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I spent the last couple of years searching and demo-ing electronics to match up with my 803D's, but after obtaining some Mcintosh equipment a few months ago I started second guessing myself on if I had made the right decision or if I should have stayed with my original plan of buying Classe electronics. My mind and memory were playing some head games with myself.
I went to the local dealer resolved that I would not leave the demo room until I was 100% sure which gear was the best----for me anyway.
The Mcintosh demo gear consisted of the MX-120 pre/pro combined with the MC-207 200watt amp vs the Classe SSP300 pre/pro and the CA-5200 200watt amp. Very comparable equipment.
The source players were varied however, with the Mac using a Denon 2910 player vs the Classe CDP-300. Obvious advantage to the Classe.
Both sets of equipment were in the same room and hooked up to B&W 803D speakers.
No SPL meter was available so we had to gauge sound levels by ear. Not the most scientific approach, but we were aware of this shortcoming and therefore paid extremely close attention to making sure the volume levels of both systems were as close as we could get them utilizing this method.
First up was the Classe and it sounded as smooth and wonderful as it always does. I sat back and relaxed while listening to 5 tracks off the new Eric Clapton CD (Layla-unplugged, Running On Faith-unplugged, Motherless Child, Change the World, and My Father's Eyes). When I was done I almost felt that there wasn't much point in bothering with the Mcintosh because I suspected that it wasn't going to be able to compete with the sophisticated sound of the Classe. I was wrong.
The Mcintosh gear lived up to the challenge and immediately grabbed my attention. The music was engaging and dynamic sounding so that I even turned it's volume down a couple of notches for fear that we had not gauged the level accurately enough and had unintentionally given the Mcintosh the advantage. Even at the lower volume (which I'm positive was the same or lower as the Classe) the Mcintosh held it's own and sounded great.
The Classe seemed to have slightly better imaging, but I thought that could possibly be attributed to the superior Classe CDP.
The next test was as "blind" as I could make it. I selected one song (Stevie Ray"s "Little Sister") and then left the demo room while the salesman put the cd into one of the test systems. He would then call me back into the room and play the song. I did not know which system was playing (they were both set up behind me). I picked #"s 3,5, and 6 as sounding the best to me. Per the salesman demo#'s 1,3, and 6 were Classe and 2,4, and 5 were Mcintosh.
We listened to the song again with me knowing which system was playing and I felt that the Classe system had a slight edge, but we also both felt that my prior reduction of the Mcintosh's volume left it a smidgeon below the Classe's so we bumped it up a notch to try and even it out. We did the blind test 4 more times (2 each) and I picked the Mcintosh both times as the winner. Several more test demos were done with the Mcintosh and Classe going back and forth like a couple of pugilists battling it out for the championship. Ali vs Frazier--the refined boxer and the slugger.
A couple of hours later I left the demo room happy and content.
So, what (if any) conclusions can be drawn from this event?
A) None
B) I'm confused and/or need my hearing checked
C) I should probably sell all my high-priced stereo equipment and by a Bose Wave.
D) the ubiquitous "all of the above".
My personal conclusion is that both Mcintosh and Classe are excellent and wonderfully sounding systems and that differences do exist between them but in the grand world of fine audio they are fairly minute. Whichever one you choose you'll be getting a winner and should be very, very happy.
I went to the local dealer resolved that I would not leave the demo room until I was 100% sure which gear was the best----for me anyway.
The Mcintosh demo gear consisted of the MX-120 pre/pro combined with the MC-207 200watt amp vs the Classe SSP300 pre/pro and the CA-5200 200watt amp. Very comparable equipment.
The source players were varied however, with the Mac using a Denon 2910 player vs the Classe CDP-300. Obvious advantage to the Classe.
Both sets of equipment were in the same room and hooked up to B&W 803D speakers.
No SPL meter was available so we had to gauge sound levels by ear. Not the most scientific approach, but we were aware of this shortcoming and therefore paid extremely close attention to making sure the volume levels of both systems were as close as we could get them utilizing this method.
First up was the Classe and it sounded as smooth and wonderful as it always does. I sat back and relaxed while listening to 5 tracks off the new Eric Clapton CD (Layla-unplugged, Running On Faith-unplugged, Motherless Child, Change the World, and My Father's Eyes). When I was done I almost felt that there wasn't much point in bothering with the Mcintosh because I suspected that it wasn't going to be able to compete with the sophisticated sound of the Classe. I was wrong.
The Mcintosh gear lived up to the challenge and immediately grabbed my attention. The music was engaging and dynamic sounding so that I even turned it's volume down a couple of notches for fear that we had not gauged the level accurately enough and had unintentionally given the Mcintosh the advantage. Even at the lower volume (which I'm positive was the same or lower as the Classe) the Mcintosh held it's own and sounded great.
The Classe seemed to have slightly better imaging, but I thought that could possibly be attributed to the superior Classe CDP.
The next test was as "blind" as I could make it. I selected one song (Stevie Ray"s "Little Sister") and then left the demo room while the salesman put the cd into one of the test systems. He would then call me back into the room and play the song. I did not know which system was playing (they were both set up behind me). I picked #"s 3,5, and 6 as sounding the best to me. Per the salesman demo#'s 1,3, and 6 were Classe and 2,4, and 5 were Mcintosh.
We listened to the song again with me knowing which system was playing and I felt that the Classe system had a slight edge, but we also both felt that my prior reduction of the Mcintosh's volume left it a smidgeon below the Classe's so we bumped it up a notch to try and even it out. We did the blind test 4 more times (2 each) and I picked the Mcintosh both times as the winner. Several more test demos were done with the Mcintosh and Classe going back and forth like a couple of pugilists battling it out for the championship. Ali vs Frazier--the refined boxer and the slugger.
A couple of hours later I left the demo room happy and content.
So, what (if any) conclusions can be drawn from this event?
A) None
B) I'm confused and/or need my hearing checked
C) I should probably sell all my high-priced stereo equipment and by a Bose Wave.
D) the ubiquitous "all of the above".
My personal conclusion is that both Mcintosh and Classe are excellent and wonderfully sounding systems and that differences do exist between them but in the grand world of fine audio they are fairly minute. Whichever one you choose you'll be getting a winner and should be very, very happy.
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