Mac vs Classe for B&W 802D?

[Antonkk]

I know it's a long battle and maybe discussed many times before but still - as much as I am a Mac fan - are there any gains to change sides and go Classe all the way? Here's how I see it at the moment without any indepth study into Classe line-up:

B&W are Classe are most likely tested on each other since they share the same owners.
Classe CA-M400 doubles at 4 Ohm unlike Mac 501 and according to reviews affords more punch.
Classe also offers a one chasis fully balanced pre and a cheaper one than Mac's C500.
On the other hand Classe doesn't have SACD players like Mac does and I like my SACDs.

As for design, well Classe looks sexy but I love the Mac look. Sure can live happily with both but still. Sound is still the main important thing to me and I'm afraid that along with increased speed and punch Classe will add something cold and sterile with me being used to Mac's warmth. So what do you think?

[htsteve]

Antonkk,

Hopefully, you will be able to demo both brands with the same material.
Your ears will decide what is best. Both are excellent choices. Both are expensive, so a listening session is almost mandatory.


Reviews are part of the information gathering process. But real listening is much better.


Hope this helps.

[Antonkk]

Antonkk,

Hopefully, you will be able to demo both brands with the same material.
Your ears will decide what is best. Both are excellent choices. Both are expensive, so a listening session is almost mandatory.


Reviews are part of the information gathering process. But real listening is much better.


Hope this helps.

Not in my case. None of my local B&W dealers sell Macs and while they all sell Classe frankly the set ups leave a lot to be desired. In every store I went 802's were powered either by a Classe multichanel amp or by integrated. Not a chance of hearing something like CA-M400. I see you're a Mac guy like me - how do you describe the sonic difference between 2 brands?

[htsteve]

Anton,

Bummer on listening options. Multichannels and integrateds are very nice, but they are not 402's or CAM-400's. Can any of your dealers get the CAM-400's in for testing?


As to Mac vs. Classe, I can only give you my opinion based on my demo and listening experience.

I went to my dealer with very familiar material. Using the 802D's in the same room, I demoed Krell, Mac and Classe. We'll stick with Classe and Mac.

I felt the Classe had the best midrange, by a very slight margin. I also felt that is had the least bass. It's all relative. All the bass was quite good, but the impact of the Classe was not quite as good as the other two.

The Mac's are very smooth. To me, it did all three areas (bass, mids, highs) very, very well. The overall performance worked for me. B&W's can be very detailed (which I like), but also a bit clinical. I think the Mac's are a bit laid back in there presentation. Together, they present quite a unified front.

Again, these are my opinions. Either way will be quite excellent. What are your current electronics? Is it the Mac 6900 integrated?


Hope this helps.

[Antonkk]

Anton,

Bummer on listening options. Multichannels and integrateds are very nice, but they are not 402's or CAM-400's. Can any of your dealers get the CAM-400's in for testing?


As to Mac vs. Classe, I can only give you my opinion based on my demo and listening experience.

I went to my dealer with very familiar material. Using the 802D's in the same room, I demoed Krell, Mac and Classe. We'll stick with Classe and Mac.

I felt the Classe had the best midrange, by a very slight margin. I also felt that is had the least bass. It's all relative. All the bass was quite good, but the impact of the Classe was not quite as good as the other two.

The Mac's are very smooth. To me, it did all three areas (bass, mids, highs) very, very well. The overall performance worked for me. B&W's can be very detailed (which I like), but also a bit clinical. I think the Mac's are a bit laid back in there presentation. Together, they present quite a unified front.

Again, these are my opinions. Either way will be quite excellent. What are your current electronics? Is it the Mac 6900 integrated?


Hope this helps.

Yep. It's 301 and 6900. The ridiculous thing is that I used to have 46/402 combo a while ago and felt it was an overkill for Sonus Faber Grand Piano speakers and a small listening area I had back then. I then downgraded to 6900. Now I wish I didn't - I could have a much better starting point with 802D and a big room... :roll:

[KahunaCanuck]

I know it's a long battle and maybe discussed many times before but still - as much as I am a Mac fan - are there any gains to change sides and go Classe all the way? Here's how I see it at the moment without any indepth study into Classe line-up:

B&W are Classe are most likely tested on each other since they share the same owners.
Classe CA-M400 doubles at 4 Ohm unlike Mac 501 and according to reviews affords more punch.
Classe also offers a one chasis fully balanced pre and a cheaper one than Mac's C500.
On the other hand Classe doesn't have SACD players like Mac does and I like my SACDs.

As for design, well Classe looks sexy but I love the Mac look. Sure can live happily with both but still. Sound is still the main important thing to me and I'm afraid that along with increased speed and punch Classe will add something cold and sterile with me being used to Mac's warmth. So what do you think?

What about the C2300 tube preamp from Mc? I love the C500 or C1000, but they are a lot more money.

I agree with Steve's summation of Mc vs. Classe...I don't think you can go wrong with either. I luv the synergy of Mc & B&W.

Also, don't get fooled by the doubling down at 4 ohms issue, both will have tonnes of power for your 802Ds.

[Antonkk]

What about the C2300 tube preamp from Mc? I love the C500 or C1000, but they are a lot more money.

I agree with Steve's summation of Mc vs. Classe...I don't think you can go wrong with either. I luv the synergy of Mc & B&W.

Also, don't get fooled by the doubling down at 4 ohms issue, both will have tonnes of power for your 802Ds.

So you mean, CA-M400 won't have the tighter bass control compared to Mac 402 or 501 despite it's 800 Watts at 4 Ohm?

As for pre's - I don't like tubes and C500 is the cheapest fully balanced preamp that Mac has now. I tried 46 with 402 and found that XLR's sounded much worse than RCA's which lost all the advantages of having a fully balanced 402 amp.

[KahunaCanuck]

It's not just watts, it is the current...I am not the expert on this, but can tell you that the MC501 will hold it's own against the CAM400, so although they list the wattage as doubling at 4 ohms, that doesn't mean you get twice the power from the CAM at 4 ohms. There are lots of threads discussing this...

Here is a thread on watts vs. current Link

[emig5m]

It's not just watts, it is the current...

I learned this back with my 4Ohm Cerwin Vegas. Even with their 102dB efficiency and not needing a lot of watts to get loud they sounded real thin and harsh with no impact running off of AVRs and much fuller with hard hitting slam on a Carver TFM35x (even with no EQ/Tone control adjustments - boosting the bass on the AVRs still couldn't get the slam the poweramp provided with no bass boosting). Totally night and day when they had something that could provide some current to them....