Your Opinions: New Integrated Amps: McIntosh vs Hegel vs Plinius

Providing you have a big room, good acoustic environment, the love for music & you are prepared to spend in the future similar amounts on source & speakers go for the Mcintosh MA8000 . I read a review about it in HiFi world they loved it . I heard an MA 2275 & I loved that . Good luck.

 

Hi,
I read a lot on the internet, but in the end you don't get any wiser by reading too much. On the other hand, you can actually read which amplifier than can handle a big room vs. a small room - knowing which loudspeakers you are going to drive. For instance, knowing that I was going to drive full range electrostatics or Martin Logan in a large living room left out some very nice amplifiers that are way too weak for the system setup and the environments.

I ended up testing several amplifiers at two local dealers. It is very true that the sound is not the same at the dealers shop vs. at home - but to do get an idea of the sound signature. At the very least you should never purchase this kind of gear without listening to it. Never trust another persons personal taste. It is like a stranger is going to pick a girlfriend (or boyfriend) for you.

Listening to all the local dealers (Norway) I was convinced that I never wanted to buy a american amplifier in my whole life - and specially not a Mcintosh. After listening and benchmarking the Mcintosh with the others, I decided that the Mcintosh was closer to my taste: warm tube sound, deep soundstage and still very detailed. Obviously, t+a, Luxman and other very good brands had their moments(!!), and specially the Luxman was a one of my favourites. The problem in my opinion is a quite boring depth in the sound compared to the Mcintosh - while many Hi-fi enthusiasts prefer the very broad/wide soundstage provided by the other brands - I prefer otherwise; the depth - the deep voiced and the very present guitars etc. - although I miss the Luxman playing classical live music.

Keep in mind that the dealers want to sell gear with good margins and want to get rid of what is left in stock. This, combined with their own music taste, you are unlikely to get a good match with your own taste. Listen and decide yourself

 

I own the Audio Research VSi60 paired with Sonus Faber speakers(older Grand Piano Homes) and it's a wonderful sounding combination. I'd love to move up to the VSi75 someday!

 

As much as I like my Plinius, if I was going to buy new today, I'd take a serious listen to this beastie. I bet it sounds super.

I purchased my Plinius 9200 used for $2,600. It is one of the better buys I've made in audio.

My dream power amp is the Plinius SB-301, with 300 wpc (over 500 wpc into 4Ω !). My favorite review said it didn't sound like tubes or transistors. It simply made every speaker they hooked up to it sound better. I like that. The SB-301 has been around long enough for a Mk II version to come out. I bet I could find a used first version for $4-5K. Not bad for $10,000 power amp.

Some day...

 

if it was me i would get the McIntosh MAC6700....

 

For that kind of money you must hear it and love it before you put the money down.Spending big money and being disappointed is a terrible experience.
I am sorry to say I have no love for MAC gear. Listening sessions with it have been disappointing. IMO MAC gear has 'old school' sound, and is left in the dust by plenty of same price range components/companies, (So you really liked your 1970's high end Japanese receiver? buy the MAC, it is the same sound, just much better)
Plenty of other gear is excellent. The op needs to get out and listen to some of the brands out there.
Without personal listening, buying expensive gear is foolish.
When you go audition, bring your own music. Make an appointment. Best very slow times, no competing traffic in the store. Have the equipment warmed up at least a few hours before the audition. You have to be ALONE and just listen, (if the saleman want to chatter on, tell him/her to GET LOST or shut up) Listen to the stuff you brought for an hour or two.

If auditioning is impossible, then buying used is the only way to go. You can buy, try, and sell for little loss.

 

I have been using Plinius amplification since the 1980's when I owned a 50W pre/power combo Plinius IIB and VII. I owned this combo for close to twenty years and never had a single issue with. it. I upgraded to a Plinius 8200 MkII Integrated in 2004. I am still using this amp ten yeas later. Plinius amps are the most reliable audio product I have ever owned.

 

No kidding, flying under the radar......never heard of them before.
Wonder what the pricing looks like

 

Rogue Audio Pharaoh, $3500. Or the ARC if you really must burn money.

 

Matching the right amplifiers and loudspeakers is maybe even more important than just comparing amplifiers. I would be careful to match Mcintosh gear to dynamic speakers (with several exceptions of course) - Most dynamic speakers need all the wide soundstage they can get (After ESL, there are no way back..) ESL on the other hand has plenty of wide soundstage - and might as well get some extra dynamics and depth from the Mcintosh or similar amplifiers. Furthermore, the Mcintosh upper class is able to handle demanding loudspeakers. Hence, the pick of amplifiers must be done in context to size of the room, loudspeakers and signature sound / your taste.

Of course, no amplifiers in this price range is never left in the dust compared to another. It is about small differences and shades. Furthermore, Mcintosh is one of this brands that is always compared to other brands. Like Apple, Quad, Martin Logan, Burmester etc. This is for a reason.

 

Good advice, and I'm glad you are happy with your purchase. Man, if I could I definitely would love to audition more. The cold reality is that where I live in Rockford, MI there are very very few places to do that.

I went to the only McIntosh dealer within 150 miles (Bekins). First off, I hate the feel of the place...it has that big box sleezy salesman feel to it, and it smells of the kind of place doctors and lawyers go just to blow money because they can. The salesman was also nice, but full of a lot of it too (He was "explaining" to me that Apple Lossless is inferior in sound to FLAC and also gave me a 10 minute pitch on $1000/pr interconnects) Secondly, they have a rack of the latest Mc gear in the worst possible conditions you could imagine. The entire front of the building is made of glass. So basically, you walk into an enormous glass room and the Mc rack is RIGHT there when you walk in. It is the first thing you see. I did get to play side 1 track 1 of Dire Straits Communique on the turntable they had hooked up, and I just was not blown away. It is one of my favorite records of all time to play from a sound quality perspective. It sounded awesome, but I knew it sounds awesome on every system, even my modest system at home because the mastering of that record is freaking phenomenal. Truth be told, I left really disappointed because there was no way to hear the gear in the way it was meant to be heard. I would really like to hear that stuff in a proper room.

For the record, I believe it was a C2300 hooked to an MC452. Additionally, there was a McIntosh turntable, power conditioner and room correction unit (BLAH) hooked into it, with $10,000/pr McIntosh floor standing speakers. When I asked the guy about home auditioning he said the only way that happens is if you buy the gear outright. Then, if you don't like it you can bring it back for a full refund assuming everything is exactly as it was when it left the store.

I may have to journey across the state for about 150 miles and see if they have a proper listening room

 

One thing is apparent, there is loyalty to one's favorite brand in the audio world.

 

I like your "doctors and lawyers" stereotype. Rich dudes with money to burn. Believe it or not, not all doctors and lawyers are wealthy.

 

It's true - My brother in-law is a lawyer, and he is not "wealthy" by any means. Student loans man...I have another friend I grew up with who is a doctor and did it right. He lived like a peasant after med school for a handful of years and just straight up paid back his $350,000 in loans. NOW he is wealthy : )

 

I have a friend who became a public prosecutor after he graduated law school many years ago because he wanted to put away bad guys. He's happy but would have done a lot better going into public practice.

 

Maybe so with lawyers, but if a doctor is not wealthy, he/she is doing something wrong!

 

I guess it depends on your definition of wealthy.

 

Think the integrated is $5 K or so. Here is an amp on the 'gon
http://app.audiogon.com/listings/so...0wx2-2014-06-10-amplifiers-92121-san-diego-ca
Company formed by former Threshold employees.

 

I would recommend a McIntosh amplifier in a heartbeat. you will be glad you bought it. I would also stray from any McIntosh that has built in DAC's or digital processing. Their sources and speakers are also not really their forte. buy DACs and stuff as external components....ones that you may "upgrade" in the future. An analog McIntosh is a product for life.

I have the C45 multichannel preamplifier which allows for 5.1 analog inputs from my Blu-ray player. I have used it 10 years and will never be using anything else. If it breaks, I will pay whatever it takes to fix it. I only wish I had a nice multichannel Mac power amp to mate with it.

I think the speakers you choose (or upgrade to) will have more influence on the sound you are striving for. All of your integrated amps listed will sound great at their price points. But I would say with marrying a Mcintosh, a divorce is something that doesn't even enter the brain. I really don't even drool over nicer McIntosh's lol. Because I picked the right one for my intended setup which is music and surround, future proof.

By the way....why keep the surround receiver if you are upgrading to this level of components?

I would not say I am loyal to McIntosh as I only have the one McIntosh piece in my stereo, but it has been my favorite of all the audio components I have played with.

 

Take a weekend in Chicago to listen to several amps and setups

 

I think this is fair, it's what I've done the few times I've brought gear home for a demo.

I have a problem when they say it can be returned for a full in store credit when in all likelihood there is nothing else I want if the first item doesn't work out.

I just wish there were dealers in my area with gear I want to hear.
For example the nearest stocking Hegel and Modwright dealer is 5 hours away.
Others are even worse.
Pass Labs: Reno, Nevada
Luxman: Chicago (Music Direct)

 

FWIW, I had a Plinius 8200 for a number of years, and am now breaking in a Hegel H200. From memory, which isn't worth much, in one word, I would describe the Plinius as euphonic, it had an frisson of sweetness, while the Hegel's defining strength is clarity and definition.

Both are totally musical little beasts, and I would happily live with either for the rest of my life.

 

Plinius has loads of musicality, definition and power - even if you cannot remember anymore!

 

Oh, I know. I had been waiting for a used 9200 to pop up on Audiogon for ages when the Hegel became available and forced my hand.

I'm just saying that my predominant reaction to the Plinius was 'sweet' and to the Hegel is 'clear'. Which is not to say that the 8200 was in any way muddy or that the H200 is in any way unmusical..

 

That's understandable. You have to be very patient when you're after secondhand Plinius integrateds. For whatever reason, the power amps come along a lot often - guess they just made a lot more of them.