McCormack DNA 125

@soix -

Hey @gdnrbob who are you? Were you part of the CJ/McCormack partnership?

Nope, Just a rather regular customer until I switched to zero feedback amps.

Though I will say that upgrading any of the original amps will result in better performance as the newer parts are better than the original.-Especially so considering those amps are over 20 years old now.

Steve and Pat learned a lot with the upgrade path and continually introduce new parts that they find to give improved sound.

@OP, I don't know why you couldn't phone them, but sometimes the lines get messed up. I suggest emailing them if you can't phone. 

Bob

@soix Synergy was the first aspect I talked about it just didn’t make to the snippet you used here. But regardless…
Think about this…the stock 0.5, 125 and 225 sounded amazing, the X250.5 fit right in. However the modded 225 didn’t gel with the rest of my gear, my room and my ears. You can definitely stick to your guns and call the smc mods an improvement.
I call the modded amp colored, no longer neutral, and with a hump in the presence region that was very fatiguing. It didn’t show anymore of the character of my speakers or any other component. There’s no reason to screw around with a perfectly seasoned dish. But that’s what those mods did. 
There may be systems and listeners that can benefit from this type of sonic change, without a doubt.

I still consider DNA-225 in its stock form to be one the best amps I ever owned though. Totally loved it. 
 

I in New Jersey if you want to upgrade the amp or discuss.

@bigkidz  Following this thread because I have a DNA-1 amp and thinking of doing the SMC update.  Is this something you’ve done or are familiar with?  I’m also in Jersey.  Thanks.

My DNA-1 is my go to amp and still sounds great.  That said, it’s older than my adult sons so probably time to swap out caps and new board. Toying with the idea of going with something new but good to hear others have had good experience with SMC.

@nymarty - Very familiar with.  Swap out power supply capacitors, upgrade resistors to higher values is also a good idea.  You can also try V-Caps and I can let you hear amps that have them.