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Monos, Stereo or Multi-Ch for HT and Music

Hi all,

Longtime lurker, first time poster.  Always found this forum very informative.  

I have just purchased a Lyngdorf MP-60 at a greatly reduced price and am going to make it the centerpiece of my home theater that hopefully also does music well.  Presently, I have Focal Electra towers, center and surrounds, but these will be upgraded to Utopia Stellas, Viva and Diablos.

Firstly, has anyone heard the Lyngdorf for music?  Does it perform as well as, say, an integrated (or pre) and dac made more specifically for music?

More importantly, how to power all of this?  I've been considering McIntosh but am open to other suggestions.  Would McIntosh be a good match for the above components?  Also, what combination of monos, stereo and multi-channel (tube or solid state) would be an optimal balance between HT and music?  Here are some options:

MC462 for towers, MC303 for center/surrounds

MC2301 or MC611 for towers, MC303 for center/surrounds

I think many would say I should use MC303 for the towers and center for consistency, but I was hoping to move up a step for the towers to optimize their use for music.  Also, in the case of MC2301, is it a bad idea to mix tubes with solid state?  Again, I'm also open to other brands.

 

Any ideas would be greatly appreciated!

dlblumberg
soix
9,348 posts
 

I’d try the MP-60 for 2-channel audio and see how it works out. Although I’m a purist and would prefer incorporating a separate stereo pre and DAC, I’ve found Lyngdorf’s room correction can make very positive contributions to the overall sound that could ultimately make it fine for stereo and certainly worth a try before dumping big $$$ on separates. As for the amps, it really depends on what sound characteristics you’re looking for, so if you can share that info you’ll get much better and more meaningful recommendations for amps here. Many people like Mac amps, and many (like me) don’t so personal taste looms large.  But the first question would be if is your priority 2-channel or HT, because that can drive which amp configuration makes the most sense. 

deep_333
1,230 posts
 

Stay with the Lyngdorf. It's feature set will save you in execution for music as well.

If you care more about sonics, get 5 Schiit Tyr monoblocks for L/C/R and Surrounds... or 3 monoblocks for L/C/R and a Schiit Vidar 2 Class A for the Surrounds.

Be proud of the Schiit.

dlblumberg OP
4 posts
 

Hi Soix,

The Focal speakers, with the beryllium tweeter, can be somewhat bright if not matched well.  So, the main reason I'm looking at the Macs is I've always thought they were considered to be on the warm side of neutral.  Also, they should have enough current to deliver a rich, full bass.

Basically, I'm looking for amplification to drive a not so easily driven speaker that also balances out the speaker's beryllium tweeter.   HT vs music is probably 60/40.

 

Thanks again.

soix
9,348 posts
 

What are you driving the speakers with now?  If you’re planning on upgrading the speakers in the near future I’d wait on the amps to get something that mates well with them.  Also, if you find the Focal tweeters on the bright side, have you considered upgrading to something else that doesn’t require you to buy amps to tame the tweeters?  There are certainly plenty of other options from the likes of Magico, Wilson, Sonus Faber, Vandersteen, etc. that may be worth considering.  Just some thoughts FWIW.

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