MA6100 with power-hungry speakers???

[Junknewbian]

I am drooling about finally getting some McIntosh gear.

Will a MA-6100 reciever provide enough power for some greedy speakers? My Nestorovic 5AS speakers seem to crave power even at low volumes. Am I imagining something? Is there any risk to the amp or speakers driving power-hungry speakers with a 75W McIntosh 6100?

Please let me know before I make any mistakes.

 

[Junknewbian]

Normally I refrain from bumping my own posts, because if no one has any comments, so be it.

But I am going to look at the Mac 6100 with MR74 tuner in the morning and I would love to have another opinion to go on. By the way, they are one owner since new in 1978, and mint, with walnut cabinets, and were professionally re-checked and re-spec'd in 2007.

Price isn't really an issue, as with Mac stuff you can almost always sell it for what you paid.

Matching it with my speakers is the concern. I know these are rare speakers so not too many people will know about them exactly, but I'm hoping someone will give a little general direction to go on.

Also they come with Hartley Zod 77 speakers, which were apparently pretty high-end, but again, are little-known.

Any comments are appreciated.

 

[skippy_ps]

I don't know anything about those speakers but if they have domed tweeters, you can easily burn them up sending a clipped signal to them. That is, playing them loud enough that the sound is distorted.

The reason you didn't get any responses is that there isn't an answer, based on the information provided.

Murray

 

[Junknewbian]

Thanks Murray. I wan't aware that I wasn't offering enough info. The tweeters are leaf tweeters. I don't blast my music ever, really, but I do turn it up to nearly 12 O'clock occasioanlly. A while back I was playing a little loud when using a Luxman 100W/channel amp. The fuse blew in the amp - is that a problem with matching (speakers trying to get too much from that amp), or was that more likely a problem with the amp?

 

[MOPAR3]

I did a search and checked out your speakers. I really like the looks of them. If you are running out of power with a 100 watt amp then 75watts is not gonna be any better. If I had those speakers I would hit them with at least 200 watts. Then maybe bridge a pair of amps and see what they do.

 

[MOPAR3]

With a 4 way design those speakers need a fairly high current amp. I saw a 91db sensitivity rating which isn't that bad.

 

[Junknewbian]

With a 4 way design those speakers need a fairly high current amp. I saw a 91db sensitivity rating which isn't that bad.

Yeah I saw that 91dB rating the other day too, and made me think maybe high watts isn't the only consideration. The specs also say they're good with anything up to 300W, but doesn't give a minimum amount of watts required.

It did sound great with the 100W Luxman, it just blew the fuse when I tried to go louder than 1 O'Clock. I shut it down, didn't try it again, and switched amps. Right now I'm using a Kenwood 700M (175W/channel). Again, it sounds great, but I haven't had the need to crank it up loud lately, and I'm a little scared to blow anything in the 700M.

I've always wished for McIntosh gear, but I'll be pretty shy about turning it up - I'll be very very careful.

 

[MOPAR3]

The Mc will drive the speakers thats for sure. But you may run out of power and still want more. I like to listen to music at fairly realistic levels like you would hear it played live. I have large full range speakers and a few over 200 watt amps to power them. Your speakers look to be really capable but with out the power to push them they won't work to their potential. The Mc if priced right will be a good investment you wont loose money but they may not be the best match for your speakers.

 

[Junknewbian]

The mac gear is pretty much full-price, but it's mint, reconditioned, with accessories and speakers.

Still, I hear you. The speakers are what I listen to, and if they are not powered well enough - what goes in is what comes out. With the equipment I've had the opportunity to hear, I believe that, like you, my personal taste runs towards having more than enough power at your disposal.

But then with a 91dB sensitivity, and all those reports of guys running 5 - 15 watts with tubes, I wonder what is the right mix. I'll never know until I try them all I guess.

Still I'm not sure I'll sleep if I let this set of McIntosh pass me by.

 

[John James]

When McIntosh tells you 75 watts you can be sure it is a little more than that. I say give it a try. If you need more power you can get your money back (or most of it) by selling and move up the chain a little.

 

[whoaru99]

Yeah I saw that 91dB rating the other day too, and made me think maybe high watts isn't the only consideration. The specs also say they're good with anything up to 300W, but doesn't give a minimum amount of watts required.

It did sound great with the 100W Luxman, it just blew the fuse when I tried to go louder than 1 O'Clock. I shut it down, didn't try it again, and switched amps. Right now I'm using a Kenwood 700M (175W/channel). Again, it sounds great, but I haven't had the need to crank it up loud lately, and I'm a little scared to blow anything in the 700M.

I've always wished for McIntosh gear, but I'll be pretty shy about turning it up - I'll be very very careful.

There isn't any "minimum" required power for speakers. If there was, virtually all of us would have damaged our speakers playing at low volume levels that typically require maybe a watt, often less.

A key point to remember is that volume control position is NOT indicative of actual power output. Just because the volume is at 12 o'clock does not typically mean you're at about 50% power. All depends on the gain structure of the preamp section, power amp section, and input signal level.

Those two amps you're currently using should be decent units, so, as good as McIntosh is, I personally think you'd be unsatisfied with the performance based on what you're saying.

 

[mrz80]

If you're bound and determined to go with Mc, I'd say look for the MC2250 or 2255 - 250wpc into 1,2,4 or 8 ohms. The two amps are pretty much identical internally; the 2250 doesn't have the black glass or big blue meters of the 2255. The key feature here is the PowerGuard circuit, which'll protect your tweeters from potentially lethal clipping induced DC.

 

[MOPAR3]

Don't feel like you have to buy this Mc gear there's plenty of it out there. Another deal will come along. I'll second the recomendation of 2250/2255. It has the Mc sound and delivers plenty of power. But Mc is not the be all end of equipment there's plenty of as good or better gear out there.