Recent content by mcdonalk

Many discussions, if not some entire forums here, could easily be replaced with a posting at a top level to the effect: 1) All competently designed DAC's sound the same (and even some that are not so competently designed). 2) All competently designed amplifiers sound the same. 3) All...

I replaced my 30-year-old Mark Levinson #333 stereo amplifier (150lbs.) with a pair of AHB2's (2 x 12.5lbs). The AHB2's sound better, at least so far. I can't prove it, though. You'll have to take my word for it. I'm not sure what to do with the ML333. I can't fling it around like I used to do.

About 6 months ago, I went to see an ENT specialist for a matter not related to my hearing. At the office, I was intercepted by an audiologist who attempted to guide me to a small chamber for a hearing test. When I caught on, I refused the test. Why, he asked? Because, I explained, one of my...

Nice carburetors. Attached Picture is an Absolute Requirement. Nice astrolabes. " Nice iceboxes. " Nice sundials. " Nice carbon zinc batteries. " Nice FM tuners. " And so on.

I normally prefer to eschew nostalgia, so excuse my uncharacteristic shameless reminiscing about how I came to possess a Magnavox CDB-650 CD player, which I still have. You may want to skip this; there's no science, and it is not about the CDB-460. Back in 1987, I had just read the rhapsodic...

re: line preamplifiers: Will a Bryston BR-20 or Benchmark HPA4 sound better than my existing Proceed (Madrigal) PRE (circa 1996)? re: power amplifiers: Will a Bryston 4B3 sound better than my existing Mark Levinson 333 amplifier (circa 1996)? (I am not considering a Benchmark AHB2 because it...

Fortunately or unfortunately (depending on one's point of view), there's only one product that will meet my DAC preferences. These preferences are: 1) >/= 2 optical "toslink" inputs 2) HDMI for SACD playback from external transport 3) native DSD processing with no DoP transport layer 4) decent...

I had been wondering whether my 30-year-old amplifier could be improved upon with a more modern design. A friend suggested a Pass amp, and here is the edited (for brevity) email reply to his recommendation: "The specifications for our speakers recommend an amplifier in the range of 125-250...

I have a Mark Levinson 333 power amplifier. The specification for the remote interface is for an input pulse of positive 3-12DCV for a minimum of 100ms to toggle the unit between active and standby states. An input pulse of much longer duration powers down the amplifier entirely. This has...

For the first time in over 40 years, I have bought three new vinyl pressings (because the music was only alternately available as mp3 downloads). Do I need to clean this new vinyl before listening to them? I never used to clean new vinyl in the old days. thanks

The efficacy of using the AHB2 in mono mode driving a speaker with a 4ohm impedance was not clear to me from this review. The review briefly discussed this configuration and the low distortion associated with it, and continued to note that the speaker protection switched in and shut the output...

Benefits of an autoformer aside, it appears McIntosh is not for me. I was in a local dealer a few months ago and asked about an MC462. They did not have one on on display, would not make any arrangement for me to hear one before purchasing, and they did not support a home audition period. The...

"This" is how I find things discussed throughout this forum more than any other audio forum that I visit.

Recently, when announcing to a relative my intent to use a recently-purchased Spin-Clean Record Washer on some LP's, of which I am the original owner and which have not been played in decades, her reply was, “If you’ve always handled them correctly, and stored them in their sleeves, why do you...

Cursory research has indicated that Bacch might not be good for me. When I first heard about this a few days ago, I quickly became very interested. Furthermore, when initial investigation revealed that a trusted audio professional with whom I had successfully done business before was the...