McIntosh MA 252 Hybrid Amplifier

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Wind Chaser

Re: McIntosh MA 252 Hybrid Amplifier
« Reply #40 on: 5 Jan 2018, 06:15 am »
I don't seek perfection, I seek happiness and enjoyment.

That makes everything so much easier.  :thumb:

jibzilla

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Re: McIntosh MA 252 Hybrid Amplifier
« Reply #41 on: 5 Jan 2018, 06:17 am »
Better things, for better listening enjoyment thru tone controls :thumb:


...and like BISL, I've got tone controls and I'm damned sure not afraid to use them....or bypass them, when listening to quality recordings.

Hey FRM. I defy you to listen to Oingo Boingo, Dead Mans Party at (say) 100dB and NOT wish you had tone controls at your disposal. I could list a hundred albums that have a shitty mix where tone controls make them listenable...but unfortunately, you have that clueless, lemming, purist mentality and will never get it. In turn, I hope you enjoy the same twelve albums that you listen to continuously because they sound 'the best' on your system.

I think FRM and you have a point. For the absolute "best" a separate set of tone controls is the way to go. If you can put up with used my own C-2301 and SE-A100 will crush that new MA 252 like a bug for the same amount of cash. Add in a loki mini and you have some excellent tone controls. Up it to a se-p900 and you have something truly special regardless of price.

FullRangeMan

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Re: McIntosh MA 252 Hybrid Amplifier
« Reply #42 on: 5 Jan 2018, 09:02 pm »
I think FRM and you have a point. For the absolute "best" a separate set of tone controls is the way to go. If you can put up with used my own C-2301 and SE-A100 will crush that new MA 252 like a bug for the same amount of cash. Add in a loki mini and you have some excellent tone controls. Up it to a se-p900 and you have something truly special regardless of price.
Do you could do it for free in the Digital domain, dont know what is your source, but my old Sony SCD1 have 4 different Freq Range shapes on the PCM(CD) domain.

I dont know the current DACs and PC players but surely they may have much more different Freq shapes to feed the amp/preamp and please the music lover.

Bob in St. Louis

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Re: McIntosh MA 252 Hybrid Amplifier
« Reply #43 on: 5 Jan 2018, 09:15 pm »
Do you could do it for free in the Digital domain, dont know what is your source, but my old Sony SCD1 have 4 different Freq Range shapes on the PCM(CD) domain.

I dont know the current DACs and PC players but surely they may have much more different Freq shapes to feed the amp/preamp and please the music lover.
"Frequency shapes"....Sounds like a euphemism for "tone control".

FullRangeMan

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Re: McIntosh MA 252 Hybrid Amplifier
« Reply #44 on: 5 Jan 2018, 09:21 pm »
"Frequency shapes"....Sounds like a euphemism for "tone control".
It have only 4 shapes, I would like at least 10 options.
Tone Controls works in the analogue domain, these works in the Digital domain at the DAC processor, where the Freq Range of the entire music are assembled.

jibzilla

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Re: McIntosh MA 252 Hybrid Amplifier
« Reply #45 on: 5 Jan 2018, 10:12 pm »
Do you could do it for free in the Digital domain, dont know what is your source, but my old Sony SCD1 have 4 different Freq Range shapes on the PCM(CD) domain.

I dont know the current DACs and PC players but surely they may have much more different Freq shapes to feed the amp/preamp and please the music lover.

The software side is for sure where tone controls have been heading. I haven't found any yet that do it for me. Hardware wise I have found 3 at different price points that deliver. The loki mini($150), faux fairchild 627($1k) and my current sony se-p900($1750 and good luck finding one). I went through about 20 eq's to come up with that 3 and I have tried a good dozen software eq's.

Sadly this is an area of audio that has been neglected for a long time. I don't blame you for thinking they are a bad idea because most eq's were poor quality when I tested them. A few of them were quite amazing and kind of once you hear it done right there's not much going back.