Rogue Cronus Magnum II vs McIntosh

Not to hijack this thread (okay, maybe I am, a little), I know of an original Rogue Chronus that runs EL34 tubes that is for sale locally which I'm thinking of purchasing. Any reason why you sold the original Cronus?

 

I am not surprised the CJ amp came out on top. I have two CJ amps as well. What the Cronus Magnum intrigues me is it is one of the few very modestly priced tube amps and it is "entirely" American-made ...

 

Leben CS300XS - Tube amp with full cutover to a headphone out, still using the tubes as driver. Much more classic design. Doesn't have a mono switch, but I bought a switch box on this forum.

It's not as powerful as the CM2 but I realized I didn't need 100w/ch to in my set-up.

 

I moved up the line a little bit into Rogue separates. I would opt for a "Magnum" version of the Cronus if possible, they will handle just about every power tube from the EL-34 up to the Tung Sol KT-120's.

 

I spoke with a guy at Rogue today. He said the stock tubes are JJs tubes, and the outputs are Tungs. I know most everyone hates JJs, but he said to give them a chance, that the Magnum is manufactured to work well with the JJs.

 

The JJs aren't bad, they have a clean neutral sound with a very nice top end. However your tastes seem to lean towards bass and low end impact and the tube swap I mentioned previously really makes the bass response much stronger- in addition to more transparency and clarity.

 

I like the JJs fine, but it's fun to try others.

 

@avanti1960 I looked those tubes up...wow, super high end stuff! That's a bit out of reach for me right now. Can you make a recommendation that maybe isn't as expensive?

 

I'm totally happy with my Cronus ii and the stock JJs. Sounds sweet to me.

 

The JJs are sweet agree, but try a Mullard CV4003 in that center 12AU7 position....nice little upgrade...

 

did you remember you only need one preamp tube?

this new trio has even more bass-
front row- 12AX7 Tung Sol current issue- $40 / pair. a notable upgrade in everything from the JJ.
middle row- really try for the Amperex Holland treble clef logo 12AU7 $125.00 single tube (really a game changer and the clarity is off the charts)
third row- RCA 12Au7 Blackplate - $50.00 / matched pair.
that's ~ $215.00 total and will be a super value upgrade. The Amperex is the star of the show and does it all.

 

Avanti, did you trade in your Audio Raven amp?

 

I have the CMII and love it. I tube rolled the pre amp 12au7 with a NOS Mullard, and the 2 12ax7's I installed with Tele rib plates that I bought from a friend. It sounds amazing. You can't go wrong for the price. I still have the JJ's in the last 2 12au7 slots, and they are working great. Eventually thinking of putting some Gold Lion's or the RCA's in there. I use it for everything records, movies and gaming. Can't beat their customer service either.

 

I can't quite follow everything here, but to me, the (new) GL 12AX7s sounded almost identical to some Tele ribbed plates I had in my McIntosh C220. The GLs just seemed a little more clear and whatever, I left them in there.

 

Rogue gear has long had received great reviews which have proven to be well deserved, but I personally run from any salesman who tries to sell a product by dissing other manufacturers.

 

I just demoed the Rogue and didn't love it. It was good, but didn't give me goosbumps. The first time I heard a Mac I had goosbumps.

I really didn't like the midrange sound of the Rogue. Not detailed enough for me.

The same guy tried to sell me a Parasound Halo. I really liked the sound of it, better than the Rogue...but it's a solid state! Blasphemy!

So I don't know what to do

 

I had an original Rogue Cronus which was okay. Then I upgraded to the Line Magnetic 216IA and was blown away how much better the 216IA was than the Cronus. I've since move up the Line Magnetic line to the 518IA. But the Line Magnetic 211IA and 216IA are amazing and pretty much impossible to beat for the money.

 

With modern tube amps you are rarely hearing them at their best with stock (and new) tubes. Makes it tough to audition and come away with a completely accurate view of what they are capable of. The same amp, with carefully selected NOS tubes, fully broken in, can be an entirely different experience. That doesn't make it any easier to make a decision though, I realize. If you are really interested in tube amps, I would open your search to other manufacturers as well. Rogue is well-respected, and American-made (which is important to some people), but there are others who make wonderful gear too. Keep in mind the manufacturers that include less options are usually putting more resources into the ultimate sound quality. Pay attention to the transformers, the tube varieties used, and point-to-point wiring. And try to hear some lower-wattage models. They usually sound sweeter, and if they have large enough transformers, can drive less sensitive speakers than you would expect.

 

Most fun comes out of building one on your own

Build a Bob Latino ST 120 and don't look back. Great fun and really not that difficult - very rewarding experience.

 

Also wanted to mention, I have owned a number of McIntosh pieces, both new and vintage. I live about an hour from Audio Classics, so over the years I have had a chance to listen to quite a bit of McIntosh gear, both new and vintage. My favorite piece was a vintage MC-240 tube amp. But I have to say, the Line Magnetic 518ia I have now is better in every way. The great thing about modern McIntosh gear is that it is like hitting the "Easy" button. It tends to drive almost any speakers, and it has lots of nice options like built-in phono preamps, headphone inputs, mono buttons (my favorite feature), balance knobs, etc etc. If built-in features like this are important to you, then McIntosh makes a lot of sense. You just have to be aware that some of those items, like headphone input and phono preamp, are not the highest of quality, and like anything else in life, the jack of all trades is the master of none. McIntosh gear looks great, has lots of features, sounds decent, and holds it's value really well. Lots of things to like about it. But if you are searching for a customized sound that appeals personally to you, I would encourage you to listen to some other options so you have plenty to compare.

 

I moved from a CM1 to a Raven Audio Nighthawk and haven't looked back since. The Rogue was a great amp for the price, but I found mine to be a little noisy. The Raven, although only 20W, is more refined and almost completely noise free. Customer support for both are great too!

 

Why do anything? If you want to upgrade, look at maybe a C2300 or ...? Seems like you like what you have, but think something out there is better - of course it is! but is it 2x the cost of what you have? Different/better in some ways at the same price? Of course one always wonders if there's a giant killer out there at 1/2 the cost.

From personal experience, I'd recommend a Shunyata Venom 3 power cord ($150) for the preamp and Analysis Plus speaker cables, and GL 12AX7s for the C2200 ... but of course the improvements may not be as great with your gear as it was with mine (synergy). I think spending <10% of the overall cost of your gear on 'tweaks' should not be a bank account breaker, and may satisfy your craving for a while ... good luck!

 

This is what you do...

 

this is where the Amperex Bugle Boy Holland preamp tube comes into play. It truly does transform the midrange. However I wouldn't blame you for not buying after you already heard it and didn't like it.

 

I know, I had a Nighthawk. Even with almost $400.00 worth of tube e rolling it comes close top the Nighthawk but not quite.