McIntosh MEN220 Review

[Grasshopper]

Originally Posted by crwilli

Glad to hear you score an MEN220 and find it useful. You are only using a fraction of its capabilities although perhaps the biggest impact function, Room Perfect. It will help you seamlessly integrate your subs and when you get bored, you can do some measurements of your room and create custom EQ settings for your room. It is a digital Swiss Army knife!

Thank you Craig.

I can't even wait to really dig in.

The active crossover function seems like it will even take me to the next level. I need some longer balanced cables to start playing with my F113s. For now I'm totally content to not have subs in the chain...and I LOVE bass!!!

I just can't even believe the difference room perfect makes.

For the first time I can remember I am perfectly happy (blown away) by my system.

Audio Nirvana is here.

(Can't imagine what adding the other Swiss army features will do).

[Grasshopper]

Dan,

I've finally gotten the time to try and integrate my dual subs using my new MEN220.

(To be honest, I haven't been in any hurry to integrate my subs because Room Perfect alone does amazing things. Frankly, had I bought the MEN220 years ago, I'd have never bought subs for my 2 channel rig).

OK, now for my question.

Do you set the high output as High Pass Filter (setting that to 36hz) AND set the low output as Low Pass Filter also setting that to 36hz?

The low pass filter settings make sense, I was a little confused at that to set the high output to.

Originally Posted by jdandy

Jason.......You will not lose anything by feeding the subwoofers independently from mono inputs on the subs. The cumulative of the left and right channel signals from the Low Pass output of the MEN220 will deliver all the low frequency signal information.

Yes, use the JL Audio ARO system to set the subs up properly before running the Room Perfect measurements. I got my best results by turning off the sub(s), then running Room Perfect measurements with the High-Pass set to Full Range and the Low -Pass set to Low Range. Once the MEN220 has built the Room Perfect algorithms for the main speakers then power up the subwoofers again and fine tune the Master volume on the subs to dial them in with the main speakers after making your desired crossover settings in the MEN220 menu. I got very good results crossing over my F113 at 36Hz using the Linkwitz-Riley curve.

You can still use the processor loop on your C2300 preamplifier as long as the MEN220 is installed between the preamplifier outputs and the amplifier inputs. Anything used in the processor loop will still be influenced by the Room Perfect equalizer settings.

[jdandy]

Jason.......Yes, setting the low pass and the high pass to crossover at the same frequency is the correct way to do it. Depending on which crossover you selected (Linkwitz Riley or Butterworth) will determine the slope at the crossover point. I preferred the Linkwitz Riley 4th order setting for a steep 24 dB per octave crossover point.

[Grasshopper]

Originally Posted by jdandy

Jason.......Yes, setting the low pass and the high pass to crossover at the same frequency is the correct way to do it. Depending on which crossover you selected (Linkwitz Riley or Butterworth) will determine the slope at the crossover point. I preferred the Linkwitz Riley 4th order setting for a steep 24 dB per octave crossover point.

Got it.

Thank you a bunch!

I'll play some more.

[Grasshopper]

Dan,

Just reporting in. I can't believe the difference selecting the Linkwitz Riley 4th order setting (vs the 2nd order) makes.

This is all hieroglyphics to me, but the 4th order setting made everything snap together (I had it on the 2nd order as the default before I saw your message). Thanks for your sage wisdom...big difference.

I'm a little intimidated about all the nuances with settings, but its pretty incredible how this sounds.

Originally Posted by jdandy

Jason.......Yes, setting the low pass and the high pass to crossover at the same frequency is the correct way to do it. Depending on which crossover you selected (Linkwitz Riley or Butterworth) will determine the slope at the crossover point. I preferred the Linkwitz Riley 4th order setting for a steep 24 dB per octave crossover point.

[jdandy]

Jason.......Happy to know that suggestion provided improvement. The steeper 24 dB roll off at the crossover point keeps the two different low frequency drivers from overlapping larger areas of the same frequencies. Don't be afraid to lower the crossover frequency from 36Hz to 32Hz or even a bit lower. Your B&W 800's should have no difficulty reproducing 32Hz or lower, so augmenting the lowest frequencies below that point with the f113's will further enhance the lowest octave in an invisible manner. You don't want your subs to be calling attention to themselves but you do want that lowest octave to be present. Once you are satisfied with the crossover point use the Master volume controls on the subs to blend them seamlessly into the output of the 800's.

[Blueoak]

Hi all,

I was looking at the MEN220 as well. My biggest concern though is that I am investing into some serious digital equipment: Aurender N10 -> Mcintosh D1100 -> MC601 -> XR100s.

If I put the MEN220 between the D1100 and MC601 will I be destroying all of the D1100 goodness? I assume the MEN220 has to use its own DACs to correct the room.

The setup is in my open living room.

[jdandy]

Originally Posted by Blueoak

Hi all,

I was looking at the MEN220 as well. My biggest concern though is that I am investing into some serious digital equipment: Aurender N10 -> Mcintosh D1100 -> MC601 -> XR100s.

If I put the MEN220 between the D1100 and MC601 will I be destroying all of the D1100 goodness? I assume the MEN220 has to use its own DACs to correct the room.

The setup is in my open living room.

Doug.......A McIntosh MEN220 is something that can be added at any time to your system. I think it would be more beneficial to assemble the system as outlined above without the MEN220, spend some months with the system, tweak the speaker locations, etc., until you are satisfied with the results. You may find you do not need to do anything else.

[Grasshopper]

Originally Posted by Blueoak

Hi all,



I was looking at the MEN220 as well. My biggest concern though is that I am investing into some serious digital equipment: Aurender N10 -> Mcintosh D1100 -> MC601 -> XR100s.



If I put the MEN220 between the D1100 and MC601 will I be destroying all of the D1100 goodness? I assume the MEN220 has to use its own DACs to correct the room.



The setup is in my open living room.

How big is your room?

I know in my oddly shaped open basement, I simply cannot live without my MEN220.

Bass reproduction is night and day.

[Family Progtitioner]

If you're anxious about losing the benefits of the d1100 then I would recommend a mini-dsp with dirac. It can be configured with digital in and out so you can keep the benefits of your d1100.

That said, imo the benefits of room correction VASTLY outweigh any benefits a DAC can give. Audiophiles talk about "jaw dropping " and "night and day" differences between components which is mainly bs. Room correction, though, is the real deal. Put a great system into a poor room and you get a poor system.