McIntosh MA2275 vs MC275 - experiences and alternatives

[Jazzplayer]

Hello,
After a very nice demo of a tube amp with Vantages (the T-A V10) I started looking around for tube amps for my Aeon-I´s. I have tried a McIntosh MA2275 at home and it sounded pretty good.

I have seen quite a few positive posts about the MC275, but little on the MA2275. Anybody here have done a proper comparison?. And how does the MA2275 sound in comparison to i.e. the VTL integrated, or the T-A V10. (the T-A I have heard on Vantages but in a different room etc. so I would not be able to offer opinions on how it compares to the MA 2275)

Also general experiences with the newer tube Mac´s would be appreciated, i.e. reliability, service etc.

all the best
Svein
Norway

 

[nsgarch]

Hello,
After a very nice demo of a tube amp with Vantages (the T-A V10) I started looking around for tube amps for my Aeon-I´s. I have tried a McIntosh MA2275 at home and it sounded pretty good. I have seen quite a few positive posts about the MC275, but little on the MA2275. Anybody here have done a proper comparison?. And how does the MA2275 sound in comparison to i.e. the VTL integrated, or the T-A V10. (the T-A I have heard on Vantages but in a different room etc. so I would not be able to offer opinions on how it compares to the MA 2275) Also general experiences with the newer tube Mac´s would be appreciated, i.e. reliability, service etc. all the best Svein Norway

Hello Svein. You can read my review of the new 275 here: http://www.martinloganowners.com/~tdacquis/forum/showthread.php?p=51508#post51508

As for making a decision between (two) 275's and (one) 2275 it comes down to this: If you really need the xtra power of a 2275, you are much better with two 275's in the monoblock mode. That way, each channel has it's own power supply (the 2275 has one for both channels) and you can have the amp(s) close to each speaker for short speaker cable (= better bass control for the Aeon's. Not important with Vantages, which have their own bass amps.)

Also, all the Vantage owners I spoke with have started with one 275 in stereo mode, and found that excellent (and you can always add another one if necessary to drive the Aeons (with their woofers )

The T+A V-10 (80w) and the VTL Int. (60W) don't offer the power of the 275 (90w) nor do they have balanced inputs. The 275 is a fantastic amplifier, but with one caveat: the OEM tubes sound horrible! (and have poor reliability .) I don't see how it gets the rave reviews "out of the box". But that is easy to fix

 

[Jazzplayer]

Hi, now you got me confused, the MA2275 is the integrated version of the MC275, both are rated at 75 WPC. To answer the power question, the MA2275 had more than enough power to drive the Aeon-I´s. But they are not exactly like, the MA 2275 i.e. has 2,4, and 8 ohm speaker connection while the MC275 has 4,8, and 16 ohm connections.

What alternative tubes have you got experience with , I read a MC 275 review by Steve Hoffman, and he recommended rolling the small tubes but not the KT88´s.

All the best
Svein

 

[nsgarch]

Oops . . . .

Hi, now you got me confused, the MA2275 is the integrated version of the MC275, both are rated at 75 WPC. To answer the power question, the MA2275 had more than enough power to drive the Aeon-I´s. But they are not exactly like, the MA 2275 i.e. has 2,4, and 8 ohm speaker connection while the MC275 has 4,8, and 16 ohm connections. What alternative tubes have you got experience with , I read a MC 275 review by Steve Hoffman, and he recommended rolling the small tubes but not the KT88´s. All the best Svein

I'm sorry Svein, I was thinking of the MC2102 amp. As for the speaker taps on the 275, they are 4, 8, 16, because in mono mode, they become 2, 4, 8. It has to do with running the 275's two output transformers in parallel. If the 2275 has enough power, it is an excellent unit for the money. For more versatility and a bit better sonics, many people choose to go with a MC275 + C220 preamp however. Telefunken tubes (per Steve Hoffman) are an excellent replacement for the little tubes. The KT88 ElectroHarmonix power tubes that come with the units are proving unreliable and don't sound that good. A lot of people have replaced them with the newly re-issued Gold Lions from New Sensor. I replaced them (finally) with the original NOS Genalex Gold Lions $$$$!

More about tube rolling the MC275 here: http://forum.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/fr.pl?aamps&1175279050&openmine&zzNsgarch&4&5#Nsgarch