New MCT500 Transport

[1KW]

How long do the mct cable come?

[j3brow]

Originally Posted by 1KW

How long do the mct cable come?

It is 5 ft. Ron-C once commented that the length was critical, different lengths didn’t work right. He says a 6 ft DIN cable wouldn’t work for example.

[kingofstoneage]

Originally Posted by Vignotra

1) The reading mechanics is different between the MCT450 and MCT500;
2) The MCT500 also reads DVD ROMs with high resolution files and DSD up to 128;
3) The MCD1100 also has the MCT output and works perfectly with my D1100.

Has the MCT500 better reading qualities compared to the MCT450?

[kingofstoneage]

Is still thinking about an upgrade from MCT450 to a MCT500. Is there anybody here, who has an MCT500 in his system installed?

[thughes]

I have the MCT500 installed. What do you want to know?

[kingofstoneage]

Originally Posted by thughes

I have the MCT500 installed. What do you want to know?

Has the MCT500 reading or loading problems with certain CDs or Discs? Mine MCT 450 sometimes has problems to load certain discs. Especially newer ones.....that is not to often, but i am thinking of doing an upgrade.

[Bob Bubeck]

Originally Posted by kingofstoneage

Has the MCT500 reading or loading problems with certain CDs or Discs? Mine MCT 450 sometimes has problems to load certain discs. Especially newer ones.....that is not to often, but i am thinking of doing an upgrade.

I have owned an MCT500 for about seven months. It has had no trouble reading and playing any RBCD, hybrid SACD, or single layer SACD in my collection, which is quite extensive and includes disks that are 30 years old to very recent releases from numerous labels … a situation which also provides an answer for why someone would wish to own a good disk spinner. Some of us have large libraries of music to play. Well, how does it sound? In my case that very much depends on the DA2 resident in my C2700 and on that hangs a tale.

Many, if not all, earlier samples of the DA2 are prone to often ‘miss the downbeat’ at the beginning of a disk or even at the beginning of every selection on a disk. Sony/Columbia disks were/are particularly prone to exhibit this problem while, say, DG's not at all. My C2700 made the trip back to the mothership in Binghamton while, thankfully, my excellent dealer (Paragon) gave me a loaner C2700 (whose DA2 also had the same problem) to weather the Covid-19 storm. Last week my C2700 made its return with firmware updates for both the C2700 itself and the DA2. I believe that the new firmware versions are 1.04(?) for the preamp and 4.0 (?) for the DA2, but don’t quote me on the numbers (Hopefully, a knowledgeable McIntosh associate will chime in on the version numbers).

Low and behold, the principal queuing flaw is now corrected and the DA2 now sounds significantly improved, as well. There is a greater sense of space between instruments in imaging and sound staging and a smoother, airier presentation for the upper midrange and highs. This is readily apparent when one plays, say, the most tortuous and fortissimo moments during the 1st movement of the Shostakovitch Symphony No. 10 (Nelsons, BSO, DG).* By the way, those who evaluate audio equipment and do not throw well-recorded complex high horsepower classical music at it is kidding themselves. The upper midrange is where one is likely to bring a system to its knees. The update for the C2700, itself, improves control functions (i.e., the ease of cartridge loading and the minimizing of silence between switching the tone controls on and off).

So, the reproduction using the MCT500 and the updated DA2 is truly excellent for the price point. Not quite a dCS Vivaldi full stack, mind you, but a strong positive step in that direction.

Happy listening.

Bob

* Test disks first treated with L'Art du Son for critical comparisons.
______________
Sources: Clearaudio Jubilee MC/Clearaudio Innovation Wood TT w/Universal Arm 9”; MCT500 CD/SACD transport; OPPO 205; NAD C446 Internet Tuner; Nakamichi 670ZX cassette deck. Electronics: MacIntosh C2700 preamp w/DA2 and MC462 power amp. Speakers: Wilson Yvettes Headphones: MacIntosh MHP 1000 Interconnects: Transparent G5 balanced and speaker cables; MCT - MCT500 -> C2700.Power cords: Transparent (on preamp, power amp and transport). Surge protected. Record cleaner: Kirmuss KA-RC-1 ultrasonic.

[kingofstoneage]

Originally Posted by Bob Bubeck

I have owned an MCT500 for about seven months. It has had no trouble reading and playing any RBCD, hybrid SACD, or single layer SACD in my collection, which is quite extensive and includes disks that are 30 years old to very recent releases from numerous labels … a situation which also provides an answer for why someone would wish to own a good disk spinner. Some of us have large libraries of music to play. Well, how does it sound? In my case that very much depends on the DA2 resident in my C2700 and on that hangs a tale.

Many, if not all, earlier samples of the DA2 are prone to often ‘miss the down beat’ at the beginning of a disk or even at the beginning of every selection on a disk. Sony/Columbia disks were/are particularly prone to exhibit this problem while, say, DG's not at all. My C2700 made the trip back to the mothership in Binghamton while, thankfully, my excellent dealer (Paragon) gave me a loaner C2700 (whose DA2 also had the same problem) to weather the Covid-19 storm. Last week my C2700 made its return with firmware updates for both the C2700 itself and the DA2. I believe that the new firmware versions are 1.04(?) for the preamp and 4.0 (?) for the DA2, but don’t quote me on the numbers (Hopefully, a knowledgeable McIntosh associate will chime in on the version numbers).

Low and behold, the principal queuing flaw is now corrected and the DA2 now sounds significantly improved, as well. There is a greater sense of space between instruments in imaging and sound staging and a smoother, airier presentation for the upper midrange and highs. This is readily apparent when one plays, say, the most tortuous and fortissimo moments during the 1st movement of the Shostakovitch Symphony No. 10 (Nelsons, BSO, DG).* By the way, one who evaluates audio equipment and does not throw well-recorded complex high horsepower classical music at it is kidding themself. The upper midrange is where one is likely to bring a system to its knees. The update for the C2700, itself, improves control functions (i.e., the ease of cartridge loading and the minimizing of silence between switching the tone controls on and off).

So, the reproduction using the MCT500 and the updated DA2 is truly excellent for the price point. Not quite a dCS Vivaldi full stack, mind you, but a strong positive step in that direction.

Happy listening.

Bob

* Test disks first treated with L'Art du Son for critical comparisons.
______________
Sources: Clearaudio Jubilee MC/Clearaudio Innovation Wood TT w/Universal Arm 9”; MCT500 CD/SACD transport; OPPO 205; NAD C446 Internet Tuner; Nakamichi 670ZX cassette deck. Electronics: MacIntosh C2700 preamp w/DA2 and MC462 power amp. Speakers: Wilson Yvettes Headphones: MacIntosh MHP 1000 Interconnects: Transparent G5 balanced and speaker cables; MCT - MCT500 -> C2700.Power cords: Transparent (on preamp, power amp and transport). Surge protected. Record cleaner: Kirmuss KA-RC-1 ultrasonic.

Thanks for your sharing your experiences with your MCT500 and C2700 (DA2).
Years ago i had some problems with my D100 DAC
If my dealer give me a good price for my MCT450 i would do the upgrade to a newer MCT500.

[thughes]

Has the MCT500 reading or loading problems with certain CDs or Discs? Mine MCT 450 sometimes has problems to load certain discs. Especially newer ones.....that is not to often, but i am thinking of doing an upgrade.

… sorry for the late reply. I have had no issues with playback of any disks, new or old. The player is connected to an MC53 via the McIntosh cable.

[kingofstoneage]

Originally Posted by thughes

… sorry for the late reply. I have had no issues with playback of any disks, new or old. The player is connected to an MC53 via the McIntosh cable.

Thanks for your reply!