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McIntosh MC275 vs Conrad Johnson Premier 11A

Hello
I have a pair of Gallo Nucleus Reference speakers (the original version not the reference 3). I have been driving them with a Spectron Digital one amplifier. Last week I had the chance to try an old Mcintosh MC240 with my speakers and I think the sound was very sweet. Now I am considering get a tube amplifier. Any suggestions for a tube amp no more than $2K in the used market. I was looking at the McIntosh MC275 and the Conrad Johnson premier 11A. They are around 75 watts and are within my price range. The speakers are 4 ohms 90db/W/m. The rest of the system: Audible Illusions M3A preamp, Sony SACD/CD player and Sota Turntable. I listen mostly classical music and Jazz. Any suggestions will be appreciated.
fernando68
steelhead
318 posts
 
I'll chime in. I have a SOTA turntable and Sony SACD player so our front ends our similar. I think either will fit your needs although my chair time in front of Mac tube equip was limited and a fair number of years ago. I own the premier 11a and it is a wonderful amp. Rock solid reliable and fairly robust. I used it to drive Martin Logans which was not ideal for the amp and it never whimpered although my dynamics were compromised. I still have it but bi-amp now with a heaven hell setup. I want to progress to monoblocks in the future (probably 12's). I lugged it over to a buddy who wanted to try tubes and he was floored (He has Maggie 3.6's). He ended up with Cary V12 monoblocks (superb, beautiful amps). So enough rambling, I think either are solid picks. The 11a for sale now (I have no affliation with the seller) but the price seems very reasonable and I have owned a 11a for over 8 years without a hiccup and have used a slew of different tubes to "tailor" the sound.
czbbcl's avatar
czbbcl
1,752 posts
 
I listened awhile back to a MAC 70wpc tubed integrated driving a pair of parasound speakers; the front end was a pioneer elite sacd player. I used to own a premier 11a amp driving a pair of thiel 3.6's and comparing the two the MAC was not as involving as the cj. Of course different electronics different enviroment so it is a little hard to directly compare the two house sounds. Having said that the music just seems to have more life with the cj as compared to the MAC. Nothing against MAC equipment it is very well build and good looking to boot but just doesn't appeal to me sonically. I sold my 11a to a friend of mine and I am still sorry I sold it. Great Amp.
quincy
356 posts
 
Ha Ha Ha! This is the evil twin who purchased the Premier 11A from czbbcl! Yes, it is a great amp. Build quality is to military specs. I found it, over time, a tad soft/loose in the base region. I now bi-amp with a CJ MF2250 in tandem with the 11A, with the 2250 running the low end. Matter of fact I am right now blasting my 17LS (czbbcl's as well!) at 55, listening to a old Roxie Music LP. Audio Nurvana....and no, you can't have them back!
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