MC452 Club

[Mikado463]

ej,

In addition to what Luis provided here's another .....

http://www.electronicdesign.com/anal...rating-classes

once you read the definition of class A operation I'm sure you'll see why 'cross-over' distortion doesn't exist.

[ei001h]

Recently upgraded from ma6600 to mc452 and c2600. (about 3 weeks ago) Not happy with the new sound I'm getting.
I have vienna acoustics Mozart grands and REL S5 set up in my basement dedicated theater room. (no acoustic treatments)

I listen mostly to classical, piano and symphony.
This is my second system, I kept the ma6600 paired with mcd550 and VA bach speakers in the living room.

The sound Im getting is less detailed, lacking lower end control and overall very bright and unpleasant highs. Definite listening fatigue after about half hour.

Do I need to upgrade my speakers? I feel my speakers are the weakest component in my system. What would you recommend for my music tastes and 6-8k range, new or used. I would like to reproduce classical music with concert hall volume levels. I'm thinking I should avoid rear ported design as I need to place them close to the wall. Also, aesthetics are very important, that is why I picked VA initially. Any classical music fans here?

[Paret]

Originally Posted by ei001h

Recently upgraded from ma6600 to mc452 and c2600. (about 3 weeks ago) Not happy with the new sound I'm getting.
I have vienna acoustics Mozart grands and REL S5 set up in my basement dedicated theater room. (no acoustic treatments)

I listen mostly to classical, piano and symphony.
This is my second system, I kept the ma6600 paired with mcd550 and VA bach speakers in the living room.

The sound Im getting is less detailed, lacking lower end control and overall very bright and unpleasant highs. Definite listening fatigue after about half hour.

Do I need to upgrade my speakers? I feel my speakers are the weakest component in my system. What would you recommend for my music tastes and 6-8k range, new or used. I would like to reproduce classical music with concert hall volume levels. I'm thinking I should avoid rear ported design as I need to place them close to the wall. Also, aesthetics are very important, that is why I picked VA initially. Any classical music fans here?

I'm surprised by your results. I do listen to plenty of classical and attend plenty of classical concerts as I am a Season subscriber to the Fort Worth Symphony since 2004 with at least 10 symphonic concerts per year and a summer festival weekend with three or more concerts.

I have the same MC452 Amplifier and C2600 pre and truly enjoy my classical music plus everything else

Right now I'm feeding a pair of Salk Towers and two Rhythmic 15" subs.
and I also have the room treated with GIK panels and some window coverings.
The room is 16' by 16' with one open wall behind my sitting position and vaulted ceilings up to 11'.

My soundstage is huge, detailed and I am very happy. As close as my live concerts as I have ever had. Tweaking speaker position and treatments to get to were I'm at now.

Can I ask what your sources are?

My digital server connected via USB to the 2600 really improved with a high quality cable. The C2600 DAC is outstanding IMHO.

Zero RF or other noises.

One other thing is those tubes need some break in time, probably 200+hours before they get to their potential. Although mine sounded good from the beginning and only got better with time.

Don't give up.

Regards,

[jdandy]

ei001h.......The MC452 needs upwards of 120 to 150 hours of break-in before it settles into its permanent voice. Nearly every MC452 owner has reported the same experience.

You may find my McIntosh MC452 Review interesting.

[ei001h]

Thanks Dan, that was very informative review.

My sources are Bluesound node 2 connected via digital out and MCD550 with analogue out. Im using blue jeans speaker cables of different lengths and gauges 6ft and 20ft for L/R. All stock power cables into 15amp line. Interconnects are balanced monoprice. Left speaker is about 2 feet from the wall, right speaker same distance from wall but flanked by sofa on one side and wall on the other. Distance between speakers about 9 feet. In my prior set up I had speakers free standing, about 3 feet from wall. I think my problem is multifactorial, speaker placement being the worst offender. I think it's time to upgrade speakers to better match my amp.

Edward

[ejr1953]

Originally Posted by jdandy

ei001h.......The MC452 needs upwards of 120 to 150 hours of break-in before it settles into its permanent voice. Nearly every MC452 owner has reported the same experience.

You may find my McIntosh MC452 Review interesting.

I upgraded from a MAC6700 to a C50/MC452 which had been broken in for about four months, and my experience was the opposite. I immediately noticed a significant improvement in the sound stage, the new pair didn't sound like it was making an "effort" to drive the speakers, smoother sound overall, with significant improvements in detail and the definition, especially in the bass region.

Patience?

[biscorbit]

I'm in!



mc452 > c52 > Harbeth c7es3

[andytts]

Does anyone have any problem with meters on their mc452? My left channel meter is slightly weaker. Calibration doesn’t help because with speaker cables unplugged, both meters are even.

[Audiophilehi]

Originally Posted by biscorbit

I'm in!



mc452 > c52 > Harbeth c7es3

Congratulations biscorbit and welcome to AA.

[miketuason]

Originally Posted by andytts

Does anyone have any problem with meters on their mc452? My left channel meter is slightly weaker. Calibration doesn’t help because with speaker cables unplugged, both meters are even.

I don't know if it's true, but I was told that most recording studio doesn't really record music exactly balance as in one channel will always be a little higher that the other.