool lights and nostalgia? Can I get better sound for my $? Can I do better than Planars with my sub and a really nice pair of monitors?
lisaandjon

Showing 3 responses by mofimadness

mofimadness's avatar
mofimadness
4,152 posts
 
I need to clarify something Matt said above. Maggies do NOT go below 1 ohm, in fact they really don't even come close. 3.2 ohms is about the lowest any Magnepan will drop to and most are around a flat 4 ohm load.

One of the only speakers that go that low would be an electrostatic speaker. My Martin Logan CLSIIA's will drop down to around .8 ohms, but my Magnepan MG3.6's only drop to around 3.8 ohms.

Your McIntosh amp should have no problem with the 1.7's. These are the specs I found on your amp:

SPECIFICATIONS:

250w/ch. (500w mono)

Response: 20-20kHz (+0 -0.25dB).

Distortion: 0.02%. Noise and Hum: -95dB.

Output Impedance: 1, 2, 4 and 8.(0.5, 1, 2, 4, 8 and 16 ohms in mono).

Damping Factor: 30 or greater.

Input Impedance: 50k.

Input Sensitivity: 0.75v or 2.5v.

Headphone Impedance: low.

Sentry Monitor. Power Guard. Autoformers.

Plus, this amp has autoformers, so no worries.
mofimadness's avatar
mofimadness
4,152 posts
 
Matt...the MC2255 has 1 and 2 ohm taps on it. McIntosh wouldn't do that if the amp was not capable of those load impedances. Look at the specs I listed above.

Also the MC2255 has autoformers, so the impedance of the speaker becomes a non factor. The autoformer keeps the amp safe at any output or load impedance.

IMHO, this amp is perfect for lower impedance loudspeakers.
mofimadness's avatar
mofimadness
4,152 posts
 
"Pretty cool, actually. I've never heard a difference in amps before. Now I really want to find out what else is out there."

Oh no, it's started. :-) Be prepared to spend lots of money, probably get divorced, have many sleepless nights, be on a first name basis with your local dealer, lose your eyesight reading too many magazines and blogs.

Run fast away while you can...
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