[prepress]

Like others here, I've seen the review of McIntosh's C52 in The Absolute Sound. I received my copy Friday. While not reading in absolute depth, I've been over it a couple of times. the verdict . . . I kinda want one.

Oddly enough, what the review did also was give me a bit more appreciation for the C2300 I have now, due probably to Paul Seydor's extolling of the McIntosh brand overall in his review. Through messing around with tubes, interconnects and power cords, the C2300 is at a place where it sounds pretty good, not to mention the upstream improvements to CD playback in particular with the MCD500's arrival. But I wonder if the C52's equalizer would come in handy with addressing the room mode I have where the bass drops off if I'm standing versus sounding fuller when seated, or is that just because ear height changes. I wonder if those same lower frequencies would have even more punch with the solid state unit over the C2300.

It's quite helpful that I have a $702.90 repair bill for my DVL-91 player, plus the possibility of new glasses staring me in the face. Regardless of what I might like, the wallet says no. So nothing should come of this now, unless I choose to be unwise. Even if I traded in or sold the 2300, I'd still be into the C52 for a healthy four figures, unless I came across a used one perhaps. All things considered regarding the C52, now is not the time to go there.