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Recent audio experience! Macintosh.


BlessedPrince

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On ‎1‎/‎16‎/‎2017 at 7:32 PM, BlessedPrince said:

 

I want to share an experience I had recently. I went to Best Buy and went into their magnolia room. They had Macintosh equipment which is way out of my budget right now but I wanted to hear it up close and personal. First I tried out the 2 channel stereo for music which was really nice and clean( B & W speakers suck, they had other speaker on floor though and they used those) then I tried out the theater room. Also powered by Macintosh. Sounded very clean but lacked something. I couldn't pinpoint it, maybe the speakers just weren't up to par(speakers were behind screen)

 

On ‎1‎/‎16‎/‎2017 at 9:30 PM, pbphoto said:

I listened to some Martin Login electro-static speakers powered by a McIntosh MC275 tube amp at Magnolia last year.  Not impressed.  In fairness, those guys didn't do it any favors with it's setup and positioning - it was sort of on an end-cap display to attract passers-by attention.

 

I think McIntosh amps and integrateds are a great audio investment considering you can buy them gently used, keep them for 10-20 years, and then sell them for probably about what you paid for them.  Not bad. 

 

 

 

I think that pbphoto hit on part of the issue regarding room set-up in these types of store environments. In my experience I have found that there is a lot of variability in the source (certain locations seemed to be streaming low quality mp3 files, while others put a lot of work into using a quality source that may include a quality CD player) and room set-up for the Best Buy Magnolia stores.  In many respects, the source material and room set-up just might be the most critical aspects of a music reproduction system.

 

In addition, it seems that not all Magnolia stores are equal in relation to equipment that it stocks either.  A couple of years ago the "Magnolia Design Centers" typically had the "high-end" audio equipment such as McIntosh, while the Magnolia Home Theater rooms are scaled down; however, that may have changed.  Either way, since the economic downturn in 2008, it seems like they took a huge step back with the Magnolia concept and were scaling back and letting go knowledgeable employees. 

 

Since it appears that Youthman experienced an enjoyable combination of McIntosh amplifiers and B&W speakers detailed in his post below, hopefully his experience wasn't an isolated experience and the implementation of the Magnolia concept is making a comeback and improving across more stores. 

 

 

 

On ‎9‎/‎15‎/‎2014 at 4:13 PM, Youthman said:

Recently, I read in the Klipsch forums that Best Buy was starting to carry McIntosh. My initial thoughts was of disappointment because this meant that McIntosh would be introducing budget products for the mass market which goes completely contrary to it's business model. Needless to say, I wasn't in favor of it.

 

Today I took my bro-n-law to the airport and on the way back, I decided to stop by Best Buy to see the new Klipsch Speakers. I headed over to the Magnolia section to see what they had to offer.

 

My apologies that these are not the typical Youthman quality photos as they were taken with my iPhone but I wanted to share nonetheless.

The Magnolia sales rep greeted me and asked if I had ever been at the store. I told him no and that this was not my local Best Buy. He asked if he could show me around and I said sure.

 

They had 3 demo rooms available. In their premium room, they had (4) complete high end 2ch setups that consisted of offerings from Magnapan, Sonas and B&W. The B&W 802's were hooked up to a pair of McIntosh 601 Monoblocks and McIntosh Preamp and CD Player so I was anxious to have a listen.

 

He played 3 songs and the B&W's had fantastic imaging, very smooth midrange and although very clear, they did not have the "detail" and the "highs" that I'm used to hearing with Klipsch. Overall, very, very nice sounding setup.

 

My thoughts of this whole intermingling between Magnolia, B&W and McIntosh was beginning to rub off on me. I honestly was VERY impressed with the setup. This was not what I was accustomed to seeing at the typical Magnolia demo rooms. They had acoustic panels, Furman line conditioners, amplifier stands, several turntables and "high end" cables. This was exactly what I would see from the high end A/V Stores (you know the ones that are getting harder to come by.

 

magnolia-1.jpg

magnolia-2.jpg

magnolia-3.jpg

magnolia-4.jpg

magnolia-9.jpg

 

 

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On ‎1‎/‎17‎/‎2017 at 8:43 AM, NOSValves said:

McIntosh is sold at Best Buy now? What the hell is the world coming too? 

 

2 hours ago, Dawson's Ridge said:

Klipsch is also sold at Best Buy.

 

 

Here are a three links that some may find interesting (or maybe not) that includes some of the history of the Magnolia centers that reaches back to the 1950s.

 

Original purchase of Magnolia by Best Buy finalized during December 2000

http://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/stories/2000/12/18/daily4.html

 

Closed the Magnolia Headquarters around 2009

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/best-buy-still-trying-and-failing-to-make-magnolia-bloom/

 

Magnolia history timeline starting with the 1950s on the Magnolia website

http://www.magnoliaav.com/about-us/history

 

 

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On 1/16/2017 at 7:32 PM, BlessedPrince said:

First of all I listen to music in pure direct without a sub. Just 2 channels. I honestly couldn't hear much of a difference and maybe go as far as to say that my system is more pleasing. 

 

In the theater($250k worth)I was also not very impressed. I also think mine almost sounds better(Atmos dsp setting)If I learned anything, it's that the speakers make all the difference. Gotta love my klipsch and Yamaha quality.

 

Well, you're not going to get into many bar room fights around here with that kind of review! 

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27 minutes ago, NOSValves said:

Yes and it's not flattering to Klipsch brand name either IMHO...

 

I agree. McIntosh sold at Magnolia in Best Buy is not to bad, but you can also buy McIntosh on-line at Crutchfield. It is a defensive move, McIntosh needs to sell product to stay in business and the number of speciality stores is declining.  

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9 hours ago, Dawson's Ridge said:

Klipsch is also sold at Best Buy.

Ya, see the reason they don't push Klipsch at best buy (at least the one near me) is because they only carry their lowest line. which is why they wouldn't push their products.  They don't even sell the reference line there, when I went I think they had some of their synergy speakers. I also remember they had them completely separated from the Magnolia room and hooked up to some broken receiver with the volume knob missing. I remember when I had the experience I was talking about earlier the woman just played whatever the demo song was and you couldn't even adjust the volume or change the music. She played it for about 4 seconds then immediately shut it off. 

 

In the magnolia room though they had top of the line AVR's with cd, Blu ray players and even USB ports to hook up your own source material. If I was Klipsch I'd pull my product from best buy! 

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