MC501 vs MC2102
 

Hello friends. Now it is possible to exchange my Mcintosh mc-501 monoblocks for a Mcintosh mc2102 tube amplifier. Does it make sense? How does a tube 2102 sound compared to my 501? There is no way to listen. My preamplifier is a Mcintosh c2200.
Thanks for the advice.

I’ve had both in my system some years back although the MC2102 was on a home audition basis for a few weeks. The 501 monos were in my system for a few years.

It’s personal preference of course and system synergy comes into play but to generalize, you would be giving up a lot of power/reserve so depending on speaker loads you may give up some dynamics.

The MC2102 was a softer, relaxed and more laid back sounding amplifier. Almost too much so for my taste but my speakers were also presenting lower impedance load than a tube amp typically likes.

You would also be giving up solid state “day to day“, “year after year“ reliability for an amplifier that will ask to be fed new tubes every so often.

If you just have to have tubes, the MC2102 is a solid choice but I personally do not think you would gain anything at all compared to MC501 which are a very smooth and liquid sounding solid state amplifiers to begin with. I wouldn’t trade. :no:

Thanks. I completely forgot to say that my acoustics are JBL K2 s9500, it requires a lot of power)

ON another forum a member did a shootout between the 501s and 2 2102s and preferred the 2102s. I have 2 2102s running in Mono Bridged mode and they're fantastic sounding amps. But the power tubes need to be replaced every 2-3 years. That's 16 power tube. Also the Mac Blue Eyes are not LED so you have to replace the bulbs which is a hassle.

Thank you, but I have the opportunity to buy only one 2102, I think it makes no sense then ...

Not familiar with those speakers personally but glancing at the specs, 98dB efficiency, horn loaded would typically be a great match for a tube amp. The impedance however is 3 ohms and I suspect those dual 14” drivers do like some serious current on transient peaks... :D

You’ve already got your tube sound with your C2200. Keep the 501s.

Absolutely! :yes:

That's a great point.

I have (and have kept) my C2200 even after replacing it with the C500 tube pre (which I sold).

The C2200 was more fun to listen to. I never tried it with my MC501 amps but I should have. I always imagine I'll pair it with a solid state MAC amp one day.

MC501 vs MC2102
 

I agree - stay with your 501’s. The MC 2102 is awesome run as mono blocks in bridged mode.

As a single stereo amplifier, your MC 501’s will outperform it by a large margin.

When I owned both the MC 2102 and the MC 275V run as stereo amplifiers, I preferred the MC 275V.

That was a hard to accept as the MC 2102 was my very first piece of McIntosh equipment.

Tom