MX150 vs MX121

[djwhog]

pre release info is hard to come by...wish I could help.. Maybe Ron has some input?

[SMC23]

As a fairly new McIntosh customer and a recent owner of their "flagship" MX150, i am quite pissed at Mcintosh already introducing another Processor, when in fact they haven't spent any time/energy in improving the MX150 with firmware updates or possible HDMI 1.4 upgrades (however possible that is). Considering their track record on supporting the improvements of the MX150, i would never touch the MX121 as it appears more technologically oriented.

It just seems like they are abandoning the MX150 and re-introducing a more tasteful, cheaper alternative, at half the price point, severely undercutting the MX150, which just came a year and a half two years ago!

I wouldn't hold my breath on the MX121 being released in JAN next year. Seems like a really early prototype.

[jdandy]

Originally Posted by SMC23

It just seems like they are abandoning the MX150 and re-introducing a more tasteful, cheaper alternative, at half the price point, severely undercutting the MX150, which just came a year and a half two years ago!

SMC23.......Technology, as well as companies move on. Your car doesn't keep getting updated in lieu of new models arriving annually. Your computer was outdated before getting it home from the store. So why would you expect McIntosh not to continue doing what they do? They design, engineer and manufacture audio gear for a world market. They're not going to put the company in a holding pattern to continuously massage components already produced and sold. I'm not trying to be argumentative, just presenting an alternate view point. We all wish to stay on the leading edge, but it isn't free. In fact, it gets damn expensive if you try to do it.

[Masterlu]

I agree Dan... it is a challenge, I just upgraded my Computers, my Radar Detectors, my Wireless Router, my iPhone, yada yada.

Am I happy no, but such is life.

[W9TR]

Guys,
I feel your pain. But I've gone cold turkey, my friends. I'm off the Pre-Pro upgrade drug and feel much better now.

Here's what I've done. I've decided to buy pre-pro's 1-2 generations back and let less expensive souce components do the heavy lifting with HDMI, streaming options, the latest decoders, etc.

* HDMI 1.4? Don't need it as my PJ handles it directly with no handshake issues whatsoever between the PJ and souce components. If I run out of inputs on the PJ, I'll buy a cheap switcher or a Lumagen Radience and be a very happy camper. Again.

* Latest decoders? I let the Oppo handle those chores. Yes, I have to do double setups for audio, but I have all my settings captured, and it's a snap. The DAC's in the Oppo are quite good, so no issues with audio quality or noise. Oh, by the way, the bass management is very good as well.

* Streaming options? Who cares? Why tie fast moving technology to a high cost device that is costly to update? Makes no sense to me. A pre/pro is not a source component. I can use a Sonos Zoneplayer for whole house audio, or an Airport and run digital from either or both into my Pre/Pro.

This way, I get the great McIntosh look and feel with good stability and great audio quality. My Mx-135 was two and a half kilobucks, the Oppo a kilobuck.

My advice, don't get angry, just get off the treadmill and enjoy what you have, knowing that anything new that comes around can be handled easily outside the core of your Pre/Pro.

Regards,

Tom

[1KW]

All very good posts, I can appreciate all the different point of views. I agree technology has to move on. I think I will wait to see what happens with the customer support from Mcintosh moving forward before I buy the MX121 as they seem to be slow to respond lately to support issues. My MX120 may not have the latest codecs but it works well, so I am getting by as W9tR suggested with the codecs built into the Oppo 95 which also has pandora, netflix etc. streaming . The MX121 will be a nice machine at a price that will make it more attractive then the MX150 flagship model.

[Masterlu]

Originally Posted by 1KW

All very good posts, I can appreciate all the different point of views. I agree technology has to move on. I think I will wait to see what happens with the customer support from Mcintosh moving forward before I buy the MX121 as they seem to be slow to respond lately to support issues. My MX120 may not have the latest codecs but it works well, so I am getting by as W9tR suggested with the codecs built into the Oppo 95 which also has pandora, netflix etc. streaming . The MX121 will be a nice machine at a price that will make it more attractive then the MX150 flagship model.

That's #1

[jdandy]

Originally Posted by Masterlu

That's #1

Ivan.......

[MikeSp]

While I cannot blame Mc for bringing out a more up-to-date pre-pro at a better price point for the sake of competition, I CAN expect MORE from Mc when it comes to enabling a retrofit upgrade at reasonable owner cost for the MX150 -- if Denon can keep the AVP going and upgraded for what, almost 4 years and into the forseeable future, and Classe has an upgrade for their SSP-800 (perhaps Anthem too) and if Classe and Denon can make such retrofit upgrades, then there is NO reason that McIntosh cannot do the same. I love my MX150 and have no interest in 3D so HDMI 1.3 is fine for me and my MX150 will serve me well for years but if I had it to do over again, I would have gone with the Classe or Denon pre-pros simply because they are also high quality AND can be upgraded. There are features on my MX150 that I have no clue about because the manual is poor and does NOT go into detail on all of the features of the MX150 -- and some of the features it does explain are not explained well at all and I was an IT director, so technology is not new to me.

While I am certainly no electronic engineer, it would seem to me that IF IF IF Mc wanted to do so and be supportive of loyal Mc customers, they could engineer a retrofit upgrade of the MX150 to current video standards and connectivity at a respectable cost to the end user even if they got some help from Denon engineering.

Does the introduction of the MX121 spell the end of the life cycle of the MX150 making it a dead-end piece with the usual rapid depreciation? IS a MX151 on the horizon to compete with the higher end price point of the Classe SSP-800 and new Lexicon pre-pro that are closer in price to the MX150?

MikeSp

[SMC23]

Originally Posted by jdandy

SMC23.......Technology, as well as companies move on. Your car doesn't keep getting updated in lieu of new models arriving annually. Your computer was outdated before getting it home from the store. So why would you expect McIntosh not to continue doing what they do? They design, engineer and manufacture audio gear for a world market. They're not going to put the company in a holding pattern to continuously massage components already produced and sold. I'm not trying to be argumentative, just presenting an alternate view point. We all wish to stay on the leading edge, but it isn't free. In fact, it gets damn expensive if you try to do it.

Being in IT Management i can totally relate to the pace of technological change and i agree with some of your points (from a business perspective), but don't get me wrong, i love the MX150 and as it fits my current needs.

But when you see other companies continuously improve their flagship products through firmware updates and hardware upgrade offerings e.g (Classe SSP800, Denon AVPHC1, Anthem D2's) to keep current one can only be left with a sour taste on their shiny new 12K Mac processor that is merely only been out a year and half.

Denon AVR Upgrade AVR-5308CI AVP-A1HDCI