TommyC Posted November 19, 2005 Share Posted November 19, 2005 A coworker of mine builds speakers as a hobby. He built a room on his house to test them in. It has some pretty serious room treatments and is Very quiet without sounding dead. I was visiting yesterday and told him I would like to hear my Heresies in there with his McIntosh gear. He said "go get 'em!" I will Never be satisfied with how they sound in my tiny little room again! [:'(] First we just ran the Heresies by themselves and they sounded amazing! then we put his Bully Sub in the mix and it was almost a religious experience! Granted, he has more invested in his equipment than I do in my Truck, but I had never believed that those little speakers could sound That good! If anyone is curious, here is the equipment list he emailed me: McIntosh MCD1000 CD Transport McIntosh MDA1000 D/A Converter McIntosh C2200 Preamp McIntosh MC2102 Power Amp DIY Sub with a Bully 15 driver and an Adire ADA1200 Plate Amp. Any estimates on how much $$$ his system would set me back? [] I will never be able to invest that kind of change in an audio system, but Man is all that McIntosh gear Georgeous!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill H. Posted November 19, 2005 Share Posted November 19, 2005 Tom, Just to give you some idea.........the MC 2102 retailed for $6,100 alone.................... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TommyC Posted November 19, 2005 Author Share Posted November 19, 2005 Tom, Just to give you some idea.........the MC 2102 retailed for $6,100 alone No wonder he declined my offer to trade him straight up for my 1969 Firebird!! [] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff Matthews Posted November 19, 2005 Share Posted November 19, 2005 Tommy, it's all in the amp. When I bought my Cornwalls years ago, the previous owner auditioned them to me through his Marantz receiver - which was supposed to be pretty decent. They were loud - but rough sounding. I'm sure you got a flavor of that distinction by the way your post reads. I bought the Corns on my bro's advice. Then, I bought my Crown amp for $800 new. Not near what the McIntosh runs - I'm sure. I just saw a Crown like mine on e-bay for $400. Goes to show that you can get a good amp for $400 used/$800 new. I have had friends in disbelief when I run my Crown at 1/3 volume through my Corns. It is so clear and so loud. I'd bet it's your HK receiver. HK makes a good product, but a quality amp/pre-amp combo is really the way to go if you intend on playing at loud volumes. You don't need to spend more than $1k on a good new amp or about $500 on a good used one. I see $6100 for the McIntosh. Couldn't be 6x better than a good $1,000 amp. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colterphoto1 Posted November 19, 2005 Share Posted November 19, 2005 Maybe it's the room treatments? Do you have the old 70's HK730 receiver? That's a nice ballsy unit. I have one, nothing wrong with it at all. Now it might pale compared to that Mac unit, but I can't help but think that the difference in rooms might be far more the culprit than the amp difference. Especially since your buddy has spent so much time and effort on his and you describe your's at 'tiny'. Michael Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PrestonTom Posted November 19, 2005 Share Posted November 19, 2005 Tommy, You're right the McIntosh is nice looking, but it is quite expensive. The first step is certianly to supplement the Heresys with a sub. I believe the second step is to spend some time and arranging the room and the speaker setup/location. There is no simple formula (although there are some good starting points). It does require some time, tweaking and careful listening. With success, then some room treatment is in order. This can range from fooling with carpet & drapes & furniture to more elaborate treatments such as foam & bass traps. This last step can be expensive so you need to have a clear path in what you like and do not like about the sound. Perhaps prior to this, you might even consider re-freshing you crossovers. If you get caught up in a more extensive upgrading of the crossover you need to be very clear what it is that you like & do not like about the sound (and realistically would a super-duper cross over mod accomplish this)Next would come the amp & pre-amp since these (compared to the other issues) will contribute the least impact (unless you have a very poor system). It would be hard to recommend McIntosh at this point for driving Heresys. I am not knocking the speakers, but bigger gains (cost wise) would be gained from going the next step up in the speaker chain. There are a great number of good amps and pre-amps out there that are a better value (where value is determined by BOTH both sound & price).Good luck,-Tom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jt1stcav Posted November 19, 2005 Share Posted November 19, 2005 True...But if you've got the cash, why not splurg a little! Your Heresys will thank you for it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jt1stcav Posted November 19, 2005 Share Posted November 19, 2005 Tommy, to recapture that grand McIntosh sound with your Heresys, why not consider trading in your harman/kardon receiver for a used McIntosh MA5100 receiver? You can find decent buys thru eBay and AudiogoN that won't cost even a fraction of your truck and you'll get a glorious taste of that Mac sound you've experienced at your friend's place. Just a thought... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TommyC Posted November 19, 2005 Author Share Posted November 19, 2005 Maybe it's the room treatments? Do you have the old 70's HK730 receiver? That's a nice ballsy unit. I have one, nothing wrong with it at all. Now it might pale compared to that Mac unit, but I can't help but think that the difference in rooms might be far more the culprit than the amp difference. Especially since your buddy has spent so much time and effort on his and you describe your's at 'tiny'. Michael Oh I am Sure that it had ALOT to do with the room treatments And room shape. I would Love to be able to design a room around my gear like he did! Unfortunately, the H/K (along with most of my other audio gear) died a horrible death in the "great lightening strike incident of 2005!!" Lightening struck my house (TV Antenna) and killed my alarm system, several computers, 2 TV's, small appliances, as well as my audio stuff! I am using a borrowed Pioneer A/V receiver right now to have something to listen to until I decide what to buy to replace my old stuff. BTW, Homeowners Insurance and Vintage audio gear... Not a good match unless you have a specific rider to cover it! [] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jt1stcav Posted November 19, 2005 Share Posted November 19, 2005 Oh damn, I was not aware of the lightning strike to your home (glad we have digital cable now and got rid of our 10' roof mounted TV antenna...lightning strikes are horrible here in Florida).[li][ip] If your harman/kardon is totally defunkt (beyond repair), then maybe you should really consider a well maintained used McIntosh receiver (if you still want to go the receiver route instead of seperates). If I was in the market for a vintage stereo receiver, McIntosh is the way to go IMO![] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TommyC Posted November 19, 2005 Author Share Posted November 19, 2005 Tommy, it's all in the amp. When I bought my Cornwalls years ago, the previous owner auditioned them to me through his Marantz receiver - which was supposed to be pretty decent. They were loud - but rough sounding. I'm sure you got a flavor of that distinction by the way your post reads. I bought the Corns on my bro's advice. Then, I bought my Crown amp for $800 new. Not near what the McIntosh runs - I'm sure. I just saw a Crown like mine on e-bay for $400. Goes to show that you can get a good amp for $400 used/$800 new. I have had friends in disbelief when I run my Crown at 1/3 volume through my Corns. It is so clear and so loud. I'd bet it's your HK receiver. HK makes a good product, but a quality amp/pre-amp combo is really the way to go if you intend on playing at loud volumes. You don't need to spend more than $1k on a good new amp or about $500 on a good used one. I see $6100 for the McIntosh. Couldn't be 6x better than a good $1,000 amp. I agree completely. I am definitly not a High End audiophile type of guy. I can pretty much say for sure that his system was not 175 times better sounding than my $33 H/K was. That being the case, if I could afford a MC2102 without it taking money away from important things, I would buy one! It is just That stunning! It now ranks Way up close to the top of my best looking audio equipment list! You will notice that I have never got on anyone who is into very expensive and possibly questionable gear for the simple reason that I believe that if it makes you happy and your family is not suffering because you spent money on it, then it is worth precisely what you paid for it. Evan is a McIntosh fanatic and can easily afford it so his setup is perfect for him. I am a late 70's Pioneer fanatic but Can't afford it right now, so I buy what I can afford and enjoy the music! [] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TommyC Posted November 19, 2005 Author Share Posted November 19, 2005 Oh damn, I was not aware of the lightning strike to your home (glad we have digital cable now and got rid of our 10' roof mounted TV antenna...lightning strikes are horrible here in Florida).[li][ip] If your harman/kardon is totally defunkt (beyond repair), then maybe you should really consider a well maintained used McIntosh receiver (if you still want to go the receiver route instead of seperates). If I was in the market for a vintage stereo receiver, McIntosh is the way to go IMO![] Ours it 18' above our house and just Begging to be struck!! It was pretty impressive to see the little sensors on the windows (for the alarm system) vaporized in a tiny flash of light! I have been trying to decide what to get as a replacement. I am a Pioneer man from Way back and have looked at those (Love thos silver face plates!), but in my old age I am starting to enjoy trying different gear. I had never considered McIntosh to be in my price range, but If I have the chance I will definitly give one a listen. That is one of the things that I Love about my Heresies... They let you hear what the gear is capable of. Plus, despite all the things that people seem to find to not like about them, I just plain Love the way my music sounds through them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WMcD Posted November 19, 2005 Share Posted November 19, 2005 I'm not going to get into an amp issue. I suspecit there is something to it. I do think it is a room issue. During last summer's trip to the Klipsch location at Indy we heard quite a few speakers in a room which looked fairly standard, except for the ceiling treatment. The grey walls were, though, some good stuff. All the varous speakers sounded good. The moderator said the room was 70% dead. That doesn't give us a lot of information. But it does hint that the room treatment was adding (subtracting?) quite a bit. Gil Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TommyC Posted November 19, 2005 Author Share Posted November 19, 2005 I'm not going to get into an amp issue. I suspecit there is something to it. I do think it is a room issue. Gil Oh I have No Doubt. I have had the chance recently to visit dedicated listening rooms on three occasions and I am convinced! I now believe that you can do wonders with appropriate treatment, I just don't have the first clue where to begin when designing the treatment for a given room. Evan's room was even more unique in that it wasn't rectangular or even 4 sided. It was shaped something like a theater. Flat front wall with a built in gear rack, side walls angled out from each other, back wall was actually three sided, and the ceiling was higher in the back than in the front! Then he added some treatment based on measurments and listening untill he was satisfied! It worked!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TommyC Posted November 19, 2005 Author Share Posted November 19, 2005 True...But if you've got the cash, why not splurg a little! Your Heresys will thank you for it. I just noticed that pic. DAMN!!! Now That is a nice wall!!! I have a friend with a similar looking "Wall'o Kenwood"! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff Matthews Posted November 20, 2005 Share Posted November 20, 2005 Look, if you want your Heresies to sound great, why don't you do both? Get a $6,000 amp and a bigger house with a custom listening room? I am sure they will sound better. Actually, I still stand behind the concept of a separate amp/pre-amp combo. Spend no more than about $500-1000 on the amp and $200-400 on the pre. You can do plenty well on that kind of money. Think used possibly and get the stuff somebody else paid 2 to 3 times more for. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.