Not side by side. No offense intended but the Mac has more features (phono stage, eq, headphone) and the Boulder has a very real and palpable slice of the very high end. Having heard both, not remotely at the same time, place or with the same ancillaries the Mac is not even in the same zip code. The 866 may be one of the best values I've ever experienced in audio gear and mark my words, if life ever settles down and more people get to experience the 866, I believe it is destined to be a modern day classic.
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