MC 452 or a pair MC2205 in Mono?

JosephH

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Soooo, I have a chance to purchase a mint 18 month old MC452 at a good ($5k) price. I am currently very happy with my pair of MC2205 amps run in Mono configuration. Currently, my main speakers are the Aerial Acoustics 10TmkII. Beyond an amazing jump in current and a much lower noise floor, just how big of a upgrade is the MC452? Should I pull the trigger on what would be my forever amp? Can I do much better than $5k on a MC452 these days? TIA!
 
JUMP on that '452! You will not be sorry. $5K is a very good price. Check Audiogon for reference. There are two '452's posted for around $6.5K. (You could also do a Rt. 17 road trip to Audio Classics)
 
The 452 will outperform two 2205's in every respect. Having just serviced my MC2205 before I sold it, and then listened to it for a week whilst I had it listed, its a very indifferent (in my opinion) sounding amplifier.
The MC452 is an extraordinary sounding amplifier.
Get the 452, it will be the last amplifier you buy....they are that good!!
 
Sounds like a helluva deal for a 452. If for some reason you don't like it (that won't happen) you can easily make $500 on a flip.
It's a lot of money but also a good investment.
 
Here's another vote for the MC452.

While the 2205 series amp is a good one, the MC452 puts out more power with less distortion, provides balanced outputs and a high damping factor. All this at what appears to be a great price for a 452 out there in the market. Many owners call the MC452 their dream amplifier and I firmly believe you've found yours as well.

Good luck with your decision.
 
After reading a bunch of descriptives regarding the MC452, I was under the impression that the amp might sound too neutered for my liking.
Having learned my lesson, that you can't always go by what other people say, I went to the local Best Buy/Magnolia and listened to the MC452 and the MC601s. They are spectacular amps, both in sound and appearance.

I would act quick. At that price, if offered on one of the audio for sale sites, it would last about an hour, maybe.
 
Last year I made the jump from a single MC2205 to an MC452. It’s amazing, I don’t regret it for one second.
 
As many 2205's I used followed by 2255's I would take a 452 hands down. 2205s come from a time when amps were designed to run 24/7. The newer amps are designed to handle larger peaks and to handle more complex speaker loads. The newer amps can drive 1 ohm amps from the 2 ohm tap or 4 ohm loads from the 8 ohm tap with no sweat. A 2205 can't do that. The 452 is less congested at the top octave, though a 2205 is rather relaxed above 6 khz where a 452 is more revealing. A 452 has a much higher dampening factor in the bass so will control woofers better than a 2205. Both will require external cooling if the the Power Guard lamps flash to often. Anything much more than 4 to 6 db compression becomes audible. Another thing is the 452 has over a magnitude less distortion and over two magnitudes more signal to noise. Of course two amps in mono will have infinite separation where a 452 won't. But that said a 452 is more than the 2205's could ever be. Its like comparing an early Honda Pilot to the current Acura MDX. A 452 is much Quieter so reveals smaller delicate nuances a 2205 won't or can't. This is really important if your speakers have a large dynamic range. In the future when you get a pre-amp wit balanced outputs a sophisticated circuitry you will really enjoy the 452 much more.
 
I also suggest moving to the 452. I replaced my rebuilt 2205 about one month ago with a 452 and I agree with the differences described by everyone in this thread.

As far as the price I believe it is good but not great. Audio classics was very close to that price and it included a warranty. For me the piece of mind was worth the extra couple hundred dollars. (I had recently seen 452 in a local Mcintosh repair shop so maybe I was over concerned)
 
Thanks everyone! You confirmed my thoughts. Ernie, thanks for the suggestion, I am a AC customer and my dealings with them in the past have been stellar. I just got off the phone with Ryan at AC and he is working up some numbers for me on a MC452 with a trade for my two MC2205s and the MC2200 I have listed in Bartertown. I will keep you posted. It cannot hurt to see what they can do.
 
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Here's hoping you can strike a deal with AC. Having recently moved up the ladder myself from vintage Mac into the newer generations I can attest to that there's a wonderful difference for the better. I'm also betting your 1530's and the 452 will be an ear pleasing match up that will be very tough to beat.
 
Alright! I just closed the deal on a MC 452, which I will be picking up this weekend. Private owner sale, the amp is 18 months old and has been used to drive horn tweeters on an amazing professional Klipsch setup. Slight overkill, (ya think??) so the owner is selling the amp to buy more drivers. Its a 10 hour drive each way so the Warden and I are making a long weekend out of it, catching a game in Fenway, then the submariner museum in Portsmouth NH and finally the Maine Maritime Museum and Bath Iron Works before picking up the amp on Sunday. To say that I am excited is an understatement! Thank you for all the advice given here, I blame all of you for pushing me into making a great situation even better!! :thumbsup:
 
Alright! I just closed the deal on a MC 452, which I will be picking up this weekend. Private owner sale, the amp is 18 months old and has been used to drive horn tweeters on an amazing professional Klipsch setup. Slight overkill, (ya think??) so the owner is selling the amp to buy more drivers. Its a 10 hour drive each way so the Warden and I are making a long weekend out of it, catching a game in Fenway, then the submariner museum in Portsmouth NH and finally the Maine Maritime Museum and Bath Iron Works before picking up the amp on Sunday. To say that I am excited is an understatement! Thank you for all the advice given here, I blame all of you for pushing me into making a great situation even better!! :thumbsup:
Stop off at the Union Oyster House in Boston, and get a bowl of 'Chowdah'. I believe it is the oldest restaurant in the U.S., and they have a most wonderful selection of seafood.
http://www.unionoysterhouse.com/pages/history.html
 
Stop off at the Union Oyster House in Boston, and get a bowl of 'Chowdah'. I believe it is the oldest restaurant in the U.S., and they have a most wonderful selection of seafood.
http://www.unionoysterhouse.com/pages/history.html
I LOVE the Union Oyster House! I rarely go to Bahston without stopping in for a cold pint and a bowl of Chowdah. I never, ever visit Boston without going to Rino's Italian Restaurant! The original Daily Catch is another favorite stop of mine.
 
Ok, so the deal fell through. The MC452 had weak output on the right channel. I was disappointed to say the least. So, my options are once again open. I do see the MC2600 is still available in Bartertown. The 2600 seems to have an almost mythical reputation. How would this compart with a MC452. my concern of course would be its greater age and the possibility of an expensive rebuild in its future. Is the older (MC2600, MC500) McIntosh superior in build quality? What about sonically? Of those two, I would lean towards the MC500. With all the new iron & glass scheduled to come out of Binghamton these days there should be some deals floating around on older gear in the coming months.
On the positive side we had a great long weekend in Boston and Maine!!
 
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