McIntosh vs. Accuphase

Kiza, you seem to have a fair bit of confidence about the Luxman L505U outclassing the MA7000. This is the second thread today where you have said that. This is a bit surprising as just yesterday you asked another thread about whether it beat the McIntosh MA6500 (a far older model).

Luxman L 505 U Integrated Amplifier
HI to Everyone
I am intending to buy LUXMAN L505U from Japan. I will also
need Step Up Power Converter. Which one is good or I can buy any. Does it going to affect sound or internal parts.
Does somebody have experience with the electronics from Japan.
Also, is it true that L505U sound much better than
McIntosh MA6500
Thanks in advance for any comment.
Kiza (Threads | Answers)

02-26-09

Am I missing something? Or is the 6500 that much better than the 6800, the following 6900, and now the 7000, that there is a debate?

I don't know if this matters now but here goes it just in case:

We auditioned in a head-to-head comparison (for what it's worth) a McIntosh MA7000 (based on the MC252 amp) and the Accuphase E550. They were fed by a Meridian G08 and powered Avalon Ascendants.

We listened to the Accuphase first. I had always been curious about their amps. Immediately it seemed very very detailed and dynamic. After several different tracks though, it came across as fairly dry and the soundstage was very focused but also rather small. Some of my music wasn't as much fun to listen to as it usually is. Everything happened between the speakers and the imaging wasn't grounded, suffering from "talking head" syndrome. I was kind of bummed after all the fanfare the dealer made over this amp.

So then we swapped in the brawny MA7000. Wow, what a change! The soundstages became huge, to the point of being realistic sounding, the imaging was palpable, the musicians were very well laid out in that space and it all sounded so natural. Music just poured out of the speakers with remarkable coherence and clarity. We thought it was fantastic. It made it seem that the only reason the dealer loved the Accuphase so much is because it costs thousands of dollars more. Otherwise there was simply no justification in our opinion.

Of course personal tastes play a huge role in a subjective decision.

Having said all that, I still want to try an Accuphase (Class A) amp in my own system one day to see if it was a fluke or if indeed the Accuphase amps are "dry."

But from what we heard that day, in that system, if you want obvious detail, the E550 is better and if you want music, the MA7000 is the winner. They are not similar sounding at all.

Arthur

I have heard Accuphase amps and owned an Accuphase pre for a while. I agree with your thinking that your experience is far from the typical impression of the Accuphase house sound and may have been a "fluke".

Aball in your review you say the Ascendants are powered?

Actually I've talked to a former owner who felt like me that the Accuphase amps can sound a bit dry. But everyone is different.

The Ascendants were powered by the amplifiers I speak of.