AudioAficionado.org - MSB vs Constellation

I just had an interesting encounter with a Constellation Inspiration Stereo amp. This encounter happened because, after a round of refinements to my system, I felt that the sound wasn't as lifelike as it could be. After reading much about the Constellation amp and its many awards and recommendations, I decided to audition it against my current amp, which is the MSB S200.

When I went to collect the amp from my dealer, he also gave me a pair of Kubala-Sosna Emotion interconnects to try in my system before listening to the Constellation. Interesting thing happened- the KS revealed the "life" that I was looking for, so much so that I didn't connect the Constellation until the next day after hours of enjoyably listening to the impact that the KS had on my system.

However, when I connected the Constellation I was indeed impressed by its effortless transparency through the midrange. Very easy to follow subtle instruments against other activity on stage. Alas, I was very disappointed with everything else about the presentation. Voices were dead flat and the presentation lost a great deal of extension in the upper octaves. The lower octave lost the sudden, visceral impact and control that the MSB delivers.

The Constellation performed like a flat (individual images, especially voices) midrange focused coach in my system that sucked all of the enjoyment out of listening to music for me. And now my back hurts from moving those heavy amps around.

I decided to share my thoughts for those who may be curious about such a comparison as I don't see much written about these particular amps. The MSB is an outstanding partner for my Magico S3s. Further, this experience continues to underscore just how important having a knowledgeable dealer is to this hobby. I told them what I felt I was lacking and they offered something (the KS interconnects) they thought would address my concerns knowing my system and tastes, while obliging my curiosity with the Constellation.

Alright, I'm starting to ramble now, thanks for reading and I hope you at least found my findings worth the click.

Martin