Conrad Johnson Premier 350 ss vs Premier 140 tube

Pops

I see that the Mcintosh is a sloid state piece. I went to their website and it looks like the c501 is a mono bloc design on a single chassis. Did you compare it to any of the Pass amps available?

Chuck

Chuck,

No I didn't, I don't have a pass dealer near me. I was so surprised when I heard the Mac's it really changed my perspective and I was a little relieved that I didn't have to compare 5, 6 or more brands to be really satisfied.

I've had a classe amp for several years so I really was leaning towards the new delta series or the CJ premier 350...until I heard the Mac's. The classe M400's sounded like the house classe signature, nice, polite, some bloom but just a little lean. There are some great reviews on the 501's and the 402, a 400 watt stereo amp. Alot of good press all over the place...FWIW.

Jerry

Chuck, they are monoblocs but not on 1 chassis if I understand you correctly. You get two 92 pound monsters.

I own the older premier 12 monoblocks and I think they are simply magical!

Jerry

Yes those are massive amps. The problem is my racking /entertainment center configuration doesn't give me any space for mon-blocs. Plus my wife isn't to accepting of this hobby and having large monblocs sitting on the floor would not appeal to her. Even the 140 is going to cause issues that I would have to address as it creates a lot of heat and needs good ventilation. The 350 would be much easier for me as it would simply sit were my 2500 does today. And I don't believe there are any heat issues with the 350 there certainly isn't with my 2500.

I agree with the other posters concerning the beauty of the older (now discontined) premier monoblocs. I loved my premier 11 and I am sure the 12's and the 8's for that matter were even better.

Chuck