Mc402 Vs. Mc452

Well he was the first MC452 owner here ... so yep - blame squarely placed.
Absolutely!! I am the ambassador for the MC452!! McIntosh should be paying me a commission!! Hahahaha!!

You guys have been talking up the 452 so much and I have been wanting to get a 2-channel SS Mac amp. A local guy was willing to trade my 275 and some cash for his 452. I won't be able to hook it up until Saturday, going to be a long few days.

DO IT!!! You'll never regret it!! I am sitting here typing this as I listen an look at met MC452 across the room, it always brings joy when I experience the awesomeness of my McIntosh system!!
 
Yes, they are heavy!! Good grief, the damn MC2205 is heavy enough let alone the 452!!

Then I was looking at the new product line......oops!!
The 128 lb. Mc2300 that the '452 replaced is sitting on my floor about 2 feet away from its previous perch. It will sit there for at least a few more days, before I conjure up the moxie to relocate it.
 
I'm telling my mother I need a 452.
All the cool kids get them:rolleyes:
BTW
My mother is 80 and next time I see her and I tell her this she'll give me a a blank stare and roll her eyes at me.
 
I think you're probably right. The amp shutdown after I left the room..

I recall when I first hooked-up my 452 it was shutting down after 30 minutes of use before I bought a Power Control Connector cord (pre to amp) I was using a C48 pre at the time (not that, that makes a difference.) I had no idea what was going on until I asked on this forum. Ron enlighten me and I've been living happily ever after.
 
Thanks for all the congrats on the new amp. I got it hooked up and have been listening to it for a few hours now. Started out playing records with some rock music- Hendrix, Black Angels, The Allah La's, Southern Culture On The Skids, and really wasn't overwhelmed with the sound. It is different, hard to say exactly how, but even the wife said it is different. I then put some stuff on that wasn't so "busy", Love Tractor, Wilco and some Bill Frisell. Oh man it really shines on the jazzy music, the drums and cymbals are more lifelike than before. So far so good. I'm trying not to let it's appearance factor in my observations, it's easy to be impressed by the way it looks. I'm not big on audiophile terminology, but I would say it's one badass motherfucker.
 
The Mrs and I are really enjoying it. The first thing we both agreed on being so different is the speakers seem to not be as separate, the music is blended more, I guess the audio term would be "depth" if that makes any sense. I'm a believer now, I didn't think the speakers had it in them.
 
The amp did shut down twice after the conclusion of a few albums. I'm assuming that it is like a computer going to sleep from inactivity. (??) Kev?.........?
If you don’t connect power control to the amp from a supporting preamp, the manual says you can plug from the amp power out to the power control in with a stereo cable to keep the amp from auto shutdown. Lately I
Iike to just leave the amp on all weekend, so use a cable like that (pre is tube and I don’t want to leave that running). Probably all in my head, but I like it more after it’s been on for a day. I had an external transformer on a smart switch for a while, but it gave me problems I need to resolve.
 
I'm not big on audiophile terminology, but I would say it's one badass motherfucker.
That will work, it's audiophile in my book.
The first thing we both agreed on being so different is the speakers seem to not be as separate, the music is blended more, I guess the audio term would be "depth" if that makes any sense.

Actually it sounds like your speakers are diapering and instead of hearing a left and right you have better soundstage.

Generally when I switch form a low power amp like the 275 on fairly hungry speakers to big SS power, the change is dramatic. There is a speed to the control of the drivers. Bass will be tight and snappy, and all the mids and highs come alive. You should have enough head room to cover 20db swings of transient peaks in the music.

The drums an snare should snap and punch hard


Vocals, Piano and Acoustic Guitar.



See how it handles this album

 
Absolutely!! I am the ambassador for the MC452!! McIntosh should be paying me a commission!! Hahahaha!!



DO IT!!! You'll never regret it!! I am sitting here typing this as I listen an look at met MC452 across the room, it always brings joy when I experience the awesomeness of my McIntosh system!!

You guys suck! I pick up my MC 452 this weekend!!! :banana:
 
Wow . . . kev talks another AKer into opening the wallet wide! Such a bad influence . . .

Congrats to all you MC452 owners!
 
Wow . . . kev talks another AKer into opening the wallet wide! Such a bad influence . . .

He tried that on me around 4 years ago, I didn't fall for it.:D

Well it's time to have a AK MC452 club banner inserted on signatures.

I think I got enough to buy into the C100, myself;)

It took me 4 years of work to get @jblnut to get 501s
 
He tried that on me around 4 years ago, I didn't fall for it.:D

Well it's time to have a AK MC452 club banner inserted on signatures.

I think I got enough to buy into the C100, myself;)

It took me 4 years of work to get @jblnut to get 501s

You'll never know what you're missing out on.......:D
 
Hey quartersaw, how would you compare your MC452 to your strapped MC2300s? I'm asking because I currently have dual MC2300s, which I love, but am considering updating. I just want to be sure that it also means upgrading.

I have briefly demoed a couple of newer McIntosh amps, in-store, and loved them, but haven't had the chance to hear them in my system, and compare. Since you have, I'm interested in your opinion.
 
Hey quartersaw, how would you compare your MC452 to your strapped MC2300s? I'm asking because I currently have dual MC2300s, which I love, but am considering updating. I just want to be sure that it also means upgrading.

I have briefly demoed a couple of newer McIntosh amps, in-store, and loved them, but haven't had the chance to hear them in my system, and compare. Since you have, I'm interested in your opinion.

I don't run my 2300's strapped anymore, but the '452 has very smooth mids, and highs, and is dead quiet. The bass response is cleaner, as well.
The amp is so distortion free (even at very high volume) it feels like it isn't as 'loud' as the 2300. When running the '452 with blinking power guard lights, my adjacent bathroom had a number of items that fell off of the shelves - which never happened when running the strapped Mc2300's at a very 'crisp' level.
The Mc452 has a very linear frequency presentation relative to the 2300, which to my ears, means that the 2300 gets brighter in sound, as the volume reaches for the sky...
I'm keeping one of my Mc2300's, simply because it is still a great sounding amp. The Mc452 however, is a completely different animal...
 
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I don't run my 2300's strapped anymore, but the '452 has very smooth mids, and highs, and is dead quiet. The bass response is cleaner, as well.
The amp is so distortion free (even at very high volume) it feels like it isn't as 'loud' as the 2300. When running the '452 with blinking power guard lights, my adjacent bathroom had a number of items that fell off of the shelves - which never happened when running the strapped Mc2300's at a very 'crisp' level.
The Mc452 has a very linear frequency presentation relative to the 2300, which to my ears, means that the 2300 gets brighter in sound, as the volume reaches for the sky...
I'm keeping one of my Mc2300's, simply because it is still a great sounding amp. The Mc452 however, is a completely different animal...
Excellent comparison!!
You put a MC452 in the mix, and you'll never know what hit you!!
 
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