2. speakers
  3. 1217517994

McIntosh MC402 or MC501's for Totem Mani-2

Hello All,

I am currently in the process of putting together my McIntosh system consisting of a C2300 pre, MCD301 and either the MC402 or MC501's to power Totem Mani-2 Sigs. Would it be worth the extra dough to add the additional 100 watts for the mani's? I emailed Totem a while back and they stated that they had paired the 402 with the Mani's with outstanding results. I really dont want to spend the extra money unless the 501's would be a big step up. Based on my listening experience with other speakers with these amps I don't see the need for the 501's. However I have not had a chance to hear the Mani's with the 501's and I know they like power. Any comments or suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

Luke
ltecyclist
pops
2,278 posts
 
I agree with Arthur....I have the 501's and compared them to the 402. Both were excellent sounding amps, the 501's had just a little more presence in the midrange area but they were really close. I chose 501's because I really wanted monoblocks and I drive Thiels so I wanted as much power as I could muster under 10K.

The 501's love Kimber 8TC, don't know if it's the size of the guage or not but they sound better on my system than many others I've tried.
kirkus
502 posts
 
I borrowed some MC501s when they came out, and compared them to my stereo MC500. The biggest difference by far was how much easier the monos are to move! Splitting up the weight into two chassis meant that I could easily move them myself . . . and that was always an issue for the ten years that I owned the MC500.
pops
2,278 posts
 
Kirkus, I can't imagine moving an amp any heavier than the 501's! You must have scar tissue in your back!

The problem for one is the amps are like boulders, compact with no handles to grip.
kirkus
502 posts
 
You're right about the size thing . . . something that's small and heavy seems to cause one to underestimate the weight, which is a big part of throwing out your back.

But this is a major reason why I left the pro sound business many years ago. One rig I worked with on occasion was big horn-loaded speaker arrays run by a quad of McIntosh MC2500s, with a heavy old Midas board . . . and for some reason it was always used in second-floor clubs that had no elevator. Great-sounding system, though.

A good chiropractor is definately a godsend.
More to discover