accuphase compare to mcintosh

07-08-11: Audiofeil
>>07-08-11: Inna
Michael Fremer says Ypsilon preamp is the best there is<<

So what.

He gets one vote like everybody else.

Not that I agree one way or another with anything that MF has to say, but I would say that not all votes are created equal. Listening to many pieces of equipment over many years is a valuable part of having one's opinion matter more - in theory; though it does leave open the question of whether you have the same listening tastes and preferences, but all things being equal, depth of experience and exposure does lend more weight to a person's opinion. In fact I value your opinion to the extent that you have many years of experience with various pieces of gear --- that is worth something.

S#*t, and I thought my stereo sounded good.

What is better, hospital grade or NASA grade, I want the very best this world can offer. My power receptacles say hospital grade, but I'm not sure they sound better - though they may save me from an unfortunate accident of there is too much oxygen in the room.

It is interesting that in two long conversations about all things regarding amplifiers with two great amp makers both said the thing is really about great circuit design with particular boutique parts being a distant second, it simply was not part of what they considered critical to their designs. Of course reliable parts that hold specifications is important, but not sure you need NASA requirements to get that. Might not hurt, but the NASA thing, for audio applications, sound more like it is coming from the marketing department than the engineering department.

Sounds like OP might have to actually listen to both to know which he would prefer, and that could be very dependent on the speaker and room used. Both are obvioulsy fine pieces of equipment.