Opinion 1

Today’s discussion will be around another well combined set of electronics, which already made an international stir, when we announced it on Facebook and on our portal. This is not a complete set, from the sound source to loudspeakers, but a set composed of a drive, two piece preamplifier and monstrous monoblocks, which played through my Austrian loudspeakers Trenner & Friedl ISIS. Such a set can be regarded as a “Dream system” according to Soundrebels standards. As it often happens everything started much more modest, as we started talks only regarding the power amplifiers, but later we added the preamplifier to the set, and amended the whole with a drive just moments before the distributor left with the truckload of audio gear to reach us. This is how we got for testing a very refined and very desired system by the American company McInctosh. So let me invite you to a test of the CD/SACD player MCD1100, a two-box preamplifier C1000 in the version T and tube power amplifiers MC2301, distributed in Poland by the Warsaw company HiFi Club. This system will have to prove itself against my Japanese Reimyo system. Will this be another Pearl Harbor? I do not know yet. But if you read my writing on a regular basis, you should know, that I never compare the systems in a shootout, but try to show, where are the differences in the sound played, especially as I know, that there are so many differences in how people perceive the sound. This is why I suggest to read the following paragraphs, as it may be helpful in selecting potential candidates for listening.

Theoretically in each test there should be a thorough description of the device being tested, but in case of the McIntosh, known to all the audiophile (and not only audiophile) world, a too descriptive paragraph could be perceived as pure filler. This is the reason, that I will concentrate on the power amplifier and mention the rest only casually. I will just mention, that the tested system has VU meters all over it, a very characteristic item for the brand. Another very well recognizable item – which reminds of the classic models – are the „old-fashioned” knobs used to activate and set various functions. The look is amended with glass fronts with green lit logo and model number. In general, the colors are a combination of black, silver, green and blue, which is maybe not accepted by everybody, but can be regarded as a way to tie a large group of users to the brand. The sound source and the preamplifier look largely alike; the differences come mostly from different functionality of both devices that requires different layout of the fascia and the back plate. The front panels were equipped with silver sidings made from brushed aluminum, and their central parts were slightly exposed. This center part houses a thin CD tray in the CD/SACD player, together with appropriate display, in the C1000 controller there is a volume and source display together with four control buttons while the main unit of the preamplifier displays vacuum tubes within a green lit window. To the sides of those central protrusions all the other control and display parts were located – the knobs, the VU meters and other buttons. The back panels are fairly standard for such components; the preamplifier houses a built-in phonostage as a welcome addition. Talking about the power amps, the tested ones are vacuum tube based, having 8 KT88 per channel, what results in a solid 300W output power. Typical for the Americans, on the sides of the glass plated front there are special windows, that allow us to see the tubes at work, located at the sides of a big, blue VU meter. Below those there are two knobs used to set the operating mode of the unit and two very solid, and helpful, handles. Like I already mentioned before, you cannot go around having green elements of the front panel, like the company logo, product name and descriptions of the control knobs. Moving from the front to the back we can see openwork covers for the tubes and in the central part covers for two big transformers. The back panel offers us three sets of loudspeaker terminals, designed for 2, 4 and 8 Ohm speakers. Inputs are in XLR and RCA standard, there are also mini-jacks for system control bus and an IEC socket. To underline the somewhat nonchalant design, the lower part of the side panels and the back panel is chrome plated. This gives extra shine, which seems to be a must with such colorful appearance. So this is how those powerful amplifiers present themselves.

Before I continua to the description of the listening tests, I would like to mention logistics and unpacking. Unfortunately High End often comes with quite some effort, especially when we test some gear from overseas (US or Canada in our case), a single person is absolutely unable to relocate the products to the desired spots. That was also the case here. Maybe not with all products, but the 300 Watt monos weighing hefty 75kg each really made me sweat. Fortunately, after dragging all the items around, once they were in their final positions, I had a longer rest connecting them all together. And I can finalize this paragraph saying this: all the effort in setting up the system goes away like with a wave of a magical wand, once we press the Power button. The amount of lights presented by the McIntosh in a darkened room is like a relaxing balm put on tired muscles. Seeing this result in our own room immediately gives away what the McIntosh designers wanted to achieve continuing these looks from the very beginning. You cannot be indifferent to it – you either love it or hate it.

How does it sound? Of course like I a genuine Mac, yet incredibly well compared to the stereotype I had in my mind. This is not the result of the used loudspeakers, as I had the opportunity to listen to them with similar setups, but where solid states amplifiers were used, and the sound was definitely less involving. Maybe this is the room, maybe other factors related to used repertoire and time of listening. I do not know, but I felt a different aura of the sounds. I need however to do justice to pre-listening activities, because even in my room, the beginnings were unsatisfactory. Only after I connected the poweramps directly to the wall sockets, things started rolling. If I remember correctly, all previous listening were conducted while using some power strips or conditioners, and as I was only a guest listener, I had to take things as they were. But everyone has different priorities, so let us continue with that what I listened at home. The main motto was composed of a very homogenous reproduction of what was played with a hunch of tube coating. With so many tubes in the sound path it is very difficult – but not impossible – to get rid of this tubey add-on, which is actually very desired by many people. Once I had some initial observations I fed the player with a very melancholic disc from John Potter “The Dowland Project” issued by ECM. The quiet vocal phrases accompanied by old instruments made me very satisfied in terms of vocals, baroque guitar or bass clarinet, and all this due to this tube coating. The paper membranes of my ISIS together with vacuum tubes created such a synergy, that it made me listen to this disc a few times over, with some symptoms of madness I showed. I did not have such thing for quite a while, and for sure I did not expect it to happen during this test. This only strengthens my belief, that I should not make any assumptions and show appropriate humbleness while making final judgments. I love music of Claudio Monteverdi and similar composers, but this was a different, slightly slower, one voice performance from Potter, together with the electronics, carried that “X” factor, that I so desire to find. This does not happen often. When I was writing those words I was again listening to this disc, and before I could move to writing subsequent parts of the text, I had to listen to the disc from the beginning. I must say – this was really sick. When I could draw my attention away from things happening on the disc, I found a very vast sound stage, beginning a bit closer than the one created by Reimyo, yet very deep. Also the information about placement of virtual sound sources was complete. Unfortunately such repertoire gives only partial information about a product, and that was the reason, that the next item on the meeting agenda was the folk-metal group Percival with the disc “Svanevit”. Why? Because it is a very good test for the lowest registers, resolution and breath of the sound, what could be a bit impaired with the way how the system sounded, however the goal of the test is also to see how the system competes against such setbacks. Ok. Music played. And what should I write, when looking at the blue VU meters I see, that this energetic music, I once liked, is very compressed. The needles of the meters stay almost all the time in the same place, independent of the amount of instruments, speed of playing or volume. This is slaughterhouse registered on the disc, and not music that could soothe my ears. But anyway – let me tell you what I caught. In general the way the McIntosh presents sound was very helpful in perceiving upper frequencies, where the cymbals shone, struck angrily by the sticks. Interestingly, the midrange was very readable, in a way that allowed to understand most of the shouted text and the lower frequencies were able to cope with the lightning fast base drum. There was no way to test the refinement of the material heard, because such repertoire has only one goal – to falter the listener, so that he is not able to assess the sonic values, concentrating only on the emotional input, and I must confess this is very easy to achieve at a certain volume level. To cool down after the apocalypse, I played the jazz disc of Bobo Stenson, “Cantando” and only after playing half of it I was able to discern sound nuances of the Mac important for this test. Compared to my set it was a bit rounder, warmer and less sparking, but I perceived it more as a way to present sound, and not as a shortcoming. There was bass and openness, but all of this was drawn with a thicker line and with less shine. This is the aesthetics of this company, and if somebody does not accept that, then he or she should move on to another manufacturer. Quite an influence on the final effect came also from my speakers with paper membranes, so potential buyers may look for more offensive boxes. Of course I am overdrawing this aspect a bit, but only to show you, that those are not globally accepted standards, but the used repertoire and the taste of the listener determine concrete choices. Yet knowing the abilities of the tested system I still prefer it with my Austrian speakers than with commonly used during exhibitions American Thiele. As you can see every listener has his preferences, and there is nothing that will change that.

Theoretically I could finish our encounter now, but on board of the tested preamplifier there is a phonstage. I could not get around not testing that. A dozen of vinyl discs gave me an idea about how this addition to the main unit fares. It is nice to have something like that when we would like to taste the magic of vinyl. A weak component could discourage a beginner, but here we get a product, that produces a lot of well defined information on the sound stage. Of course its aesthetics remains with what I wrote before, but the lower registers are more dense and the upper ones bolder, presenting cymbals with quite different shine than from the digital source. Here you can praise my analog source, but if a built-in phonostage sounds with such a quality, then I can only praise the constructors for not making savings on it.

It was the first time I hosted a complete set made by the American McIntosh and only now I can make any statement about it. I was really surprised with the openness of generated music – different to my previous experience during guest sessions, good presentation of heavier music and a phenomenal synergy of the system in my most beloved repertoire gave me a lot of pleasure. It is really nice to be positively surprised. But if it was not for my initial persistence in setting things up, it would not be so nice, as when everything was powered from a power strip, it was just a confirmation of the not so involving presentations I heard before. Of course plugging the power amplifiers into the wall did not change the presentation completely, but showed, why many people decide to buy products from this company, and there are a lot of them all around the world, also in Poland. You should also not forget about the very distinct and consistent external design. I am convinced, that many people take that aspect into consideration while making a purchase decision. When someone loves the design and does not want the sound to shave them, preferring musicality to that, then after listening to the Mac he or she may not have a way back.

Jacek Pazio

System used in this test:
– CD/DAC: Reimyo CDT – 777 + DAP – 999 EX
– Preamplifier: Reimyo CAT – 777 MK II
– Power amplifier: Reimyo KAP – 777
– Loudspeakers: TRENNER & FRIEDL “ISIS”
– Power cables: Harmonix X-DC 350M2R Improved Version
– Speaker cables: Harmonix HS 101-EXQ (mid-high section); Harmonix HS-101 SLC (bass section)
– IC RCA: Harmonix HS 101-GP
– IC Digital: Harmonix HS 102
– Table: SOLID BASE VI
– AC Power Distributor: POWER BASE HIGH END
– Accessories: Harmonix TU-505EX MK2, Harmonix Enacom improved for AC 100-240V; Harmonix Tuning Room Mini Disk RFA-80i
Analog stage:
– Turntable:
drive: SME 30/2
arm: SME V
cartridge: MIYAJIMA MADAKE
Phonostage: RCM THERIAA

Opinion 2

With years passing and successive addition of birthday candles on the cake I come to the conclusion that it makes no sense to worry about things, we cannot influence. Limiting myself to the area of audio, many brands that shone during my younger years do not exist anymore, while others sell their name for nickels, pursuing segments of the market, which were unheard of in High-End or even Hi-Fi ten or twenty years ago. Fortunately on the market there are still representatives from the old school, which stipulates, that when you do something well you should think three times over if you want to change it and… return to that, what the clients are used to. The surrounding world may chase its own tail in an increasing tempo, and having a worked out, and most importantly unique, design it is better just to educate another generation of users. The effects of such approach are quite obvious. It is sufficient to ask somebody, even vaguely knowledgeable in the area of Hi-Fi, to name three brands from US and the probability of mentioning McIntosh will be close to 100%. This is how we came to the topic of this review. After the very well equipped preamplifier C2500 we tested about one and half year ago, time came to test another proposition, much bigger and being almost at the top the company catalog. A proposition most interesting, because it is almost a complete set of devices composing an intriguing “dream system”. After a short, but full of content, discussion with the distributor – the Warsaw Hi-Fi Club – we chose the top sources in the form of the multi-format player MCD1100 and turntable MT10, the tubed version of the most advanced preamplifier C1000 and monstrous tube monoblocks MC2301 with 300W output power. Of course the set visible on the photos evaluated, and although at first it was limited to (limited is a strange word, thinking about four big boxes and 150kg weight) amplification, yet finally it ended being complete electronics including a turntable, which arrived at the latest moment, just before the photo shoot.

I am sure, that the above list increased the heart rate of the lovers and fans of the American brand, but being true to the legendary manufacturer we must mention, that although they did not squeeze more from tubes, they do miracles with solid state amps. There is no other way of supplying our loudspeakers true, thoroughbred 2kW of blue power… per channel. But you have to start with something, and although the mentioned MC2301 seems low compared to the muscular, transistor brethren, but it should still be good for a satisfactory dose of emotion. I will not forewarn you, but I will just inform, that the turntable was still burning-in during this test, and that due to low “mileage”, so that we decided to give it more comfortable conditions and make a separate test with it.
So let us come to a shortened description of the supplied electronics. I used the word “shortened” on purpose, because the design used by the brand for 65 (!!!) years evolved quite harmoniously and logically into what we have currently, building solid foundation for immediate recognizability of their products. This comes, amongst others, from characteristic, unmistakable glass fronts combined with aluminum sidings, which not only increase aesthetical value, but have also a protective function. Only in case of the monos the manufacturer decided for a change, very desired taking into account their sheer size and weight, replacing the delicate frames into big handles, which make moving the amplifiers much easier. Another company trademark are the blue lit VU meters and green logos, model names and pictograms around the knobs and buttons. Yet those knobs have their origin in history, and probably they will not change in the coming dozens of years, as they ideally fit into the McIntosh beauty canon. Anyway the manufacturer is proud of what he does, so the fronts show everything – not only the massively lit VU meters, but also the tubes, hidden behind clear windows. So we can see the amber glowing KT88 in the power amps with the 12AT7 behind them and eight 12AX7a tubes boosted with green light in the preamplifier.
Searching for originality it is worth to look at the back panel of the monoblocks. You will see that all terminals were placed on top, on a chrome plated shelf, what allows for perfect access even for owners of heavy cabling equipped with big spades. Dedicated outputs for 8, 4 and 2 Ohm speakers are amended by signal terminals in RCA and XLR standard (there is also an appropriate switch present) and a special XLR socket to add another power amp (if 300W would not suffice). Typical for a device from US there are also trigger sockets allowing to switch the whole system on and off using one button on the remote.
Much richer was the back of the two-part preamplifier. Although the C1000 Controller mostly has multi-pin sockets to connect to the preamplifier modules C1000 (solid state) and C1000T (tube) – which one it is decides the client. Additionally there are ports responsible to connect the entire system together and operate it using only one remote. Much different is the main unit – C100T – there are as many sockets as raisins in a cake, the wealth of inputs and outputs is in both XLR and RCA standards and there is also dedicated input to the built-in phonostage, capable of working with MM and MC cartridges.
The multi-format CD/SACD player also has a lot on the back, it can be used as an advanced DAC, offering not only doubled outputs in XLR and RCA flavor, but also a wealth of digital inputs and outputs in the coaxial, optical, AES/EBU, BNC and USB standards. The latter operates in asynchronous mode and handles signals up to 32bits and 192kHz.

In most of our reviews we try to convey the thesis, that it is not important, well it is, but this is not the most important aspect of the whole, how a device looks, it is important how it sounds. However in case of the McIntosh you cannot even touch upon this, despite the fact you might want to. It is just that you love this design or you hate it, and frankly speaking, you assess the sound through the perspective of the characteristic looks. The only situation, when the design of the McIntosh would be irrelevant, would be when a blind person would like to compose an audio system, however… after a few day we grew indifferent to the green-blue lighting in our listening room, so maybe it is not as grave as one might think. But we will see. We will for sure let you know, when we get a chance to test the MC2KW, which have TV set sized displays. But let us return to the main topic now.
As usual with tube-rich and high powered electronics, haste in posing radical opinions is not advisable, and might be regarded as a light-heartedness of the person issuing those. Such amount of glass and steel must not only fit into the system, but also stabilize in electrical and thermal terms. Keeping things short – even after a week of playing, without changing any cables of items, each 90-120 minutes just after powering the system up should be regarded as a warm-up before serious listening. This will allow the electronics to reach its full potential, but also we will have some time to get the everyday buzz out of our heads. Maybe this sounds funny and you think it is absolutely obvious, but in case of the tested system the changes happening between the system being powered up and reaching its optimal state are indisputable, and if you want to consciously harm yourself – you are free to do as you desire. I think however, that it is not worth losing time on this audiophile masochism, and every time I sat down to listen to those American dragons, I knew, they have already 1.5 hours of hard work on the counter. Due to that I was only once exposed to some harshness and symbolic stage depth – when I turned on the system to make the pictorial. But when the system was treated fulfilling those criteria … then I have to confess, that I cannot wonder that Mc-fans have an almost ecstatic adoration of the brand, and on the other hand I have to praise the manufacturer for skilful composure of their portfolio, which can satisfy tube and solid state lovers alike. Why do I mention that in the beginning of the part describing the sound of the tested system? I had a few times contact with solid state Mac poweramps (e.g. here), what resulted in me having some kind of idea of the company sound in the back of my head. But being a guest on a hosted presentation is different to testing anything at home – in our listening room. No hurry, no rush and absolute freedom of choice of the repertoire and volume level – very handy thing. That was also the case this time. Initially unobtrusive, starting with classic rock, the latest re-edition of “The Wall” Pink Floyd. I listened to this album hundreds of times, and theoretically I could have been bored with it, but it has something in it, that it fastens me to the listening chair every time I listen to it and fascinates me. This was also the case this time, but the American system went a step further beyond showing the obvious musical phenomenon of “The Wall”. Offering a big, massive sound it let loose a typical stadium spirit of big concerts. The air generated by the helicopter on “The Happiest Days Of Our Lives” suggestively moved around smaller objects. This was not just playing back the silver discs, but a very well done transformation from the micro to the macro scale. And the re-scaling only pertained to the sound stage and not the size of the instruments or musicians creating the sounds. This allowed to avoid the gigantomania known from some samplers, and when listening to the bird songs on “Goodbye Blue Sky” you instinctively looked up to the ceiling searching for the bluebird. Somewhere along the way the barrier determining the division line between that what is recorded on the disc and what you can hear or feel sitting on your chair in front of the speakers. Here the music was all around us. Us, invited to change the roles from observers to participants of the spectacle happening, albeit passive participants.
And what with more lyrical climates? “Masterpiece Of Folklore Music” Mario Suzuki moved me inside the cozy interiors of the Onkyo Haus Studio in Tokyo, like by magic. The virtuosity of the trio Mario Suzuki, Masao Okada and Tomoko Nakamigawa playing southern rhythms was absolutely incredible. Each touch of a string, each movement of a hand on the neck happened realtime and most importantly not only within our sight, but also on the touch of our hands. Compared to the Octave amplification the aspects of homogeneity, timbre and coherence of the sound were underlined. A slight accent was also laid on the signature, the derivative of the guitar bodies. This made the midrange and lower frequencies gain a bit more creamy and thickness. What is important, the treble remained incredibly vivid and resolved, but its temperature was close to the amber timbre of the tubes generating it. This was the moment when the myth of alleged a-musicality and technical harshness of the KT88 tubes. The MC2301 are undisputed proof, that the tubes are innocent, and only incompetent application can be the culprit of such allegations. In the American amps they charm with timbre, roundness and emotions served on a golden plate, bringing them close to the level of stereotypical tube warmth, slight oversaturation and so called magical midrange. Here everything is top notch, accurate, not overdone, presented in such a way, that there is nothing to brag about.
In case of the Floyds and the Japanese trio, the gradation of the sound planes and the focusing of the virtual sources were on such a high level, that I just seemed not to notice them. Their naturalness was so obvious and so unconditional that it could be compared to breathing.
In the end I decided to return to more spectacular experiences and on the thin tray of the MCD1100 I placed the soundtrack from “Gladiator” Hans Zimmer. No limits in the power generated by the monos as well as no neighbors living around our listening room resulted in us reaching maybe not concert, but for sure IMAX volume levels. The power of the big symphonic orchestra showed its beautiful, but also deadly for most systems, nature. No compression, brilliant coherence and most of all proper sound stage put me in a very good mood. Everything was right, in its own place and happened in due time. Nothing shouted, nothing tried to catch my attention and at the same time, there was also nothing trying to hide in the shadow of other nuances. Going from the level of contemplating the whole event to following parties of individual instruments, of secondary melodic line, depended only on my desire and not on the limitations of the system.

The presented McIntosh system does not only fulfill our high expectations and wishes with ease, but also does away with rumors spread around by “friendly people” about “mudding” being inherent to this brand. The system has absolutely not the slightest trace of any sluggishness, in contrary, we have to emphasize its vivid and spontaneous nature. Adding to that the almost organic musicality gained from tubes, regarded as being the opposite of it, allow us nothing else than put the “dream system” stamp on it, with absolutely clear conscience.

Marcin Olszewski

Distributor: Hi-Fi Club
Prices:
2-Channel SACD/CD Player MCD1100 – 44 500 PLN
Turntable MT10 – 44 500 PLN + Lyra Kleos – 10 900 PLN
2-Channel Preamplifier C1000T – 94 600 PLN
1-Channel Tube Amplifier: MC2301 – 49 500 PLN x2

Technical Details:
MCD1100
Disc Formats: CD, SACD, MP3, WMA
Output Levels:
 – Fixed Output Level: 2 Vrms (RCA), 4 Vrms (XLR)
 – Variable Output Level: 0-6 Vrms (RCA), 0-12Vrms (XLR)
Output Impedance: 600Ω
Frequency Response: 4Hz – 40 000Hz, +0.5, -2dB (SACD); 4Hz – 20 000Hz, ±0.5dB (CD)
Signal To Noise Ratio: >110dB
Total Harmonic Distortion:0.0015% @ 1000Hz (SACD); 0.0015% @ 1000Hz (CD)
Channel Separation: 98dB (1,000Hz)
Headphone Output Impedance: 100 Ω
Digital Inputs: Coaxial, AES/EBU, BNC: 16, 24Bit/32-96kHz; Optical: 16, 24Bit/32-192kHz; USB: 16, 24, 32Bit/32-192kHz
Digital Output: SPDIF, 16Bit/44.1kHz
Dimensions (W x H x D): 44.45cm x 15.24cm x 45.72cm
Weight: 13.8 kg (Shipping Weight 20.4 kg)

C1000T
Ultra Low Distortion: 0.08%
Frequency Response: +0, -0.5dB 10Hz – 20 000Hz
Signal To Noise Ratio: 93dB
Maximum Volts Out (XLR/RCA): 16/8 V RMS
Input Impedance (XLR/RCA):44kΩ, 22kΩ
Phono Voltage Gain: 60dB
Line Inputs: 4 pairs RCA, 2 pairs RCA phono(MM/MC), 4 pairs XLR
Variable Outputs RCA/XLR: 3 pairs /3 pairs
Tubes : 8 szt. 12AX7a
Dimensions (W x H x D): 44.45cm x 15.24cm x 61.0cm (All 3 chassis)
Weight: C1000C 17.7 kg, C1000T 15.4 kg

MC2301
Power Output per Channel: 300W / 2,4,8 Ω
Tubes: 8 x KT88, 2 x 12AT7 (ECC81)
Damping Factor: >15 Wideband
THD: 0.5%
Signal To Noise Ratio: 117dB
Frequency Response: +0, -0.5dB 20Hz – 20 000Hz; +0, -3.0dB 10Hz – 100 000Hz
Dimensions (W x H x D): 45.09cm x 31.27cm x 58.42cm
Weight: 52.6 kg (Shipping Weight 63.9 kg)

System used in this test:
– CD/DAC: Reimyo CDT – 777 + DAP – 999 EX
– Preamplifier: Octave Jubilee Preamp
– Power amplifier: Octave Jubilee Monoamplifier
– Loudspeakers: TRENNER & FRIEDL “ISIS”
– Power cables: Harmonix X-DC 350M2R Improved Version
– Speaker cables: Harmonix HS 101-EXQ (mid-high section); Harmonix HS-101 SLC (bass section)
– IC RCA: Harmonix HS 101-GP
– IC Digital: Harmonix HS 102
– Table: SOLID BASE VI
– AC Power Distributor: POWER BASE HIGH END
– Accessories: Harmonix TU-505EX MK2, Harmonix Enacom improved for AC 100-240V; Harmonix Tuning Room Mini Disk RFA-80i